Gay Magazine Ranks Durham in Top Places to Live

Posted 11:00 a.m. May 28, 1998 — Updated 11:00 a.m. May 28, 1998

DURHAM — Many people are attracted to the Triangle. People move here from all over. National magazines have rated Durham among the best in several categories. Now, the Bull City has made the lists of the 10 best places in the country for gays and lesbians. Fortunemagazine called Durham part of one of the best places to live in America.Redbookcalled it one of the best cities for women. Now,Out, a national magazine for gays and lesbians, rates the Durham among the nation's 10 best cities for homosexuals.

Reyn Bowman says the Durham Convention and Visitor's Bureau welcomes the ranking.

"People moving corporations, people visiting places, they want communities that reflect their workforce, and their workforces are diverse. All this ranking tells people is that this place is not going to be boring," said Bowman. Outmagazine gives high marks to the Durham County Library for publishing lesbian and gay biographies. It mentions the "Manbites Dog Theatre" for its annual "Don't Ask Don't Tell" festival.

But, the best atmosphere, according toOut, is Durham's Ninth Street. The magazine's favorite spot on Ninth is Francesca's Dessert Cafe.

"I've got no problem at all with any clientele that i serve and i hope they don't have a problem with me..we are not here just because we are gay owned we are here because we want to serve the best ice cream and pastries and coffees in the Triangle," said Francesca's owner Sherry Kinlaw.

Durham is ranked among cities like New York, San Francisco and Atlanta. In the words of Durham's Convention and Visitor's Bureau: "No matter how we got there, we're in some pretty good company." Outmagazine has a circulation of 140,000. The June issue, featuring Durham's ranking, has just hit the news stands.

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