SALT LAKE CITY — After a tumultuous year, most recently capped by another director parting ways with the Utah Pride Center, plans are still underway for the Pride Festival and Parade in June.
In a press conference Wednesday, Chad Call was introduced as the Pride Center's newest Executive Director.
Call was previously named interim executive director when Ryan Newcomb stepped down in late March. Call was never employed by the center before stepping into his current role, but volunteered in a "high capacity" for many years, he said.
"The queer community is my community," he said in part. "This organization is something that has meant a lot to me over the years."
Call, as well as two other full-time employees and one contracted worker of the Utah Pride Center, will lead this year's festival and parade on June 1 and 2.
The theme for the festivities is "CommUNITY - Building Unity Within The Community," which nods to uniting all local LGBTQ+ organizations "under one rainbow" through the event.
Call hinted at a new event during the festival this year, where local organizations will be able to table at no cost, sharing future event details and other information about their organizations.
The changes in the festival come after frustrations last year that the festival was focused on large corporations and profit.
Another change guests will notice at this year's event is the performers.
Call said in 2023, a budget of more than $500,000 was used to outsource performances during the event. This year, local Utah performers will be selected, greatly reducing costs to roughly $70,000 in total.
Undoubtedly, Call is stepping into the Utah Pride Center after months of tumultuous times. In August, the center suddenly shut down and laid off a large portion of its staff due to "massive financial turmoil."
While the center had more than 20 full-time employees in 2023, now there are three full-time employees, including Call, and one contracted worker.
Call said future staffing arrangements would largely rely on the performance of the festival this year, but he does not foresee the center reaching previous staffing levels.
Saying the center is working off a "leaner and more sustainable" model, Call explained financial stability is one of the main goals as they return to a "fiscally responsible model."
An audit is still underway to determine exactly what happened last year, Call said. As soon as the audit is complete, an executive summary will be released with the findings.
The Utah Pride Festival has come under scrutiny with feedback saying the festival was centered around big corporations and making a profit.
In response, several other Pride-centered events have begun to take root in Utah, with one event "SLC Pride" taking place at The Gateway during the last weekend of June.
Tickets will be sold at the event for $20, but can be purchased ahead of time, online, for $15. Entry for children between the ages of three and 11 is $5 with a pre-purchased ticket.
Despite the changes and the rocky road over the last year, Call said parade entries have been on pace with previous years and they expect roughly the same turnout.
