Texas city council denies permit for LGBT pride event at Episcopal church
A city council in Texas denied a permit for a planned LGBT pride event at a local Episcopal church, just one year after the same event was held.
In a vote Tuesday, the Southlake City Council denied a permit request for the Pride Kel-So festival scheduled for Oct. 3 at St. Martin-in-the-Fields Episcopal Church. The resolution, which proposed a specific use permit for a mass gathering at the church, was previously recommended for approval by the Southlake Planning and Zoning Commission.
But after hearing from a handful of residents, the City Council unanimously voted to deny the permit.
Event organizer and city permit applicant April Dreyson was present for the vote, which followed comments from residents on both sides of the issue.
Rev. Ellen Singer, an associate pastor at St. Martin-in-the-Fields, said the church was “excited” to host the LGBT event as a way to “love our neighbors” as Jesus commanded.
“Our mission directly from Jesus is to love God and love our neighbors as ourselves, and our motto is to welcome everyone,” said Singer. “All are welcome. No exceptions. And that means that we open our campus to all sorts of different events.”
Singer said that mission has led the church to open its campus to a variety of community organizations and activities, including Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and Fever United Soccer Club.
“This is part of that mission for us, to host a safe and fun way to get our community together,” she said.
Singer described the 2025 Pride Kel-So event as “a great success” and said she saw no reason this year’s event would be different.
Southlake resident Paul Segal spoke about his opposition to the permit, telling council members that the previous year’s event had caused upheaval in the community.
Segal said he believed the event had increasingly taken on the character of a protest and argued that the circumstances surrounding the 2025 event should not be repeated.
“It could create a dangerous situation,” he said. “There were people who were very inflamed by the whole thing.”
He also objected to drag performers who were present at the previous festival. “I don't believe that's really representative of the value of our community and seeing these drag queens out there like last year, it was abhorrent,” Segal said. “So I am definitely against having this.”
Pride Kel-So did not respond to a request for comment from The Christian Post as of Thursday afternoon.
The event, officially titled “Pride Kel-So 2026: No One Left Behind,” was billed as a “vibrant celebration of love, diversity, and community spirit” and was scheduled to feature Sharon Herrera with “LGBTQ SAVES,” an organization that works toward “fostering safe and brave spaces” for LGBT-identified youth as young as 12 years old, according to its website.
