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Augusta Teen Center volunteers help city staffers Monday with the annual repainting of the rainbow crosswalks on Oak Street in downtown Augusta. The group, along with Augusta Public Works staff, refreshed the paint on the crosswalks on Oak Street intersections with Water and Commercial streets beside the teen center. The city has been painting the two colorful crosswalks in June for the last several years in honor of Pride Month. (Joe Phelan/Staff Photographer)

In 2023, a new crosswalk decoration policy was endorsed by Augusta city councilors after a downtown business owner expressed concerns that the city is not perceived by some as welcoming to the LGBTQ+ community.

Cony students also told city councilors LGBTQ+ youth need to know Augusta supports them.

Since then, a group of volunteers and city staff show up at the beginning of June every year to repaint the crosswalks on Oak Street using colors of the rainbow in honor of Pride Month.

Volunteers from the Augusta Teen Center help out city staffers with the annual repainting of the rainbow crosswalks Monday June 1, 2026 on Oak Street in downtown Augusta. The group along with Augusta Public Works staffers refreshed the colors on the crosswalks on Oak Street intersections with Water and Commercial Streets beside the Augusta Teen Center. The city has been painting those two colorful crosswalks in June for the last several years in honor of Pride Month. (Joe Phelan/Staff Photographer) Purchase this image

Joe Phelan is an award winning journalist who makes photos and videos around the capital area for the the Kennebec Journal, Morning Sentinel and the other Masthead Maine publications. Joe’s first journalism...

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