Illustration by Tabitha Walters
“We have a book club getting started,” Joe Halsch says. “We are working with some therapists for support groups and art. We are looking at, ‘How we can fill this space with connection?’”
Halsch is president of the Jim Toy Community Center, the LGBTQ+ community hub that operated on Braun Ct. for sixteen years, then opted not to renew its lease during the pandemic. The compound of former houses across from the Farmers Market is now being demolished to make way for Wickfield Properties’ planned seven-story condo, and the center has been virtual ever since.
Related: Jim Toy Center Reboots
But this month, the Rainbow Readers Book Club will hold its first meeting at the center’s new home at 560 S. Main St. The blue house across from the Union Rec restaurant is owned by Greyfort Development, Wickfield’s real estate holding company.
“During Covid, they were flexible and helped us stay in that space. We reconnected as they were starting to make further progress on Braun Court,” says Halsch. “They reached out and asked if we found a space. They have always been supporters. They want to continue to be supporters. We looked at different openings in their portfolio and chose this one.”
They saved up the money they had been paying in rent, and “combined with growing Pride as a fundraiser for the Center, we established a runway to be able to launch the new physical space,” he texts.
They’ll be remodeling the building “with a combination of contractors, volunteers, and part-time staff,” but aren’t waiting to move in. The immediate goal, Halsch says, is to “get the space feeling lived in. Let’s get people, groups, and decorations and do a formal open house afterward.
“The imagery of Braun Court is not lost on me, the destroying and rebuilding,” he says. “It is hard to look forward to things right now, but I believe that the queer people of Washtenaw County have something to look forward to—and I am looking forward to meeting and hopefully exceeding those expectations.”
Halsh is especially excited about joining two nearby LGBTQ+ businesses: Uplift, a new bar on S. First, and Metra! Magazine, an LGBTQ+ magazine that has been in production for more than forty years.
Related: On First St., a New LBGTQ+ Bar
