Gay Games dismisses executive director

Gay Games dismisses executive director
By Louis Weisberg
Copyright by THe Chicago Free Press
 
With just over two months to go before Gay Games VII kicks off at Soldier Field on July 15, the event’s organizer has dismissed its executive director.

The move was part of a decision by Chicago 2006 to shift its organizational model into an “implementation” structure, according to spokesman Kevin Boyer. He said there will be a managing director, who will head a new project management team.

That position will be held by Christee Snell, who joined the board of directors about a year ago and, as head of the Gay and Lesbian Chamber of Commerce, has been actively involved with the games for more than two years. She has a background in corporate project management.

Former executive director Brian McGuinness will remain with Chicago 2006 in some capacity, according to Boyer. “We’re discussing with Brian what his role will be,” he said. “All I am permitted to say is he’s not on staff any longer.”

Boyer said the organizational change is the result of eight weeks’ planning to prepare for the event’s “execution.”
“This is a positive direction,” he said. “It takes us to the next level. We’re moving out of registration, promotion (mode) and more into a logistics and operations mode, and that required a change in the structure of the organization.”
The goal is to give Chicago 2006 a “flatter structureÉ more focused on quick execution, nimbleness and more effective cooperation between departments,” Boyer said.

The Gay Games received widespread media attention last month when it won a battle against homophobic members of the Crystal Lake Park District to hold its rowing competition in that northwestern bedroom community. Crystal Lake was a replacement venue that Chicago 2006 chose late in the planning process after its initial choice—the Chicago River at Ping Tom Park—was deemed inappropriate.

“The current there was too strong andÉ the wake that is created in a river bed reverberates back into the rowers,” Boyer said.
At this point, sites have been selected for all of the games’ events, although some contracts have yet to be inked, Boyer said.
“Every venue has been solidified,” he said. “In every case where there is no contract there is a letter of intent. There are some venues where we have chosen to wait because of pricing, pending improvementsÉ a variety of things.”
Boyer said the games have 11,000 committed registrants toward its goal of 12,000. Participants are expected from 51 countries, and paid registrations stand at 10,200, he said.

Chicago 2006 ended the first quarter this year with more than $800,000 in the bank, according to Sam Coady, board of directors co-chair. He said that’s the strongest financial position that a Gay Games event has ever been in at this point.
Chicago 2006 has booked blocks of rooms at 12 hotels at a reduced rate for event participants. Two-thirds of those rooms were taken as of last week, according to the organization’s website. Organizers are seeking volunteers to host participants in their private homes.