Same-sex marriages not noticed in local economy

By Lauren Buchanan and Lauren Dargay

More than two months have passed since the United States Supreme Court struck down state bans on same-sex marriage, but, for Kent resident Tracy Foreman, “it still, in some ways, doesn’t seem real.”

Foreman and her partner of 30 years, Sandy Dettis, were among the initial rush of Portage County couples who got married following the Supreme Court’s decision to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide on June 26. Foreman and Dettis got married nine days after the ruling. Three same-sex couples obtained marriage licenses from the Portage County Courthouse on June 26, and Streetsboro mayor Glenn Broska officiated a wedding for two women soon after the decision was announced.

According to Dr. Swathi Ravichandran, coordinator of Kent State’s Hospitality Management program, that steady stream of same-sex weddings wasn’t surprising. It happened across the country after the Supreme Court ruling, and it also happened previously, when same-sex marriage was being legalized in individual states. In those states, couples rushed to get married, and “there was this initial boost for a few months, and then it kind of evened out,” Dr. Ravichandran said. “But there was that initial boost in businesses and all the supplemental businesses that serve the wedding industry.”

Nationwide, a boost in business from same-sex weddings could generate serious profits for an already booming industry. Even before marriage equality in the United States, the American wedding industry brought in between $51 billion and $55 billion every year. According to data published by the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law, same-sex marriage has the potential to increase that annual profit by more than $2 million.

“You might think for an industry that’s worth $51 billion to $55 billion annually, $2.5 million may be a drop in the bucket,” Dr. Ravichandran said, “but if you bring it down to the level of the local communities, we’re talking potentially hundreds of thousands of dollars of impact.”

Portage County businesses might not feel that impact, though, because the initial rush of same-sex marriages in the county has already died down. In the 70 days following the Supreme Court’s decision, only 15 more same-sex couples filed for marriage licenses in Portage County. Only one additional couple inquired about being married by Broska, and no other Portage County mayors were even asked to officiate same-sex weddings. Based on trends seen in other states, Dr. Ravichandran does not expect the number of same-sex marriages in Portage County to increase significantly in the coming months.

One possible factor behind the low number of same-sex marriages in Portage County is location.  Bigger cities like Cleveland and Akron are relatively close. “People who are living in this community may be choosing to get married in larger areas,” Dr. Ravichandran said. Larger cities provide couples with better access to hotels and airports for out-of-town guests, as well as more venue and vendor options.

Libby Trimble, secretary at Kent Floral Company, said a man purchased a boutonniere for his partner at the flower shop, but the business has not created floral arrangements for any same-sex weddings. Trimble said Kent Floral’s location might have an influence on the lack of business from same-sex couples, but she thinks the size of weddings plays a larger role. “I would guess that a lot of same-sex couples don’t have large wedding ceremonies, but I think a lot of them go to courthouses or do something small with family,” Trimble said.

When Foreman and Dettis got married on July 5, they decided not to have a big wedding. Instead, they had a small ceremony officiated by a friend. The ceremony took place in their friend’s backyard, and the only guests were the couple’s three children.

Most of the local same-sex couples Foreman and Dettis are friends with chose the same route. “Everybody we know, they basically did the same thing that we did,” Dettis said.  “They had a small ceremony with just their kids and then had a big party.”

Although Portage County businesses haven’t felt much of an impact from the Supreme Court’s June 26 decision, same-sex couples definitely have. Foreman and Dettis are hosting a party in early October to celebrate their marriage with family and friends, but sometimes it’s hard for them to believe they’re legally wed. They have constant reminders, though, like being able to check the “Married” box on forms at the doctor’s office. “Those little things just seem pretty amazing,” Foreman said, “to be able to just say I’m married for real.”