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Andrucki, Max J.

Geography

2004

M.A.

This thesis is an investigation into the politics of the provision of gay space as a social service by non-profit institutions in Burlington, Vermont. The project is situated primarily within the body of work in geography on sexuality and space. The research draws upon in-depth interviews, document analysis, and participant observation. Although geographers working within this sub-discipline have shown an interest in theorizing "gay space" at a variety of scales, there has been a relative lack of attention to the increase in the production and consumption of gay space under the auspices of formalized institutions which offer space itself as a primary service. Because non-profit institutions, as 501(c)(3) corporations, are heavily regulated by the Internal Revenue Code and a host of federal and state laws, spaces produced through such institutions are subjected to range of state controls. Furthermore, because of the inherent financial incentives associated with 501(c)(3) incorporation, the professionalization of organizational functions and concomitant clientization and interventionist regulation of space users have emerged as problematic trends.