The law that the council approved does not allow for short-term rentals of residences, like those listed on Airbnb or VRBO. The council also set penalties for people found to be listing their homes for short-term tenants. A first warning would cost $1,500, which would increase to $3,000 at the second warning, a third warning would incur a fine of $5,000. The law also allows the city to request data from websites for short-term rental listings for enforcement reasons.
Advocacy organization Patoka Valley AIDS Community Action Group first held the Pride fest in 2023 in the town's public square without incident. It drew about 200 attendees. The next year, however, following the election of a new mayor and council members, the town passed a burdensome ordinance that effectively overturned prior approval of the group's 2024 permit request. The group refiled its application in compliance with the new rules, but that permit request was ignored. A subsequent lawsuit by the group changed city officials' minds; the permit request was approved, and the Pride fest was on for a second year. Attendance grew to about 350 people, according to court documents.
