Xanadu is one of Oregon’s newest LGBTQ+ bars. It also might be haunted. Per an Instagram post shared last fall, Astoria legend holds that Xanadu stands at the former location of an ice cream shop and, more recently, the Voodoo Room. Former employees of the latter say they’ve seen a male gure dressed like the ice cream shop’s owner. Now it’s a popular haunt for residents and visitors to the bustling coastal town, who enjoy cocktails named after queer historical gures like Harvey Milk and Rock Hudson, as well as LeRoy Adolphson, a longtime resident who served as the grand marshal of the second Astoria Pride festival. Xanadu opened on March next to the Columbian eater on Marine Drive and takes its name from the cult-favorite roller-disco fantasy lm starring Olivia Newton-John. Queer life has long been linked with big, coastal cities like Portland. But entrepreneurs and organizers have worked to carve out LGBTQ+ spaces in smaller cities and towns across the state. BY ANDREW JANKOWSKI FROM OREGON WITHPRIDE Scott Justus, owner of Astoria’s Xanadu JASON E. KAPLAN 34
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