It's heartbreaking to write this, but Lawrenceville just made a national list of “Least Romantic Cities.”
The social media site Foursquare rendered the sad verdict after crunching numbers from cities with at least 100,000 check-ins last year -- that’s the nifty function where you broadcast your every move before you get around to tweeting it three seconds later. Cities with the most check-ins at places like French restaurants, wine bars, flower shops, lingerie boutiques and jewelers were declared most romantic. That list included Lake Buena Vista, Fla.; Napa and Venice, Calif.; St. Louis and New York.
Cities tagged least romantic included Beaverton, Ore.; Bethlehem, Penn;, Sterling Heights, Mich.; West Chester, Penn. -- and poor old Lawrenceville, the Gwinnett County seat.
Well.
Memo to Foursquare: Did y'all count check-ins from the Gwinnett Historic Courthouse, where Gwinnett Magistrate Court judges will perform free wedding or vow renewal ceremonies from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Valentine's Day? Mmm hmm, didn't think so.
"It’s an exciting opportunity to be part of a really special day for folks," Chief Magistrate George Hutchinson said of the annual event. Last year Gwinnett magistrates presided over 85 Valentine's Day ceremonies. In 2010, they performed none. (Hold your horses, Foursquare! Valentine's was on a Sunday that year, and the courthouse was closed.) In 2009, when Valentine's Day fell on a Saturday and magistrate court was open fewer hours than on a weekday, there were 43 ceremonies. In 2008, there were 81. If you'd like to bulk up this year's stats, call 770-822-8081 or e-mail George.Hutchinson@gwinnettcounty.com.
For yet more data to combat Foursquare's, we checked in, so to speak, with the Gwinnett County Probate Court. The county issued 5,218 marriage licenses in 2009, 5,390 in 2010 and 5,721 last year. That's a 9.6 percent surge in happy ever afters over the past three years. And the Aurora Theatre, originally located in Duluth, opened at its current location off the Lawrenceville Square in 2007. There were 2,000 season ticket holders then and 3,100 today, a 55 percent spike in people who love theater, and maybe even each other. The Aurora, where "A Body of Water" plays through Sunday, is gearing up for its annual Valentine's Day concert, planned for 8:30 p.m. Tuesday. Tickets are $22.50 at www.auroratheatre.com or call 678-226-6222 for information.
Aurora associate producer Ann-Carol Pence sounded sort of miffed at the Foursquare dis.
"We moved to the county seat so we could create the perfect date night," she said. "I don't know how having a great dinner and play is not a romantic date night."
And don't tell Cindy Pitts Gilbert that Lawrenceville isn't for lovers. The owner of The Singin' Bean, a karaoke coffee house on the town square, met husband Donald Gilbert when his Lawrenceville business created a sign for hers in 2003. In 2005, they tied the knot on the Lawrenceville Square and held the reception at the coffee shop.
"We gave invitations to all the merchants on the square," said Gilbert, noting other love stories besides her own. "We have had several customers get engaged here. Somebody got engaged during the middle of ‘I Got You Babe' on karaoke night. I can’t believe we’re known as the least romantic place."
We can't, either.
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