History

1988 Frankfurt gay groups came together to plan Switchboard as a replacement for the former gay centre (Mercatorstraße), and was founded together with the AHF. The keys were handed over on 31 July. This is followed by a major renovation, which is carried out by volunteers. The official opening is celebrated on 24 September. A centre by gays for gays is created. The plenum of the Frankfurt gay groups and the positive meeting of the AHF meet here.

1991 The ‘Homosolidarität’ demonstration ended with a street party in front of Switchboard.

1992 The first extension of the basement rooms began.

1994 Switchboard invited people to the first ‘cruising night’. Safer sex workshops were offered and the establishment of a bed exchange provided an additional service.

1995 Switchboard could not use the basement rooms until further notice due to an intervention by the public order office of the city of Frankfurt. The group meetings and the ‘cruising nights’ could, therefore, no longer take place.

1997 The Licher brewery is won as a contractual partner. After renovation and installation of a ventilation system, the basement rooms are again approved for use as conference rooms. A concept is created to develop the Switchboard as a gay centre with a focus on communication, information, prevention and counselling.

1998 The smaller house behind the bar, which until then had been used by AHF's ‘Stricherproject KISS’ (a project for gay male sex workers), was converted into a group room. During the second conversion of the room, the counter was moved from the middle of the room to the back area, the suspended ceilings were taken out and the steel beams were exposed. The kitchen was completely renovated.

1999 The info area in the switchboard got a staffed terminal.

2000 The idea of a gay centre took concrete shape; the ‘GG36: Rat und Tat für Schwule’ (AG36: Advice & Action for Gays) was launched.

2001 Switchboard recorded declining visitor numbers and is forced to question its strategy for the future.

2002 The Beat Club party series started and became a brilliant success. The third redesign of Switchboard began, with new furniture, as well as a new room and lighting design.

2003 Switchboard again registered rising visitor numbers and welcomed new bar staff to the team. Monday, formerly a day of rest, was declared a youth café and organised independently by Our Generation.

2004 The courtyard group room was renovated with a screen and video beamer.

2006 The guest room was given a new coat of paint.  An information centre in the basement met the information requirements of a gay centre. Numerous materials and free internet terminals were then available to guests.

2007 Switchboard continued the tradition of the first cruising nights with two ‘Richtig-Ficken-Parties’ (Real Fuck Parties).

2008 The kitchen wing was completely renovated.

2009 A meeting place for the 60-plus generation opened in Switchboard; Café Karussell offers a varied programme with coffee and cake.

2010 Saw the launch of the MainTest, a counselling and testing service for HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.

2011 The Offene Bühne is brought to life: from this point onwards, the stars and starlets of the cabaret scene have had the opportunity to present their previously undiscovered talents.

2012 The Switch-Kultur programme took shape and became a real crowd puller. The hessenESSEN with their regional focus enriches the menu for the first time.

2013 The 25th anniversary was celebrated. Thanks to donations from guests as part of Switch-Kultur, the new courtyard garden was opened.

2014 The group rooms were modernised and the lounge redesigned.

2015 The renovation of the entire Switchboard and the redesign of the mourning corner took place.

2018 Was a year of big celebrations as Switchboard turned 30 years young!

2020 The renovation of the entire Switchboard including the garden took place. Covid-19 forced us to close Switchboard over several months.

2021 At the beginning of the year, Switchboard was still closed due to Covid-19. Due to the new corporate design of the AHF, Switchboard also got a new design for external communications. The outdated Switchboard homepage is discontinued. The content is moved to the AHF homepage.