Those rainbow flag banners that hang vertically off the tops of lampposts along Market Street in the Castro? They're apparently illegal according to historic preservationists, who say that nothing but temporary banners are allowed to be attached to the poles, which are themselves designated historic structures. The metal bands attaching these small banners tend to rust, and many of these banners — which have been hanging up there for about a decade and are not to be confused with the larger rainbow flags that are hung all the way down Market in honor of Pride Month in June — are looking kind of faded and tattered these days. As a Facebook Group devoted to the matter puts it, "They are now filthy and torn and no longer express the PRIDE that our community feels." UPDATE: It's looks like most of the banners, at least along Market between Castro and Sanchez, have already come down.

Folks like these want to see the banners replaced, but efforts to do so are being blocked by the Historic Preservation Commission and the Mission Dolores Neighborhood Association, whose priority is to protect the lampposts. Supervisor Bevan Dufty is trying to craft some legislation allowing for "neighborhood banners" that could live permanently on the 321 yellow-sodium vapor lamps that line Market Street from Embarcadero to 17th Street. The Historic Preservation Commission will meet on the issue on December 15, and Dufty hopes to "strike the best balance" between saving the poles and saving the rainbows.