West Hollywood, Calif. -- On the spur of the moment, Sue Marriott and her partner, Tanya Voss, rounded up their two boys and flew here this week from Austin, Texas -- to get married.

"We decided to come when we heard the city was getting behind the effort and being so celebratory and welcoming," Ms. Marriott said.

Tuesday morning, they joined a crowd of gay and lesbian couples who had flocked to West Hollywood Park, where the city had set up a special office to issue marriage licenses.

Ms. Marriott and her family are exactly the type of visitor the city of West Hollywood is trying to attract. Since California's Supreme Court overruled a ban on same-sex marriages last month, the city has been pitching itself as the No. 1 destination for gay weddings.

Until Wednesday, when the first gay marriages were performed across the state, West Hollywood didn't issue marriage licenses. But once the ruling came down in May, the city government sought that power from Los Angeles County. Now, the city is deputizing its council members as clerks to prepare for what it hopes will be a flood of gay couples.

"We want to try to get the couples to come here because we're really ready to go," Councilman John Duran said. "We have restaurants where a gay couple holding hands is not shocking. This is a great place for them to come and feel safe."

The marriage boom may be brief. Californians will vote in November on a ballot initiative that could overturn the ruling.

In the meantime, it's summer wedding season, and the West Hollywood Marketing and Visitors Bureau has rolled out a national ad campaign aimed at same-sex couples seeking to rush down the aisle. They are also rounding up local vendors to list their wedding services on the bureau's gay travel Web site, GoGayWestHollywood.com.

San Francisco and Palm Springs also are ramping up their efforts to attract gay couples looking to get hitched. Both cities have created gay-wedding sections on their tourism Web sites to help couples locate everything from florists to photographers.

The Williams Institute, the University of California at Los Angeles law school's economic think tank, predicts the weddings could produce as much as $684 million over three years for the California economy.

Of the 648 wedding licenses issued Tuesday in Los Angeles County, 204 came from West Hollywood. Upstate, the City of San Francisco issued 211.

"This has been the bastion of gay life, culture and political activity," said George Takei, the actor known for playing Mr. Sulu on "Star Trek." He and his partner, Brad Altman, were the first in West Hollywood to receive their marriage license Tuesday.

In 1985, the city became the first in the U.S. to adopt an ordinance legally recognizing domestic partnerships. Today, West Hollywood has a population of roughly 36,000, over 30% of whom are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, according to a city spokeswoman.

For some, the city's marketing efforts are paying off. Cake and Art, a bakery located in the heart of West Hollywood, has had a large influx of business in the past few weeks. Owner Tom Rosa said business has tripled and he has been working around the clock to fill the wedding-cake requests.

However, even around West Hollywood, he said, some vendors might fear the stigma of being associated with a gay wedding. "They're entrenched with the high-end set in Beverly Hills and Pasadena, and they're only comfortable with that audience," Mr. Rosa said.

Other local businesses have begun to tailor offerings for the gay-wedding crowd. House of Blues on the Sunset Strip created a specialized wedding package. "It is definitely directed at the Supreme Court ruling," said Tyler Easley, the brand marketing coordinator for the venue.

Hollywood Lutheran Church will at least double the average four weddings it hosts each summer, the Rev. Dan Hooper said. Mr. Hooper, who is gay, stood outside the city office where licenses were being issued Tuesday to let couples know they would be welcome at his church. He was flanked by Rabbi Barry Tuchman, who wore a shirt saying "Got Rabbi?"

Some West Hollywood businesses have yet to see an increase. Wedding planner Michael Willms recently received a $55,000 booking for a gay wedding, but he hasn't booked any similar gatherings since.

Le Parc Suite Hotel hasn't experienced a big change, either, although it expects to, said Frank Lonardo, director of sales. Le Parc and some other local hotels have begun to list "romance packages," which include chilled champagne and fresh flowers, on the city's Web site.

Mr. Duran, the city councilman, said the opportunity is simply too good to pass up.

"Those communities that aren't embracing this -- you're really missing out," Mr. Duran said. "Because we're going to fill our hotels. Our restaurants and nightclubs will be prospering, and, ultimately, that gives us the taxes to then provide social services to people in need."

This article appeared on page A5.