SAN FRANCISCO Add San Franciscos Castro district, this citys best-known gay community, to the list of areas that have had tour buses invade their neighborhood and dont like it.

According to various news accounts, motorcoaches, mostly filled with tourists from the Far East, began showing up in the Castro district four or five months ago and now arrive twice weekly in the late afternoon.

Because Castro is different from anything the Asian and other visitors can find at home, it has become a popular stop on some tour bus routes.

But while the visitors may consider themselves tourists just taking in another site, the Castro locals have taken to calling them something else: quick-hit voyeurs who disrupt traffic and parking, and rarely spend any money.

Residents and business owners say they've had enough, and have petitioned the city to put a stop to the practice. However, parking enforcement officials can't ticket the tour buses because there are no signs prohibiting private coaches from parking there, according to a spokeswoman for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency.

A government advisory committee has recommended establishing tow-away zones and installing no-parking signs in the area.

But while officials deliberate the buses continue coming, off-loading tourists who want to experience the unique community.

The Castro district evolved as a distinctive neighborhood for gays during the political and social activism of the 1960s and 1970s. One of its merchants, camera shop owner Harvey Milk, became San Francisco's first openly gay supervisor. Milk was assassinated in 1978, further uniting the community.

A movie based on his life is planned for release later this year, which may draw even more tourists to the neighborhood, residents say.

Castro merchants do encourage what they consider "the right kind of visitors." The district's annual October street fair, founded by Milk in 1974, celebrates the community's diversity and attracts thousands of locals and tourists.

However, because parking is scarce, the tour coaches often have to use spots intended for public buses. That means guides must hustle their groups back on board within minutes, giving them little time to shop or dine.