FeedsCesar Chavez? Why not SW 4th, says City Council.
So you can't rename Interstate without causing a major huff about town, huh? Well, according to today's Oregonian, why not just remain a different street:
City Hall's address could change to 1221 S.W. Cesar E. Chavez Blvd.In a last-minute brainstorm aimed at quelling a nasty debate over renaming North Interstate Avenue after the labor leader, four of Portland's city commissioners found a street closer to home to make into a Latino landmark:
Southwest Fourth Avenue.
I think this is a fantastic idea. I've always been a supporter of renaming a street after the late labor leader, although I was open to hearing the concerns from the interests that represent parts of Interstate. So, when Randy Leonard and the four other Commissioners decided that they had the votes to move forward (with or without the support of Mayor Potter), I was pleased. Here's what Leonard said:
Commissioner Randy Leonard confirmed late Wednesday that he and Commissioners Dan Saltzman, Sam Adams and Erik Sten all support Fourth Avenue."I have been saying right along not to think this is over," Leonard said.
Why Fourth?
"It's the address of City Hall," Leonard said. "There's a lot of symbolic value, and I think it reflects the pride the council has in wanting to honor Cesar Chavez."
Fair enough. Instead of sending the name change out into the wilds of the city, why not let it hit close to home? What better way to honor Chavez (in a renaming process, mind you) than put it right on Council's doorstep? But not all is at-ease:
"I'm absolutely in shock," said Carolyn Leonard, who along with other advocates met with the mayor after he learned council support for his proposal had evaporated."My concern is that people who came up with this don't understand how disrespectful this is to the people who worked so hard," she said. "I don't know if it's ignorant or malicious."
That's tricky, I know. People did indeed work hard to gain consensus at renaming Interstate. But the plan was falling apart and people just couldn't pull the trigger without worry, so instead we have this last-minute brainstorm.
The process isn't over, not by a longshot. The article admits there is still loads of time before a vote. I'm sure we haven't heard the last of this situation.
What are your thoughts on the new destination for a Chavez-named street? Do you appreciate the symbolic gesture of Council, or do you think it's too sudden and heavy-handed? Me, I like the idea, but I'm like Leonard- I wanted to find a way to have my cake and eat it too, or to have a Chavez-named street without ruffling too many feathers. I wonder if any feathers will be ruffled (beyond ones cited) over this idea?
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Comments from site editors have a darker background than comments from everybody else.Jesus, these people... Renaming a numbered street is just about the dumbest idea I've heard in a while.
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Yeah, renaming 4th ruffles so many more of my feathers than renaming Interstate.
Now we do counting 99, 1, 2, 3, Chavez, 5, 6, Broadway, Park, 9, 10...
Why not just do away with the whole meager grid system?
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Being from wacky L.A., I'm used to situations like this, with numbers and interspersed names.
I really don't mind changing a number to a name, anyway. People are smart enough; they'll figure it out.
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But we don't want Portland to be like LA.
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Agreed. There's a reason I want to live in Portland, instead of going back to California.
And that's because I wanted to live in a great city (perhaps the greatest?), in perhaps the greatest state, as Michael is fond of reminding us.
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I don't think numbers to names signify a downfall of our fine city... that was Measure 37's job.
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I have yet to see a persuasive argument that would convince to support renaming a numbered street, where we have an ordered grid system meant to help with navigating the frenetic downtown of our fair city. It's just not worth disrupting the current structure.
I agree he should be honored, but shouldn't there be something less intrusive? And what about other civil rights leaders and people the also deserve to be honored? Why wouldn't they then rename 5th street (the backside of City Hall, and front side of the Portlandia building) after someone famous? And then keep on going?
It's the little things, and then before you know it, the speed limit is 75 and no one is biking anymore. But at least there won't be miles and miles of cookie-cutter houses, thanks to Christine Lewis (and Measure 49!).
First they came for the street numbers...oops a little too extreme there. Scratch that.
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Sure, people can figure it out, but it may take time that isn't really needed.
There is a huge difference between naming something that hasn't really been named (such as a new street or Interstate Boulevard), but to rename a numbered street in a grid?
Plus, the slippery slope argument applies here. What will be the next street to be renamed? You can't say that this is a one time deal, because there are many deserving people, and many numbered streets.
I can understand causing problems for other people if it actually furthers a good cause, but this is nothing more than honoring someone.
I come from Modesto, which is in the heart of the Central Valley. Lots of Hispanic immigrants and citizens, and a lot of pride for Cesar Chavez. There's a Cesar Chavez park, and a bust of him, that I can think of, just off the top of my head.
I know how important he was, but there have got to be better, less intrusive ways of honoring someone.
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You make a fair point; it is a little more intrusive than I'd like. Regardless, however, I don't have too much of a problem with it since, for me, it's just a name-change. Ah well. We'll see how the action goes before Council and what people say in public comment.
That is what I'm really looking forward to hearing. It should be all over the place and intense.
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I actually support renaming a street, and I support renaming a street in a prominent area, but I MORE support doing something really great like a large community center or park or something. And I definitely don't like the idea of renaming a numbered street (though I think I might be okay with a dual-naming).
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How would dual-naming work? SW 4th aka Cesar Chavez Ave? Would the signs stay the same but get a little, ceremonial "Cesar Chavez Avenue" below each "4th"? I'd be curious to hear where else this has happened...
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Dual-naming seems to be fairly common in New York. Sixth Avenue is also Avenue of the Americas, Lenox Avenue is also Malcolm X Avenue. I for one approve, especially if done on SW 4th. We need 4th for the ease of navigating the grid, but Chavez to honor him.
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Renaming streets have been done before
Apparently they had simultaneous signs, pointing the same way, Portland signs, and Rosa Parks signs.
I'd still prefer a park, and honestly, it would be more of a real gesture, and less of a purely symbolic one. Sure a street name has a higher exposure to more people, but a park actually provides a place for people to have fun, and brings more happiness into the world.
Isn't that a better way to remember someone than just changing some street signs?
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It's a much better way than causing the headache and confusion of dicking up the grid system.
It would seem a shame to associate the man with a disruption.
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Actually, SW Broadway was first laid out and named as 7th.
It only became Broadway after the Broadway Bridge was built, extending traffic from the original Broadway (which is the section over in the Lloyd District to 7th Street and 7th Street North on the west side of the river.
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And to be honest, I, and several other people I talked to, aren't a fan that Broadway is 7th. And yes, these are people that dis-agree with naming 4th Street after Cesar Chavez.
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This just in from Amy Ruiz' liveblog: if I'm understanding her correctly (poor woman's been typing forever!), then the Council has enough votes to officially rename 4th to Cesar Chavez. Leonard, Adams, and Saltzman have already voted aye.
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Sten voted for it, and it looks like the second reading will be December 5.
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Has anyone actually been to, or watched the City Council hearings on the whole renaming of the street? I spent a good amount of time this evening actually watching people talk about the issue.
I found the arguments in general to be terrible, on both sides. But especially from the "Yes" camp. Some of the arguments were dealing with the idea that the Hispanic community has been marginalized and ignored. And yet the whole renaming of a street would change all that?
That seems to be against the very idea that Cesar Chavez represents, of organizing and showing solidarity for real causes. A street just doesn't do anything.
How long until Cesar E. Chavez street is shortened by everyday use to Chavez? Or CC? Martin Luther King has become MLK. Not exactly the same as repeating his name with reverence every time it is used...
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What happens when we can't even rename a street after him, though? What does that say about naming streets in the future? Either way, it sets a nasty precedent.
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After we, the people, finally get this one diced out, I wonder if we can move on to the meta discussion, which is why it's so necessary to change our street names to honor people at all, and why it just had to be so necessary now.
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Samuel, the meta-discussion is not about streets. It's about power. This was a display of power by certain professional race activists. It was their way or no way, which is why they got so pissy when they didn't get exactly what they wanted, exactly when they wanted it.
Placenames are just a symbol of who has the power---one of the very first things whites did when we took Oregon from the Indians was to rename everything. And as Carlos Perez, vice chair of Oregon Association of Latino Administrators, said at the kangaroo hearing tonight, "the Latino community represents the future, not only for the area in question, but for the city of Portland." Typical La Raza "we're taking over" rhetoric.
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On behalf of no one but myself I am proposing that an initiative be taken up to rename Grand blvd. Grand Blarney, blvd. In respect to the Irish and Scottish immigrants who helped create this town. Can you imagine...
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Why rename a street with residential properties, and businesses- we should think to rename the Freemont Bridge. It doesn't connect or meet up with Freemont St., and if the council really wants to honor Chavez- honor him by renaming the beautiful Freemont Bridge, where ther are no businesses or residential properties-
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