Cesar Chavez Blvd.? Dallas Does U-Turn on Renaming

Poll for new street name ditched after Hispanic hero wins
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Dec 13, 2008 7:03 AM CST
Cesar Chavez Blvd.? Dallas Does U-Turn on Renaming
Traffic travels north on Dallas' Industrial Blvd., Wednesday, Sept. 24, 2008. In a city survey regarding what to call Industrial Boulevard, Cesar Chavez was the overwhelming favorite.    (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

The Latino community in Dallas is fuming after the city’s about-face on a street name, the Wall Street Journal reports. Officials held a poll to find a new name for the spruced-up Industrial Boulevard, only to declare the results non-binding when the winner by a long shot was Cesar Chavez Boulevard, in honor of the labor activist.

The move angered the city's Hispanic leaders, and the flap worsened when officials proposed renaming Ross Street after Chavez instead—only to meet protests from residents who wanted to keep the street’s original name, which honors two Dallas brothers who fought for the Confederacy. The city council has voted to rename Industrial Boulevard "Riverfront Boulevard" and is still searching for an acceptable street or landmark with which to honor Chavez.
(More Dallas stories.)

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