PORTLAND OREGONIAN

April 7, 2009

39th Avenue newest turn for proposed Chavez street renaming

by James Mayer, The Oregonian

Thirty-ninth Avenue may lack the historic punch of Broadway or Grand Avenue, but it is still a significant piece of the city's geography.

That was a reason both to support renaming 39th for farmworker leader Cesar Chavez and to oppose it for Portlanders testifying tonight at Hollywood Theater.

"It's just a number in a grid. There seems to be nothing historic about 39th Avenue," said James Morris, a small-business owner.

But renaming it would mess up the ease of city travel, said John Torino, executive director of the Alliance of Portland Neighborhood Business Associations. His association board has voted to oppose any street renaming.

"Renaming one of the major crosstown avenues would not be a good navigational decision," Torino said.

Jose Ibarra, chairman of the Oregon Commission on Hispanic Affairs, supported a street renaming to recognize the labor leader's legacy.

"Cesar Chavez improved the lives and working conditions of millions of farmworkers," he said.

Wayne Stoll, who said he grew up in a house at Northeast 39th and Hancock, remembers sledding on the street. "39th is part of my history," he said.

The meeting was the third and final hearing conducted by a historian panel appointed by the Portland City Council to explore the proposal by the Cesar E. Chavez Boulevard Committee.

The panel's job is to answer two questions: Is it appropriate to rename a street for Chavez? And do the three streets proposed for renaming have historical significance?

The panel will meet April 20 to make a recommendation. Then the planning commission will hold a hearing April 28 and make a recommendation to the City Council, which will make the final decision.