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Letter to the editor

City rethinks rules for renaming streets, parks

Officials want to standardize the process so that all requests are handled the same way.

By SHERRI DAY
Published June 3, 2005

TAMPA - Almost immediately after the death of Army Sgt. Antwan Walker two weeks ago, there were calls to immortalize the soldier by renaming an East Tampa park in his honor.

Walker, who was killed May 18 when a bomb exploded in his company's camp in Ramadi, Iraq, grew up in Tampa and played in Woodland Terrace Park on 32nd Street near Diana Street. For community activist Bill Sims, the park is the perfect place to honor Walker.

Sims has already begun lobbying County Commission and City Council members to change the park's name.

"It's an inspirational thing," Sims said. "Some kids are going to ask: "Who is Antwan Walker?' That's the young guy who went off to the service. He was trying to do the right thing. He was trying to raise a family, and he started right here. That would be a nice way to remember him."

His is the latest in a growing line of requests to rename public parks, pools, community centers and streets after heroes, politicians and entertainers.

But efforts to memorialize people through renamings are often met with mixed reviews by residents and business owners. Some simply don't think the honorees deserve to be immortalized in their neighborhood, while others say that changing a street's name could cause confusion and cost money.

After a flurry of requests to rename streets, buildings and parks in recent months, city officials began taking steps to change city code to standardize the renaming process. Currently, someone who wants to submit a name change request need do little more than petition the City Council.

"We're looking at it because we're not currently involved in the process," said Linda Carlo, spokeswoman for the city's Parks and Recreation Department. "Sometimes we don't know until it's on the council agenda."

Carlo estimates that each time a park, community center or playground gets a new name, the parks department pays at least $1,300 for new signs.

So far, it's been a banner year for name changes, Carlo said. The department renamed Highland Avenue Park in Tampa Heights to honor local activist Robert Gardner. Morgan Street Park adopted a new moniker for activist Fernando Mesa.

And West Pines Park in West Tampa was renamed for seven Vila brothers - Joe, Willie, Wilfred, Hector, Robert, Denio and Tony - honored for their military service. The department also plans to rename the Seminole Heights Athletic Center for its outgoing deputy director, Wayne Papy.

Those requests were met with little controversy. But last month, the City Council riled a group of Port Tampa residents when it approved the renaming of a neighborhood community center for Kwane Doster, a former Tampa native and Vanderbilt University running back. Doster died in December after he was shot near Ybor City.

The Doster petition was met with vocal opposition from the Civic Association of Port Tampa City, which said the City Council approved the Doster name change without giving serious consideration to the association's desires.

"Not that Kwane Doster doesn't deserve something - that's not the point - but we have several people in Port Tampa that deserve to have a building or a park or something named after them," civic association president Jill Buford said. "We felt that we should have been asked what our opinion was."

Several miles to the north, another civic association blasted an attempt to rename Nebraska Avenue after entertainer Ray Charles.

Shortly after the release of the movie Ray, Mayor Pam Iorio received hundreds of letters asking her to consider naming the avenue after Charles, who lived and performed in Tampa. That started a tussle that pitted business owners against residents and neighbors against neighbors.

The Southeast Seminole Heights Civic Association, which at one point voted to support a name change to something other than Ray Charles Avenue, now supports a 200-signature petition to keep the original street name.

"Our community wasn't really excited about changing Nebraska Avenue's name, especially those of us who work with Neighborhood Watch," said Beverly Morrow, president of the Southeast Seminole Heights Civic Association. "Because of all this hard work, we would like to let Nebraska be Nebraska."

That issue, which is still unresolved, is one reason officials in Tampa's land development office are working to create a city code to address street name changes.

"We're trying to have a more sensible process in place that can be repeated over and over again so if I drop dead tomorrow, the guy or girl that's in my job can administer it exactly the same way," land development manager Thom Snelling said.

Snelling said his department gets about 10 requests to rename streets each year. In addition to the Nebraska Avenue petition, the department is considering renaming a portion of 18th Street in Ybor City for tobacco company founder Angel Oliva. Snelling and his staff are also looking at proposals to rename a Tampa street after former President Ronald Reagan.

Historically, developers are responsible for picking street names as they erect new subdivisions. That, perhaps, explains the variety of street names throughout Tampa.

In Sunset Park, for example, developers chose to honor venerated writers by labeling streets Longfellow, Poe, Browning, Dante and Dickens avenues. Sun Bay South roadways pay tribute to states, including Wyoming, Ohio and Iowa avenues. In Sulphur Springs, a developer had a fascination with Alaskan cities, naming streets Anchorage and Sitka.

Naming a new roadway is fairly simple, as long as the name isn't already taken. But renaming one is often a more complicated matter, Snelling said.

Changing Buffalo Avenue to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard was a long process that caused a raucous debate, Snelling said, particularly because thousands of property owners were affected by the switch.

There was also a commotion when someone proposed renaming Dale Mabry Highway. Turns out Mabry was a famous World War I blimp pilot who was stationed here.

"When you start changing things around, you need to look at that stuff," Snelling said.

A new city code, which Snelling hopes to complete within three to four months, would set more stringent guidelines for name-change applications.

In a draft version of the ordinance, city officials will consider the desirability of a name change, the number of affected properties, the costs of new signs and the historical significance of the current name. Hopefully, Snelling said, that will create a level playing field for all who seek renaming.

It's too early to tell whether the City Council will approve Sims' request for an Antwan Walker park. But Sims has pledged to fight for it.

"It's so easy just to slap a big sign on the thing," Sims said. "I don't see any harm being done."

- Sherri Day can be reached at 226-3405 or sday@sptimes.com

[Last modified June 2, 2005, 08:00:13]