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Rename Downtown Street to Martin Luther King St.?


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Rename Stonewall Street to Martin Luther King St.?  

73 members have voted

  1. 1. Rename Stonewall Street to Martin Luther King St.?

    • No
      49
    • Yes
      19
    • Change name back to Independence
      5


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Charlotte should just consider following Chicago's lead on this by keeping it 2nd Street but also saying on the the street sign "in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King" That way everyone is happy. This would also help with the uniformity of Charlotte's streets but still honor and remember people. Also Manhattans "Avenue of the Americas" is also known as 6th Ave. Just a thought. I-77 could also be called -Central Expressway- "In honor of Bill Lee". here is one example of a street sign in chicago

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Charlotte should just consider following Chicago's lead on this by keeping it 2nd Street but also saying on the the street sign "in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King" That way everyone is happy. This would also help with the uniformity of Charlotte's streets but still honor and remember people. Also Manhattans "Avenue of the Americas" is also known as 6th Ave. Just a thought. I-77 could also be called -Central Expressway- "In honor of Bill Lee".

Some examples:

tm33782.jpg

chicago_20-773675.jpg

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yea, they have a lot of streets in Miami known by two names as well; one is usually the name of a famous local person in history while the other is a more commonly used number.

Thanks, I was hoping someone would help me out with that. Thats exactly what I'm talking about. It is the best way to keep 2nd street and have MLK Street at the same time.

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Those examples actually make of feel a little better about using 2nd street for Martin Luther King. That way just like Ave of Americas it could have an official name and the generally used name. It doesn't matter if it is labeled such. I guess I'm saying this could always be 2nd street anyway. Too bad Mitchell forced it through without much debate. Clearly other members weren't comfy but he left no options for them.

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Ironically, by being so callous about renaming a historic street name, it made it less of an honor. To me the Chicago example seems more honorable as it is clear that it is an important street that is then enhanced with his name rather than just a shuffled through renaming done on a whim.

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Those examples actually make of feel a little better about using 2nd street for Martin Luther King. That way just like Ave of Americas it could have an official name and the generally used name. It doesn't matter if it is labeled such. I guess I'm saying this could always be 2nd street anyway. Too bad Mitchell forced it through without much debate. Clearly other members weren't comfy but he left no options for them.
Seems a bit fishy to me. I haven't followed the debate, but it seems like the folks pushing this through want the street renaming has to "hurt" - or else it won't count.

Renaming the north-south portion of Independence seems like such an obvious solution. It makes so much sense that the only reason I can see to dismiss it offhand is that it's not controversial enough.

The numbered streets in uptown Charlotte are damn near the only part of Charlotte's street network that make perfect sense, and that's being done away with. What numbered street gets renamed next?

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Cynically, I am convinced that he just wanted it to in past the Nascar Hall of Fame site, although going through old Brooklyn was also a factor. It was just James Mitchell and not multiple people who created this plan and because it is a third rail everyone just had to go along. It was obvious they preferred Independence. All the official reasons he gave would have applied to others. The whole thing was tried to be pushed through quietly. The paper also never reported on it before decisions.

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Do you guys think this could jeopardize the goals of getting 2nd extended into the Chetrit group site and also across the tracks to Cedar? I really want those to happen, but considering the negative connotation most people ascribe, it might add to early opposition and keep those projects on paper only. I also hope it doesn't hurt any development on that corridor. I'm not saying it should, but it could hurt demand if it adds to the perception of crime.

Do you think the residents of Third Ward are that dumb and racist? The people I know in Third Ward sure arn't. In fact all the ones that I have spoken with are fine with 2nd St being renamed MLK Blvd. They are able to tell the difference between perceptions and realities. They realize that just changing the name of a street is not going to increase crime. They realize that the problems on MLK Blvd in other cities don't apply to Charlotte. We chose a different path and instead of making the racist decision of naming a street for him in a seedy part of town we chose a street in the section of town with the lowest crime rate. We honored a great man with a street that is lined with the Wachovia HQ, Charlotte Convention Center, future NASCAR HoF, Charlotte Chamber of Commerce, and the future 2nd Ward Redevelopment.

The people that are opposed to 2nd St being extended to Ceder St are concerned that it will bring too much traffic to the neighborhood and that has been a concern that was around long before there was talk of changing 2nd to MLK Blvd.

With regards to the loss of the numbering order of streets in downtown Charlotte...that imho is a very weak argument. Especially considering that 1st St is only 3 blocks long. If you go down McDowell, Davidson, Caldwell, Brevard, College or Graham St....you never cross 1st St...you go straight from Stonewall to 2nd, 3rd, 4th, Trade, etc.

With all that said I also think that Independence would have been a better street...but 2nd St is just fine with me.

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Downtown already has serious perception problems with regard to crime, and MLK Blvds have a serious perception problem with regard to crime. I'm hopeful that both will go away, but it might be a generation before that sets in.

Current residents clearly know the reality, but so much of what goes into to potential future demand is based on perceptions of the general public. If there is a perception from significant numbers of newcomers that MLK Blvds are high crime areas (which is true in an overwhelming majority of cases), could it hurt future demand? You obviously are down as a "no, it won't hurt". :)

I wrote earlier in the thread that I believe that MLK was a great man with a great message and deserves to be honored, but the "brand" of his streets is severely tarnished. Many great men have had their images tarnished after death, because of how their names have been used. I'm very proud that Charlotte didn't go down that path, I just hope people notice the reality and don't make assumptions. Honestly, there are many ways in which I agree with you that 2nd is better than quite a large number of choices.

By the way, the loss of 1st Street bothers me as much as the loss of 2nd street, and 10th and so on. I have been consistent with that in my posts. My primary concern has been to not lose any of the original streets of Charlotte, which are all downtown. They were the only street names in the city for half its history. My secondary concern is that it was railroaded through without any public debate of viable alternatives (I think Independence had/has by far the most support, including from a number of councilmembers who expressed shock that it wasn't selected by Mitchell).

But all said and done, even though the process was a disgrace, and the selection adds risk the city will become generic by eroding its connection with its own past. But I am sure it will turn out fine. Now what the heck should we rename "Independence Blvd" to? Maybe "2nd St" :).

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To balance some of my negative comments, I'll also add that I think and hope this might do very well in welcoming black tourists here. Hopefully they will recognize that Charlotte is different, and we made a VERY prominent street MLK Blvd. It will have some of the most significant gems of downtown along it, including the headquarters of a top 5 national bank. As Charlotte moves forward with building a large African American Cultural Center, and seeks to draw in more black tourists and conventions and HSBC tourneys, etc., these gestures could help the cause significantly. Charlotte really didn't as bad a record as most southern cities during the civil rights struggle, so hopefully our current gestures will also help them learn the heart of the city, making money :).

By the way, another positive is it could help bridge the gap between the black community and the nascar community, now that our Nascar Hall of Fame will be on MLK Blvd. (Yippie :) )

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I basically agree with dubone's earlier posts. But I would go further. In the case, as others have mentioned, of MLK Blvd being synonymous with seedy crime infested districts, I say Charlotte can start a new and wonderful trend. Put MLK Blvd Uptown, and when people are stuck in traffic jams on the street, give them some incredible monuments to civil rights to look at. Gorgeous mature trees and landscaping, small and wonderful parks and sitting areas along the whole length. The nearby African American History Museum, and going through Brooklyn does make sense.

Turn Charlotte's MLK Blvd into something the city is proud of! That all of Charlotte's citizens can be proud of!!! Martin Luther King's legacy does deserve more than a street name. But add some real meaning, a la statues and monuments, Peace Parks along the way, and MLK could be one of the most BEAUTIFUL streets in the city! Buck the national trend. Make MLK a tourist attraction even. Lots of black people vacation in Charlotte, and this would surely create even more prestige and legacy to King.

Of course I'm sure we all agree---MLK's legacy isn't just about the freedom of black people. It was for the freedom and fairness of all peoples. Make MLK Blvd a "must see" by visitors!

By the way I live near Seattle and Seattle's MLK Blvd is similar to the national trend of seediness. But all the seediness is fading away quite quickly. Not because of concerted efforts to beautify the area or bring in new businesses, but because of simple gentrification. MLK Blvd was one of the last "affordable" streets in the city in which to buy a home.

Like most other Seattle streets, MLK will be totally gentrified some day soon. Then Dr.King's legacy here will be much nicer. Too bad it takes gentrification to do it~~

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  • 10 months later...

Yes. They didn't even do a special street sign or plaque or anything. But I guess politics doesn't really demand for anything to have deeper meaning beyond a checkmark off the To Do list.

By the way, despite my negative opinions throughout this thread, I do support 2nd as MLK now (and maybe last year, too). But I would prefer it to be in conjunction with something meaning. Street naming is probably the least significant thing I can think of to honor an important person. Why not even appropriate 20k to commission a sculpture at the corner of 2nd and Tryon, or rather, MLK and Tryon? Why not have it associated with funds to renovate the old 2nd Ward High School gym in old Brooklyn? Instead, the city spent probably 20 bucks for the alphabet stickers to put on the same old green signs.

By the way, on Martin Luther King's Birthday, I had something stolen from my porch in broad daylight by a vagrant with no respect for my property or personal space. But if Martin Luther King's dream had more to do with street names than social harmony, then there probably wasn't much irony in it.

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^ will the new african-american cultural center have the DMLK address or will they opt for the tryon st. address? inany event... the renaming is great. they picked a nice street to profile a great american and losing a numbered st. isn't a loss.

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Well, most likely, the address of the NHOF will be Brevard, as that is the street that the city is spending millions to upfit. Also, most projects choose the named N-S streets for addresses over the numbered east west streets anyway. I'll be AACC won't even have a Stonewall address, but rather a Tryon address.

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