Renaming Cesar Chavez Street in Austin could cost upwards of $1.2 million, according to a staff presentation to the Austin City Council. The presentation covered the price of new signage and a sweeping community engagement plan to determine a new name for the thoroughfare, with Water Street being one of the possible alternative names. The push follows a March investigation by The New York Times that reported newly disclosed allegations against the late labor leader, prompting similar renaming conversations across the state and country. The city plans to hold three public meetings over the summer to gather feedback. Staff will spend September analyzing the feedback and make a recommendation to council, which would likely vote on a renaming in the fall.
The renaming process is estimated to cost between $423,700 and $1.22 million, which includes city street signs, TxDOT and Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority highway signs, Economic District Custom Street signs, community engagement, and notification mailings. The presentation also noted that TxDOT may be able to make some sign changes using stickers instead of fully replacing signs, potentially avoiding some associated costs to the city. No one on council raised concerns about spending money on the name change at a time when the city is scraping the couch cushions to ease the impact of deep budget cuts.
City staff told council members that Cesar Chavez Street was originally named Water Avenue in 1839 before becoming Water Street and later First Street in 1887. It was renamed Cesar Chavez Street in 1993. Some residents and city leaders have floated returning the corridor to one of its historic names. Staff said community members have also suggested renaming the street after Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the National Farm Workers Association, or Jorge “George” Pastore, a senior police officer who died in the line of duty in 2023.