Effort underway to rename Cesar Chavez Street

Effort underway to rename Cesar Chavez Street
By Tim Spitzack and Jake Spitzack | Staff Writers | May 2026

As the West Side prepares to celebrate its annual Cinco de Mayo Fiesta, a dark cloud looms over the street where many of the festivities will take place. In mid-March, the New York Times released details of its extensive investigation alleging that famed labor and civil rights leader Cesario Estrada “Cesar” Chavez sexually assaulted and abused several women, including minors. Chavez has long been a symbol of Latino heritage, celebrated for improving working conditions for agricultural workers. He co-founded the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA) in 1962 with Dolores Huerta, who was cited as one of his victims. The NFWA eventually merged with another organization to become the United Farm Workers of America.

Chavez died in 1993 at age 66 and soon streets in cities across the county began to bear his name. The section of Concord Street in St. Paul from Ada to Wabasha streets was renamed in his honor in 2004.

Following the New York Times article, St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Vang Her announced a drive to rename Cesar Chavez Street in St. Paul, a process that will include community feedback. The West Side Community Organization is finalizing details on how it will facilitate the process on the city’s behalf. Preliminary plans call for a “West Side Week of Action” held April 27-May 1, entailing several opportunities for community members to provide ideas for renaming the street.

“Let us choose to honor what we build together – not myths of individuals, but the strength, truth and dignity of our community,” said West Side Community Organization executive director Monica Bravo at a recent a press conference held by the Minnesota House People of Color and Indigenous Caucus. “As a Planning Council, and as a community, we will move forward with intention. We will listen. We will act thoughtfully. And we will stand with those who have had the courage to speak. Because our future must be built not on silence – but on truth, accountability and the power of all of us, together.”

The first Cesar Chavez Street sign in St. Paul was unveiled at the Cinco de Mayo fiesta on May 7, 2004. It marked the culmination of a campaign led by the 9-member Cesar Chavez Street Naming Legislative Advisory Committee, formed in May 2003 by the City of St. Paul. The committee gathered 700 petition signatures and came up with 14 different street possibilities, then narrowed it down to Plato Boulevard and Robie and Concord streets before making Concord its final recommendation to be renamed. The St. Paul City Council made it official at its November 26 meeting by unanimously passing a resolution to rename the street.

In related news, Minnesota State Representative María Isa Pérez-Vega (DFL, 65B) and Senator Sandy Pappas (DFL-65) led a charge in late March to abolish César Chávez Day in Minnesota, which was established in 2014 and celebrated on March 31, Chavez’s birth date. Cesar Chavez Day was also established as a federal commemorative holiday in 2014. On March 23, the Minnesota House of Representatives voted 129-0 to strip his name from the state holiday and the Senate confirmed it by 67-0 vote on March 26. The holiday is now called Farmworkers Day.

WSCO and West Side Business Coalition launch Built by Us campaign
The West Side Community Organization (WSCO) and West Side Business Coalition recently launched its Built by Us campaign, which places signs in West Side businesses to encourage people to shop on the West Side. An online business directory of West Side businesses has also been created. WSCO hopes the campaign will also help increase participation in its engagement efforts regarding projects such as the Robert Street reconstruction and Cesar Chavez Street renaming. To contact WSCO, call 651-293-1708.

Facelift for District del Sol
WSCO was recently awarded $90,000 from the city’s Commercial Corridor Organization Assistance Program to make improvements to District del Sol, primarily around Cesar Chavez Street and Robert Street. WSCO is working with the St. Paul Office of Cultural Work to create new brand and promotional tools for the district, such as streetlight banners. A survey regarding the design is being conducted and final designs are expected to be selected in July. Some of the funds will likely be used to purchase new signs for Cesar Chavez Street after it’s renamed, and discussions are beginning about creating West Side branded merchandise to be sold at area businesses – 50% of merchandise revenue would go back to WSCO for business initiatives. To view proposed logo designs, visit wsbusiness.org.

When the program launched in April 2025, the Smith Avenue corridor was included but the St. Paul Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) recently updated its guidelines and removed Smith Avenue because it is predominantly residential. Grants are based on the Commercial Corridor Index, which considers business density, land use and vacant properties. However, since WSCO’s rebranding process had already begun, concept logos were already created for Smith Avenue, dubbed the Capitol View district.

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