At Tuesday’s meeting, the Long Beach City Council approved to start the process to consider changing the name. It’s been a long road to get the library built, and now the estimated 25,000 square-foot building located on Atlantic Avenue is set to open sometime around the late summer or fall.
The North Branch will move from its present location on Orange Avenue to Atlantic Avenue. The City Council voted 5-0 in favor of initiating the process of community outreach to seek public input on renaming the new building after the first lady. Councilmembers Suzie Price, Daryl Supernaw, Stacy Mungo and Dee Andrews were not present for the vote.
Ninth District Councilmember Rex Richardson brought the motion before the Council. He particularly noted Obama’s key role to promote four nationwide initiatives that have benefitted the community: Joining Forces, a program which aims to assist veterans and their families; Let’s Move, an initiative meant to promote children’s health and fitness; Reach Higher, a program which aims to inspire young people to pursue education beyond high school; and Let Girls Learn, an initiative to help girls stay in school.
Richardson noted that Jordan High School students in the WRAP (Winners Reaching Amazing Potential) program had initially proposed the idea of putting Obama’s name on the new library. He emphasized the youth’s need to have a role model’s name attached to a building that will be used in the community.
“By changing the way we think about libraries, we should also think about the way we intentionally connect our environment to the next generation,” Richardson said at Tuesday’s Council meeting, “and I believe that we can do a better job of ensuring our communities can connect with and identify with our local facilities and infrastructure and landmarks.”
The matter will still be discussed in public meetings before the issue is returned to the City Council.
[aesop_image imgwidth=”500px” img=”http://www.signaltribunenewspaper.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Screen-Shot-2015-12-23-at-4.55.14-PM.png” credit=”whitehouse.gov” align=”left” lightbox=”on” caption=”An effort to name the Long Beach Public Library North Branch after First Lady Michelle Obama won the initial support of the Long Beach City Council on Dec. 22. The proposal will be taken to the Housing and Neighborhoods Committee, and the Library Services Department and the Department of Parks, Recreation & Marine will conduct further research, according to a staff report.” captionposition=”left”] It’s not the first time a living person has been chosen to be honored with a building name, but not every decision had been made by the Council. The City Council voted earlier this year to rename the Long Beach Beverly O’Neill/Center Theater after the former Long Beach mayor. The Long Beach Unified School District named one elementary school to honor Bobbie Smith, a civil-rights advocate and the first African-American elected to serve on the Long Beach Unified School District Board of Education.
The downtown courthouse has spelled out for a couple of years former Governor George Deukmejian’s name in shiny capital letters on the front of its building. While he was still a councilmember, Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia had pushed to have Harvey Milk Promenade Park named after the LGBT civil rights leader.
Naming the North Branch library after the first lady does come at a price. Richardson’s staff report estimates that changing the name on library materials and creating a new sign will cost $30,000 to $40,000. The councilmember said in his report that the cost could be covered by one-time funds from the 9th district, if there are no other funds available.
The idea was embraced by a number of individuals who spoke out in favor of renaming the new library after the first lady, including Tunua Thrash-Ntuk, a north Long Beach resident.
“This new state-of-the-art facility,” she told the Council, “will inspire our community to be more civically engaged, utilizing this new safe space for community forums, girl-scout meetings, sharing new ideas and interacting with one another. I believe that this is a powerful and wonderful concept.”
Her daughter, 9-year-old Corryn Thrash-Ntuk, also praised the idea. She noted that Obama is the only first lady she had ever known.
“To me, she is beautiful, smart and fun,” the 4th grader from Longfellow Elementary School said, “and I hope to be boss like her when I grow up.”
Markel Cooper, who represents the Andy Street Community Association, was among the supporters who highlighted Obama’s personal story, which began in Chicago’s South Side and then to college at Princeton and later to Harvard Law School before she became the first lady.
“Naming the new library after Michelle Obama will give guidance and inspiration to kids throughout the community to strive day in and day out to reach their goals,” Cooper said Tuesday.
But the proposal to name the building did draw a few critics.
In a phone interview, Martha Thuente, another 9th-district resident, voiced her concern with the process of choosing a living individual to honor with a building.
“I think the problem with Michelle Obama’s name for the new library is the fact that the history books haven’t been written on her or her husband’s time in office,” she said. Thuente added that there were other local individuals who could have their name on the building and also noted that there will be other opportunities and buildings for Obama in the future, including the main library at the Civic Center.
Laurie Angel, a community advocate from north Long Beach, acknowledged that she wasn’t aware of many of Obama’s accomplishments before they were discussed at Tuesday’s meeting, but she still criticized the timing of the issue. She noted that it has taken 15 years to build the library. She pointed to Richardson’s report on the cost to change signage and library materials.
“Why couldn’t the neighborhood and the community discuss this two years ago? Why now?” Angel asked, noting that the meeting was taking place just before the Christmas holiday and the estimated cost of $40,000 to modify the name.
Richardson had addressed the timing in an interview with the Signal Tribune on Tuesday. He noted that in light of where the City is in the construction phase, there is a “sweet spot” to ensure there is enough time to make the change.
“Now is that sweet spot,” he said. “We have enough time to go through a process and give direction back to our architects…and our Library Services Department to make sure everything is ready when the library opens.”
Former councilmember Val Lerch also expressed concerns in an interview prior to the meeting about the overall process. He questioned whether the first lady directly contributed to Long Beach.
There is a process the City has to take when choosing a living individual to honor with his or her name on a building. Richardson had stated that he had reached out to neighborhood association leaders, as well as former Councilmember Steven Neal and other community leaders, for their input prior to bringing this item before the Council for consideration. Richardson and Assistant City Manager Tom Modica acknowledged at the Council meeting that Richardson had taken an additional step to reach out for input beyond what was usually done in the naming process.
Lerch’s concerns about the process seemed to be eased, for the present, after listening to the comments during the Council meeting. He sent a statement to the Signal Tribune Tuesday night.
“I have decided that Mr. Richardson is actually following the process,” he said. “And if the majority of the community wants to name the library after the first lady, then it should be named after her as long as the community has had the opportunity to express other alternatives. I believe that they will have it.”
This will not be the end of the discussion. The proposal will be taken to the Housing and Neighborhoods Committee, and the Library Services Department and the Department of Parks, Recreation & Marine will conduct further research, according to a staff report. Richardson also noted that there will be a community meeting scheduled by his office sometime in January.
