San Jose is putting a firm clock on how and when it will remove César Chávez’s name from city sites, rolling out a two-week sprint of community meetings that kick off this month and a longer public process that could wrap with a new name in place by the end of 2026. City staff say the effort will include an intake for fresh name ideas, a ranked-choice survey this summer, and a series of commission and council reviews before anything becomes official.
Officials Lay Out the Public Process
City staff plan to host a listening session on June 15 at the Center for Employment Training, an East Side session on June 17 at the Mayfair Community Center, and a citywide public meeting on June 24 at the Leininger Community Center, where a community survey will debut, as reported by The Mercury News. The outreach window is scheduled to feature a ranked-choice ballot of pre-vetted renaming options between July and August, alongside an open call where anyone can submit new name suggestions.
According to staff, survey results and comments gathered at the meetings will feed into a formal report for the Parks and Recreation Commission in September, with the City Council expected to take up the renaming proposal in the fall. Officials say the entire process is designed to be trauma-informed and to center farmworker and Latino communities most directly affected by the name change.
What the City Has Already Changed
While the listening sessions ramp up, some visible changes are already in place. City crews have covered Chávez’s name on the downtown Plaza de César Chávez stage and removed a commemorative plaque there, and staff have also covered or taken down banners and signs on the East Side, according to NBC Bay Area. The city has flagged public art at Backesto Park, Plata Arroyo Park, Biblioteca Latinoamericana, the Gardner Center, and the Mayfair Community Center for upcoming committee review.
Officials note that a small community tile at Mexican Heritage Plaza has been reviewed and requires no further action, per San José Spotlight. Remaining directional signs in the Mayfair neighborhood are scheduled to be swapped out in June as part of the same inventory sweep…