What is Portland deciding about exempt certain code requirements under City Code Chapter 17.93 Renaming City Streets for the proposed renaming of a portion of SW…

On October 30, 2024, the Council unanimously passed Resolution 37682 declaring support to rename SW Jackson Street (from SW 5th Avenue to SW Park Avenue) to SW Rose Hill Street after respected Portland Native American community leader and Elder Rose Hill. Rose was the driving force behind the establishment of Portland State University's (PSU) Native American Student & Community Center (NASCC) in 2003, a gathering space to celebrate and empower Native PSU student success through culturally relevant programming, academic support, and community engagement. Rose mentored and advocated for countless students as a former PSU NASCC Student Coordinator, she served as the executive director for the American Indian Associations of Portland, and as a student advisor for the Portland Public Schools Title VII Indian Education Program. Rose was also a Culture Keeper at the Native American Rehabilitation Association of the Northwest.Due to ongoing resource constraints, the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) instituted a moratorium on processing street renaming applications. Because of the unique circumstances of the proposal to rename a portion of SW Jackson Street to SW Rose Hill Street, Resolution 37682 directed the Public Works Service Area to dedicate the necessary resources to process PSU's application.On July 11, 2025, PSU submitted part one of their application seeking this street renaming. There are certain code provisions that must be waived for this particular street renaming proposal. This ordinance proposes waiving the following code requirements:Code Subsection 17.93.010.A.3 provides that City streets may only be renamed after a prominent person who has been deceased for at least five years. Because Rose Hill does not meet this criterion, this Code Subsection must be waived. Code Subsection 17.93.020.C provides that renaming only portions of a street is not permitted. Because the applicant for this proposed street renaming is only pursuing a change to SW Jackson Street to SW Rose Hill Street from SW 5th Avenue to SW Park Avenue (refer to Exhibit A) and not the entire length of SW Jackson Street in Portland city limits, this Code Subsection must be waived. Code Subsection 17.93.060.A requires that the existing street name sign and proposed new street name sign both be posted and maintained for five years following approval of the street renamingunless a petition is submitted to the City Administrator from a majority of abutting property occupants requesting that the dual signage period be shortened. PSU proposes shortening this dual street name sign posting requirement to six months which is supported by City public safety and emergency service bureaus, and the U.S. Postal Service. Code Subsection 17.93.060.A must be waived to accommodate this shortened time period.

The reviewed sources do not clearly identify every existing policy, service, contract, or obligation that would remain unchanged.

This proposal concerns transportation & public works and requires action through Portland’s public legislative process.

The Council held a public hearing on October 30, 2024, where they heard overwhelming support for Resolution 37682 to rename SW Jackson Street on PSU's campus to SW Rose Hill Street. Speakers in support of the resolution, which passed unanimously, included Native American community leaders, Native American PSU students and staff, a representative of the Downtown Neighborhood Association, and Rose Hill herself.PSU's Native American Student and Community Center (NASCC) is located on SW Jackson Street, a street named after former United States President Andrew Jackson who signed the Indian Removal Act of 1830 that led to the displacement of Native Americans from their ancestral homes and resulted in the death of thousands of Native Americans. Since the NASCC opened in 2003, PSU and the surrounding community have been educating people about the current street name and thus determined to replace the street name Jackson following Indigenous and traditional protocols. Through their community-driven process, Rose Hill was selected as the new proposed street name. Rose was a respected Portland Native American Elder, a Culture Keeper and former PSU NASCC Student Coordinator who mentored and advocated for countless Native PSU students.The Downtown Neighborhood Association (DNA) submitted a letter endorsing the street renaming, testified in support at the public hearing for Resolution 37682, and have continued to be a partner in advancing this street renaming proposal.Following the passage of Resolution 37682, PSU established a workgroup to complete the street renaming application. They are currently gathering signatures as required by City Code and are doing outreach to impacted property owners.There are still several steps in the street renaming process following Council passage of this ordinance, including convening a three-person historian panel and a Planning Commission public hearing.