Santa Barbara city leaders are considering changing the name of Calle Cesar Chavez following recent sexual abuse allegations against the farmworker rights leader.
Chris Quesada has worked at the Training Room located on Calle Cesar Chavez for the last 30 years.
Upon hearing the news about a possible street name change, he was not surprised, but he is concerned about the potential cost to the business.
"I understand why they're doing it, and we're redoing our website now and modernizing it, so it's probably going to cost a penny," Quesada said.
Changing a street name can be a lengthy process, and the issue could go before the Santa Barbara City Council as soon as early April.
The street was originally called Salsipuedes Street until it was renamed Calle Cesar Chavez on September 13, 1997.
Architect Michael Holliday shared similar concerns about the cost of changing it again.
"The cost is not insignificant, and I think that's something people need to realize. It's not just a political issue, it will have real ramifications for business owners. This has been changed before, and we paid for all those changes from Salsipuedes," he said.
Santa Barbara City Councilmember Oscar Gutierrez has suggested it return to its original name.
"Hopefully, if they do change it to something else, it's easy to spell and represents Santa Barbara," Holliday said.
