KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Kansas City, Missouri, Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners unanimously approved renaming several thoroughfares to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
The streets to be renamed are Blue Parkway from Elmwood Avenue to Swope Parkway, Swope Parkway from Blue Parkway to Volker and Volker from Swope Parkway to Brookside Boulevard.
"We've taken too long to do this in Kansas City," Chris Goode, a parks and recreation commissioner, said in an interview Monday with 41 Action News.
The street signs with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. on them are expected to be in place soon.
The renaming comes after several years of sometime contentious debate over the best way to honor King's legacy.
The KCMO City Council voted about two years ago to rename The Paseo to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
Street signs were changed, but residents who lived along the boulevard objected to the name change.
Kansas City, Missouri, voters agreed and the nearly 10-mile long boulevard was once again The Paseo.
Efforts continued to find a way to honor King, and Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas told the KC Board of Parks and Recreation Commissioners to gather ideas from the community.
The route approved Tuesday includes the Bruce R. Watkins Cultural Center and Martin Luther King Jr. Park.
In addition, the board approved on Tuesday resolutions to rename Blue Parkway from Elmwood Avenue on the west to 55th Street to the east to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.
They also asked for the renaming of Oak Street from 45th to 52nd streets to Volker Boulevard.
Both those resolutions will need approval from the Kansas City, Missouri, City Council.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
