Councilwoman revives MLK efforts
Two years after a proposal to recognize Martin Luther King Jr. was rejected by city leaders. On Monday, one councilwoman tried to revive efforts to honor the civil rights activist.
High Point Councilwoman Bernita Sims encouraged the council to "step outside the box" and resolve a controversial issue that has floated around the community for nearly 13 years.
In 1991, black leaders in High Point tried to get a street named in honor of King.
Just two years earlier, the Greensboro City Council voted to rename Asheboro Street for King.
But High Point's efforts met with some community resistance.
The black leaders focused their proposals on renaming College and Hartley Drives, East and West Kivett Drives, and even the 311 Bypass.
In 1994, the groups won a small concession when the city posted a sign that made E. Kivett Drive an honorary designation for King.
But the groups kept pursuing more visible and permanent recognition.
In 2002, the Black Leadership Roundtable with the support of Councilman Ron Wilkins proposed renaming a portion of North and South College Drive between Eastchester and Surrett Drives in King's name.
Sitting on College Drive, High Point University was opposed to the renaming. University officials said it would cost too much to change the addresses on its informational and recruiting materials.
But university officials weren't the only ones troubled over the proposal. The city's Planning and Zoning Commission, the group charged with approving street renamings, side stepped the issue.
The state Department of Transportation, which handles renaming of street roads, rejected the proposal.
The city council also debated and denied the proposal.
In October, the council went one step further. Elected leaders voted to change the street renaming process to exclude outside groups from making requests.
Back then, Sims, co-chair of the Black Leadership Roundtable said it was a move by the city to exclude the Roundtable and other groups from future requests.
But on Monday, speaking as a councilwoman, she told elected leaders outside community groups were essential to developing a project that would honor King in High Point.
"If the congress of the United States felt that his contributions to this country and to the world were great enough to honor him with a national holiday, then this present council should be able to facilitate the process to determine how the City of High Point will honor this Nobel peace prize winner and champion of human and civil rights," said Sims in her statement.
Mayor Becky Smothers said the proposal would be discussed at a later date.
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