For the second time in 20 years, the roadway running between the university and the Boise River Greenbelt is getting a new name.
West Cesar Chavez Lane will soon become Friendship Lane, following a unanimous Boise City Council vote on the name proposal in early September. The name references the nearby Friendship Bridge connecting the university to downtown Boise.
The change comes after a New York Times investigation reported allegations of sexual misconduct against labor leader and activist Cesar Chavez, including allegations of abuse involving two underage girls.
One week after the investigation was published, Boise State said the reporting raised “serious allegations” against Chavez. The university said it was “committed to gathering campus feedback before making any determination on a name change,” according to an email release to the campus community.
This would not be the first time controversy changed the name of the road. Nearly two decades ago, campus activism helped put Chavez’s name there in the first place.
In 2004, Boise State entered a 15-year, $4 million agreement with Taco Bell to rename the arena now known as ExtraMile Arena after the fast-food franchise.
The decision came during a national boycott over wage and labor standards for farmworkers in Taco Bell’s supply chain. Student groups and faculty members criticized the agreement and pressured the university’s then-president, Bob Kustra, to consider backing out of the deal.
“I wouldn’t doubt that the Cesar Chavez naming was one way to deal with issues of the Taco Bell Arena,” Kustra said in a 2022 interview with The Arbiter.
Twenty years later, the university turned to the campus community to ask what the road should be called, but this time, the name favored by students, faculty and staff did not make the final cut.
A campus survey showed broad support for a name change. Of the nearly 2,500 respondents, 89% of faculty, 80% of staff and 72% of students either agreed or strongly agreed the roadway should be renamed, according to public records reviewed by The Arbiter.
Of the 10 names initially suggested by the university, faculty and staff preferred Huerta Lane, honoring United Farm Workers co-founder Dolores Huerta. Students favored Huckleberry Lane.
Other names on the list included Morrison Lane, a reference to Velma Morrison, the woman the Morrison Center is named after, Centennial Lane, Innovation Lane and Front Porch Lane.
Former Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty was the most frequently suggested write-in, appearing 73 times. Renowned Bronco quarterback, Kellen Moore, was suggested 34 times, Buster appeared 22 times and Farmworkers received 21 mentions. Other respondents drew inspiration from the roadway’s location, with 40 write-ins referencing the river and seven naming the Greenbelt.
Despite these results, the university moved forward with presenting Friendship, Peregrine and Campus Lane as its three final options. Friendship Lane was not among the 10 names initially presented in the survey and appeared only seven times as a write-in. Campus Lane and Peregrine Lane ranked middle of the pack across all groups.
When Boise State’s naming committee narrowed the options, it developed criteria favoring general names over those associated with individuals, leaving neither person-specific name on the final list.
A range of factors were considered in the naming process including the roadway’s purpose, its location and context and how to best reflect Boise State’s community, Stephany Galbreaith, university spokesperson said in an email to The Arbiter.
“As the process continued, the committee determined that a name not associated with an individual would best align with its goals for the roadway,” Galbreaith said. “That consideration was applied when the committee evaluated the names following the campus survey.”
The university has not yet announced when the signage will change, but Cesar Chavez Lane will soon give way to Friendship Lane, marking the roadway’s third name in two decades.
