[Posted Friday, December 17, 2021]
A committee of volunteers from across SW Portland has begun an open and transparent effort to rename the Wilson Pool. The committee includes representatives from the Hillsdale Neighborhood Association, the Hillsdale Business and Professional Association, the Ida B. Wells PTA, and Southwest Neighborhoods, Inc. (SWNI).
In 2020, the name of the high school serving much of SW Portland was changed from Woodrow Wilson to Ida B. Wells-Barnett High School. The Portland Parks and Recreation (PPR) department owns and operates a swimming pool on the grounds of the high school that retains the name Wilson Pool. In the absence of action by the city (A Park, formerly known as Custer Park, is still awaiting a public process to choose a new permanent name after a year under the generic designation), a local committee feels that now is the time for the SW Community to propose a new name for the pool.
The Rename the Wilson Pool Committee seeks your suggested name or names for the pool. Please email your suggested name, along with up to 30 words supporting your suggestion, to renamepool@gmail.com by February 28, 2022.
At the conclusion of the suggestion submission period on February 28, the committee will design a public online voting process to be held from April 1 April 30. If necessary, a second round of voting may be held to determine the final candidate.
The committee will then submit the name chosen by the community to PPR and request that the city accept the name recommendation decided on by SW Portland residents.
For information on Portland Parks & Recreation guidelines for naming parks and application for renaming, see the city's policy here.
For more information or to join the Rename the Wilson Pool Committee, email renamepool@gmail.com.
--Valeurie Friedman
What's in a name? Let us know.