Miguel Arias, member of the Fresno City Council, speaks at a news conference at Fresno City Hall on Wednesday, March 18, 2026. Photo by Ben Hensley
published on April 23, 2026 – 5:02 PM
Written by Ben Hensley
The Fresno City Council on Thursday unanimously voted to revert Cesar Chavez Boulevard back to its original street names — Kings Canyon Road, California Avenue and Ventura Street — less than two years after the corridor was renamed in the labor icon’s honor.
The reversal follows allegations of sexual abuse, including of minors, that surfaced earlier this year against Chavez. United Farm Workers co-founder Dolores Huerta, who worked alongside Chavez for decades, was among those who came forward publicly.
Councilmember Miguel Arias, who helped sponsor the original 2023 renaming, called the allegations “devastating and heartbreaking” and initiated the effort to undo it in March.
The vote caps a months-long process that included two public hearings, a Planning Commission review and a March 23 council resolution directing the reversion.
Timeline
Installation of new signage is expected to begin May 1, with city crews working over roughly three weekends to re-sign the 6.9-mile corridor. Public Works Director Scott Mozier said 80% of the original signage is still reusable. The city expects to wrap up by mid-May.
Freeway signage will take longer. Because Caltrans holds authority over highway signs, Mozier said the city is pursuing temporary fixes while permanent signs are ordered, fabricated and installed — a process that takes several months.
Cost and business impact
The 2023 renaming cost approximately $230,000 — about $130,000 to replace street signs and just under $100,000 in a Caltrans agreement, though $1 million had originally been allocated. The city set aside reimbursement funds for affected businesses, offering up to $200 each — but only one business submitted invoices and received $77.
Councilmembers Nick Richardson and Brandon Vang, neither of whom served on the council during the original renaming, raised concerns about the financial burden the back-and-forth places on corridor businesses. Richardson called it “the least fiscally responsible lap back to the starting line that we could have possibly taken.”
Vang, whose district covers much of the Kings Canyon segment, said the issue carries both cultural and financial weight. “It is not only culturally significant — also there’s a financial component to it as well,” he said, adding that he supports restoring the original names.
Mozier said addresses on the affected corridor will be linked for one year, meaning mail addressed to either name will be forwarded by USPS.
Council comments
Mayor Jerry Dyer and Councilmember Mike Karbassi pushed back on suggestions that the pace of the change reflected any reluctance from the administration. Dyer said the timeline is dictated by legal requirements — including mandatory public hearings — not procrastination. Karbassi noted the council moved quickly from resolution to first public hearing and cautioned that framing the process as biased could damage public trust.
Both Karbassi and sponsoring Councilmember Annalisa Perea pointed to the city’s $14 million investment in Dolores Huerta Park, under construction at Milburn and Dakota avenues, as evidence of the city’s continued commitment to honoring the farmworker movement.
“I do believe that, given the information that we know today, that this is the right thing to do,” Perea said.