Council to hold July workshop on Robertson Street, MLK honor

Gonzales City Council will hold a workshop in July with residents on Robertson Street to discuss options to honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Those options range from renaming the street for the late civil rights leader to putting up a sign overlay that doesn’t change the original name but honors King to doing either of those choices in a different location within the city.

Members of the Edwards Association originally asked the council in February 2024 to consider renaming Robertson Street, which was named for a prominent family in the Gonzales community, after Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and presented 117 letters of support for the name change.

It was later discussed during a workshop in June before being brought back up on the agenda at a Tuesday, May 13, special called meeting during which two citizens voiced their opinion that the Robertson name should not be removed from that byway.

Roxanne Greathouse, who owns property in the 800 block of Robertson, said the residents and property owners on Robertson Street “didn’t have a vote” when the matter was previously brought before the council.

“They were told and wasn't asked, and most of us don't attend public meetings, or we just not public speakers, and that's me, but today, no one is going to speak for me except for me,” Greathouse said. “I'm not against having MLK (honored). I'm just against it being Robertson Street.

“My family heritage is on Robertson Street. My grandfather, Melvin Reed Sr., lived to be 101. Most of his life he was on that property. He was born there. He raised his kids there, his grandchildren. We were always brought up on that property. We have lots of memories. And in my family bible, most of it all has Robertson Street. I mean, if you look through it, it's noted everywhere. The people that were born there, the ones who grew up, the ones who married. It's all on Robertson Street.”

Greathouse suggested the city should either look at renaming Fly Street, which the Edwards Center is located on, after MLK or honoring him by naming a portion of Water Street (US 183) after him.

“Why not Fly Street? That’s where Edwards High School is at and there’s no houses on that street, so you wouldn't have to get anybody to go and change the address or anything,” Greathouse said. “I could support Robertson Street with the little logo on top, but that would do a disservice to Martin Luther King, because there you are, putting a little bitty token on top of a street, and it's kind of just like taking away from everything he stood for.”

“A petition was passed around at the black churches for people to sign, to support, to putting this little token on top of Robertson Street. Why weren’t all the churches given that petition? Everybody has to be included. Martin Luther King stood for every race — everybody. He didn't just stand for black people, so if it's a community project, then we have to make sure the community is involved with this. This is something very serious and dear to my heart. You can take a highway and change that and make 183 Martin Luther King Boulevard, or whatever you call it. I don't know, but it looks like that would be something simple.”

Former District 4 Councilmember Ronda Miller recalled she and District 3 Councilmember Lorenzo Hernandez supported an overlay but not a renaming of Robertson Street. She said she also supports Greathouse’s suggestion of honoring MLK on 183.

“There are beautification efforts going on on that block on 183 and there are plans to make a visitor center out there and to update the building that's sitting there (at Riverside Center),” Miller said. “You know, when (Edwards Association) does their march, they could come right on through and go right on down that street. That street would be a huge thoroughfare.

“If you really want to pay homage to Dr Martin Luther King Jr., that street's a lot bigger and has a lot more recognition. I think it would be a great spot for it.”

Otherwise, Miller said she thought it would be hurtful to the legacy of the Robertson family to remove their name from the street.

“I could not get behind changing a historical figure’s name and again, as you said, Dr Martin Luther King Jr. spoke for all races and all people, and I cannot imagine him condoning stripping a man and his family's honor on the name of the street to put his own name on there,” Miller said. “I don't think that aligns with his values at all.

“You can do an overlay, and not just a tiny token on top, but I'm talking about big nice banners, big nice street signs. You still stay Robertson Street, and nobody has to pay any cost to change addresses, but you can make it a Martin Luther King. Jr Way with nice, big banners, nice lights — all the pomp and circumstance, all the celebrity and recognition and honor that you could put up there.

“I would encourage you guys to think about that, or out on 183 if you really want to do true homage to the man, you could have Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard, just like we have Sarah DeWitt on part of 90,” Miller added.

Mayor Isaac Anzaldua said he doesn’t think the city should be “looking to erase the name of Robertson Street by any means because that would be logistically a tough thing to do.”

“You have to go changing driver's licenses as well as any and all billing and your housing titles, et cetera, so we never want to do that,” Anzaldua said. “We also want to honor the Robertson family for their contributions to the city. That's never our intention to remove that by any means, shape or form.”

Anzaldua said he would like to hold a workshop to get more input from the residents that would be most impacted because “I know there are some that will have a value on both sides.”

“I think that that's important we as a council get to hear both sides. It's a big decision for our community,” he added.

City Manager Tim Crow said the council established a policy last year regarding the renaming of streets, trails and public buildings and the discussion around Robertson Street was centered on doing a street overlay and “leaving the Robertson Street name.”

“The request is actually doing the overlay on that street, not to change the name of the street,” Crow said. “This is the workshop to to talk about that, and then our on our next council meeting, we can bring it back as a discussion and possible action item.”

District 2 Councilmember Mariah Jordan, whose district includes Robertson Street, said she wants to have a workshop “with the individuals that are on Robertson Street, since we only have one representative here.”

“I think all of our input is great, but then I kind of want to hear back from everyone else as well, just so we're not missing anything and we're not making a decision just because we're going to do this,” Jordan said. “We can all be in one room and just come pow wow and go from there.”

City Secretary Kristina Vega noted the city has a policy where it sends notices to identified property owners whenever there is a proposed zoning change after it has gone through review by the city staff. She suggested the city could send notices to residents on Robertson Street, inviting them to attend a workshop meeting, but they would need to go out 30 days in advance to make sure proper notice was given.

“That way they have poper notice of the discussion that's going to occur,” Vega said. “They get something in the mail. It's not just social media or word of mouth.”

Anzaldua then suggested holding a workshop in July to give the city enough time to send out notices to residents on Robertson Street so they could attend and give input on what street should honor MLK.