Congress Parkway Renamed to Ida B. Wells Drive

A couple weeks back we wrote about a plan to rename Balbo after journalist Ida B. Wells.  It was met with some resistance, but an alternative was proposed and now seems to be approved (via Curbed):

Chicago’s City Council passed an ordinance to rename Congress Parkway in honor of civil rights activist, anti-lynching journalist, and women’s suffrage leader Ida B. Wells. Stretching from S. Columbus Drive to just east of S. Franklin Street, the newly rechristened Ida B. Wells Drive represents the first street in downtown Chicago to be named for a woman of color.

“I’m proud to have co-sponsored this important measure with Alderman King to give Ida B. Wells the recognition she deserves,” said 42nd Ward Alderman Reilly in an email to residents on Friday. “She was a courageous leader of the women’s suffrage movement and a tireless advocate for justice. Ida B. Wells has an important place in Chicago’s history, and now has a prominent street in downtown Chicago to honor her memory.”

An earlier ordinance, also introduced by King and Reilly, sought to honor Wells by instead renaming nearby Balbo Drive. Originally named 7th Street, the roadway was dedicated to Italian aviator Italo Balbo after he led a squadron of seaplanes on a transatlantic flight from Rome to Chicago for the city’s 1933 Century of Progress World’s Fair. The name proved controversial given Bablo’s role as a fascist organizer and marshal in dictator Benito Mussolini’s air force.

Curbed goes on to note a confusing intersection now:

Ida B. Well Drive extends west to the start of the Eisenhower Expressway and could make for a somewhat confusing intersection where it crosses Wells Street—the existing north-south roadway named for Army Captain William Wells who died at the Battle of Fort Dearborn in 1812.