Street name change recognizes Henshaw’s service; confuses people who live in the area – they don’t support the change.

By Pepper Parr

February 3, 2014

BURLINGTON, ON.

What’s in a name and how do you write a report filled with reasons for not doing something and then ignore the people who are going to be impacted and recommending that the name of a street be changed.

That was the predicament city planner Bruce Krushelnicki found himself in when there was a request from Halton Region Police Association to change the name of Southampton Boulevard to Constable Henshaw Boulevard.

In the Staff report, which Krushelnicki signs off on, there is a detailed history of the street and why it was named Southampton Boulevard.

There were good, sound reasons for using the name Southampton for a street in Burlington.  It provided a directional focus which is what street names are supposed to do.

The subdivision plans for the community and the subject street were registered in 1989. Southampton  connects Headon Forest Drive, which is a winding residential street, with Walker’s Line. On the north side of the subject street there is a townhouse development with a driveway onto the subject street. However, the townhouses take their address from Headon Forest Drive.

The purpose of the street was to give the Headon Forest community access to Walkers Line.

The only property that takes its address from the street is 3800 Southampton Boulevard which is the Halton Region Police Service District Office.   Southampton Boulevard functions as an entryway into the Headon community.

Southampton, a British port city was for a time the main port of departure, when the White Star Line moved its base there in 1911. The Mayflower set sail from Southampton in 1620.

Southampton Boulevard, has existed for 24 years; it serves as an entryway into the community and for this reason is well-known to those who live in or visit this neighbourhood from Walker’s Line.  On the north side of the neighbourhood, Northampton Boulevard provides another entryway to the community connecting Headon Forest Drive to Dundas Street. The naming of these two streets was intended to reflect their relative positions as entryways into the Headon Community. Renaming Southampton Boulevard would remove this association.  Many of the streets in the area – such as Cardiff Crescent, Newport Street, Aberdeen Avenue and Leith Avenue – share a common British heritage.

Many of the streets in the area – such as Cardiff Crescent, Newport Street, Aberdeen Avenue and Leith A The street has been known as Southampton Boulevard for over 25 years.

The application for the name change was circulated to owners and tenants within 120 m of Southampton Boulevard. Most of the feedback from the public was against the application. (Was there ANY support for the name change in the community?) The neighbours object to renaming a street with an established name and they question the rational for selecting Southampton Boulevard to honour Bill Henshaw

In the Staff report the following points are made:

The street has been known as Southampton Boulevard for over 25 years.

Southampton Boulevard is a gateway into the community and a reference point for directions.

Constable Bill Henshaw is not a recognizable member of the community.

Before construction of #3 Police Station Halton Region Police Services stated that they did not want to impact the residential neighbourhood.

If Southampton Boulevard is renamed how is the change communicated with emergency services and the public?

Why not rename a new street or another public asset after Bill Henshaw?

All good questions. However, the police have clout and none of the agencies involved, fire, hydro, EMS, school boards have a problem with the name change.

The only objections came from the people who live in the area – and they don’t seem to matter.

Bill Henshaw died in June 2010. He was an officer with Halton Region Police Services. In addition to his service as a police officer, Constable Henshaw contributed to the community by working with at risk youth and various charities.

This decision could become one of those precedents that comes back to bite us.