Worth Avenue To Be Renamed

A recent town referendum that many Palm Beach residents missed on the ballot proposed the renaming of ‘Worth Avenue’ to ‘Affordable Avenue.’ Proponents of the renaming said that they wanted to make sure no one with a lower income felt unwelcome. 

“We are all about inclusiveness here in Palm Beach,” said Candi Barr, who resides in an apartment on the South end of the island. “I think it’s important that nobody feels like they aren’t good enough to visit or live here.”

In fact, only 2.7% of voters—the majority of them coming from the South End precinct—even voted on the referendum, and it passed by a large majority.

The exact wording of the referendum was tricky. The referendum mentioned “renaming Plot 17 NW by 132 SE as the Avenue de la Affordable,” which may have confused some voters, causing them to skip the referendum entirely. In addition, because of the way that the referendum was worded—asking voters if they wanted to retain the name ‘Worth Avenue’— voting ‘yes’ was a vote against renaming the road, and voting ‘no’ was a vote towards it.

Worth Avenue To Be Renamed

Florida election official Joe King criticized the wording and placement of the referendum. “The wording was extremely unclear and misleading,” King said. “Although ballots can often be confusing, this referendum was exceedingly so, and the extremely low number of people who even voted on it is alarming.”

But, King said, the measure did pass and there is not much that can be done now, at least not immediately. 

“The process to overturning a decision like this is lengthy and complicated,” admitted King. “Although it could be done, it certainly won’t be before the new name takes effect.”

In fact, the new name goes into effect today: on April 1st, 2019. Also known, of course, as April Fools Day. 🙂