Ottawa City Council Moves to Rename Trump Avenue

Ottawa’s city council voted on Sept. 23 to rename a street in its Central Park neighbourhood that bears the last name of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Ottawa developed the Central Park neighbourhood in Ward 16, River Ward, in the late 1990s and early 2000s, with many streets named after New York City landmarks, locations, and individuals, including Trump, who was a real estate mogul at the time of the naming, said a motion introduced by River Ward Coun. Riley Brockington.

“The Central Park street naming theme was not proposed as a commemorative naming initiative and [was] simply thematically named,” the motion said. “Trump Avenue today would not meet any of the criteria had it gone through a formal commemorative naming process.”

The motion said Ottawa “prides itself” on the people it commemorates and honours, while the city’s street-naming policy requires all new and replacement street names to be valued against established street-naming criteria such as public safety and wayfinding considerations.

The motion comes amid trade tensions between Canada and the United States.

Trump has also moved to rename Lake Ontario to Lake America in the United States.

In voting to rename the street, council directed Brockington to lead a public consultation process with all households on Trump Avenue to nominate a new street name that meets the city’s policies. The motion noted that the new name “may retain a New York City theme or propose a name that deviates from that theme.”

Council wants Brockington to recommend a proposed new street name for approval no later than the second quarter of 2027.