Four Southeastern street names to change
Wednesday, December 12, 2018
by: Tonya Lowentritt
HAMMOND – What’s in a name? Well sometimes, as was the case for a few Southeastern
Louisiana University street names, a bit of confusion.
Four campus street names are changing to more accurately reflect Southeastern’s
identity, geography and sense of place. At the request of the university, the Hammond
City Council voted recently to approve the following changes: Texas Ave. will become
Union Ave.; Tennessee Ave. will change to Mane St.; and Virginia Ave. will be Roomie
Rd., while Tornado Dr. on North Campus, which once housed Hammond High School, will
become Lion Lane.
The new names came about at the urging of students after several first-time campus
guests using computerized navigation expressed confusion as to why a university named
and located in Southeast Louisiana would feature streets named for other states and
a different mascot, as was the case with Tornado Drive named for the HHS Tornadoes.
“It was just a bit confusing, for example, for someone visiting campus for the
first time ever,” said Richard Davis, Southeastern Student Government Association
president. “If you think about it, it just doesn’t make sense. Why would you take
Texas Ave. to get to Southeastern Louisiana University’s Student Union or turn onto
Tennessee Ave. for the Southeastern Louisiana University School of Nursing?”
The name changes come at an opportune time with many more travelers now accessing
the former Texas Ave. to reach the new Ascension and Twelve Oaks residence halls or
attending events at the Student Union.
Online mapping services have been notified of the changes, and efforts are underway
to update all campus maps and directional identifiers.
“Looking forward, we’re excited to see the new street signs go up to properly
reflect the pride we have in our campus,” Davis added.
