Hollywood has voted to rename some streets — now what happens?
Residents fear change will be a big hassle
HOLLYWOOD — Hundreds of people who live on Hood, Forrest and Lee streets will soon have another task on their to-do list: Changing their address.
After months of debate, Hollywood will finally say farewell to controversial street names honoring three Confederate war heroes.
It’s no longer a matter of if, but when. As the clock approached midnight Aug. 30, Hollywood commissioners voted to rename streets named in the 1920s for Nathan Bedford Forrest, John Bell Hood and Robert E. Lee, all Confederate commanders during the Civil War.
With commissioners now debating what names to give the streets, some residents and busi- ness owners say they’re dreading the hassle of an address change.
They fear it may require a lot more work than changing the address on their driver’s license and alerting bill collectors.
Some are wondering whether they’ll need to change their property deeds and contact the United States Postal Service and other government agencies.
They fret over whether police and firefighters will get lost responding to 911 calls. They even wonder how long it might take for Google to catch on and update the street names.
In all, 1,337 residents and businesses will need to change their address: 810 on Lee Street, 264 on Forrest Street and 263 on Hood Street, Hollywood officials say.
John Jacobs, who has lived on Lee Street for more than 30 years, is one of them.
“I’m upset about changing my address,” he said. “We all are. They try to make it sound so easy. It’s not easy. Everything we have our address on has to be changed. Now if you move, you have to go through this. I don’t like it being forced on me.”
Jacobs has a sister and nephew who both live in homes on Hood Street. A late niece lived on Forrest Street.
“It’s very similar to moving to a new address,” said Lorie Mertens-Black, chief civic affairs officer for Hollywood. “You’re going to do many of the same things.”
But in this case, Hollywood’s engineering office will do some of the work by notifying government agencies of the new street names, she said. City Hall will notify the post office, Broward County revenue collector and property appraiser.
Residents will not need to change their property deeds because they are tracked by legal descriptions not addresses, Mertens-Black said.
As for police and firefighters being confused by the new street names, that shouldn’t be an issue.
“We did check with our police and fire chiefs and they didn’t have any concerns,” Mertens-Black said. “They will be able to find the addresses.”
Residents will need to change the address on their driver’s license, but city officials are working with state legislators to get the $25 fee waived or refunded, she said.
In addition, residents and business owners will need to notify bill collectors.
Sylvia Koutsodontis, a Dania Beach resident who runs an accounting office on Lee Street, says she has better things to do with her time.
“I have to tell over 500 clients I am changing my address,” she said. “I have to change business cards, stationery, utility bills, homeowners insurance, all my promotional items like pens that I give out.”
She also plans on calling her alarm company, cable company and lawn service and housekeeper.
“It’s just endless,” she said. “It’s going to take a lot of time — time that I don’t have. I can’t even order new stuff because we don’t know what the new name will be.”
Residents interested in hearing more about the new street names can attend a commission workshop on Oct. 18 at 10 a.m. at City Hall.
Mayor Josh Levy says the commission won’t choose new names at the meeting, but will debate the process the city will use to select them.
“We can’t take any action at the workshop, but we can come up with a game plan,” he said. “It’s kind of like stay tuned.”
“It’s going to take a lot of time — time that I don’t have. I can’t even order new stuff because we don’t know what the new name will be.” Sylvia Koutsodontis, Dania Beach