EVERETT — A decision over what to name the public park adjacent to the new Everett Y on Colby Avenue is expected Jan. 29 by the City Council, but it could be a tough call.
They could opt to dedicate it for beloved Dr. Art Grossman or pioneer-times Everett Schools superintendent Emma Yule, or take another route altogether. A third contender is to name the park after the Glacier View neighborhood.
In spring 2018, the city’s park board recommended naming the site “Arthur Grossman Memorial Park.” That summer, the city’s Historical Commission voted by a majority for Grossman after a spirited conversation.
Grossman delivered thousands of babies, and led fitness classes at the Y. He died in December 2017 at age 71.
The case for naming something in the city to recognize Yule — a street, a school, a public site — has energized dozens of residents. She was principal at Everett High and the school system’s superintendent during the 1890s.
The Everett School District has no building named after Yule, but Yule’s name has been considered before.
The Everett Y’s site is the former administration building for the Everett School District. Yule’s tie-in as the first female superintendent fits, resident Deb Fox told the council Jan. 8.
“She is the sensible, legitimate and right choice” for the park name, Fox said, and it would buck a trend to name public places after men.
Fox is one of the most steadfast in supporting Yule. There are 260 signers to an online petition favoring Yule.
In Grossman’s corner, people advocated for the doctor with letters of support early on.
When the city polled the public in spring 2018, Grossman had 33 nominations. Then-newly deceased city historian David Dilgard came second with 21; Glacier View Park got 9. Yule had 3. More recently, people have emailed city officials supporting Yule.
The city formally wrote a public-places naming policy in 2012 to address community discourse on naming the old City Hall after former mayor Bill Moore. The building at 3002 Wetmore Ave. is now the William E. Moore Historic City Hall.
At the Jan. 8 council meeting, Councilman Paul Roberts proposed re-opening the naming policy after this park name is decided.
The 1.2-acre park will stand next to the Everett Y at 4730 Colby Ave.
The city last named a park in 2013. The park at 13th and Colby was renamed for Drew Nielsen, a city councilman and attorney who was killed in a 2012 white water rafting accident. He worked to secure this park space for the public in the 1990s, and he personally built the gazebo there.
