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On August 1, it became official. After several rounds of voting, the neighborhood that had been named for Denver's first municipal airfield — which itself was named for Benjamin Stapleton, a leading member of the Ku Klux Klan who was elected mayor of Denver with the KKK's help in 1923 — was officially transformed from Stapleton into Central Park.
There's been plenty of discussion over the issue for the past several months, and it didn't stop with the final vote.
Says Lisa:
What a missed opportunity. They could've honored a community hero and instead went bland and generic.
Asks Greg:
Is it central? Or a park?
Replies Marcelino:
It is central...it is the center of privileged, euro-american, cultural hegemony.
Adds Jeffrey:
Central Park is not only unoriginal, but Stapleton isn’t even central. It should be called Outskirt Yuppy Village.
Counters Sher:
There are nineteen places named Denver in America, two in the United Kingdom and one in Australia....so who cares!
Notes Dameion:
The neighborhood already has....the main arterial thoroughfare of Central Park Boulevard that also has an I-70 exitl the 80-acre Central Park (one of the largest in Denver), Central Park Rec Center, Central Park RTD rail station and park-n-ride. What did you expect the neighborhood to go with? "Central" is relative.
Concludes William:
And the winner is...the most bland, uninspired and uninteresting name that’s impossible to take issue with.
Now that the neighborhood formerly known as Stapleton is officially Central Park, this might be your last chance to comment on the name change. What did you think of the process? What do you think the area should have been called? Post a comment or email editorial@westword.
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