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A South LA street is designated 'Obama Boulevard' and residents react

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A pedestrian crosses a section of Rodeo Road that will be renamed Obama Boulevard in honor of former President Barack Obama, on Wednesday, June 28, 2017, in Los Angeles. The Los Angeles City Council has voted unanimously to name a street for former President Obama. The motion approved 14-0 Wednesday calls for the city engineer to begin the process of renaming several miles of Rodeo Road as Obama Boulevard. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
Chris Pizzello/AP
A pedestrian crosses a section of Rodeo Road that will be renamed Obama Boulevard in honor of former President Barack Obama, on Wednesday, June 28, 2017, in Los Angeles. The Los Angeles City Council has voted unanimously to name a street for former President Obama. The motion approved 14-0 Wednesday calls for the city engineer to begin the process of renaming several miles of Rodeo Road as Obama Boulevard. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)

Residents of Rodeo Road in South Los Angeles react to LA City Council's decision to rename the street after former President Barack Obama.

Residents of Rodeo Road in South Los Angeles learned this week that they'd soon have a new address -- on Obama Boulevard. 

The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously on Wednesday to rename that three-and-a-half mile road after the former president. The street runs from Arlington Avenue to Jefferson Boulevard. 

Several residents heard about the name change for the first time on the news. Marvette Cutchins has lived on Rodeo Road for 14 years and welcomes the change.



"I think that’s a good surprise, I like to be surprised. When I heard it on the news, I was happy... I remember when Santa Barbara got changed over to Martin Luther King, and I’m happy that it’s changing," she said. 

But other residents, like Matthew Smedley, who has lived on the street since 1997, are less enthusiastic. 



"Why this street? You know, why not another street? It's always been Rodeo Road since I've been here so… Obama Boulevard just doesn't sound right to me," he said.

City officials expect final approval for the renaming near the end of August. 

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