| Namesake | Barack Obama |
|---|---|
| Maintained by | Los Angeles Department of Transportation |
| Length | 3.5 miles (5.6 km) |
| Location | Los Angeles, California |
| West end | Culver City city limit nearBallona Creek |
| East end | Exposition Boulevard inLeimert Park, Los Angeles |
President Barack Obama Boulevard (commonly known asObama Boulevard, formerlyRodeo Road) is a majorthoroughfare inSouth Los Angeles. It stretches 3.5 miles (5.6 km) fromBaldwin Hills (pastBaldwin Village andCrenshaw Manor) toLeimert Park.[1]
Previously called Rodeo Road,[2] it was renamed PresidentBarack Obama Boulevard by theLos Angeles City Council on May 4, 2019. TheLos Angeles Times characterized the renaming as important for local residents because it honored the first African American President and was a symbol of resistance to thefirst Donald Trump presidency.[2][3] The city already has streets named after U.S. presidents, such asGeorge Washington,John Adams,Thomas Jefferson,Abraham Lincoln, andWoodrow Wilson, as well as a street named for Reverend Dr.Martin Luther King Jr.—the former "Santa Barbara Avenue", thus renamed, and commonly known since the early 1980s as "King Boulevard". Then-Senator Obama held a campaign rally atRancho Cienega Park whenrunning for his first term as president.[4]
The former Rodeo Road's intersection withLa Brea Avenue has been a commercial nexus[need quotation to verify] since the mid-20th century, with the Baldwin Hills Shopping Center[5] (not to be confused with the largerBaldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza indoor mall) opening in 1954 with anchorsSafeway, Clark's Drug Store (later becameSav-On Drugs in 1995) andJ. J. Newberry;[6] today theanchor tenants areRalphs supermarket andCVS Pharmacy. TheLa Cienega–Rodeo Shopping Center had theFedcowarehouse club as an anchor,[7] and is now anchored byTarget. From the intersection of Obama andCrenshaw Boulevards, a commercial strip stretches down Crenshaw Boulevard to theBaldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza.
