Bear Creek

Bear Creek, NC · Municipal
Raleigh News & Observer
Raleigh may rename part of New Bern Avenue for first Black mayor. What to know
Advocates in Southeast Raleigh want to rename a stretch of New Bern Avenue after Clarence E. Lightner, the city’s first popularly elected Black mayor. City, state and federal officials met in October to discuss the possibility. FULL STORY: A new name for Raleigh’s New Bern Avenue? City’s first Black mayor could be honored Here are key takeaways: Longtime activist Octavia Rainey is leading the push to honor Lightner on signs from Person Street to WakeMed, a corridor that runs through neighborhoods where he held influence for decades. Lightner served as mayor from 1973-75 and was part of the “Oval Table Gang” that strategized with civil rights pioneers Ralph and June Campbell to end segregation peacefully. He died in 2002. The proposed stretch includes a downtown post office and the Terry Sanford federal building, meaning a name change would affect their addresses. Rainey concedes the process will take time. Raleigh’s four main downtown streets going east, west, north and south were originally named for the towns they led to, including New Bern. The avenue is currently midway through a transformation that will bring North Carolina’s first rapid-transit bus line.