Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - An initiative is underway to rename Broderick Park on Unity Island along the Niagara River to "Freedom Park", given its historical significance to the Underground Railroad and the road to freedom for many escaped slaves in the early-to-mid 1800s.
During Tuesday's Buffalo Common Council Community Development Committee meeting at City Hall, Michael J. Broderick, representing his family's namesake with the park, showed their support for the potential name change, saying, "We understand the cultural significance, and hoping that this Chamber will support the the name change."
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Council Majority Leader David Rivera represents Broderick Park in the Common Council, as it lies in the Niagara District. He says upon hearing the Broderick family's support of the name change, he was "pleasantly surprised".
"It says so much about the family to say, 'Hey, you can remove our name, you can recognize us for the things that we've done, but we understand how important this is, in terms of history,' notably the Underground Railroad," said Rivera in an interview with WBEN on Thursday. "I am pleasantly surprised, and I think it makes the process a lot smoother. But I just want to commend the Broderick family and all of the grandchildren and children who are supportive of this."
While Rivera knows the park today is a spot of recreation and leisure being along the Niagara River and connected to the Bird Island Pier, he's very well aware of the park's significance in history, most notably as the major terminus for the Underground Railroad between the United States and Canada.
Rivera admits, though, he didn't understand the full extent of the park's history until he took office in the 2000s.
"I think it was 2008 when I started to meet with representatives of Friends of Broderick Park, and they explained to me the history and how passionate they were about it, especially members of the African-American community," Rivera said. "To them, it was something very sacred, and I got to observe that through the reenactments. I got to see that through buses that used to pull up in the rain so people can get out and walk down to the river's edge to look over the water, to remember those that crossed the river seeking freedom. At that point, I knew how significant it was for them. We worked for many years to improve the park, the experience that people have, and to bring some awareness of how important it is, in terms of history."
Rivera knows the name change of Broderick Park has been a focus of the Friends of Broderick Park for a while now, and now the Buffalo Common Council will take a closer look at it.
"I think there is momentum to change the name," Rivera said. "We also want to honor Michael Broderick, whose name is on the park. He was one of the founders of the [West Side] Rowing Club, who used to have a club down at the Southern point of Unity Island. We want to honor him as well, and meet and speak with his family. From what I understand, they are very supportive of the name change, and renaming it to Freedom [Park]. I'm looking forward to the process."
So what's next in the process over the next coming weeks to formally change Broderick Park to Freedom Park? Rivera explains it starts with filing a formal resolution, which he says his office in the process of doing right now.
"Whatever we need to do to move the process along smoothly, and we follow all of the steps that are required. But I'd like to do it as soon as the charter allows, so that's what we're going to do," he said. "We're going to do it quickly, and we're moving the process along right now."
Following that, the process will also involve a public hearing for people of the city to come to Council Chambers and speak on the name change.
In the meantime, Rivera encourages people from all communities in Western New York and beyond to visit Broderick Park and understand its significance to history.
"We have trails that we put there, contemplative gardens, amphitheaters - they do reenactments down there at the amphitheaters. They can't cross the river any longer, they stopped doing that after 9/11, but the history is still there," Rivera said. "There are markers on the ground, the trails of those who were seeking freedom would take. It's an opportunity to learn as well, and I think it behooves everybody to just go down there and spend some time, besides the recreational leisure, the history of the park itself."