Ottawa is considering renaming Trump Avenue as tensions between Canada and the United States continue to grow. Possible replacements include Obama Avenue and the tongue-in-cheek Taco Avenue, while the debate has gained new attention following Trump’s recent “Lake America” move.
A residential street in Canada’s capital could lose the name of President Donald Trump, but the renewed effort is about more than simply changing a street sign.
Ottawa City Council voted unanimously Wednesday to take the first step toward potentially renaming Trump Avenue, a street in the Central Park neighborhood that has carried the name for roughly 25 years. Among the suggestions already circulating are Obama Avenue, Ontario Avenue, Canada Avenue, Beaver Avenue, Pelosi Avenue and Taco Avenue.
The push comes amid a sharp deterioration in relations between Canada and the United States, particularly over trade and tariffs. Local councilors have pointed to Trump’s repeated comments and actions involving Canada, saying they no longer believe it is appropriate for a street in the Canadian capital to honor him. River Ward Councilor Riley Brockington has described the name as an embarrassment and cited what he views as threats to Canada’s economy and sovereignty.
The debate has become even more pointed following Trump’s move involving Lake Ontario. Just one day after Ottawa’s council vote, Trump signed an executive order directing the U.S. government to refer to Lake Ontario as “Lake America.” The lake is shared by the United States and Canada, and Canadian leaders have strongly rejected the new U.S. designation.
That timing has given the Ottawa street debate an unmistakably symbolic dimension. Councilor Tim Tierney told CNN that the Lake Ontario controversy had pushed the Trump Avenue issue back onto the “front burner.” At the same time, he cautioned that arguments over names should not distract from the much larger dispute over tariffs and trade between the neighboring countries.
The street itself was not originally named as a political tribute to President Trump. Trump Avenue was created as part of a neighborhood containing numerous New York-themed names, including Staten Way, Madison Park and Gotham Private, at a time when Donald Trump was primarily known internationally as a New York businessman and celebrity.
This is also not Ottawa’s first attempt to change the name. In 2021, the 62 households on Trump Avenue were surveyed. Twenty-one supported changing it, 21 wanted to keep it and 20 did not vote. Some of those opposed were reportedly less concerned about politics than about the practical inconvenience of changing their addresses and documents.
For any change to happen now, more than half of the residents would have to support renaming the street. A replacement name would then go through a separate public consultation process, and officials do not expect a final decision until after Ottawa’s municipal elections in October.
Of all the proposed replacements, “Taco Avenue” has attracted particular attention. It refers to the acronym TACO — “Trump Always Chickens Out” — a phrase that emerged in financial and political circles to mock occasions when Trump threatened major tariff measures before later backing away or softening them.
So far, there is no approved new name. But against the backdrop of tariffs, increasingly hostile rhetoric and the dispute over Lake Ontario, the fate of one small Ottawa street has become another symbol of the growing political friction between two countries that have traditionally been among the world’s closest neighbors.
Source: ABC7NY/CNN, AP, CBC reporting.
By NJ RADAR Team