Peskin pitches ‘Rose Pak Chinatown’ stop for Central Subway

An effort is on its way again to name San Francisco’s future Chinatown subway station after late community organizer Rose Pak.

Supervisor Aaron Peskin introduced a resolution Tuesday at the Board of Supervisors to call on the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency to once again consider naming the station as the “Rose Pak Chinatown Station.”

A statement from Peskin’s office said it was important to honor the wishes of the Chinatown community, who would like to see Pak’s name attached to the station:

“We also continue to feel that it’s appropriate to honor the community’s desire to see the Station named after Central Subway’s biggest advocate, Rose Pak, who advocated at every level of government to bring Central Subway to Chinatown. I think we can both honor Rose’s leadership on this legacy project while simultaneously highlighting Chinatown’s geographic location.”

The statement continued:

“And frankly, in the wake of announcements of further delays to the Central Subway project, the community deserves something to restore its hope and pride in this major infrastructure project.”

Following the death of Park in 2016, the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a resolution that called for the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency to name the subway stop the “Rose Pak Station,” but it stopped short of meeting the SFMTA’s policy on naming transit stations.

At its Dec 6. Meeting, the SFMTA Board of Directors approved a policy of naming transit stations only by its geographical location such as a street or cross street, neighborhood, or well-known destination and can be understood by the public and first responders in an event of emergency.

The policy does allow the board to consider to add a commemorative name to a plaza, a waiting area, entrance, based off an individual or group’s achievements in the local, state, or federal level.

Peskin’s resolution highlights some of Pak’s contribution to the Central Subway, including traveling to Washington, D.C. to make sure The City received federal funding for the project.

SFMTA spokesperson Erica Kato said in a statement that the transit agency will review the resolution:

“We look forward to reviewing the resolution and will carefully consider this recommendation and the overall feedback of the Chinatown community.”

The resolution urges the SFMTA Board of Directors to approve the station name before June 30.

Jerold Chinn

Jerold serves as a reporter and San Francisco Bureau Chief for SFBay covering transportation and occasionally City Hall and the Mayor's Office in San Francisco. His work on transportation has been recognized by the San Francisco Press Club. Born and raised in San Francisco, he graduated from San Francisco State University with a degree in journalism. Jerold previously wrote for the San Francisco Public Press, a nonprofit, noncommercial news organization. When not reporting, you can find Jerold taking Muni to check out new places to eat in the city.