Council Finds a Compromise on Renaming Pan Am Park

Dancers at Pan American Neighborhood Park on Aug. 27 (Photo by Jana Birchum)

Amid controversy about renaming East Aus­tin's Pan Ameri­can Neighborhood Park, Austin City Council voted last week to honor longtime East Austin teacher and coach Tony Castil­lo with a plaque instead of renaming the park in his honor. The vote concludes a months-long debate that split many Eastside residents and activists over how to most appropriately honor the history of the neighborhood and one of its most well-regarded citizens.

Pan American Park was opened in 1956 and has served ever since as a hub for the city's Eastside Latino community, hosting the city's longest-running outdoor concert series and numerous other events. It will soon be recognized with a state historical marker. Almost since its inception, Castillo has been one of the park's most prominent figures: a teacher and coach at Johnston High School who coached teams, umpired games, served on boards, and helped foster community.

Among the many residents Castillo interacted with over the years was District 3 Council Member Pio Renteria, who formerly served on the Oswaldo "A.B." Cantu/Pan-American Recre­a­tion Center Advisory Board. Renteria said his first job with the city was teaching kids to play baseball and he had one problem: He had no idea how. "I had never played baseball before," Renteria said. "I didn't have the opportunity. I grew up in an area where there was no parks, there was no toys, there was no sports equipment. And I had people like Tony, there was another one named Buster Capuchino, that actually took us all and taught us how to play sports. How to keep scores. That was a mentor that ... really wanted to accomplish things that I never would have been able to without having people like that [who] actually worked with me, and helped me, and mentored me. I think he's a great person."

Castillo's son, Derek Castillo, applied in February to rename the park Tony Castillo Pan Am Park in honor of his father's contributions to the community. Quickly, however, there was resistance from community members who argued for the importance of keeping the park's original name in the midst of a rapidly changing neighborhood landscape. They also noted that Castillo is not the only East Austinite whose contributions are deserving of recognition.

Indeed, a survey by the Parks and Recreation Depart­ment found that while 79% of residents across the city were in support of the name change, a small majority of 51% of respondents in the park's District 3 home opposed it. Among the prominent opponents of the name change was the Rec Center Advisory Board, which voted unanimously in May to oppose the name change and whose chair, Ana Maciel, rallied community members against the name change at the Hillside Summer Concert Series.

In June, after hearing testimony from community members on both sides of the issue, the Parks and Recreation Board voted for a compromise – recommending that City Council retain the original name of the park but erect a plaque to honor Castillo's contributions. Last week, that's exactly what happened, on a 9-2 vote, with Renteria and Paige Ellis, who represents Castillo's son, voting against it.

"People that didn't even talk to each other, they all came together and renewed that love for our community – that unity that was gone there for a while," Maciel said. "It was a great feeling to know that we stood up and told City Council: This is the community's park. This is not one individual's park."