Vilnius invites residents to suggest new names for Liudos Gira and Salomejas Nėries streets in Fabijoniškės. Until May 17 residents can submit proposals on the isrinkvarda.lt page.
"The capital's long-term strategy is to abandon the relics of Soviet ideology in all areas. The city is moving forward, so we are looking for new personalities, names that would give meaning to the uniqueness of these places. In the process of choosing a new name, we also include the communities of Fabijoniškii - their suggestions on how their street should be named are extremely important," said the mayor of Vilnius Valdas Benkunskas.
Residents can propose new street names until May 17 All received proposals will be summarized and evaluated by the Historical Memory Commission of the Vilnius City Council together with the local community.
"I think that residents will look for meaningful names suitable for this place in Fabijoniškii. Maybe historical, maybe modern. I ask the residents to write why they propose one or another name - this way it will be easier to evaluate it," Kamilė Šeraitė-Gogelienė, chairperson of the Historical Memory Commission of the Vilnius City Council, urged the residents.
It is suggested to check the name in the Address Register so that there are no duplicates. Also - offer the name only in Lithuanian language, in Lithuanian characters. Both place names and personal names are suitable.
From the proposals for each street, the naming commission will choose the three most suitable variants with the community. Then a public vote will be announced, where residents can cast their vote for the name they like best. The final decision will be made after taking into account the results of the public vote and the opinion of the local community.
The selected street names will be submitted to the City Council for approval. After its decision, the streets will be given new names.
The renaming of the streets was approved not only by the Historical Memory Commission of the City of Vilnius. The De-Sovietization Commission, which evaluates the public inscriptions and symbols left over from the Soviet era, obliges the removal of the names of Liudas Gira and Salomeja Nėries from public inscriptions.
L. Gira and S. Nėris were writers who also wrote poetry and prose praising the Soviet government. In 1940, as delegates of the People's Seimas, together with other representatives, they went to Moscow with a request to accept Lithuania into the Soviet Union. Two streets in Fabijoniškės were named after them during the Soviet era, which are now planned to be renamed.
