Renaming Dayton Street in Honor of R&B Group ‘Troop’ Pulled From Council Agenda

The Pasadena City Council voted to continue an item on Monday’s agenda that would have renamed a portion of Dayton Street in honor of a Pasadena R&B group. 

Under the proposal, Dayton Street would have been changed to Troop Way. 

Councilmember Justin Jones asked that the item be held so that more outreach can be conducted. It will come back on May 20.

The plan faced opposition from the Castle Green Homeowners Association, which argued that Dayton Street’s historic significance should be preserved.

“I was in my 20’s during the late 80’s but was not aware of the band Troop so I Googled them,” wrote Amy White in correspondence to the City Council. “I am, however, aware of Castle Green. I live here [full disclosure]. While I couldn’t find a connection between the band Troop and Dayton Street, I certainly know the connection to Castle Green and Dayton Street, both physically and by name. 

“In fact, Dayton Street was gifted to Pasadena by Castle Green. The name Dayton Street is historically tied to a historic landmark. Surely there is another street in Pasadena that can be used to honor the band Troop? Maybe even one that is tied to their history and thus, meaningful to their fans? Please do not change the name of Dayton Street.”

Troop, originally named “Five of A Kind,” was formed in Pasadena in 1984 by students from Pasadena High School. 

The group included Rodney Benford, Reggie Warren, Jan Jan Harreld, Steve Russell, and Allen McNeil. Throughout their formative years, they group practiced and performed at various venues across Pasadena.

An alternative proposal would have allowed the City to rename a portion of Morton Avenue between Hammond Street and Mountain Street to Troop Way, as the group practiced at the nearby Robinson Park Recreation Center for over 30 years.

The Castle Green Homeowners Association emphasized the importance of Dayton Street as part of the historic landmark block that includes Castle Green and Hotel Green, as well as its inclusion in the historic Old Pasadena landmark area in a letter addressed to the City Council.

“The Castle Green’s constituency has no issue with honoring Troop or anyone else, but the standard to change a street name, particularly one as historic as Dayton, should be very high,” the Homeowners Association wrote in their letter.

Dayton Street has been home to Pasadena’s first firehouse, first library, and many other historically significant venues over the years, noted the Castle Green Homeowners Association.

Friendship Baptist Church, one of the City’s oldest Black churches, is also located on Dayton Street. 

The Homeowners Association pointed out that street name changes are rarely used for commemorative purposes in Pasadena, with only a few exceptions in recent decades. 

Those exceptions included honoring the late Chief Executive Officer of Parsons, who died in a plane crash while on a mission with the United States Chamber of Commerce to the Balkans, and renaming a portion of Ramona after the late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall. 

The La Loma Bridge was also renamed in honor of longtime Pasadena resident and former California State Attorney General, John Van de Kamp after his death.

The Castle Green Homeowners Association suggested that the City consider alternative ways to honor Troop, such as installing a plaque referencing the part of Pasadena where the group members were born, lived, or created their work. 

The HOA also highlighted the City’s Public Monument Policy, which states that such city-wide honors should be bestowed posthumously and only after a thorough review of their significance.

The policy was discussed and reviewed after the death of former Pasadena resident Eddie Van Halen, who shot to fame in the group Van Halen. After much discussion, a plaque was placed in honor of the group.