A north side park could soon be renamed in honor of singer Al Jarreau, a Milwaukee native

Backed by their alderman, leaders of a community group have asked the city to rename a north side park after singer and Milwaukee native Al Jarreau.

Elizabeth Brown and Barbara Smith of Amani United applied to the city to rename the park at North 30th Street and West Cawker Place the Alwin Lopez (Al) Jarreau Park in honor of the singer, who won six Grammy awards during his long musical career.

"Parks are places where kids can dream and develop their talents, skills, and abilities. Jarreau’s legacy serves as a model to aspire to, and naming a park for him would introduce him to future generations of Milwaukee youth,” the Amani United leaders wrote in a letter to the city accompanying the application.

Born in Milwaukee, Jarreau (1940-2017) graduated from Lincoln High School and earned his bachelor's degree in psychology from Ripon College, followed by a master's in vocational rehabilitation from the University of Iowa. He worked for several years as a rehabilitation counselor for people with disabilities.

As a singer, Jarreau deftly bridged the worlds of jazz and pop, bringing his impressive vocal technique into such hit songs as "We're in This Love Together" and the theme song for the TV series "Moonlighting." Among his many other accomplishments, Jarreau was a member of the musical all-star group that sang "We Are the World" for the USA for Africa charity effort.

Ald. Khalif J. Rainey, whose 7th District includes the park, supports the renaming. In a letter to the Citizens Advisory Committee, Rainey wrote: "He (Jarreau) was always ours. No matter where he went, he consistently spoke fondly of this place, something not all do. I think naming this park in his memory is a modest step towards honoring his legacy and memory.”

Jarreau was a strong supporter of musical and performing arts education. "I am very concerned that, today, children in my hometown of Milwaukee, and across our country, are not getting the same exposure to arts that I had. This is largely due to extreme cuts in funding for education," he wrote in a 2016 opinion piece published by the Journal Sentinel.

"The arts can save our families and our communities. A young person who has a trumpet or ballet slippers or some paint brushes in his bag is probably not also carrying a weapon," Jarreau wrote. "As a community, working together, we must collaborate to bring arts and culture back into the schools."

Rainey sees the projected name change as part of an effort to revamp and update the park to increase connectivity on the north side. He noted the project to enhance the park was largely inspired by the MKE Plays community design solutions group affiliated with the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. This group aims to create new, viable park designs and make positive changes to Milwaukee gathering spaces.

The name-change application has been assigned to the Common Council's Public Works Committee, which will review it and make a recommendation to the full council. The committee's next meeting is July 19.

The council resolution refers to the city-owned property, which has playground equipment and basketball courts, as the "30th and Cawker Park Area."

A resident-led organization, Amani United works to foster safety and positive changes in the neighborhood between North 20th and North 30th streets and West North and West Keefe avenues.

Journal Sentinel reporter Tom Daykin contributed to this article.

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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Al Jarreau Park could be coming soon to the north side