Willie Brown Bridge? Governor Opposes Naming New Bay Bridge After Former Mayor

Willie Lewis Brown Jr. Bay Bridge? Jerry Brown says no thanks.

Everybody knows Willie Brown. But one Brown -- the governor, Jerry -- would prefer not to drive over his bridge.

The effort to rename the new eastern span of the Bay Bridge -- the $6.4 billion over-budget and over-time project only recently completed -- after the former San Francisco mayor and former speaker of the state Assembly has major backing from the NAACP, as well as 68 members of the state legislature.

But not from Gov. Jerry Brown -- a former Oakland mayor -- who on Tuesday informed the state that the idea to name the span after Willie Brown isn't sitting well with him, according to reports.

"Governor Brown believes that the iconic Bay Bridge should keep the name it has had for nearly 77 years, a name that lives in the hearts and minds of all Californians," Brown spokesman Evan Westrup informed reporters in a Tuesday email. "And he feels the same way about the Golden Gate Bridge."

The idea was first put forward by politicians from Southern California, but gained momentum after the state NAACP signaled its approval.

There's an informal ban on naming roadways after living people, the San Francisco Chronicle noted, though it is often disobeyed.

The full Senate vote on the renaming proposal could happen as early as today, the newspaper reported.

Nobody has voted against the measure -- though some have elected not to vote.

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