Greensboro Renames Barber Park Event Center After Mayor Johnson
The Greensboro City Council voted to rename the Barber Park Event Center the Yvonne J. Johnson Event Center and unveiled a commemorative plaque on Monday. The change honors the late Yvonne Johnson, Greensboro's first African American mayor, and signals a city level effort to preserve her legacy and inspire civic engagement.
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Greensboro residents saw a visible tribute to a longstanding local leader on Monday when the City Council presented a resolution renaming the Barber Park Event Center the Yvonne J. Johnson Event Center and unveiled a plaque that will hang in the building. The action formalizes a public commemoration for Johnson, who held multiple roles in city government across three decades and remained an influential presence in local politics until her death.
Johnson first won a seat on the Greensboro City Council in 1993 and rose to mayor pro tem in 2001. She was elected mayor in 2007, serving through 2009, and later returned to the council where she continued to serve. Council members cited her years of service and breaking of representational barriers as factors in the decision to rename the facility. Officials also emphasized the plaque as a permanent marker of her contributions to the community.
The renaming matters to residents because it places Johnson's name at a public venue used for civic gatherings, cultural events, and community programming. The event center is often a focal point for neighborhood meetings and local celebrations, and its new name integrates Johnson's public service into the daily life of the city. City leaders and community advocates say the designation will keep her example of civic leadership visible to new generations of voters and volunteers.
The council resolution follows common municipal practice of naming public assets to honor former officials, but it also reflects local priorities about whose histories are commemorated in public space. For a city that elected its first African American mayor only in 2007, the renaming acts as both recognition and a symbolic affirmation of more inclusive representation in municipal institutions. The family of Yvonne Johnson described the renaming as the best way for her to be remembered in the city she loved.
Beyond symbolism, the move has practical implications for programming and interpretation at the event center. City staff will now manage the plaque and any related signage and are expected to incorporate Johnson's story into outreach for events held at the venue. The choice may also prompt discussions among residents and officials about other opportunities to document local leaders and broaden civic education.
As Greensboro transitions the name, officials said the plaque will remain on display in the building. For residents who followed Johnson's long tenure in public life, the change places a familiar name at the center of community gatherings, while offering a point of reference for conversations about representation and civic participation in Guilford County.
