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Name Bronx Post Office After Late Rep. Herman Badillo, Borough Prez Says

By Eddie Small | February 23, 2015 3:10pm
 Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. has proposed naming the Morrisania Post Office after former Congressman Herman Badillo.
Herman Badillo Post Office
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MORRISANIA — Late Bronx Congressman Herman Badillo could soon have an historic post office named after him if Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr. gets his way.

Diaz is working to rename the Morrisania Post Office at 442 East 167th St. after Badillo, the first Puerto Rican congressman and a staple of local political life who also served as Bronx Borough President, Deputy Mayor of New York City and Chairman of CUNY's Board of Trustees.

Diaz said he believes that naming the Morrisania Post Office after the politician, who passed away in December at age 85 due to complications caused by congestive heart failure, would be an appropriate tribute to his legacy.

“Congressman Herman Badillo was a trailblazer in government,” Diaz said in a statement. “He was an early advocate for bilingual education programs in the country as well as a crusader for worker’s rights during his tenure in Congress. I am proud to have gotten to know him and call him my dear friend.”

Diaz first mentioned the idea in his State of the Borough address last week and recently wrote a letter to Sens. Charles Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand proposing the change.

"The Morrisania branch of the United States Post Office is included on the National Register of Historic Places and is the most significant federally-owned building in our borough," Diaz wrote. "It would only be fitting to rename this structure in honor of a true pioneer like Herman Badillo."