Civic Asset Naming Committee and City History

street: It the first time in the city history that a street or any municipal asset has been named after a South Asian Canadian and it happened on the same day council was celebrating the city 130th birthday, according to Toronto Star. When it came to selecting the name of a street in a waterfront re-development area sprouting in the city River District, the late Uppal name was top of the list for the Civic Asset Naming Committee, says councillor Andrea Reimer. The pioneering community leader never sought the spotlight but it often found him, most recently this month when Vancouver council named a street after Uppal, recognizing his commitment to social justice. Every year, the public submits candidates for consideration by the committee, which picked Uppal because of his decades of contributions to the community. His family first settled there after arriving from Punjab in 1926 when he was an infant. Uppal roots run deep in the once industrial neighbourhood on the banks of the Fraser River, in the southeastern corner of the city. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.