Could a Terrebonne recreation district name part of a ballpark walkway after a living former board member?

Plain-English summary

Terrebonne Parish Recreation District No. 6 wanted to honor a former board member who had helped create concrete walkways through its ballpark. In November 2015, the Attorney General concluded that the district could name a portion of a walkway for a living person.

La. R.S. 42:267 barred naming certain entire public buildings, parks, and other listed public property for a living person unless law authorized it. The AG relied on earlier opinions that distinguished naming an entire facility from naming a portion within one. It viewed a section of the park walkway as a part of the larger facility rather than a separate park or building.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2015. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Common questions

Could the district name this section of its park walkway for a living person?

Yes. The AG treated the described walkway section as a portion of an existing structure and concluded that the district could name it for a living person.

Could the district name the whole park after the former member under this opinion?

The opinion addressed only a section of the walkway. It quoted the statutory restriction on naming a public park for a living person.

Why did the walkway section qualify for the AG’s distinction?

The AG compared it with earlier approved examples such as a library within a school, a planetarium wing, and a hospital room. It said the walkway section was not a new or separate building.

Background and statutory framework

La. R.S. 42:267(A) restricted names honoring living people on enumerated public facilities. The AG surveyed its prior interpretations, including opinions that an auditorium or gymnasium at an elementary school could not be named after a living person. It placed the walkway portion on the other side of that line.

Source

• Landing page: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinions
• Original PDF: https://www.ag.state.la.us/Opinion/Download/15-0142

Original opinion text

JiSihtte of Ifioui5iana
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
P.O. BOX94005
BATON ROUGE
JAMES D. "BUDDY" CALDWELL
70804-9005
ATIORNEY GENERAL

NOV 30 21]15
OPINION 15-0142

9ll-A-1 PUBLIC FUNDS & CONTRACTS
Ms. Michelle L. Neil, Commissioner
La. Const. art. VII, § 14
Terrebonne Parish Recreation District NO.6 La. R.S. 42:267

Post Office Box 51
The Terrebonne Parish Recreation District Number Six may
107 Recreation Drive
name a portion of a walkway at its ballpark after any person,
living or deceased.
Montegut, LA 70377

Dear Ms. Neil,

Your request for an Attorney General's Opinion has been assigned to me for research and reply, On behalf of the Terrebonne Parish Recreation District Number Six ("District"), you have asked our opinion regarding the District's authority to name a portion of a walkway at a ballpark in honor of a living person.

The District owns and operates a park which consists of three baseball fields, a concession area, one football field surrounded by a walking track, one playground, two tennis courts, one sWimming pool, and one gymnasium, According to your request, a past board member was instrumental in the conception and construction of concrete walkways which wind through the baseball fields within the park, You have inquired as to whether naming a section of this concrete walkway after the aforementioned board member is legally permissible,

As noted in your request, there are some limitations placed on the naming of public buildings, La. RS. 42:267(A) provides:

A, Except as authorized or provided by law, no public building, public bridge, public park, public fish or game preserve, or public wildlife refuge owned by the state or by any political subdivision of the state or by any institution receiving its support in whole or in part from the state shall be named in honor of any living person,

This office has consistently interpreted La, RS, 42:267 to prohibit the naming of an entire buildinq after a living person, However, we have also concluded that naming a portion of a public building after a living person would not violate the statute, See, e.q.

Page 2

Ms. Michelle L. Neil
Opinion 15-0142
Page 2

La. Atty. Gen. Op. Nos. 86-0814, 87-0188, 96-0394, 97-0206, 00-0066, 01-0375, 02­ 0260,07-0170,08-0244,09-0083, and 09-0085. For example, in La. Atty. Gen. Op. No. 86-0814, we opined that a library contained within a school buildinq could be named after a living person. La. Atty. Gen. Op. No. 00-0066 similarly concluded that a wing of the Baton Rouge Planetarium could be named after a living person. We have also determined that portions of a hospital building and individual hospital rooms may be named after a living person without violating state law. La. Atty. Gen. Op. No. 08-0244.

However, various attempts to construe a building as a "portion of a larger complex comprised of buildings" have not been persuasive. La. Atty. Gen. Op. No. 02-0260. See also La. Atty. Gen. Op. Nos. 87-0188 and 96-0394 (an auditorium at an elementary school may not be named after a living person); La. Atty. Gen. Op. Nos. 97-0206 and 07-0170 (naming a research park after a living person would violate state law); La. Atty. Gen. Op. No. 09-0083 (a gymnasium at an elementary school may not be named after a living person); and La. Atty. Gen. Op. No. 09-0085 (a small structure may not be named after a living person because it is not a portion of an existing building, but rather, a new building).

The specific structure described in your request is a section of concrete walkway contained within the District's baseball fields at a public park owned and operated by the District. We find this type of structure to be similar to a library within a school building, a wing of a planetarium, or a room in a hospital. Such a structure does not constitute a new or separate building, but rather, a portion of an existing structure which falls within the exception carved out by the aforementioned opinions. As such, it is the opinion of this office that the District may name a portion of a walkway at its ballpark after any person, living or deceased.

We hope this sufficiently answers your inquiry; however, if we may be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact our office.

With best regards,

JAMES D. "BUDDY" CALDWELL
ATIORNEY GENERAL

By: C![;l,t17' ~16;UlJI.Jd=
Andrea arient
Assistant Attorney General