U.S. House of Representatives approves renaming of Santa Maria post office in honor of former mayor Larry Lavagnino
SANTA MARIA, Calif. - The Santa Maria Post Office moved one step closer to officially being renamed as the "Larry Lavagnino Post Office Building" after a vote by the U.S. House of Representatives was unanimously approved Wednesday afternoon in Washington D.C.
The vote comes after Congressman Salud Carbajal (CA-24) unveiled federal legislation earlier this year to formally rename the building for former Mayor and City Councilmember Larry Lavagnino.
"I didn't think I would be emotional," said Lavagnino from his Santa Maria home Wednesday afternoon. "Once I knew it was going to happen positively, it was very emotional for both (his wife) Donna and I."
After the vote in the House of Representatives, the legislation moves to the Senate for a vote, and if approved, would then need final approval from President Biden to become official.
"Every community should be so lucky to have a Larry Lavagnino,” said Carbajal. "A community champion such as Mayor Lavagnino is well deserving of recognition that will stand the tests of time – and I am proud as Santa Maria’s Representative in Congress to be the author of this legislation that will help cement that recognition."
Carbajal added he expects final approval to be completed within a few weeks.
"I'm deeply honored and humbled,” said Lavagnino. “I know there are many more deserving of this recognition but I am also very excited for my entire family. I only wish my mom and dad were around to witness this."
The legislation proposed by Carbajal is necessary since the renaming of the Post Office requires an act of Congress.
"I'll tell you what is Salud Carbajal, our congressman was so eloquent, I didn't even know who he was talking about," joked Lavagnino, when asked what it was like listening to Carbajal's address on the Capitol floor. "I never thought of myself quite like that. I'm just a Santa Maria boy. I know that ten years from now, my name will be there on the post office, and somebody will say, who was Larry Lavagnino, and I hope I've left my mark."
A Santa Maria native, the 89-year-old Lavagnino is a graduate of Santa Maria Union High School and Allan Hancock College, and a Navy veteran. He served on the Santa Maria Planning Commission before a six year tenure on the Santa Maria City Council beginning in 1996, and later as Mayor from 2002 to 2012.
"I've worked with former Mayor Lavagnino, and I've known of his service and I think he embodies the traits and qualities of somebody who has distinguished himself in his public service to our community," said Carbajal. "He has served as a veteran, and when he was a mayor for the city of Santa Maria, we saw many, many accomplishments. He has been somebody who has also lived up to the idea of trying to find bipartisan opportunities to work together at the local level, and I think that's what we need more here in Washington, so for me, it's a real honor to be able to put him forward as an example, as somebody to honor by the renaming of this post office in Santa Maria."
During his tenure as mayor and councilmember, Lavagnino helped lead the city through some of its most significant improvement projects, including the rebuilding of the Santa Maria River Levee, the construction of the new Transit Center, police station, multiple fire stations, Abel Maldonado Youth Center, expansion of the city’s wastewater treatment plant, widening of Highway 101 to three lanes and much more.
"We never did it for having a post office named after us or anything of that nature," said Lavagnino. "It was just that Santa Maria was our home, and we had that opportunity, and we always put Santa Maria first. that was our goal. It was we had to make sure that the people of Santa Maria were safe in their homes, and if something happened, then people were there that would help them."
Carbajal added that once all of the approvals are completed, a formal renaming ceremony is expected to take place at the post office at some point in the near future.
