The major political parties are lobbying for different sites to be named
after their late leaders. The PRD has the Las Americas International Airport, which also bears the name of Jose Francisco Pe?a G?mez, but there is now a move to replace ‘Las Americas’ with ‘Jos? Francisco Pe?a G?mez?. The namesake for the new Santo Domingo city airport, at Higuero, being constructed to replace the airport at Herrera, has not yet been decided, although La Isabela has been initially used. The avenue leading to the airport is going to be named after former President Antonio Guzm?n Fern?ndez (1978-1982) so both the PRSC and PRD are using this as an argument to support their respective bids, that the airport be named after former President Joaqu?n Balaguer or Guzm?n. Balaguer has been approved as namesake for Parque el Mirador in Santo Domingo, where he enjoyed a daily walk until he was well into his nineties, before ill-health made him housebound.
In practice, changing the name of a well known area does not change the way people call the avenues, parks or airports. For example, the Malec?n continues to be the Malec?n, despite having later been named George Washington Avenue; Avenida del Puerto keeps its popular name, and few know it is the Avenida Francisco Caama?o Den?.