The British Lose Again

We may have a Little Italy, a Little Brazil, a Curry Hill and China and Korea Towns, but it looks as though “New York” is [the best Brits are going to get]. A proposal to officially co-name a section of the West Village spanning Greenwich Avenue between W. 12th and 13th Streets “Little Britain” was [unanimously rejected yesterday](http://www.nysun.com/article/58182) by the Community Board 2 traffic and transportation committee.

In March, the owners of [Tea & Sympathy Restaurant ]launched [The Campaign for Little Britain](http://www.campaignforlittlebritain.com/). They argued the plan would help to strengthen ties with England and—of course—help to save their business from rising rents. They were later joined by a group of British residents and business owners in the neighborhood as well as Virgin Atlantic Airways. “Everyone has been referring to the area as ‘Little Britain’ for a long time,” Sean Kavanagh-Dowsett, who owns Tea & Sympathy as well as two other British-themed businesses in the area, argued at the meeting. The group gathered 6,000 signatures in support of the new naming, and even produced a cute little video to drum up support.

But, members of the committee dismissed their efforts and accused proponents of using the renaming as a marketing scheme to save one struggling establishment. “They’re using Greenwich Avenue as a slick marketing medium,” committee member Sean Sweeney told Metro. “I think this is a really bad move.” Earlier this month, CB2 issued new guidelines saying that streets would not be co-named for “commercial benefits.” We guess that means no more East Williamsburg, Clinton or DUMBO. The proposal will now go for vote before the full community board.