There Are Street Names And Then There Are ...

By: Kristen Forbes

[This article was published in "Perspective," a 2009 souvenir edition of the Lake Oswego Review and West Linn Tidings].

When I heard the theme of this year's Perspective section was going to be "The Best Ever," my mind naturally went to the usuals: Best Ever pizza, Best Ever nail salon, etc.

I almost forgot my personal favorite Best Ever, one that I've had in the back of my mind since the first time I saw it, nearly six months ago.  Luckily, as I was driving down Highway 43 in pursuit of a different Best Ever, I passed it and was again reminded of my favorite Best Ever: Chow Mein Lane, also known as Best Ever street name.

I had no idea what the history of Chow Mein Lane was, but it didn't take long to find an online Willamette Week article from 1999 about -- you guessed it -- Best of Portland 1999.  Chow Mein Lain has survived the best test for a decade.

The article explains that in the 1970s, the Orient Apartments had to be relocated to make room for Interstate 205.  When the apartments mistakenly ended up on a West Linn landowner's property, he fought back by claiming his right to name the private road.  Thus, Chow Mein Lane was born.

The article also explains the reasoning behind several other quirky West Linn roads: Kobuk Court was apparently named after an Alaskan husky and Easy Street was named for an Easy Machine washer.  The meanings behind the names were discovered when the West Linn Fire Department was researching and verifying for emergency response.