Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell shows a “Willie Nelson Blvd.” sign  as he called for support for honoring the music icon.

www.chron.com

AUSTIN — Austin has no “Whiskey River,” but it will have a downtown street named for Willie Nelson.

The Austin City Council voted Thursday to add the iconic Texas balladeer’s name to Second Street downtown.

The Austin American-Statesman reports the city will install “Willie Nelson Boulevard” along the street. The street will retain Second Street as its formal name, but businesses and residents along the street will be able to receive mail using the new name.

Meanwhile, the nonprofit Capital Area Statues group is raising money to put a life-size statue of Nelson on Second Street in front of the “Austin City Limits” studio.

Nelson has lived in the Austin area for nearly 40 years.