Central Coast assemblyman files bill to name portion of Hwy 101 after Katcho Achadjian

Jan. 27—A local assemblyman on Wednesday filed a resolution that would name a segment of Highway 101 in San Luis Obispo County after the late Katcho Achadjian, who represented the Central Coast as a supervisor and in the state Legislature before his death in 2020.

Jordan Cunningham, who represents the 35th Assembly District, introduced Assembly Concurrent Resolution 126 that would name the portion of Highway 101 between Pismo Beach and Arroyo Grande after Achadjian.

If passed by the Legislature, the highway segment would be named Katcho Achadjian Memorial Highway.

Achadjian died due to health complications at the age of 68 on March 5, 2020, according to a family spokesperson.

Originally from Lebanon, Achadjian was considered an American success story. He immigrated to the Central Coast to attend Cuesta College and Cal Poly, where he graduated.

Achadjian also was an entrepreneur who owned the Mobil gas station situated at the southern end of Arroyo Grande, near Highway 101.

In 1998, he began a 12-year stretch representing the 4th District as a supervisor in San Luis Obispo County, before he was elected to represent the Central Coast, including northern Santa Barbara County, in the state Legislature. There, he served from 2010 until reaching term limits in 2016. In 2016, he unsuccessfully ran for a seat in Congress.

When Achadjian termed out, Cunningham was elected to fill his seat.

After politics, Achadjian continued to be a fierce advocate for San Luis Obispo County during his time in the Assembly, where he again garnered a reputation of being an independent and thoughtful legislator, according to Cunningham. Achadjian earned a reputation as the "shepherd of consensus" by local newspaper editors, he added.

"Katcho was my friend and mentor," Cunningham said. "He was an American success story and a true public servant who always put the Central Coast first. His legacy of energetic representation, consensus-building and public service is a model for all that seek elected office. While he will always be missed by the Central Coast community, the renaming of this segment of Highway 101 ensures that he will never be forgotten."

Former assembly colleagues also remembered Achadjian.

"Katcho was a mentor to me and one of my closest friends, colleagues and allies in the state Legislature," said former Assembly Republican Minority Leader Kristin Olsen. "He was a great leader and role model for people in his beloved coastal community and across California. Naming this highway after him is a fitting way to remember and honor his life, his wonderful family and his legacy of solution-focused leadership."