Jane Byrne, Chicago's only female mayor, appears at Circle Interchange dedication

CHICAGO (WLS) -- In a long overdue honor, the city's iconic Circle Interchange is now the Mayor Jane Byrne Interchange.

Many say Jane Byrne was a trail blazer for women in politics. She served as mayor from 1979 to 1983. The city's only female mayor made a rare public appearance to attend the ceremony.

It was the 80-year-old former mayor's first public appearance in over three years. She arrived Friday at the UIC Student Center in a wheelchair a few blocks away from what will now be called the Jane Byrne Interchange.

Gov. Pat Quinn led the renaming ceremony for Chicago's first and only female mayor.

"I wanted to thank Mayor Byrne for her tireless commitment to the common good. She's done a lot of good for a lot of us over many, many years," said Gov. Quinn.

During Byrne's one term, which began in 1979, she hired the city's first African American schools superintendent and was first to recognize Chicago's gay community. After a narrow loss to Harold Washington in 1983, neither Washington in four years nor Mayor Richard M. Daley in 22 years saw it fit to name anything after Byrne.

"My time as Mayor is gone and this is the start of a whole new concept," said Jane Byrne.

ABC7's Charles Thomas asked Ed Burke-- the city's longest serving alderman-- if Chicago political pettiness caused Byrne to wait so long.

"In politics, there are no permanent enemies, no permanent friends, only permanent interests," said Ald. Ed Burke, 14th Ward.

Last month, the city council voted to rename Water Tower Park after Byrne and IDOT-- remembering her "One Chicago" slogan-- thought the Circle Interchange, where highways converge, was a perfect place to honor the city's first female mayor.

"The West Side comes in on the Eisenhower, the North Side coming in on the Kennedy, the South Side coming in on the Dan Ryan and its one big circle. It's one Chicago," said Kathy Byrne, daughter.

"I think that coming together in the city of Chicago is what will make it great," said Jane Byrne.