City of Alexandria, Virginia
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MEMORANDUM
DATE: SEPTEMBER 7, 2016
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL
FROM: MARK B. JINKS, CITY MANAGER /s/
DOCKET TITLE:
TITLE
Consideration of the Report of the Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Confederate Memorials and Street Names.
BODY
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ISSUE: City Council receipt and discussion of the recommendations of the Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Confederate Memorials and Street Names, which submitted its final report on August 18, 2016.
RECOMMENDATION: That City Council:
1. Receive the Report of the Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Confederate Memorials and
Street Names (the “Advisory Group”) and schedule a public hearing on
September 17, 2016; and after the public hearing
2. If City Council wishes to implement one or more of the Advisory Group’s
recommendations, direct the City Manager to provide staff recommendations on
specific approaches to implementation.
BACKGROUND: On September 8, 2015, City Council voted unanimously to prohibit the flying of the Confederate flag on City property on Robert E. Lee's Birthday and on Confederate Memorial Day. On September 29, 2015, City Council unanimously passed a resolution (Attachment 1) to establish an Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Confederate Memorials and Street Names. The resolution directed the City Manager to appoint the seven members of the Advisory Group, with two members appointed at-large and one member appointed from each of the Alexandria Human Rights Commission, the Historic Alexandria Resources Commission, the Alexandria Society for the Preservation of Black Heritage, the Alexandria Planning Commission, and the Alexandria Transportation Commission.
The functions of the Advisory Group were to: 1) Hold numerous Advisory Group meetings, which were open to the public; 2) Bring community values, knowledge, and ideas into its discussions and considerations; 3) Develop recommendations on actions, if any, that it believed City Council should consider with respect to: a) the status of the Appomattox statue on South Washington Street; b) the name of Jefferson Davis Highway in the City of Alexandria; c) the names of the many streets within the City that are named after Confederate generals and military leaders; and d) a specific policy on flying of any flags on property owned or under the control of the City; and 4) Hold one or more public hearings to solicit comments from the public on the issues relating to Confederate memorials.
The Advisory Group held five meetings between January and June 2016. Public comment was received at each meeting, and the March meeting was dedicated in its entirety as a public hearing. The Advisory Group received more than 150 comments through its online feedback form and heard more than 60 speakers at its meetings, with many individuals submitting multiple comments or speaking at multiple meetings. Most individuals providing feedback were local, but some were not. All meeting agendas, minutes, materials provided, written public comments and video records of each meeting are available at www.alexandriava.gov/Confederate <http://www.alexandriava.gov/Confederate>.
The Advisory Group issued its final report on August 18, 2016 (Attachment 2). The Advisory Group recommended to City Council that:
(1) The Appomattox statute on South Washington Street should remain in place, with additional efforts made to add context to its story;
(2) The name of Jefferson Davis Highway in the City of Alexandria should be changed;
(3) Rather than a wholesale renaming of streets in the City named after Confederate
figures, individual requests for new names should be considered by City Council if brought under existing processes; and
(4) No further action is needed with regard to a specific policy on flying of any flags
on property owned or under the control of the City.
Five members of the Advisory Group concurred with the report, and two members dissented. One member who concurred with the overall report did not support changing the name of Jefferson Davis Highway in the absence of a more comprehensive and consistent approach to streets named for Confederate figures. The Chair of the Advisory Group invited all seven members to provide any additional concurring or dissenting statements they wished to be included with the report, one member did so, and it is included as an attachment to the Advisory Group’s report.
DISCUSSION: The Advisory Group essentially recommended only three changes from existing practice:
(1) Adding additional context about the Appomattox statue;
(2) Changing the name of Jefferson Davis Highway; and
(5) Creating a clear process to request that City Council rename a street. The Advisory Group did not include any specific suggestions about how to implement these changes.
FISCAL IMPACT: 1) The cost to add context to the Appomattox statue would vary based on the approach used (such as a physical installation versus online content). 2) If City Council were to change the name of Jefferson Davis Highway in the City, the cost to fabricate and install new street signs would be approximately $27,150. City staff has not researched the potential costs to private parties, such as changing business signage, printed materials, or other items. Because deeds are based on legal descriptions rather than street addresses, no landowner would be required to change a deed as a result of a street name change. 3) There would likely be no direct cost in streamlining the street name change process, although additional staff time may be needed if promoting the process results in a higher volume of requests than before.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Resolution No. 2689 (September 29, 2015)
2. Report of the Ad Hoc Advisory Group on Confederate Memorials and Street Names (August 18, 2016)
STAFF:
Craig T. Fifer, Director of Communications and Public Information