City of Alexandria, Virginia
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MEMORANDUM
DATE: SEPTEMBER 23, 2015
TO: THE HONORABLE MAYOR AND MEMBERS OF CITY COUNCIL
FROM: MARK B. JINKS, CITY MANAGER /s/
DOCKET TITLE:
TITLE
Consideration of a Request to Accept a Memorial Gift from the Founders Park Community Association for Placement in Founders Park in Honor of Chuck Hamel.
BODY
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ISSUE: Consideration of a Request to Accept a Memorial Gift from the Founders Park Community Association for Placement in Founders Park in Honor of Chuck Hamel.
RECOMMENDATION: That the City Council:
1. Accept the proposed gift from the Founders Park Community Association; and
2. Request that the Department of Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities staff to develop a park memorial policy to better identify opportunities for residents to memorialize friends and loved ones.
BACKGROUND: The Founders Park Community Association (Association) has offered to purchase a memorial to be placed in Founders Park in honor of Chuck Hamel, one of the “founding fathers” of the park. The memorial will be a cairn consisting of 11 graduated river rocks stacked with a metal support rod through the middle. The cairn measures approximately 11” wide x 6.5” deep x 28” high and will be mounted on a flat stone to be procured by the City and will be accompanied by a bronze plaque provided by the Association.
The City will be responsible for the installation of the cairn and will work with the Association on the method of installation.
The cairn will be placed in the grove east of the Chasnovitz memorial.
Chuck Hamel’s widow, Cathy Hamel, will be in Founders Park for the memorial dedication planned for November 2015.
FISCAL IMPACT: The City will incur the cost of the installation of the cairn. The Founders Park Community Association has agreed to enter in to a Memorandum of Agreement to maintain the cairn as necessary and replace the cairn if required.
ATTACHMENTS:
1. Image of Giant Rock Cairn from www.bonsaioutlet.com <http://www.bonsaioutlet.com>
2. Map of proposed location for memorial placement
STAFF:
Emily Baker, Deputy City Manager
James B. Spengler, Director, Recreation, Parks and Cultural Activities
Diane Ruggiero, Deputy Director, Office of the Arts
Jack Browand, Division Chief, Public Relations, Special Events & Waterfront Operations