Road Renaming, Bond Hearings Coming Up At Vienna Town Council

Vienna VA

04 February, 2022

3:05 PM

Description

VIENNA, VA — On Monday, Vienna Town Council will hold public hearings on the potential renaming of a road named for a Confederate figure as well as the financing of 2022 bonds. The street renaming consideration centers around Wade Hampton Drive, which references Wade Hampton III, a Confederate lieutenant general who became governor of South Carolina and a U.S. senator. The street location in Vienna's southwest quadrant is the approximate area Hampton and his cavalry unit of about 600 men and horses came to Vienna in December 1862. Before the Civil War, Hampton owned one of the largest plantations in South Carolina. After the Civil War, he became governor of South Carolina and served two terms as U.S. senator. According to research from Historic Vienna Inc., "his post Civil War record is controversial, involving violence and voter suppression." Formerly known as Lewis Street SW, Wade Hampton Drive was named in the 1960s for the Civil War centennial. The request to change the street name came in June 2020 from De Armond "Dee Dee" Carter, a member of the prominent African American Carter family in Vienna. The Carter family has lived in Vienna since 1859 and helped the Union during the Civil War. After Town Council received the request, Mayor Linda Colbert created an ad hoc committee to recommend if the street should be renamed — and if so, propose a new name. The committee includes two of the four property owners of Wade Hampton Drive and two Historic Vienna Inc. members — Dee Dee Carter and Gloria Runyon, two descendants of the Carter family. The committee met five times in 2021 and agreed the street should be renamed. However, members could not come to an agreement on a single new name. Name recommendations offered by different members were Roland Street, Carter Lane/Drive, Mildred Lane/Mildred Drive/Loving Drive, Liberty Lane, and Minor Drive. The four property owners of Wade Hampton Drive recommended the name Roland Street, as the street currently connects to the existing Roland Street. The two property owners on the committee also recommended Mildred Lane) or Mildred Drive and Loving Drive), which references Mildred Jeter, who married white man Richard Loving. The couple's court case Loving vs. Virginia, established the right to have interracial marriages. The other two committee members, Carter and Runyon, recommended the name Carter Street or Carter Lane to recognize the Carter family's significance in Vienna. Another recommendation was Liberty Lane, referring to the Liberty Amendments Month that Vienna first celebrated in 2021. One other recommendation is Minor Drive, referring to Andrew Minor, who had property in Vienna since the early 1800s and whose family made contributions to the town. The committee and property owners did not recommend changing the name back to Lewis SW. The main reason is potential confusion over properties with identical house numbers on the current Lewis Street NW (131 and 134). At Monday's meeting, a council member could make a motion to change the name and suggest a new name. Bond Public Hearing The other major item on Monday's agenda concerns bond financing for 2022 to fund the approved Capital Improvement Plan. After Town Council's approval of the Capital Improvement Plan on Jan. 24, Town Council will consider a $12 million in bond financing to be issued in March. According to the Town Council agenda, about 44 percent of the bond would go toward construction and improvements to streets and sidewalks. Another 33 percent would fund water and sewer projects and capital commitments. The rest of the funds would be for smaller facility improvements, public use vehicles, parks and recreation projects, and costs of bond issuance. Vienna's town government typically issues bonds every two years for capital improvement project funding. Bonds would be repaid by meals taxes, water and sewer fees, the general fund (for vehicle costs), and revenue from identified projects. Monday's Town Council meeting begins at 8 p.m.