Council Approval for Marker Move Sought

Even after a court order, a local historical group says it is uncomfortable moving a granite marker until it gets the approval of the City Council to do so. 

In letters to city officials, members of the Sons of Confederate Veterans have lobbied for a City Council resolution authorizing the group to move a granite marker noting the nearby location of a Civil War era cemetery. This follows a recent circuit court decision mandating the removal of the marker from its current location on city property, a traffic island near Maury Commons at the intersection of George and Barton streets. As of this weekend, the marker remained in its spot. 

City Attorney Kathleen Dooley says that such a resolution is unnecessary, and has advised the group that an excavation permit and written permission from the owners of Maury Commons is all that is required. 

"Council has already adopted an ordinance saying that the marker will be removed from city property," said Dooley in an interview. She was referencing a 2009 memorandum of understanding with the Fredericksburg Area Veterans Council which reserved the traffic island for monuments dedicated to veterans of 20th and 21st century wars. 

Local SCV 1st Lt. Cmdr. Roy Perry says that the city's plan of action is too similar to the one which ended up in court after the marker's placement drew the objections of local veterans organizations. In April 2009, the SCV received an excavation permit from the city and quickly installed and commemorated the marker. Four months later, in September 2009, the City Council voted to move the SCV marker off site. In November 2009, the SCV sued the city to prevent the removal of the marker, but eventually lost. In court, the city

"The city is allowing us to remove the monument by the same measure or token that they allowed us to place the monument on city property," says Perry. "This makes no sense. We want written permission from council to remove the monument from city property."

Dooley says that's just not needed because the city doesn't regulate monuments on private property. 

"It's private property and they can put it there if they have permission of the landowner", says Dooley."

It doesn't look like Perry is digging in his heels just yet, though. Despite his protests, Perry has been moving forward with preparations to move the monument. The SCV already has to host the marker on its property, almost directly across the street from its current location. The group had not yet obtained the excavation permit, but Perry has been in contact with public works officials inquiring about the process. Perry has even been in contact with a contractor to build a new monument footer and move the heavy granite block.

An email sent by Doug Fawcett, Fredericksburg's director of public works, to Perry on June 3 lays out a small regulatory framework for the monument, namely that it must be at least 2.5 feet from the edge of the sidewalk. Fawcett also offered to help Perry with traffic control during the move. 

The city could remove the monument on its own if the issue drags on for an extended period, said Dooley, but officials had not yet begun discussing any "or-else" scenarios. 

The matter could be headed before City Council. Former city councilor and current local activist Matt Kelly lobbying city staff and Ward 3 Councilor Fred Howe to address the issue at the next City Council meeting on June 14. 

Maury Commons was the location which the SCV had originally intended the monument to be placed Perry said that the developer of the condominiums did not show interest in the project, and plans to locate the marker on the grounds of Maury Commons fell flat at the time.

The marker notes the presence of 51 Confederate graves located on the southern side of the Maury Commons property. Immediately to the north lies another historic but all but vanished black cemetery called Potters Field. The Confederate soldiers buried at Maury Commons were interred there before the Battle of Fredericksburg in December 1862. The graves belong to soldiers from across the Confederacy. They most likely were the victims of infectious diseases which plagued both armies during the Civil War.