Prince William County leaders are moving forward with an effort to rename Jefferson Davis Highway.
The Board of County Supervisors on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2020, will hear details of a plan that would rename 12 miles of the four and six-lane highway, between Stafford and Fairfax county lines, Richmond Highway.
If approved, the name change is expected to cost the county $1.2 million. When the fiscal effects to the multiple businesses that will be affected by the name change, the price tag could soar to as much as $3.4 million, according to county documents.
The county documents state:
“Route 1 runs the entire eastern length of the County from the Fairfax County line to the Stafford County line, spans 12 miles, three Magisterial Districts and the Town of Dumfries and contains nearly a thousand addresses, which are predominantly commercial.
A street name change sets into motion numerous internal and external processes pertaining to addressing, businesses licensing, permits and emergency response.”
If the Board of County Supervisors chooses to move ahead with the renaming plan, it will vote on Tuesday to petition the Commonwealth Transportation Board in Richmond for permission. In July, the Fredericksburg City Council voted to petition Richmond to change the name of its portion of the highway.
A 2012 law prohibited localities from changing the street name. Last year, Attorney General Mark Herring issued an opinion stating a locality could petition the Commonwealth Transportation Board to change the name, which Arlington did successfully last year.
Woodbridge District Supervisor Margaret Franklin advocated for the name change in June, following the a riot that took place in the county after the death of Minneapolis resident George Floyd, which sparked national outrage.
In 2017, former Woodbridge Supervisor Frank Principi failed at his bid to rename the highway.
Most of U.S. Route 1 in Virginia is named for Jefferson Davis, who was president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. Fredericksburg is also exploring a possible name change for the highway.
