Fairfax County Supervisor Lusk To Request New Name For Lee District

FRANCONIA, VA — Fairfax County Supervisor Rodney Lusk said he plans to introduce a proposal on Tuesday to change the name of his district from Lee to Franconia

After a two-and-a-half-year process, Lusk said the name Franconia was the overwhelming preference for those who participated in an effort to decide whether to change the name of the Lee District.

Lusk, who was sworn in as Fairfax County Lee District Supervisor in January 2020, said he hopes his colleagues on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors support his board matter to adopt Franconia as the new name.

The Lee District includes the areas of Springfield, Franconia, Kingstowne and Hybla Valley. His district office is located at the Franconia Governmental Center at 6121 Franconia Road.

"Franconia is a name that is synonymous with our community,” Lusk said. “From Franconia Road, the Franconia Springfield Metro, the Franconia Museum, and the Franconia Governmental Center, the name Franconia has always been central to our identity. It is also a name that memorializes a place and not a person.”

Since early 2020, Lusk’s office has held three town hall meetings to hear from his constituents on what the name Lee District means to them.

Lusk said he’s learned that for many residents, the name Lee District invokes images of the Old Gravel Pits, footsteps along the boardwalk at Huntley Meadows, or pride in the history of Laurel Grove School.

For other residents, the name Lee stands for the most recognizable Confederate figure in history, General Robert E Lee, said Lusk, who is the first African America man elected to serve on the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors.

“I also learned that the overwhelming majority of those who participated in this year-long process support changing the name of this district,” the supervisor said. “I look forward to bringing this motion to the Board on Tuesday and beginning this new chapter in our community.”

Fairfax County's Redistricting Advisory Committee was tasked with recommending if the Lee, Sully, Mount Vernon, Mason and Springfield Districts should be renamed after their redistricting work concluded. The committee's final report recommended the board consider renaming Lee and Sully Districts but not Mount Vernon, Mason or Springfield.

The committee recommended the Board of Supervisors consider a name change "given the context of all the Confederate names that are in use within Fairfax County and the significance of the Lee name to our area."

The district was home to Robert E. Lee High School, which the Fairfax County School Board renamed as John R. Lewis High School in 2020. The Fairfax County Park Authority removed the Robert E. Lee name from its recreation center, renaming it Lee District Rec Center.

In a survey of Patch readers in March, respondents provided a variety of suggestions for the district's name. Most suggested keeping the name Lee District. The next most popular choice suggestion was Franconia.

Other names suggested by multiple respondents were Huntley/Huntley Meadows, Dogue Creek, Kingstowne, Lewis/John R. Lewis and Laurel Grove.

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