Boulevard Change Approved

'It's a matter of moral priority, and doing the right thing,' Councilwoman Kim Gray says of the proposal to rename the thoroughfare in honor of Arthur Ashe Jr.

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It took three tries over two and a half decades for the city of Richmond to approve naming the Boulevard after Arthur Ashe Jr., but as the tennis champion and humanitarian said, "Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is usually more important than the outcome."

Ashe's nephew David Harris Jr. echoed that idea after eight City Council members voted Monday night in favor of the proposal that he backed and 2nd District representative Kim Gray introduced:

"Tonight we are here because nothing has been done for years," Harris said during public comments at the meeting. "I finally decided I needed to try. As the family, we’ve stayed quiet; we haven’t asked for much at all. All we ask is you honor my uncle." He said of the children he helps coach on the tennis court, "That’s why I came forward. They deserve this, too." After the vote, Harris added, "This is just my first step in trying to impact the city of Richmond. I'm looking forward to further dialogue with everybody."

In the end, most council members seemed to agree with Gray, who said, "It's a matter of moral priority, and doing the right thing."

"This council has the power to change the name and should do so," said 3rd District representative Chris Hilbert. "If not us, who?"

"This is the time to significantly honor an incredible leader of our time; an incredible athlete of our time," said Council President Cynthia Newbille, who represents the 7th District, noting that she wanted to be added as a patron to the ordinance, which was also joined by Mayor Levar Stoney and 9th District representative Michael Jones.

Fifth District representative Parker Agelasto voted in favor, but raised questions about the cost of renaming the Boulevard and said, "I have heard from the residents of the Boulevard that this has not been a fair process. ... There is a difference between doing what's right and doing it the right way, and I think we've failed on doing it the right way here."

Eighth District member Reva Trammell also voiced concerns about the cost of renaming the road.

Monday’s hearing was the last milestone in a months-long process to get Gray's proposal to rename the Boulevard — from its northern intersection with Brookland Parkway and Westwood Avenue stretching south to where the thoroughfare meets Byrd Park — in honor of Ashe to a vote.

“I think we might have it,” Gray said before the 6 p.m. meeting as the second-floor chamber of City Hall began filling in with the night’s attendees.

The decision followed a week of controversy in Virginia's capital that began with the Feb. 1 revelation of a picture on Gov. Ralph Northam's medical school year book page showing figures in blackface and a Ku Klux Klan costume. A Washington Post poll published Saturday showed that Virginians are split over whether the governor should step down.

The Boulevard renaming was also divisive, with more than 40 speakers lining up and wrapping around the chamber to address the council during public comment in favor, and fewer than a dozen — mostly Boulevard residents — opposed. Earlier, about 1,300 people signed a petition started by real estate agent Christopher Small to keep the name as Boulevard.

The opponents advocated for the continuance of the night’s vote so that Stoney’s recently formed History and Culture Commission could facilitate a transparent, citywide discussion on the best way to honor Ashe, a proposal floated by Jones in a January committee meeting. Others who spoke against the renaming included the presidents of the Museum District and Fan District associations, some of whose residents live along the Boulevard, albeit not all in Gray’s 2nd District.

“Members on the east side are opposed to the name change at this point, in hopes you’ll consider alternatives before making the decision,” said Fan District Association president Tim Feehan, adding that other members of the association were in support of the name change.

Representatives from the Richmond chapter of the NAACP, Monument Avenue Preservation Society and Ashe’s fraternity, Kappa Alpha Psi, shared statements on behalf of their organizations in support of the renaming. More than a dozen members of the Richmond chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi attended the meeting in red letterman jackets. Councilman Jones is also a member of the fraternity, having pledged while a student at the University of Colorado. Others wearing red at the meeting included representatives from the Virginia Defenders for Justice and Equality, who sent out a news release ahead of the meeting advocating for supporters to stand together, particularly in light of the past week’s events.

Perhaps most notable was the special guest who began the speaker list in support of the proposal: Wilbur Jenkins, a professional tennis player who rose from his wheelchair to read a short statement he had prepared that paid homage, in part, to Ashe’s military service and dedication to education in his latter years.

When Jenkins concluded his statement, Gray added context to the special appearance, telling the audience, “Mr. Jenkins reached out to me and sat down with me for several hours over the weekend. And Mr. Jenkins is a pro tennis player — he beat Arthur Ashe, actually ... and I thank him for reaching out to me and for imparting some elder history on me.” At this, the audience again broke into applause.

“In this instance, clapping will be allowed,” Newbille said to grins from the council members, who were also given a large poster-sized print of a photo of Jenkins and Ashe together on Ashe's wedding day.

Other speakers included Richmond Public Schools students, who talked about how Ashe was a role model for them.

Some shared more straightforward sentiments: "Twenty thousand is the amount of people I've registered to vote in this city," said New Virginia Majority South Side member Assadique “Muhammad” Abdul-Rahman, adding, "2020 is the next City Council election; our eyes are on the next election — please support this measure."

Some who spoke at the event in support of Gray’s item knew Ashe personally, including Shima Grover, a member of the Richmond Tennis Association Advisory Board who has worked to make tennis accessible to underserved youth, persons with disabilities and injured veterans.

Grover, who attended a previous meeting holding a letter from the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., took to the dais with a new missive in hand, this one a telegram from Jackie Robinson, written to Ashe in September 1968, when Ashe was at West Point Military Academy:

"Proud of your greatness as a tennis player. Prouder of your greatness as a man," wrote Robinson, the first African-American Major League Baseball player in the 20th century. "Your stand should bridge the gap between races and inspire black people the world over and also affect the decency of all Americans."