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To designate the 2900 block of Brook Road, between Hammond Avenue and Sherwood Avenue, in honor of Ellalee Fountain Flowers.
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WHEREAS, upon information and belief of the Council, Ellalee Fountain Flowers was born in Jackson Ward on November 16, 1923, and educated in Richmond Public Schools, graduating at the top of her class from Armstrong High School.
WHEREAS, upon information and belief of the Council, Ms. Flowers went on to earn her Bachelor of Business Administration from Virginia State University and her Master of Education from Columbia University; and
WHEREAS, upon information and belief of the Council, Ms. Flowers taught business courses from 1945 to 1979 at Maggie L. Walker High School, retiring as head of its Business Department, in addition to teaching night school for adult and elementary school students and serving as a faculty member of the Virginia Union University Sydney Lewis School of Business from 1979 to 1987; and
WHEREAS, upon information and belief of the Council, Ms. Flowers’ accomplishments at the time of her passing on May 15, 2022, included being an active member of Delta Sigma Sorority, Inc., for 80 years of collegiate and alumni community service, and serving as the chair of the Richmond Alumni Chapter’s Habitat for Humanity and Political Awareness committees, in addition to being a lifelong member of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People for which she held the post of secretary for the Richmond chapter; and
WHEREAS, upon information and belief of the Council, Ms. Flowers was related to two very community service-oriented men, first, as the wife of Stafford Flowers, a well-known Richmond educator who taught vocational education at Virginia Randolph School and Thomas Jefferson High School and was a co-founder of the Metropolitan Business League and a director of the National Business League, and, second, as the daughter-in-law of James T. Flowers, owner of the James Flowers Bricklaying Company, which was involved in the assembly of the Belgium Building at Virginia Union University, in construction of the Mary Binga Center in Jackson Ward, and in bridge modernization along U.S. Route 1, in addition to organizing the Colored Bricklayers Union Local #15; and
WHEREAS, the City desires to memorialize the life of Ms. Flowers for her contributions to education and community service in the city of Richmond by designating the 2900 block of Brook Road, between Hammond Avenue and Sherwood Avenue, in her honor, as members of the Flowers family, upon information and belief of the Council, have lived in this neighborhood, known as Frederick Douglas Court, since its founding as Richmond’s first black subdivision; and
WHEREAS, because this designation is honorary only, the provisions of sections 8-7 through 8-10 of the Code of the City of Richmond (2020), as amended, do not apply to the designation made hereby or to any signs erected pursuant to this ordinance;
NOW, THEREFORE,
THE CITY OF RICHMOND HEREBY ORDAINS:
§ 1. Designation of Street Block for Honorary Names. The 2900 block of Brook Road, between Hammond Avenue and Sherwood Avenue, shall be designated in honor of Ellalee Fountain Flowers as “Flowers Way,” pursuant to this ordinance.
§ 2. Effect of Designation. The designation of the portion of the street made pursuant to this ordinance shall be honorary only, shall not replace the existing name of the street, and shall have no effect on the address of any property with an address on the designated street blocks. The sole effect of designation pursuant to this ordinance shall be to authorize the placement of commemorative signs in accordance with this ordinance memorializing the designation in honor of the named person.
§ 3. Administration of Ordinance. The Department of Public Works shall implement this ordinance by installing, as soon as practicable after the adoption of this ordinance, and maintaining commemorative signs in accordance with this section. The commemorative signs shall be clearly distinct from the street signs used to identify the portion of the street in question such that a reasonable person could not conclude that the commemorative signs reflect the actual name of the street. The commemorative signs (i) shall be affixed to a sign pole installed at each end of the portion of the street designated in section 1 of this ordinance for the purpose of fulfilling the requirements of this section or to any existing sign identifying the portion of the street designated in section 1 of this ordinance located at each end of the portion of the street designated in section 1 of this ordinance and (ii) shall bear the designation set forth in section 1 of this ordinance.
§ 4. Effective Date. This ordinance shall be in force and effect upon adoption.