Nearly all cities and counties in Hampton Roads are giving workers the day off Friday after Gov. Ralph Northam issued an executive order this week declaring “Juneteenth” a state holiday.
But at least one locality — York County — will remain open for business.
“It’s a continuity of government and citizen services thing,” York County Board of Supervisors Chairman Chad Green said in an interview Thursday.
While stressing the county “supports the Juneteenth holiday,” he said it would be difficult for staff to close on such short notice — especially since property taxes for the state’s counties are due next Thursday.
“How would you feel if you took a Friday afternoon off from work to do your least favorite thing — to go and pay taxes — and you go there and bam — they’re closed for a holiday that you were unaware of?” he said.
Juneteenth — observed every June 19 — is the oldest known commemoration to end slavery in the United States.
It marks the date in 1865 when Union troops arrived in Galveston, Texas, after the Civil War and told slaves there that they were free under the Emancipation Proclamation. President Abraham Lincoln had signed it nearly three years earlier.
“It’s time we elevate Juneteenth not just as a celebration by and for some Virginians, but one acknowledged and commemorated by all of us,” Northam said Tuesday.
Though the occasion is not among the 11 official holidays spelled out in state law, Northam on Wednesday declared it a holiday for executive branch agencies and employees — including those who work at state colleges and universities.
“It is my hope that Juneteenth will subsequently be celebrated by the public and private sectors as well as localities all across the Commonwealth,” the order said.
Legislators could vote in the future to make it an official state holiday.
Northam’s move had far-reaching implications.
To accommodate the extra day off, the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles was forced to reschedule 5,952 customer appointments set for Friday across the state. (The DMV has been conducting appointments because of the coronavirus). DMV spokeswoman Jessica Cowardin said those customers got emails this week rescheduling those appointments 35 days out — to July 24 — and giving them a phone number to call with any concerns regarding documents and deadlines.
“The gist of it is everyone was taken care of,” Cowardin said.
Northam’s executive order does not apply to the state’s judicial or legislative branches. Courts around the state — which have seen massive delays in recent months because of the pandemic — will be open Friday.
“Most courts have dockets and cases that have been scheduled well in advance,” said Krisiti Wright, a spokeswoman for the state’s judiciary. “Closing the courts and again rescheduling these cases would further delay their resolution.”
Most localities in southeastern Virginia were quick to follow Northam’s lead and will shut down their offices Friday as well.
In the wake of the governor’s announcement, Chesapeake, Gloucester, Hampton, Isle of Wight, James City County, Middlesex, Norfolk, Poquoson, Portsmouth, Smithfield, Suffolk, Virginia Beach and Williamsburg issued statements in support of the holiday or otherwise confirmed their offices would be closed.
Newport News was still undecided Thursday morning, but announced by later in the afternoon that it would be closed.
Many of the announcements followed a similar format, indicating the city or county had a policy of closing its offices whenever state offices were closed. Therefore, the localities said, their offices would also be closed. (Some voter’s registrar’s offices are staying open because of next week’s primary).
Some of the statements included quotes from mayors or other officials.
“The City of Virginia Beach recognizes the significance of Juneteenth – commemorating the freedom of African Americans in our country – and joins with our community to reflect and celebrate the enduring promise that all are, indeed, created equal,” Virginia Beach Mayor Bobby Dyer said in one.
Mayor Kenny Alexander went a step further, saying the council planned to hold a vote Tuesday to declare Juneteenth “a permanent city holiday.”
In an interview, Hampton Mayor Donnie Tuck offered support for making Juneteenth a state holiday, but said he didn’t like the governor’s handling of the decision. He would have liked more than three-days notice.
“It’s something that should have been communicated with us … that this is something they were considering,” Tuck said of Northam’s office. “It presents us with an awkward situation.”
Tuck said localities are grappling with declining revenues from COVID-19, and that employees are just returning from teleworking.
“I think the expectation is that since (Northam) has declared it a state holiday … that most local governments are expected to give employees the day with pay,” Tuck said. “This is something that is unexpected. We didn’t have the time to (budget) the full cost of a paid holiday … but we are under pressure.”
Green, the York County Board of Supervisors Chairman, agreed. Northam’s office “should have done a better job of coordinating with the local government.”
“A little bit of an advanced directive would have been great,” Green said. “There’s just not enough time for us to get the information out to the citizens to tell them that the county is closed.”
Peter Dujardin, 757-247-4749, pdujardin@dailypress.com
Saleen Martin, 757-446-2027, saleen.martin@pilotonline.com
Lisa Vernon Sparks, 757-247-4832, lvernonsparks@dailypress.com
