Letter to the Editor: Clarification on status of school location
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At the City of Vienna town hall meeting to discuss the location of the new Vienna Elementary School on July 16, 2024, a Pickering Associates representative discussed a report about the potential impacts of the new Vienna School on archaeological and historic architectural resources within the boundaries of the proposed school site located at Jackson Park. The comment made by the representative at the meeting summarized the contracted historian and archaeologists' report and the concurrence by the West Virginia State Historic Preservation Office by stating that they agreed that there are no significant historic architectural or archaeological sites within the boundaries of the proposed school site. A more precise wording of their conclusion would be that the school being constructed at this site would not impact any archaeological or historic architectural resources in accordance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966.
In our discussions with Mr. Willard Jackson's daughter-in-law, Peggy Jackson, Pickering Associates realized that the comment made at the town hall may have unintentionally downplayed the historical significance of Mr. Jackson's contribution to the City of Vienna when he donated the Jackson Park Property. In these discussions, Ms. Jackson expressed her family's support for the location.
"My father-In-law, William Willard Jackson could have kept the former Jackson Apple Orchard for his children, but instead he chose to make donations of the land for the benefit of the community, in honor of his father, William Wirt Jackson, who was the son of the sixth Governor of West Virginia, Jacob Beeson Jackson. Willard donated the land to the City of Vienna for a community park and another section for a new Junior High School. I have been in conference with my two sons and we are all in agreement that the proposed new elementary school on yet another section of the Jackson Park property is in alignment with the vision of Willard Jackson when he initially made the property donation to the Wood County Board of Education and the City of Vienna." -- Peggy, John and Jacob Jackson
Pickering Associates regrets the way the statement made in the town hall came across to residents at the town hall and the way the statement was communicated in the news. The team at Wood County Schools, the City of Vienna, and Pickering Associates wishes to stress that we recognize and appreciate the historical importance of Mr. Jackson's generous donation of the park property. Jackson Park is of great significance to the residents of the City of Vienna and our hope is to continue to honor Mr. Jackson's legacy of providing opportunities and facilities that enrich the Vienna community.
The Pickering Associates Team