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2009 SESSION


SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 314
Recognizing the Virginia Rail Heritage Region in the Commonwealth.
 
Agreed to by the Senate, February 24, 2009
Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 20, 2009
 

WHEREAS, the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad Historical Society in Clifton Forge, the Norfolk and Western Historical Society in Roanoke, the Roanoke and Blue Ridge chapters of the National Railway Historical Society, and the Virginia Museum of Transportation in Roanoke constitute the largest base of rail enthusiasts in the Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, the City of Roanoke is home to the Virginia Museum of Transportation, created by the General Assembly in the 1980s; and

WHEREAS, the O. Winston Link Museum, featuring America’s finest collection of professional photographs of Virginia railroads in the 1950s when steam was king on the Norfolk and Western Railway, is also located in this region of the Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, the region’s heritage involves the largest concentration of rail facilities in Virginia owned by the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad, the Norfolk and Western Railway Company, and the Southern Railway Company, including the shops in Roanoke where the most modern steam locomotives in the world were designed and built, the shops of Clifton Forge of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway, and the Southern Railway facilities at Monroe in Amherst County; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the Virginia Rail Heritage Region be recognized in the Commonwealth. The Virginia Rail Heritage Region shall consist of the Counties of Alleghany, Amherst, Bedford, Botetourt, Campbell, and Roanoke and the Cities of Bedford, Covington, Lynchburg, Roanoke, and Salem, as well as all towns in the region, and shall be officially designated and known as the “Virginia Rail Heritage Region”; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the local governing bodies of the respective localities composing the “Virginia Rail Heritage Region” be encouraged to work collaboratively to establish uniform highway signage on federal and state highways to promote rail tourism in their respective areas of the region; and, be it

RESOLVED FINALLY, That the Clerk of the Senate transmit a copy of this resolution to James Campbell, executive director of the Virginia Association of Counties, requesting that he further disseminate copies of this resolution to the chairmen of the Boards of Supervisors of the Counties of Alleghany, Amherst, Bedford, Botetourt, Campbell, and Roanoke, and transmit a copy of this resolution to R. Michael Amyx, executive director of the Virginia Municipal League, requesting that he further disseminate copies of this resolution to the mayors of the Cities of Bedford, Covington, Lynchburg, Roanoke, and Salem and to the local governing bodies of the towns encompassed in the Virginia Rail Heritage Region, so that they may be apprised of the sense of the General Assembly of Virginia in this matter.