Meeting on Little River name change postponed to Feb. 19
The next community meeting on the proposal to give Little River Turnpike an honorary name, originally scheduled for Feb. 5, has been postponed to Feb. 19, 6 p.m.
The meeting is being delayed “to ensure more time for outreach and engagement,” states an email from Olivia Logan, a staff member in Supervisor Andres Jimenez’ office.
The location has also been moved from the Korean Community Center to the Mason Government Center, at 6507 Columbia Pike.
The name change was proposed to honor the Korean community’s contributions to Annandale. Eight options have been proposed, including Korea Street, Koreatown Road, and Sejong Road.
The new name would be purely honorary. It would not be recognized by the Post Office, and no one’s address would be changed.
Related story: Annandale residents express their views on renaming Little River Turnpike
At the first community meeting on the name change, several people said they opposed renaming Little River Turnpike because Annandale is a diverse community and one group shouldn’t be favored over the others. People also complained that residents weren’t adequately notified in advance.
“We want to make sure everyone has a chance to participate in this important discussion about celebrating and recognizing the Korean community in Mason District,” Logan said.
A survey on the name change will be open until Feb. 28. Access the survey here. For more information, contact the supervisor’s office at [email protected].
23 responses to “Meeting on Little River name change postponed to Feb. 19”
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This is an honorary plaque/sign or two. It is NOT a name change. The more you call it that the crazier the Annandale chapter of the KKK gets.
You are absolutely correct.
Steve Lee with the Korean Chamber of Commerce is pushing this. I’ve asked him to provide some details or an image of what he wants. He refuses to do that. Until they provide some detail, nobody knows what we are talking about. It could be a total renaming, billboards or something totally different. We need some clarity before this goes any further.
Thank you for your efforts to make this a more visible forum
I knew that eventually the name Annandale would get changed to something Korean but not Little River Turnpike. Sure, the Koreans have made many contributions to Annandale, but I don’t believe these contributions rise to name changes.
My comments of a couple of days ago.
HI FRIENDS. FIRST AN APOLOGY TO MY FRIEND STEVE LEE AND ALL. I HAVE BEEN MEDICALLY OUT OF IT FOR THE PAST SEVERAL DAYS AND COULD NOT JOIN IN THE CONVERSATON. STEVES’ IDEA IS A GOOD ONE AND HE ASKED FOR MY SUPPORT. I HAD IDEAS TO OFFER HIM BUT NEVER HAD THE CHANCE. BELOW IS MY DRAFT NOTE TO STEVE OF SOME DAYS AGO.
FROM WHAT I READ IN THE COMMENTS AFTER THE MASON DISTRICT MEETING, THERE WAS LITTLE SUPPORT. MAYBE WE NEED TO LOOK AT IT DIFFERENTLY. OFFERED HERE IS MORE THAN A STREET’S HONORARY NAMING.
I HAVE BEEN TO KOREA MORE THAN ONCE, EVEN TO PANMUNJOM STEPING INTO NORTH KOREA SO I COULD ADD IT TO MY “BEEN THERE BRAGING LIST”. WIKIPEDIA SAYS THE KOREAN AMERICAN POPULATON IS AROUND 3 MILLION, MAKING THE USA THE LARGEST OVERSEAS COMMUNITY OF KOREANS.
SO, LET’S TAKE THE GOOD IDEA FROM STEVE. PICK A STREET, NOT OUR MAIN STREET, AND MAKE IT MORE THAN THAT. LET’S CHOSE A NAME THAT REMINDS ALL OF OUR JOINT HISTORY, COMRADSHIP, INCLUDING LOSSES IN A COMMON CAUSE. INVOLVE THE KOREAN AMERICANS VETEREANS ASSOCIATION AND OTHERS WHO MIGHT BRING IDEAS. LET’S MAKE OURS A MOMENT OF CAMARADERIE.
It can be done. DAN MCKINNON
(Former President Annandale Chamber of Commerce, Chair Annandale Central Business Planning Committee, Chair, Fairfax County Commercial Revitalization Coalition, Chair, Fairfax County Commercial Revitalization and Reinvestment Advisory Group, President, Pinecrest Heights Community Association, all while having fun in a wonderful community.)
Hi Steve, it looks like you are back.
I am still with you on the idea on crafting a way to connect the Korean American presence and contribution to our community. But why Gangnam as a street name, and not places that reflect our joint history … where we lost lives in comradeship. It should be Chosin, Puson or Inchon. We could make it an important moment and involve the American Korea Veterans Association, Embassy, etc.
I know Gangnam is an important district of Seoul, and “Gangman Style” is popular in the world of hot music. But Gangnam is not known for anything I can find on our joint heritage…just its nightlife.
…”in Gangnam you can find yourself partying until the sun comes up”.
It might be fun to make that Annandale’s future. But for now, let’s take your idea and create a moment in history.
Hi Dan,
Hope you feel better.
Thanks for your support on honorary Korean naming of Little River Turnpike.
To clarify our request, we are asking the Supervisor’s office to help recognizing Korean American stakeholders (residents, property owners, businesses, employees, etc.) who have become an importance part of Annandale. This is NOT renaming the street to Korean name. Many Korean Americans in DMV area and abroad have already called Annandale Koreatown of Washington DC area. Everyone visiting nation’s capital have visited Annandale for it’s many Korean restaurants and meeting with business owners. As someone said, it’s a time to recognize a community that has been an importance part of Annandale. By recognizing Korean American heritage in Annandale, Korean businesses will be able to bring more visitors to Annandale.
On your question on the name, we recommended Gangnam street, not other political names as Gangnam style song kicked off KPOP popularity worldwide. It also represents young and successful district of Korea’s southern part of Han River, which shares similarity to southern part of Potomac River here in DMV area.
But we are only working on the approval of honorary naming first. We received 8 different names and the Supervisor office also provided “other” section for other name or ideas.^^
Let’s make that second part. But it is great to bring community together.
Thanks always my friend and please stay healthy.
Your friend and Annandalian Steve
Am I the only one who finds it very poor faith that the meeting today was going to be held at the Korean Community Center? Like they’ve already decided and are just doing this as a formality on the applicant’s home turf?
I am against this name change. The Korean businesses and members of the community are of course great, but so are all the rest of us. One group shouldn’t be crowned above all the others, it’s unfair and non-inclusive.
I hope more people who speak up and not be intimidated from sharing their opinion due to perceptions of any sort of intolerance. Let’s keep Annandale diverse and welcoming to all.
For clarification, it was to be held at the office of Korean American Association of Greater Washington Metropolitan Area which is located in the Evergreen office complex, not the Korean Community Center. And it is NOT name change.
Someone during the last public meeting requested more time to review this request and the supervisor’s office complied to delay the second meeting for more people to discuss.
Thanks for your response and recognizing the Korean businesses and members of the community area.
Perhaps the Korean community could do something to help the several homeless and displaced persons that populate the streets of Annandale. This might be a better cause served than renaming Little River Turnpike!
These comments are insightful. The majority of the street names in this, and most areas, are Caucasian men. No complaints.
The contributions Koreans have already made to the community, after, IDK 50 years of service occupations, paying taxes, supporting your schools and community service still isn’t enough to warrant a virtually insignificant honorary plaque and cardboard Korean named street, probably for 1 block. Ok, it’s an extremely long run-on sentence. But I think you get it.
I just happen to believe in fairness that probably looks like diversity= that’s ALL of us, equity=fairness, a little grace please & inclusion =acceptance of each other. How long are y’all going to be mad and mean just because? Annandale appears to be a pleasant area, kill the hate, neighbor.
Please stop this nonsense!
Why not? Koreans having an honorary name… what is bad about this. Great neighbors and citizens.
Why not ? I agree but to be fair just divide the turn pike into 10 sections or blocks . Name each section block to the percentage of the business they registered. Korean, Mexican, Chinese, Vietnamese, Congo, French, etc…
Using Google Map, I count the number of business along Little Turn pike and tally Korean names is 12 among 143 stores/offices = less than 10%. If the Korean need to be honor we need also honor others ethnics too not just one. “Honor all or none”. No ethnic group is better than others. All of us are US citizens. The business name in Korean, Vietnamese, Latino, Chinese language like Soul city, Gangnam rest, speak and honor for itself already.
John Marr Drive
Tom Davis Drive
Little River Turnpike has historical signifigance in the nation’s history going back hundreds of years. This history is recognized and commemorated at various locations on Little River Turnpike and should not be obscured and forgotten. The honorary renaming is a branding/marketing scheme intended to benefit one group of commercial business owners. It is not about inclusion– it is about creating an image that excludes the contributions of all other groups. It is anti-competive because Annandale also has a large number of hispanic, non-Korean Asian restaurants, and franchised eating establishments whose businesses may suffer from the image of Annandale as a Korean-only destination. It can deter redevelopment because investors in large scale mixed use projects do not want to market to a single ethnic group– they want a dynamic neighborhood offering a wide choice of entertainment options, not a mono-culture. The Korean businesses should agree on a branding logo and the owners are free to revise their business signage at their own expense subject to zoning regulations. There is no community involvement in the “honorary” street re-design if the process is controlled and paid for by a private entity. If the county does become involved in the process, then it requires hours of county staff time, ultimately at the expense of all who pay property tax. This is not at all like Little Italy, which was historically a neighborhood with only Italian residents in which businesses that served the residents developed organically. The presence of Korean businesses in Annandale is explained by commercial considerations rather than the composition of Annandale’s residents. Annandale’s resident population is a mix of people’s from all ethnic backgrounds including Asians from countries such as Vietnam and India with no cultural affiliation with Korea. Korean businesses cater to customers that drive into the community from all over the DMV. They are free to promote their businesses as Gangnum or Koreatown. But the county should not be promoting an inaccurate image that detracts from the long history of the Little River Turnpike or mischaracterizes the diverse population of Annandale’s residents and non-Korean businesses.
Well said.
Perfectly said! I hope you plan on attending the meeting on the 19th! We need your common sense!
Very well said Susan. The Korean businesses only began coming in the late eighties and were welcomed as fellow business establishments. It seems that now they wish to be given an Honorary name to Little River Turnpike. I don’t think they care that this is a very historic name and has been a major part of Annandale HISTORY for 218 years. We should not be Giving Honors lightly here. They wish to give it an Honorary name of Gangnam Street and forgot that in so doing they would be paying a Dishonor to Annandale’s history and those of the residential neighborhoods and other establishments located in the business core of Annandale. I say NO to any honorary name change to Little River Turnpike.
My neighbor just told me the survey on Supervisor Jimenez’s is actually a vote and if 51% of the responses favor this change it will go to the Board of Supervisors for approval. I don’t know if that is true, but it shows the sort of rumors that are moving around because they haven’t provided good information or enough detail to understand the proposal. Will the existing signage come down? What will the new signage look like? Will the signs still say Little River Turnpike in addition to a Korean name? The Korean Chamber of Commerce refuses to provide any images showing what they want. We shouldn’t be rushing this through in a couple of months. It needs to be put on hold until we know exactly what is being proposed and then we need more time to consider it.
Steve Lee – You need to tell us EXACTLY what you want to do!!
I’ve lived here more than 40 years. Throughout that time I’ve watched Korean businesses grow in number. I consider them good neighbors and I take no issue with the Korean store content, Korean menus, and Korean business signs. I wouldn’t suggest they change any of that, and I wouldn’t expect them to agree to it if I did. That’s why I’m surprised at the suggestion that we rename a historically and geographically significant road that has run through this area for hundreds of years. It doesn’t seem very neighborly to me.
(1) We’ve lived in Annandale 40 yrs & it’s been an ethnically diverse community from our move here, including a variety of Asians. Korean businesses began concentrating here in more recent times. To the benefit of all of us, the community & business makeup continues to be MUCH MORE DIVERSE THAN JUST KOREAN. (2) We love ethnic & racial diversity. Our family happens to be a mix of Italian, Greek, & Hispanic heritage. Our son thrived from age 4 to adult hood by attending local Annandale schools right through Annandale High. During his attendance at AHS, there were over 70 diff languages spoken; he loved it, & had a widely diverse circle of close friends. (3) While there are indeed numerous “Korean businesses” that contribute to our community financially & socially, there also are a large number of non-Korean businesses that also contribute to our community. (4) Due to the wide diversity of our community, we STRONGLY DISAGREE with any effort to rename in any way, the streets that belong to & are used by ALL of our diverse community & ethnically diverse businesses. Why? Because it would be unfair to them & misrepresent the wonderful, productive diversity of Annandale. (5) We agree with Susan Jollie’s conclusion: “…the county should not be promoting an inaccurate image that detracts from the long history of the Little River Turnpike or mischaracterizes the diverse population of Annandale’s residents and non-Korean businesses.” We’re open to other ways for Korean businesses to promote themselves, including Susan’s idea of them developing their own unique signage or logos. (6) As non-Koreans who love cultural & food diversity, we offer several constructive suggestions for Korean businesses that wish to welcome patronage from non-Koreans: business signs only in Korean, or business/store personnel who do not speak English & only speak Korean, do not promote visits or purchases by non-Koreans. As non-Korean speakers, we have encountered such situations when we entered some Korean shops to buy food, groceries, etc. It was disappointing that we had to leave without an enjoyable experience.
The problems in our district are so glaringly obvious. We need a supervisor with common sense. Someone please give Jimenez some fake mid-level job so he goes away.