Nancy Reagan would be memorialized next to her husband’s namesake airport under legislation introduced this week that would rename an adjacent park in her honor.
Georgia representative Jody Hice offered a bill that would designate Gravelly Point, located along the George Washington Memorial Parkway in the Washington suburb of Arlington, as the Nancy Reagan Memorial Park.
“With her passing in March, our Nation continues to grieve the loss of one of our most beloved treasures,” Hice stated in a press release. “Like her husband, Mrs. Reagan invested in people and worked diligently to strengthen our communities and advance the American dream for our citizens..”
The Gravelly Point location is significant for its popularity among boaters, bikers, plane-spotters, and other forms of recreation. It also happens to be near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, making it particularly apt for the proposed renaming.
Hice pointed Reagan’s contributions at home and abroad as reasons for receiving the honor.
“Mrs. Reagan touched the heart of our country with her character, her service, her devotion to her husband, and her unyielding love for our republic,” he noted. “Together, the Reagans changed the course of our Nation, and the wider world, and their legacy will inspire Americans for generations.”
Hice was not alone in his sentiment. Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform (ATR), lent his support with an advance letter to Congress on Monday and an online petition on Wednesday. Norquist founded the Ronald Reagan Legacy Project, whose aim to memorialize Reagan through the naming of various American lands and roads.
“First Lady Nancy Reagan’s life was also one dedicated to service and charity,” he said. “Known for her passion for fighting alcohol and drug abuse, Mrs. Reagan has touched many lives and will continue to do so. As an extension of the Ronald Reagan Legacy Project, ATR supports this legislation to commemorate Nancy Reagan.”
The renaming of the Reagan airport itself, which for years had been called Washington National Airport, was controversial. As the New York Times reported in 1998, “The significance of the renaming is not lost on air traffic controllers or local officials, most of them Democrats, including the majority of the board of the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority.
Gravelly Point has no such significance to Washington-area workers. It’s simply under the jurisdiction of the National Parks Service.
