EDENTON — The Chowan County Board of Commissioners voted 5-2 Monday night to approve Veterans Park in downtown Edenton as the site where the county’s Confederate Memorial will be re-erected, following a presentation that outlined plans for a broader redesign of the park aimed at honoring local veterans and enhancing the downtown landscape.

The vote clears the way for the statue—removed from its longtime location on South Broad Street during Labor Day weekend —to be installed again, this time facing Swain apartments (the old school) — soldier to be facing east with the monument about 15 feet from the Chowan County Jail — to be aligned with the monuments at Veterans Park.

Commissioners who voted for the site were Bob Kirby, Larry McLauglin, Tony Shaffer, Chris Evans and Ron Cummings, while Tray Taylor and Ellis Lawrence voted in opposition to the site.

County officials said the move complies with state law requiring that historical monuments removed from public view be relocated to property of similar prominence. And worth noting, the clock is ticking as to when the monument must be re-erected — 90 days from when it was taken down Sept. 1.

Designer unveils expanded vision for Veterans Park

David Stevenson, a local interior and garden designer with 36 years of architectural and landscape design experience, unveiled a conceptual plan for a revitalized Veterans Park that would incorporate the Confederate statue into a larger tribute to military service and local history.

“First of all, I just want to say what a privilege and opportunity I consider it to be to be able to work for our county,” Stevenson said. “Having been born in Chowan County and yet lived all over the world and come back again, it is home to me now.”

Stevenson, who served in the U.S. Navy in the South Pacific and on the West Coast, said the work held special significance. “As a veteran, it means even more to me to make our Veterans Park a more prominent entity within our community,” he said.

He said his design was inspired by parks across the nation and intended to “enhance the area and be a wonderful addition to our city and county.”

“What we are proposing will make it more inviting to our community as well as visitors,” Stevenson said. “It’s a place that our county can be proud of.”

Gazebo, fountain, and walkways part of the proposal

Stevenson described the current park as “a lot of blank space” that many residents don’t even recognize as a park. “I’ve had to tell a lot of people where that was, even those who live in Edenton,” he said.

Under his proposal, the Confederate Memorial would be reinstalled in line with the veterans memorial and centered with the Swain’s front doors. Other improvements would be added in phases.

Among those additions may be a Palladian-style brick gazebo, similar to the architecture of surrounding buildings, measuring roughly 16 to 18 feet wide and 16 feet tall. “The gazebo would be fitted and suitable with electrical connections and accommodate multiple applications,” Stevenson said. “Accent as well as functional lighting will be located throughout the park.”

A fountain would serve as a focal point for the redesigned park.

“Prominent cities and towns throughout the country have a fountain as a focal point,” Stevenson said. “It would bring the sound of moving water from the downtown waterfront to the center of our town. A fountain area becomes a place where people love to gather and share special moments.”

Other elements would include new illuminated walkways, more seating, and plaques honoring historically significant figures such as Harriet Jacobs. Landscaping would feature native plants, trees, and flowers to provide “color and fragrance for four seasons out of the year.”

“With the assistance of local master gardeners,” Stevenson said, “the park could celebrate our diverse and interesting plant life with indigenous species our county is known for.”

In closing, he said he envisioned the park “as a well-celebrated and enjoyed part of our local landscape where we as a community come together to celebrate and remember those who have served and sacrificed to ensure not only our freedom but the freedom of others across the world.”

Commissioners discuss cost and plans

Commissioner Shaffer praised Stevenson’s concept but asked for details on expenses. “Did you scope the overall cost? I mean, I think it’s fabulous, but that’s going to cost a lot of money,” he said.

Stevenson said cost estimates were not yet available. “My direction to this point has just been to come up with a vision and then try to figure out what it would cost,” he said.

Commissioner McLaughlin noted that the board had previously allocated up to $7,500 for design work and said he had expected “measured drawings” and site plans. “We have no idea yet where that monument’s going to go,” he said.

Stevenson said he had not billed the county and that Monday’s presentation represented only the first stage of planning. “I have only started,” he said. “There’s quite a bit more to come.”

Essentially, this is a concept drawing, with plans to evolve as the project moves forward.

McLaughlin said the placement of the monument should be finalized before the rest of the design proceeds. “Setting where that monument goes should be the first thing that’s done,” he said. “What looks good on paper doesn’t always look good once it’s erected. Proportions matter.”

Stevenson agreed and said that precise measurements will be included in the next phase of work.

County Manager Kevin Howard said the monument’s position had been identified: centered about 15 feet off the old jail wall and roughly 25 feet from Court Street. He said the board would hold a design workshop in coming weeks to discuss cost estimates and final details.

“My thought would be we’d have a workshop where we discuss these things in depth — what you want to see there, what you don’t want to see,” Howard said. “We’ll have an idea of cost and items so we can plan for the future.”

Public voices divided

During the public comment portion of the meeting, residents expressed both opposition and support for the monument’s return.

Debra Miller spoke against reinstalling the statue.

“I’m here again to express my desire that the Confederate statue does not rise again,” Miller said. “The white supremacy it reflects has no place in this town, county, or country.”

When Miller was speaking, this editor couldn’t help but think that Edenton Town Council and indeed other town councils, school boards and county commissions across Northeast NC are represented by a diverse group of elected leaders — a far cry from the white supremacy of the past.

Miller said she had not planned to speak but was frustrated by what she saw as a lack of openness about the process.

“I thought some of the people here would learn that transparency does matter,” she said. Miller concluded by urging commissioners to “listen to these people about that (gun range),” referring to another contentious issue discussed earlier in the meeting.

As to transparency regarding the future of the Confederate Memorial, there have been several meetings of Edenton Town Council and the Chowan County Commission to discuss and decide what to do about the monument. Also, the Albemarle Observer and many major media outlets have reported on a lawsuit about the placement of the monument — a lawsuit that is still percolating within the court system of which Miller is listed as a plaintiff.

For anyone who missed all the intense media coverage, folks were discussing the matter, perhaps in great detail, at their favorite coffee shop or perhaps attending the protests each Saturday in front of the monument for years — even as the memorial was being taken down around midnight Labor Day weekend, the Albemarle Observer posted a story.

Back to Michael Dean, commander of the Sons of Confederate Veterans’ Edenton-Bell Battery, who spoke in favor of the county’s decision.

“The reason I came tonight was to thank each and every member of the county commissioners for their due diligence in the preliminary that we have seen in the park to be generated behind the county courthouse,” Dean said.

“I’ve only seen the preliminary on this, and it’s more than we expected,” he added. “Trust me, I believe that. But as some Confederate veterans, I thank you.”

Dean, a veteran himself, emphasized the scale of Chowan County’s losses during the Civil War. “Between 1861 and 1865, this county lost 47 of its young men according to the census. That’s about one in ten men in this county that never came back,” he said.

“Between the Spanish-American War and the Vietnam War, we lost 21 men in Chowan County,” Dean continued. “So that gives you some kind of perspective. If we had lost one in ten men in Vietnam, that would be 600,000 men that did not return — and we would not have put up for it.”

Final motion and approval

Commissioner Shaffer made a motion to approve Stevenson’s concept plan and authorize placement of the monument.

Shaffer agreed but emphasized that “specific dimensions” should be reviewed before construction begins. After brief discussion, the motion passed unanimously.

Howard confirmed that the town of Edenton, as required by state law, will handle the actual reinstallation. Stevenson’s larger design proposal—including the fountain, gazebo, landscaping, and memorial features—will return to the board once cost estimates are complete.

A park of remembrance and reconciliation

Stevenson said his goal was to make the park a unifying and inspiring space. “I envision this as a place where we can come together even more to celebrate and remember those who have served and sacrificed,” he said. “It’s one more reason to love, enjoy, and be proud of Edenton and Chowan County.”

With Monday’s vote, Chowan County formally selected the site where the Confederate monument will rise again—this time as part of a larger Veterans Park project that supporters call an act of remembrance and opponents say risks reviving the divisions of the past.