By Randy Arrington
RICHMOND, Feb. 9 — A Virginia Senate bill naming a bridge in Page County after a local fallen police officer received unanimous approval this week and was passed over to the House of Delegates. On Monday, Senator Mark Obenshain’s SB1220 passed through the Senate on a 39-0 vote. On Thursday, it was received by the other branch of the state legislature and assigned to the House Transportation Committee.
Senate Bill 1220 requests the General Assembly to enact that “the Route 211 westbound bridge that crosses over the South Fork of the Shenandoah River in Page County is hereby designated the ‘Dominic ‘Nick’ J. Winum Memorial Bridge.” The bill requires VDOT to “place and maintain appropriate markers indicating the designation of the bridge.”
The bill also states that, “This designation shall not affect any other designation heretofore applied to this bridge.” The language potentially addresses an earlier debate in November during deliberation by the Page County Board of Supervisors in which a few citizens felt some history may be lost in the bridge’s colloquial moniker of “White House Bridge.” A nearby structure known as “White House” was first built as a fort in the 18th century, and referenced in Civil War actions in the area.
During that Nov. 7 meeting, it was noted several times that only two bridges in the county actually have “names” — the Robert T. Brumback Memorial Bridge on Route 340 at Compton, and the Emmett Arthur Dougans Memorial Bridge over Route 211 in Luray. Other structures that carry monikers like Alma bridge, Overall bridge and even White House bridge are simply colloquial terms, rather than official names. It took two votes before a resolution of support was passed by the board of supervisors.
One week ago, the bill was reported out of the Virginia Senate Transportation Committee by a 15-0 vote on Feb. 2. The bill went through a first reading on the full Senate floor last Friday, Feb. 3 and passed a full vote on Monday after a second reading. Now, it will be taken up by the House Transportation Committee. If reported out of committee, the full House of Delegates will vote on the proposal before passing it on to Governor Glenn Youngkin for his signature.
On Feb. 26, 2021, Officer Winum was shot multiple times during a traffic stop on Stanley’s Judy Lane. Several memorial services have been held since then, and a new playground backed by the “Where Angels Play” non-profit is scheduled for construction May 31 through June 3. Winum’s name also appears on a memorial wall for fallen officers in Washington, D.C. In the weeks and months following his death, condolences and offers of help for the department, the family and the community poured in from all over the country and beyond.
The White House bridge was chosen by the leaders of Stanley because “one of Dominic ‘Nick’ Winum’s favorite spots was to sit in the area of the White House Bridge where he could enjoy the scenic view of the Shenandoah River while patrolling U. S. Highway 211 West,” according to the resolution adopted by the Stanley Council and submitted to the board of supervisors.
Winum worked with the Virginia State Police for a decade from 2006 to 2016, before joining the Stanley Police Department until his untimely death in 2021.
In November 2019, the Commonwealth Transportation Board awarded an $11.3 million contract to Fielder’s Choice Enterprises Inc. of Charlottesville to replace the westbound bridge over the South Fork of the Shenandoah River, between Route 615 (Egypt Bend Road) and Route 646 (Oak Leaf Road). Beginning in May of 2020 and reaching completion this summer, the two-year project featured two 12-foot travel lanes, a 10-foot right shoulder and a 6-foot left shoulder. The new, 625-foot bridge is about 200 feet shorter than the previous bridge to match the embankment length of the adjacent eastbound span.
Both resolutions adopted by the Town of Stanley and the Page County Board of Supervisors were sent to the Commonwealth Transportation Board for approval. While Obenshain patroned the bill in the Senate, Speaker of the House Todd Gilbert was listed as the co-patron in the House of Delegates.
Track the progress of SB1220 at
https://lis.virginia.gov/cgi-bin/legp604.exe?231+sum+SB1220.
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