City Honors Leberman Family With Road Name
A road leading to the Olney Country Club may soon bear a new name honoring a family whose contributions helped create the facility and continue to support it today.
The Olney City Council voted June 8 to approve the first reading of an ordinance changing the name of Bankhead Road, which runs from Country Club Road to the golf course and clubhouse, to Leberman Lane. The Olney Country Club board submitted the request as a way to recognize the Leberman family’s longstanding role in the development and improvement of the country club.
Because the action requires an ordinance, the council must approve a second reading before the new name can officially take effect.
Mayor Rue Rogers told council members that the country club board requested the change in recognition of the Leberman family’s history of generosity to the facility and the broader Olney Recreation Association.
“That was all Leberman land,” Mayor Rogers said during the discussion, noting that the property occupied by the country club was originally acquired by the city from the Leberman family for recreational purposes.
In recent years, the family has continued that support through substantial financial contributions that have funded improvements at the golf course and clubhouse. Those gifts have totaled roughly $500,000 this year alone and have helped finance a series of upgrades designed to improve the facility and enhance quality of life in Olney, country club officials said. Financial help of more than $1 million has been pledged for present and future renovations.
City Attorney Dan Branum said state law allows road names to be changed for historic reasons and described the proposal as fitting within that category. He also noted that road renamings typically involve a more extensive process when private property owners are affected.
Council members expressed no opposition to the proposal and unanimously approved the first reading of the ordinance. If approved on second reading, city staff will notify emergency dispatch officials of the change and replace road signs identifying the roadway as Leberman Lane.