Richmond Mayor L. Douglas Wilder asked Fredericksburg's City Council for a city real-estate tax exemption on 38 acres of land on which he hopes to build his proposed slavery museum.

Wilder, a former Virginia governor, told the panel Tuesday that the nation needs the U.S. National Slavery Museum to accurately and completely tell the story of slavery in America. Wilder said the exemption would get the museum built more quickly.

The exemption would cost Fredericksburg $42,745 a year and would be valid for three years.

City Manager Phillip Rodenberg has recommended that the council only grant an exemption for the part of the property the museum uses now, slightly less than one-third of an acre. The value of taxes on that portion of the property is $327 a year.

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Information from: The Free Lance-Star

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