LOUISA, Va. (AP) _ A court date will soon be set to determine whether a massive confederate battle flag will be allowed to fly on private property off of a Virginia highway. The Daily Progress reports the debate surrounds a 30 by 50 foot (9 by 15 meters) Confederate battle flag on a 120-foot (36.5-meter) pole. The Virginia Flaggers say the flag, located about 15 miles (24 kilometers) from Charlottesville, counters the Charlottesville City Council’s vote to remove a statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee in May. Officials say the flag violates height ordinances, but the group says it’s a Civil War monument, exempting it from height limitations. Judge Timothy K. Sanner is expected to set a hearing date July 15 for two separate rulings: First, whether the flagpole is a monument, then on the constitutionality of the county’s zoning ordinance.
