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The city of Suffolk and Suffolk courts have announced their Juneteenth schedule.

Gov. Ralph Northam on Tuesday announced his intent to introduce legislation to make Juneteenth a state holiday. He also announced state workers in the executive branch would have this Friday, June 19, off from work.

Juneteenth, celebrated on June 19, is the oldest known commemoration of the end of slavery in the United States. It marks the day in 1865 that enslaved people in Galveston, Texas, the last of the former Confederate states to abolish slavery, finally heard that the Civil War had ended, and learned that the Emancipation Proclamation had made them free nearly two years earlier.

The Mills E. Godwin Courts Complex will be open on June 19. All scheduled court matters will be heard. Questions should be directed to the clerk’s office associated with the court matter:

• Suffolk Circuit Court: 514-7800
• Suffolk General District Court: 514-4850
• Suffolk Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court: 514-7790

Any other questions may be directed to the Suffolk Sheriff’s Office at 514-7840.

In observance of the Juneteenth holiday, Suffolk city offices will be closed Friday. Operations will resume at 8:30 a.m. Monday. Note, however, that the majority of city facilities, as well as the Treasurer’s Office and the Commissioner of the Revenue’s Office inside City Hall and their satellite offices at the North Suffolk Library, remain closed to the public until further notice due to the impacts of COVID-19.

• Suffolk Public Works Department and TFC Recycling will pick up trash and recyclables on a one-day delay, with Friday’s routes being picked up on Saturday. Bins must be placed at curbside no later than 7 a.m. on the day of collection. For more information on refuse collection, please call Public Works at 514-7630.
• Suffolk’s four major parks — Lone Star Lakes, Constant’s Wharf, Sleepy Hole and Bennett’s Creek — will remain open Friday, June 19; however, no park attendant will be on duty.
• The East Suffolk Recreation Center and Whaleyville Recreation Center will be closed on Friday.
• The Suffolk Executive Airport Terminal will be open only for restaurant access on Friday. The field and self-service fuel farm will remain open during this time.
• Suffolk Transit will continue operations on Friday, as scheduled. Maps of all routes, schedules, and more are available for review at www.suffolktransit.org.