Town Council in Work Session Discusses New Solid Waste Tipping Fee, Supplemental Health Care Options, and Progress of Town Goals

At a work session of the Front Royal Town Council, beginning at 7 p.m. on Monday, August 5, in the Front Royal Town Hall at 102 East Main Street, roughly an hour was dedicated to hearing from a consultant about the Town’s financial situation regarding a new tipping fee for solid waste, a resolution for the establishment of supplemental health care options to offset the current lack of optimal service was briefly discussed, and towards the end of the evening’s agenda Town Manager Joe Waltz gave a report on the status of goals that he and Mayor Lori Cockrell have been working to bring to fruition for many months.

Town Council settles in for a work session on the evening of August 5. Royal Examiner Photo Credits: Brenden McHugh.

At the end of June, the town staff learned that the county would implement a new tipping fee of $40 per ton for solid waste collected from town residents and disposed of at the county-operated waste location. This municipal and residential decision on the part of the Board of Supervisors was voted upon at a special meeting with a public hearing on June 25. The fee became effective on July 1. According to Waltz, who has spoken to County Administrator Edwin Daley, a further increase is a real possibility in the next year. The Town, which was already operating on a deficit in terms of waste collection, is now facing an even greater deficit because of this tipping fee, a financial situation that will become more pronounced by October. Of course, this means a change in rates for Town residents, and it will be the council’s pleasure to determine exactly what that increase may be.

It was proposed in a presentation by a representative of MidAtlantic Solid Waste Consultants that the current monthly rate of $14.10 per once-a-week collection of a ninety-six-gallon refuse container, recycling bin, and yard waste be increased to $22.05, while the $12 collection of a thirty-two-gallon refuse container with recycling and yard waste be increased to $19.60. The cost for collection by entry onto private property is proposed to increase from $5 to $23.50. Mayor Lori Cockrell asked the MSW representative if it is common for other municipalities to be charged a special fee in addition to the tax residents of the county already pay for the waste location to which those who live outside the town can take their trash without a tipping fee. In other words, is the Town being double taxed? While he could speculate that the County has other mechanisms for collecting revenue from citizens outside the Town who bring their trash to the dump, the representative was unable to provide the mayor with any solid information about whether that is the case with Warren County. This item is slated for discussion at a future work session with a projected date of rate-setting at a regular meeting in September. Tangentially, privatization of waste collection was presented as an option with pluses and minuses but offers no real advantage. The town manager himself confirmed that he does not believe privatization would be an improvement.

Vice President of MidAtlantic Solid Waste Consultants John Culbertson helps the council understand its financial situation regarding a new tipping fee.

A resolution presented by Warren County school board member Melanie Salins to the council at the last regular meeting calls for more robust healthcare alternatives in a rapidly deteriorating situation as Valley Health fails to provide the care that women and babies in particular need. In the council’s discussion of this item at Monday’s work session, Councilwoman Amber Morris highlighted the fact that it is now common for women to deliver their babies in the emergency room in the absence of a maternity ward. “Come” is what she believes we should say to healthcare professionals who can bring their practice to this vicinity. The consensus for the evening was in favor of approving the resolution at a future regular meeting.

A solid victory for the Town is the advancement of one of its goals: the safety of school children walking on West Criser Road. A grant of 2.5 million was awarded on July 1 for the construction of a sidewalk where kids have been walking on the road. The projected time for completion of this project is three years. McKay Springs was also discussed in the evening’s review of goal advancements. Waltz identified it as a potential resource. But it is going to take time. This is not a resource that can be tapped immediately. It is up for discussion at the August 12 work session with the goal of identifying a secondary water source by December.

After hearing from Waltz, the council went into closed session at 9:20 p.m.

Click here to watch the Front Royal Town Council Meeting of August 5, 2024.