Front Royal approves funding for start of W. Main connector road

On Tuesday, May 29, the Front Royal Town Council unanimously approved both a funding source and bid on the first phase of the West Main Street extension project. The West Main extension will eventually be the main thru-street at the Royal Phoenix Business Park, connecting the Kendrick Lane entrance to the north with West Main Street at its intersection with Kerfoot Avenue on the southern end of the 147-acre parcel.

On a motion by Jacob Meza, seconded by William Sealock, council approved a budget amendment authorizing acceptance of $650,000 from the Economic Development Access Program toward construction of Phase One of the West Main Street connector road; and acceptance of the low bid of $1,082,975-and 58 cents from G.B. Foltz Contracting Inc. of Mt. Jackson. Foltz underbid two Winchester and one Warrenton contractor for the job.

The accepted bid comes in a little over $200,000 under the originally-estimated $1.3-million phase one cost. The rejected bids ranged from $1.25 million to $1.53 million.

An aerial photo of the business park site – the Kendrick Lane entry point to the site is to right. Phase One of the W. Main extension will curl to meet the ITFederal lots behind the EDA headquarters in the old admin building. Aerial Photos/Roger Bianchini Courtesy of CassAviation

As Town Finance Director B. J. Wilson later explained to Royal Examiner, the Economic Development Access Program money comes from the Virginia’s Department of Transportation to help create infrastructure to facilitate economic development in the Commonwealth. VDOT had agreed to the matching $650,000 contribution to the project some time ago. It was NOT a hard decision for the town council to agree to accept the funding.

First Royal Phoenix business client ITFederal has also committed $150,000 to the project in exchange for not having to build its own wastewater pumping station. The town previously approved construction of a wastewater pump station on the property’s north side that is estimated to service about seven commercial pads and as many as 4,200 people on site. It will also serve the new town police headquarters being constructed across Kendrick Lane.

The remaining access road project funds are generated from money the Town has been setting aside from the collection of real estate tax since 2012. When Town Council adopted the real estate tax rate in 2012 they set aside one-third of two cents ($75,000) to be used for the West Main Connector. The other two-thirds of two pennies of tax revenue were committed to other capital improvement projects.

Wilson further noted that the real estate tax revenue earmarked for the Royal Phoenix Business Park connector road since 2012 will continue to be accumulated until the West Main Street extension project is completed and paid in full.

EDA Executive Director Jennifer McDonald has previously noted that the Town will be able to apply for another VDOT revenue sharing grant when phase two of the project is set in motion. There was discussion prior to the Tuesday night vote on whether utilizing the interest-free New Market Tax Credit Program for phase two funding would be possible. It appeared a determination and decision on that would come at the time the Town is ready to proceed with phase two of the West Main extension.

The West Main Street extension won’t begin at West Main, but on the other side of town at Kendrick Lane’s intersection with the Royal Phoenix Business Park site. Photo/Roger Bianchini

Phase One will access the business park from Kendrick Lane to the end of ITFederal’s lot 6. ITFederal is currently constructing phase one of its own project – a 10,000 square-foot office building just behind the EDA office and business rentals in the old American Viscose/Avtex administration building.

An aerial look at the site – W. Main’s intersection with Kerfoot Ave. is at top right-center where Kerfoot’s characteristic row homes and driveways are visible. Traffic southbound from Royal Phoenix can access Criser Rd. and Route 340 South by Kerfoot Ave.

A phase two involving two additional buildings has been presented. However, there remains some question as to whether the initially-cited $40-million ITFederal investment creating 400 to 600 jobs on site will ever come to fruition.

But in the case of a nearly three-decade EPA-overseen federal Superfund cleanup and remediation costing around $26-million in federal money and an unknown but likely astronomical federally-mandated private-sector investment by sole surviving previous plant owner FMC – you gotta start somewhere.