The Town’s money shell game and a suggestion on one COVID money saver

It never ends with the incompetence of our Town Council and Interim Town Manager. I will exclude Councilman Thompson on the waterline issue as she voted against this.

At Monday’s Town council meeting, the council made an amendment to the 2020 budget to take $2.3 million dollars from the Enterprise Fund Reserves: $1.31 million dollars from the Water Utility Reserve fund will be used to cover the cost for the engineering drawings for the Rt. 340 corridor redundant water line; $990,674 from the Sewer Utility Fund for closed circuit television investigation of sewer lines.

To start with, before retiring I worked in the Commercial Property Management field. This included high-rise office buildings/complexes, retail and shopping centers. I know this business very well. At Monday’s (April 27) Council meeting, Council members justified the redundant waterline to the corridor for the following reason: possible liability litigation from Dominion Power and businesses in the corridor if the water were to be shut off for waterline repairs. If this liability issue was not written into the contract between the town/county or town/businesses, there is no liability issue. If a liability issue was written into either of these and not written in the town’s favor, this was plain stupidity and incompetence.

As I have said before at council meetings and a previous letter to the editor, there is not one shopping center in the country that has a redundant waterline. Could you imagine the cost? Having a waterline break to a shopping center, office complex, etc., is nothing new or out of the ordinary. It happens every day. Water loss and power loss is a situation that cannot be controlled. There can be no guarantee for continuous, uninterrupted water and power flow. Does Fairfax Water Authority get sued when a waterline breaks? – No.

It is inconceivable that Dominion Power, who relies on the flow of water to create the electricity they sell did not have this line installed at the same time of construction to prevent a shutdown. Dominion had the money then and has the money now for this entire project. But our Town Council wants to put some of the cost on the back of the citizens. Councilman Gillespie, at a council meeting earlier this year made this comment, “I can’t sleep at nights thinking about what it would do to the businesses in the corridor if the existing waterline breaks.”

Here is my comment, “Thank you Councilman Gillespie for thinking about Dominion Power, who has billions in yearly revenue, and the businesses in the corridor over the taxpayers of the town”.

But then again, the taxpayers have always come last with this council and past councils. Seems to be the normal for Front Royal.

The town will take out a bond to cover their share of this waterline. Council states Dominion’s future water rate increases will cover the payments on this bond, which in their eyes means the taxpayers would be paying nothing toward the bond. I say, Dominion should cover the entire cost of the waterline. Then there would be no bond to make payments on. Dominion’s water rate increases could then be used for water plant upgrades and sewer plant upgrades which are D.E.Q. required. Isn’t this part of what water rate increases are to be used for? So the taxpayers will end up paying for all of these required upgrades.

Again, thank you again Town Council for helping the gigantic power conglomerate over the lowly taxpayer.

Also another $1.657 million dollars was recommended to be cut from the General Non-Utility fund reserves to provide contingency funding to cover shortfalls in the water, sewer, solid waste and general street fund balances related to the COVID-19 economic impact.

So, we take money from here, put it over there. Take money from over there and put it back to here. Then when all of that here, there and everywhere moving of dollars is done, who still gets shafted in the end?

I’ll leave that answer to you.

On a personal note to our Interim Town Manager (Matt Tederick): Instead of having closed door meetings to discuss possible employee terminations due to COVID-19 economic losses, why not cut your overly paid salary by half or go salary free before terminating another town employee?

A leader inspires confidence in other people through examples of integrity and inspiration, not by fear. A leader is driven by the right motivation and makes a positive impact on the people around them. With these examples of a leader, you sir, are no leader.

Paul Gabbert
Front Royal, Virginia