Council approves renaming two streets George E. Banks Blvd to honor former mayor

The Front Royal Town Council, at its regular meeting Monday evening, conducted a public hearing regarding a proposed street name change for a portion of Edgemont Ave. and all of Scranton Avenue to George E. Banks Blvd.

Ten citizens, two of them children of the late council member and mayor, spoke with admiration and respect for the man that Banks was, and cited this role in the Town’s integration history. Banks was the first Black council member as well as the first Black mayor of Front Royal. He served on the council from July 1, 1977-June 30, 1986, and July 1, 1994-June 30, 1996. Banks served as mayor from July 1, 1996-June 20, 2000. Mr. Banks passed away on January 13, 2022, at the age of 79.

Daughter Stephanie Banks spoke lovingly of her father and cited his role as the first Black councilman and mayor of Front Royal.

Banks’ son, Anthony “Tony” Fletcher, and daughter Stephanie Banks spoke lovingly of their father and cited his role as the first Black councilman and mayor, as well as the countless hours he gave to the community and its citizens, even after working long hours at United Parcel Service, and later as a bus driver for Warren County Public Schools.

Ms. Banks told the council that her father was a man who continued mentoring others and serving the community as a longtime poll worker in the North River District, in addition to visiting the sick and shut-ins, until the Covid pandemic forced him to stop. “Please, she told the council, do the right thing and name the street after my father, George E. Banks Blvd.”

Anthony Fletcher, spoke of his pride as a young boy scout, seeing his dad at work as a council member, and later as mayor. He also listed some of the projects his father helped bring about: additional ball fields being built for town youth, the Front Royal revitalization project, and the extension of water lines to the county, north of Town. Mr. Banks was also instrumental in getting Northwestern Community Services to expand mental health services in Front Royal.

Fletcher continued, saying his father had “love skills…he led with a shovel, not a pen” and remembered how Banks had brought food and coffee to lineman working to restore power in Town limits. Renaming the streets George E. Banks Blvd., Fletcher said, “is about the people of the town, not George Eddie Banks.”

Other citizens speaking in favor of renaming a portion of Edgemont Ave. and Scranton Ave. George E. Banks Blvd. included: John Cermak, who said he looked up to Banks after meeting him and being invited into the Banks’ home. “I didn’t know him when I met him, but I looked up to him. He was pleasant, kind, and a great person. It is a great idea to see his name on those streets.”

Rea Howarth spoke to council about the gifts Banks brought to town, and of the love, he shared for Front Royal’s citizens and, especially, the children. Howarth said she was “struck by the love of Banks that those who knew him as children had” and how a number of them spoke at Banks’ funeral about what he had meant to them.

Former Town Council candidate A.D. Carter came to the podium to tell council members, “I’m expecting you to do what’s right,” referring to the proposed street name change. Carter spoke of how he and Banks were” two Vietnam vets who knew how to get the job done.

“Banks is the reason I ran for Town Council,” Carter said. “He did everything from the heart and let the works that he did speak for him.

Others speaking in support of George E. Banks Blvd. were Mary Bailey, Eric Olsen, Wayne, Joan Brooks, and Rev. Al Woods.

Following the public hearing regarding the proposed street name change, the Council unanimously approved the new ordinance. The 11 homes on Edgemont Ave. and the seven homes on Scranton Ave affected will be notified by the town. Of the 18 homes on those streets, half of the residents signed a petition to encourage the town to create George E. Banks Blvd.

In other Council Action, the panel:

• Recognized Front Royal Police Corporal Steve Mauck, who is retiring.
• Honored Wayne Sealock for serving 17 years on the Town of Front Royal Board of Zoning Appeals.
• Approved nomination of Andi A. Robinson to the Circuit Court Judge to the Board of Zoning Appeals for a five-year term beginning May 1, 2022.
• Approved the Town’s Annual Appropriation Ordinance for the FY2022-2023 Budget, effective July 1, 2022-June 30, 2023.
• Approved the addition of a dollar-per-hour premium for hours worked during a qualifying night shift.
• Approved a Proclamation declaring May 15-21, 2022, as Public Works Week in the Town.
• Approved the Town’s Capital Improvement Plan (CIP).
• Approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Town of Front Royal, Warren County, Valley Health System, and Northern Shenandoah Valley Health System to create a Drug Treatment Court Program.

The Council went into Closed Session following the meeting for the following:

1. the discussion, consideration, assignment, appointment, promotion, performance, demotion, salaries, disciplining, or resignation of specific public officers, appointees, or employees of any public body, specific to the Town Council Vacancy, pursuant to Virginia Code §2.2-3711. A.1 of the Code of Virginia; and,
2. consultation with legal counsel and briefings by staff members or consultants pertaining to probable litigation, where such consultation or briefing in an open meeting would adversely affect the negotiating or litigating posture of the public body, specifically, the Warren County Economic Development Authority, pursuant to Section 2.2-3711. A. 7. of the Code of Virginia.

Watch the Town Council Meeting here.