Council grants special exception parking permit for 12 Chester Street; Approves short-term rental for Fairview Avenue home

The Front Royal Town Council, at its regular meeting on Monday (Oct. 24), held a public hearing to consider a special exception parking permit for the 12 Chester Street property owned by local businesswoman Leandra Justice and her husband, Jim. No one spoke during the public hearing before the council discussed the request. Ms. Justice also asked that the special exception permit fee of $250 she paid on Sept. 20, 2022, be refunded.

Council member LeTasha Thompson made a motion, seconded by Amber Morris, that the permit be approved and the $250 fee be waived due to there being adequate parking near the 12 Chester Street property. The roll call vote was unanimous.

In a previous meeting, the council approved a Special-Use Permit (SUP) for the couple to operate a short-term tourist rental subject to a parking solution for the property, which does not have off-street parking.

The current zoning ordinance, established in Feb. by the town council for short-term tourist rentals, has vague guidelines for parking, stating, “Parking for the use shall be located in driveways or other designated and approved parking areas.”

Ms. Justice is now applying for a special exception to that provision for the historic property, which is within 300 feet of the municipal parking lots on Peyton and Chester Streets. The planning commission and the town council have both discussed the ambiguity of the ordinance and how it should be interpreted regarding the properties along that portion of Chester Street. That handful of properties were omitted from the general parking exemption granted to East Main Street properties.

Planning Director Lauren Kopishke has previously stated that part of the Comprehensive Plan process will include revisions to the zoning ordinance. That process should conclude by the end of this year. Ms. Kopishke said that such issues will likely be addressed and would hopefully eliminate the need for special exception requests.

Planning Director Lauren Kopishke (left) informs the Council of the Comprehensive Plan process that will hopefully include revisions to the zoning ordinance to eliminate the need for special exception requests.

A planning commission public hearing for Justice’s special exception request for the property was held on Oct. 19; the panel voted to support the exemption request.

The council also held public hearings on the following:

• A Special use permit for short-term rental at 30 Fairview Ave. Submitted by the VESTA Property Management Co.
• Proposed ordinance amendments to Town Code Chapter 142-4.1–Snow and Ice on Sidewalks
• A proposed FY23 budget amendment for Route 522 N. Corridor redundant water line and inflow/infiltration stormwater abatement

The lone speaker of the evening during the public hearings was Front Royal resident Bruce Rappaport, who told the council members that it was challenging to clear snow during the day, only to have it be pushed back onto sidewalks by overnight snowplows. He continued, saying elderly town residents needed access to the sidewalks but often were not able to clear them. He also reminded council members that only about one-third of homes within town limits had sidewalks, and it might appear that the new code would appear to single those residents out.

Bruce Rappaport says he is concerned about seniors clearing the snow from their sidewalks during the day only to have it be pushed back onto sidewalks by overnight snowplows.

The council unanimously approved each of the items for which a public hearing was held. No one spoke during the public comment portion of the meeting.

The panel went into a closed meeting to consult with legal counsel regarding the positions of Town Manager and Town Attorney. No action was taken following the closed session.

Watch the Town Council meeting here.

Council approves short-term rentals, one contingent on special exemption from parking