Council hears from citizens on EDA, 2nd Amendment concerns & expanded public transportation service

The January 27th regular meeting agenda of the Front Royal Town Council was very light, with approval of a four-item Consent Agenda; and a recommended softening of the Town Employee Handbook guidelines for non-essential, “Tier 2” employees during severely inclement weather both being unanimously approved.

Council also recognized the Town “Employee of the Month, Timmy Fristoe. Interim Town Manager Matt Tederick acknowledged Fristoe’s 39 years with the Town, at the Wastewater Treatment Facility.

Council rises to applaud long-time Wastewater Treatment Plant Manager Timmy Fristoe, after he received the Town’s employee ‘Star of the Month’ recognition. Royal Examiner Photos/Roger Bianchini. Video by Mark Williams, Royal Examiner.

Council, the mayor and one member of the public greeted newly-appointed Councilwoman Lori Athey Cockrell. Cockrell expressed gratitude for her appointment, as well as for staff and council’s help in getting oriented to her new job as a councilman.

The most interesting part of the open meeting prior to adjournment to a work session and closed session was the public comments near the meeting’s outset. Paul Aldrich, a 2nd Amendment advocate, opened those comments by bringing a suggested Resolution to council that would add the Town of Front Royal to the list of municipalities around Virginia declaring itself a “2nd Amendment Sanctuary”.

Aldrich noted that the former Warren County Board of Supervisors had unanimously passed a similar resolution. That vote occurred on December 10, before the new county board majority was seated.

Paul Aldrich asked council to consider adding the Town to list of municipalities resolving not to obey any gun control laws passed by the new Democratic majority in the Virginia General Assembly; as well as authorizing an existing militia to participate in emergency and law enforcement services.

Aldrich continued to suggest council, rather than create he pointed out, acknowledge an existing armed citizen militia in the community as an auxiliary to law enforcement and emergency services.

Following Aldrich to the podium was Paul Gabbert. After his welcome to Cockrell on her appointment to the job for which he also applied, Gabbert reiterated his previous comments to the county supervisors that he did not feel authorization of any kind of militia was a necessary or good idea. – “We don’t need militias, we only need people to volunteer if they want to help in emergencies,” Gabbert suggested.

While 2nd Amendment sanctuary and militia advocates have attempted to distance themselves from an existing image of armed political extremism, their sanctuary initiative has the potential to put local governments and law enforcement at legal odds with the State if any pending gun control bills on the floor of the Virginia General Assembly and its new Democratic majorities are passed into state law.

Neither Aldrich on Monday, nor other 2nd Amendment sanctuary advocates who have appeared before the County, have differentiated between any gun control bills now under consideration by the General Assembly. In addition to the redefinition of what would be an illegal “assault weapon”, they appear to believe background checks and red flag laws tied to firearms purchases and possession, as well as age restrictions on youth use of guns unsupervised by adults, to all be potential unconstitutional infringements upon their right to legally bear arms.

Why fight with new EDA?

But Gabbert’s counterpoint to the militia aspect of the first speaker’s comments was not the main thrust of his presentation to council. He chastised town officials for their increasingly hostile and litigious stance against the existing EDA Board of Directors and staff as they wrestle with the consequences of the $21.3 million financial scandal that developed under a former board majority and executive leadership.

Paul Gabbert diverted from his primary thrust, criticism of council’s adversarial stance against the EDA, to counter the previous speaker’s call for official endorsement of an armed citizen militia to assist in Town emergency or law enforcement services.

Gabbert was critical of the Town’s refusal to pay an $8-million-plus debt to the EDA on construction of the new Front Royal Police Headquarters as the EDA faces hitting a financial wall in March at which point it will not be able to cover its monthly debt and operational expenses.

“You owe the money on the police station – you got lied to, get OVER it,” Gabbert suggested of promises allegedly made by former EDA Executive Director Jennifer McDonald on lower interest rates tied to a state tax credit economic development funding program the police station project didn’t even qualify for.

Gabbert suggested rather play expensive legal hardball with a cooperative new EDA administration, the Town become proactive in helping the county government stabilize and subsidize the continued operations of the EDA, which as previously pointed out, cannot declare bankruptcy while owing debt on its economic development projects on behalf of the municipalities that created it.

Council was asked why it has decided to spend Town taxpayer money to fight the current EDA legally, rather than help the County stabilize it financially.

“You’re fighting a losing battle … you’re not going to get a dime out of McDonald or a dime out of the EDA – you’re wasting your time,” Gabbert told council and town administrative and legal staff of the $15 million civil suit it has filed against the EDA.

Gabbert’s criticism led to a lengthy response from Councilman Jacob Meza, who attempted to justify the Town legal strategy and delays in paying its uncontested principal debt on the FRPD project.

Council also heard from two mental health professionals – Rene McDaniel Flowers and Deborah McQuinty – who asked that the Town expand its trolley service to accommodate transportation needs of some citizens without transportation who have second or third shift jobs.

Deborah McQuinty, left, and Rene Flowers asked council to expand its public transportation service to accommodate some citizens without transportation’s later shift travel-to-work needs.

See the 2nd Amendment and EDA give and take and other public comments, as well as Cockrell’s welcome, Fristoe’s acknowledgement, and other Town business in this Royal Examiner video: