County authorizes legal contract for EDA accounting and debt service work

Following a 45-minute closed session added to the Tuesday morning, January 8, meeting agenda of the Warren County Board of Supervisors, a motion authorizing an expenditure of “up to $50,000” to contract the law firm of Sands Anderson “to provide legal counsel on a specific matter” to the Front Royal-Warren County Economic Development Authority (EDA) was approved unanimously.

The closed session was called for “consultation with legal counsel on legal advice related to accounting and debt services”.

Queried later as to whether the contract for legal services to the EDA might indicate a potential conflict of interest between his roles as both County and EDA attorney, Dan Whitten indicated that rather, it simply reflected that he did not have the time to devote to the ongoing exploration of EDA finances.

Richmond-based Sands Anderson is the firm that Dan Siegel, who has acted as bond counsel for the EDA on projects including the recent Valley Health hospital construction loan, is employed by. Over the years Siegel has often appeared with another Richmond-based bond consultant, Ted Cole of Davenport & Company, before the supervisors. Davenport & Company has long served as a financial and bond consultant to the county government.

“We hope it doesn’t get to $50,000, but if it did they’d have to come back for approval of further funding,” Whitten said of the contract for legal services from Sands Anderson.

On December 21, the County Supervisors approved a contingency fund payment of $90,000 to an unnamed consultant for three months of work on EDA finances. See related story: Warren County will pay 90000 to outside consultant in audit of EDA finances

With the county government propping up some unexpected EDA operating expenses, Whitten did note that the County began this fiscal year on the plus side with the EDA, contributing half – $54,000 – of what it had given the EDA in operating expenses the previous year ($108,000).

Both the Town and County governments, as well as the EDA board have had a series of closed sessions in recent months regarding accounting and debt service issues in the wake of the discovery of accounting irregularities by Town Finance Director B. J. Wilson. As Royal Examiner’s Norma Jean Shaw first reported, the Town Finance Department discovered debt service overpayments totaling over $291,000 to the EDA over an eight-year period.

A final number on overpayments on the town side or whether there are similar issues on the county side is not expected until the final report of the current audit of EDA finances is concluded. Whitten said it is hoped the audit will be completed in time to be

presented to the EDA Board of Directors at its monthly meeting of January 25. However Whitten noted a final report could take longer, depending on what is discovered over the course of the exploration of EDA finances.

Siegel, center, gets signatures on approval of Valley Health construction bond issue from former EDA Executive Director Jennifer McDonald and then-EDA Board Chair Greg Drescher.