Update: County Urged Not to Short-Change Public Schools and Other Public Services as Enabling Outside Funding Sources Dry Up

(Writer’s note: This story has been updated with a correction to the vote on the Airport Commission appointment. Mr. Jamieson voted “Aye” with the majority, which the writer miss-heard as a “Nay” vote. Apologies for the mistake.)

To greet a chilly first day of Spring the Warren County Board of Supervisors faced an unusually light agenda at its meeting the evening of Tuesday, March 19. Well light, other than  the 6 p.m. closed session that kept them behind closed doors for an hour prior to the scheduled 7 p.m. open meeting start, which convened about four minutes late. Perhaps surprisingly that hour-long closed meeting didn’t include discussion of pending EDA “financial scandal” litigation with the Town or involved civil case defendants. Rather there was a perhaps Sanitary District-related “Eastern Vault Culvert Contract” topic. There was no announcement or action out of the closed session.

One of the meeting’s more interesting points was citizen Sarah Downs Public Comments on non-agenda items appearance (3:25 mark of linked County video). Downs said that three recurring words in the board’s Fiscal Year-2024/25 outside agency and departmental work session discussions troubled her. Those words are “flat local funding”. Downs pointed out that while the supervisors have been able to achieve fairly reasonable public services with flat funding in recent years, that enabling federal or state funding related to COVID relief was no longer available.

“When doing my research on the last four years and on funding, I realized that we recently have been able to save on local funding because of COVID funding from 2020, 2021, 2022 … So, locally we haven’t had to increase funding. But this year’s coming budget for the 2024-25 school year will be one of the first years where we have no longer this COVID-19 spending — we don’t have it guaranteed from the State,” Downs told the county’s elected officials. She called it “ridiculous” to keep the public school budget at a level where staff continues to turn over to higher paying jurisdictions in the region. She said even a one to two percent increase in funding would be helpful, and not require an unreasonably large tax hike.

The county supervisors were given one citizens perspective on a perceived group reluctance to utilize minor tax increases to operationally fund important community services like public education in the coming fiscal year budget. Sarah Downs, below, urged the county’s elected officials to represent the best interests of all citizens, not just those of often vocal special interest groups representing a minority viewpoint. Royal Examiner Photos Roger Bianchini

Downs also worried over the growing influence of home and private schooling segments of the population, many of whom don’t feel it right that they pay taxes to support a public educational system they don’t utilize. Those segments tend to forget about the positive impacts a quality public school system has on a community at large, including on economic development when companies looking to locate or relocate want their employees to have access to a quality public educational system.

Don’t be blinded by a politically motivated opposition to tax hikes to provide additional revenue when necessary to provide fundamental services that county citizens want, enjoy, and support funding of, Downs urged the supervisors.

As for the rest of the open meeting there were routine monthly appropriations, transfers, and submitted departmental accounts, all approved unanimously as Cullers joined her colleagues in approving last month’s accounts after noting discussion with Finance Director Alisa Scott on accessing additional information she has been seeking on those monthly departmental appropriations; board and staff reports (starting at 14:20 video mark); and an update on the status of Town of Front Royal departmental business, statistics, and finances by Town Manager Joe Waltz (6:18 video mark).

The agenda’s only action item under “New Business” was an eight-item Consent Agenda for what is generally considered routine business. Fork District Supervisor Vicky Cook pulled two items for additional discussion. Those were appointment of a board representative to the Social Services Advisory Board; and appointment of a citizen to fill a vacancy on the County’s Airport Commission. Noting she had no response to an inquiry for a volunteer from her colleagues, Board Chairman Cheryl Cullers said she would take on the Social Services Board representative duty. And on a motion by Richard Jamieson, seconded by “Jay” Butler, she was so appointed.

Conflict of Interest debate

And after a debate on potential conflicts of interest of appointing someone with a business interest at the airport (beginning at 30:08 mark of linked County video), an issue raised by Ms. Cook with a nod to her concerns by Richard Jamieson regarding one of the two interviewed candidates, on a motion by “Jay” Butler, second by John Stanmeyer, Julie Van Jaarsveld was appointed by a 4-1 vote, with Cook dissenting.

Did Vicky Cook, to right, see that both Chairman Cheryl Cullers and Richard Jamieson were going to join the far side of the dais and vote against her preference for the citizen appointment to fill an airport commission vacancy?

During the discussion Jamieson agreed with his colleague Stanmeyer that both candidates, the other being Michael Christiansen, were outstanding, and that it was perhaps too bad there weren’t two openings so that both could have been appointed. Stanmeyer defended Van Jaarsveld’s appointment, noting he had follow-up meetings with her where the issue of recusal from votes that might directly benefit or impact her operations at the airport were discussed, and to which she agreed she would recuse if necessary. In fact, Stanmeyer and Van Jaarsveld’s other supporters noted that her operational interest at the airport would provide a benefit in the level of awareness of issues impacting users that she brings to the table.

During their reports several supervisors, including Mr. Jamieson, discussed attendance of an Emergency Management Training Session as an eye-opening experience, including at the number of first responders that would be involved, with special training, for such responses.

Town Operational Update

In his report on the Town of Front Royal governmental and departmental operations and expenses side, Town Manager Waltz said the Town was in “good shape” overall revenue/expenditure-wise at this point in Fiscal Year-2023/24. Departmentally he presented statistics showing only one of four Enterprise Fund utilities ahead of projected expenditure levels at this point in FY-2023/24. That was the Electric Department at 72% of its allotted budget at the 66% point of the current fiscal year. The Water Department was right at 66%, with Sewer at 60% and Solid Waste at 59%.

Waltz was also pleased with Visitor Center numbers, particularly in December (2,328) and beginning to climb back from a winter lull to 807 in February from 398 in January. He also pointed to Town Trolley rider numbers of 907 (November), 1,428 (December), 1,918 (January), and 1,245 (February). Waltz was also very optimistic about the coming operational involvement of the unilaterally overseen Front Royal Economic Development Authority (FREDA, aka BDB or Business Development Board).

Town Manager Joe Waltz, at podium, gave a detailed update on the status of Town operations as the end of the current fiscal year approaches. He was optimistic about completing the current year within budget, and about departmental functions moving toward FY-2025.

Another interesting item was response numbers for the Front Royal Police Department. Noting his presented stats were for February alone, Waltz cited 2,380 total calls, 1,590 for service, and 198 Emergency Service 911 calls. One stat cited were “Mental Health” calls: 207 qualified as “Mental Emergency” and another 10 as “Emergency Custodial Order”.

“Obviously this nation and this community is in a mental health crisis,” Waltz observed of those last numbers reflecting a national trend in law enforcement responses, adding, “My hat is off to our law enforcement. They are in it day in and day out … and my hat’s off to them.”

Consent Agenda

The six Consent Agenda items approved without discussion on a motion by Butler were:

1. Contract – Divaris Real Estate, Inc. Annual Term Contract for Real Estate Broker Services;
2. Authorization to Advertise for Public Hearing – Proposed Lease Agreement of Hangar A6 to Jeremiah Leonard;
3. Citizen Re-Appointment – Kim Lucas to the Warren County Parks and Recreation Commission, Member At-Large;
4. Authorization to Advertise for Public Hearing – Proposed Lease Agreement of Hangar B10 to Kenneth McCoy;
5. Citizen Re-Appointment – Steve Brady to the Warren County Parks and Recreation Commission;
6. Shenandoah Valley Work Force Development Board – Warren County Representative.

The meeting was adjourned at 7:45 p.m.

Click here to watch the Warren County Board of Supervisors Meeting of March 19, 2024.