Split Town Council Denies Swan Estates Proffer Amendments, Hears Overwhelming Citizen Support for Revitalized Youth Center

Of nine public hearings held at its meeting on Monday, August 28, the Front Royal Town Council spent the bulk of its time on the final two. Those were Item H, the “Request for Funding from Reaching Out Now to Revitalize the former Raymond E. Santmyers Youth Center at 201 E. 8th Street,” and Item I, proposed amendments on proffers tied to the long-stagnant Anna Swan Estates – HEPTAD LLC rezoning to achieve a large residential build-out off Leach Run Parkway southwest of Warren County Middle School.

However, there was action on only one of those two, as the Santmyers Youth Center redevelopment proposal was scheduled ONLY to receive public feedback on the proposal. That feedback was a 10-0 clean sweep in favor of the Town’s funding a portion of the budget — $25,000 to $50,000 annually — necessary to facilitate a reopening of the County-owned building under the stewardship of the “Reaching Out Now” civic organization. The public hearing begins at the 1:30:50 video mark and ends at 2:05:45.

Council ponders the Swan Farm/HEPTAD proffer amendments, among other issues, including how to enforce its codes regarding Short-term Tourist Rentals guidelines versus a lack of control of long-term rentals.

On the action side of those final two public hearings, after a lengthy council discussion, the Swan Farm proffer amendments were denied on another of Mayor Lori Cockrell’s tie-breaking votes of the evening. That vote to deny due to “heartburn” the mayor said she had over details of past withdrawals of original proffers by the applicant and a reported failure to pay a past agreed-upon sum to the county public school system was delivered after a six-minute-plus explanation of her perspective on the proffer amendment proposal and her consequent “heartburn” over it.

“Skip” Rogers made the motion to approve the amended proffers, seconded by Bruce Rappaport. It reached the mayor following Rogers, Rappaport, and Vice-Mayor Wayne Sealock’s votes for approval and Melissa DeDomenico-Payne, Amber Morris, and Josh Ingram’s votes against approval. The Swan Farm proffer amendment public hearing begins at the 2:05:47 mark of the linked Town video; the vote is called at 2:59:15 mark, with the deadlock reaching the mayor at the 2:59:47 mark. Her vote is cast at 3:06:20, ending the discussion – for now.

Mayor Cockrell was ‘on a tie-breaking roll’, or was it ‘in a tie-breaking role’, on Monday evening.

‘Big Brother’ & Public Speed Cameras

In a third matter of extensive public interest, as part of its Consent Agenda, council voted unanimously to include authorization for “the Town Attorney to Negotiate an Automated Speed Enforcement Systems Agreement with Blue Line Solutions, LLC as a cooperative procurement.” It was noted prior to the vote on this somewhat controversial matter that council was only authorizing Town Attorney George Sonnett to negotiate contract terms with the Consent Agenda approval. Those terms, once finalized, would come to council for review prior to a vote on acceptance or rejection of the contract.

The matter has become controversial in the wake of a few citizens, including Monday night Public Comments speaker John Lundberg, and some elected officials, notably from the Town (Morris), County (Oates), and School Board (Salins), expressing concerns about governmental overreach and “Big Brother”-style spying on citizens through the unmanned school speed zone camera system.

But as Vice-Mayor Sealock observed last night (3:20:40 video mark) in response to Public Comments speaker Lundberg, “He was worried about the long-term threats on their privacy. Well, your expectation of privacy stops when you walk out the front door of your house.” Sealock has repeatedly observed that automated school zone speed enforcement cameras, rather than a miss-perceived threat on one’s right to privacy, is a cost-efficient — Sealock called it virtually no cost to taxpayers — public safety matters revolving around the physical safety and potentially even lives, of the school-age children of this community. And as a long-time fan of sci-fi novels like George Orwell’s “1984” and Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World,” the vice-mayor is correct in his assessment of where the right to privacy ends. The nightmare scenario of an all-controlling government’s intrusion on peoples’ lives revolves around their private spaces, not in public, whereas Vice-Mayor Sealock pointed out that once you step into the public sphere, you have NO expectation of privacy, it’s already gone.

Vice-Mayor Sealock and Public Comments speaker John Lundberg were not seeing eye to eye on the issue of unmanned speed cameras as a cost-efficient public safety measure to protect the community’s children vs. a ‘Big Brother’ intrusion on citizens’ activities in public spaces.

Other Business

In other business near the meeting’s outset council unanimously approved “a Resolution to Dedicate/Name the North Commerce Avenue Bridge in Honor and Memory of Sgt. Dennis Smedley.” Smedley’s sister, Cheryl Cullers, was present for the acknowledgment of the initiative.

Vice-Mayor Sealock pauses with late FRPD Sgt. John Smedley’s sister, Cheryl Cullers, while handing out an acknowledgment of a Resolution to name a town bridge after the slain officer, whose murder has never been solved.

1. Special Use Permit to Allow the Painting of Two Murals at 1314 N. Royal Avenue – applicant William Kryssing — Unanimous approval on a motion by Morris, second by Sealock, for the murals acknowledging the work of first responders at the north-side chimney-cleaning business location owned by two past first responders.
2. Adopted the Certification/Recommendation of the Front Royal Comprehensive Plan dated May 19, 2023 — Unanimous approval on a motion by Morris, second by DeDomenico-Payne. It was noted this was the first Town Comprehensive Plan update since March 23, 1998. Municipal Comp Plans are by state code to be reviewed and updated as necessary every five years.

Under Agenda Item 11, “Business Items”, on a motion by Morris, second by DeDomenico-Payne, council unanimously approved “a Request from Donald McCarty for the Vacation of a Portion of North Street and a Portion of an Unimproved Alley.” Discussion indicated a heavily overgrown alley not used by other surrounding property owners. Councilwoman Morris commended the appointed “Review Committee” for taking the specifics of the two alley vacation requests into consideration in coming up with separate recommendations, the first denial, this one approval.

Other public hearings

1. Special Use Permit to Allow a Short-Term Rental at 912 Virginia Avenue – Joseph Chetupuzha — on motion by Morris, second by DeDomenico-Payne, council approved, on the mayor’s first tiebreaker of the evening 4-3, the mayor voting with DeDomenico-Payne, Morris, and Ingram. Prefacing her motion to approve, Morris explained why she supported approval despite some code issues, usually regarding available parking, in that it gave council more options to hold applicants accountable through a Special Use Permit than long-term rentals would. Public hearing, discussion, and vote from 20:22 to 31:28 marks of video).
2. Special Use Permit to Allow a Short-Term Rental at 417 Kerfoot Avenue – Mesa Rose Coral — Council divided along the same lines on how strictly to adhere to related ordinance guidelines on things like parking, with the mayor breaking her second consecutive tie vote along the same lines as above, approving the permitting by a 4-3 vote. (public hearing to vote 31:55 to 44:00 mark)
3. Special Use Permit to Allow Two Dwelling Units to be Located on the Ground Floor at 1127 N. Royal Avenue – Independence Realty LLC — This one ended Mayor Cockrell’s tie-breaking streak with a unanimous vote of approval on a motion by Rappaport, second by Rogers. (public hearing to vote 44:00 to 54:00 mark)

Council also unanimously approved “Proclamations to Recognize International Overdose Awareness Day/Recovery Month” earlier in the meeting.

Click here to watch the Front Royal Town Council meeting of August 28, 2023.