Who’s doing what for whom? Terminated employees pop up in written Town Report to County

During his report on Town business to the Warren County Board of Supervisors on February 4, Interim Front Royal Town Manager Matt Tederick touched on a number of topics, including his $29.2 million capital improvements plan in his proposed Fiscal Year 2021 Town Budget, planned funding and movement on a Spot Blighted Building Abatement Ordinance, and town-wide pedestrian safety initiatives.

During his report, North River District Supervisor Delores Oates asked Tederick about his plan to outsource tourism, which she noted “affects us all”. Tederick replied that it was his opinion that the Town government is not “agile enough to do a good job” on tourism promotion. However, if initial public reaction from impacted citizens and their tourism-dependent businesses is any indicator, Tederick may be in a distinct, if significant, minority with his six town council members in holding that opinion.

Interim Town Manager Matt Tederick, seated, prepares for his report as VDOT’s Ed Carter gives his. Royal Examiner Photos by Roger Bianchini. Video by Mark Williams, Royal Examiner.

On the topic of pedestrian safety Tederick noted that council work session discussion the previous day about the aspect of improved street lighting indicated a “more complicated and costly” variable leading to possible delays on that aspect of improved pedestrian safety.

While not verbalized in his discussion of pedestrian safety, it was noteworthy that Tederick’s written report on a “South Street Traffic Study” included the observation that, “Jeremy Camp and Robert Brown are meeting with VDOT to discuss the updated traffic counts and talk about the possibility of focusing the study on the eastern end corridor.”

As previously reported, Town Planning Director Camp and Town Engineer Brown were notified of their terminations, along with several other employees, on January 29 as part of Tederick’s FY 2021 Town Budget proposal. That proposal first presented to council at the February 3rd work session, recommends cutting town personnel in a number of key departmental positions as a means of reducing Town operational expenses to facilitate a half-cent real estate tax decrease while proposing nearly $30 million in additional expenditures for capital improvements.

Of the re-focusing on the eastern end of South Street in the pedestrian safety study the written report states, “Updated crash data suggests that the eastern end is slightly more problematic than the western end.”

We certainly hope whoever replaces Camp and Brown in the Town Report-cited VDOT discussions on South Street pedestrian safety is aware of the most recent fatality, which occurred last year on the western end of South Street in a pedestrian crosswalk where poor lighting was determined to be a contributing factor.

Supervisor Carter, closest, noticed Tederick leaving the meeting room to take several calls as he waited his turn to deliver his report on Town business. With a conference call looming the interim town manager was jumped up a spot to facilitate his busy Tuesday morning schedule. Delores Oates, to Carter’s right, questioned Tederick on the Town’s plans for tourism promotion, which she observed ‘affect us all’.

That Tederick may already be feeling the consequences of his recommended staffing cuts may have been indicated by an exchange with Supervisor Tony Carter. Noticing Tederick left the meeting room several times to take calls prior to his report, Carter suggested the Town Report be moved up on the list of remaining reports if Tederick had pressing business elsewhere. Tederick noted a looming 10 a.m. conference call concerning the Town’s $700,000 Community Development Block Grant projects, projects terminated Planning Director Camp was also taking the point on; and which also terminated Community Development Director Hart was involved with as well.

Due up next, EDA Executive Director Parsons said he had no problem allowing Tederick to precede him to facilitate the interim town manager making his conference call. See, as Parsons and EDA Board leadership has repeatedly indicated, the EDA is willing to cooperate with the Town to mutually beneficial ends – wonder if the Town is willing to return the favor?

Time, Town civil litigation amendments and the interim town manager’s suggested budget appropriations for civil litigation against the EDA should indicate an answer to that question.

In addition to Camp and Brown, as of late morning February 5th the town manager’s office had confirmed the terminations of Community Development Director Felicia Hart, Council Clerk Jennifer Berry and Planning-Zoning Department official Matt Farace. Town Manager Administrative Assistant Tina Presley said she had no information on additional personnel cuts in tourism at the Town’s Visitors Center that Royal Examiner had received several citizen inquiries about.

You can see Tederick’s Town Report to the Warren County Board of Supervisors in this exclusive Royal Examiner meeting video:

EDA report to County – long-time annual auditor withdraws from lagging 2018 audit process