Officials convene to establish goals at council retreat

By Ben Orcutt -- Daily Staff Writer

FRONT ROYAL — In these economically trying times, Town Manager J. Michael Graham had good news for the Town Council during a Thursday retreat at the Northern Virginia 4-H Educational Center.

"The town of Front Royal is in very, very good shape financially," Graham told the panel that gathered at the serene setting to establish short- and long-term goals.

Graham said the town has been fortunate during his two-year tenure not to have had to raise taxes while maintaining a high level of services for town residents.

However, Graham said that the town is approaching a critical point where it may not be business as usual.

"We will have to hire some people sometime," he said.

Graham said he thinks the town can operate for possibly another year as it has been, "but I think after that we'll probably have to do things differently."

The retreat, which was facilitated by volunteer Tory Failmezger, who represents the North River District on the Warren County Planning Commission and is a longtime director of such meetings, was divided into three segments.

Graham briefed the Town Council on the state of Front Royal and then gave the panel an overview of major projects. The final segment was to fashion a vision statement.

Mayor Eugene R. Tewalt told his colleagues that, "Goals are no good if you cannot accomplish those goals."

Councilmen Thomas H. Sayre and Thomas E. Conkey agreed that creating a good environment by making wise use of land and green spaces is a top priority.

Councilman N. Shae Parker said in addition to providing services for senior residents who have worked and lived in the town for most of their lives, Front Royal also needs to take steps to put more emphasis on youths, which he said are a valuable asset.

Vice Mayor Bret W. Hrbek said he felt it is important to establish a better relationship with the county school system because schools have a significant impact on the town and its roads.

In the area of electricity, Graham told the panel that the town's rates will remain the same until the end of its contract in 2010, but added that after that, there is a chance prices will increase.

"There's no such thing as cheap power any more," Graham said.

In the area of planning and zoning, the consensus of the council was to maintain vigorous enforcement though its code enforcement officer.

Since January, there have been 477 complaints about code violations, Graham said, with 362 of them having been resolved. Hrbek noted that it may be time for the code enforcement officer to go ahead and work on violations that are visible rather than waiting for a complaint to be filed. Hrbek said the town may need to consider hiring another code enforcement officer to help with the workload.

Graham told the panel that the town now has a backup for just about every position and that he continues to evaluate outsourcing town services on a continual basis.

In terms of economic development, Graham said the council first needs to decide what it wants the town to look like before those goals can be firmly established.

Tewalt also reminded the panel about its leadership role.

"We are the rollers and shakers of the community and we need to realize that," Tewalt said.

* Contact Ben Orcutt at borcutt@nvdaily.com