Article date: November 16, 2000

By Dan M. Telvock

Under Front Royal Town Councilman Carson Lauder’s plan, the Warren County School Board just might get the additional acreage it needs on Criser Road to build a new bus maintenance facility so the Avtex parking lot can be utilized for a high tech telecommunications center.

Lauder discussed the idea with the council during a work session last week.

The school board, county government and the town council have debated the issue of where to put a new maintenance facility ever since the one burned down in July 1997. The Avtex parking lot was tossed around as a possible location, which is one reason the Board of

Supervisors refused last week to grant the town a right of way extension through the lot.

But town officials want to use the lot for something better.

Lauder remembered discussions about a letter from the National Park Service that was sent to former Warren County Administrator R. Edward Duncan regarding the potential expansion of the Warren County School Board property on Criser Road. At an Avtex stakeholder’s meeting last month, Lauder talked to the current administrator, Doug Stanley, and asked him for a copy of the letter.

The letter from Douglas K. Morris, Superintendent of Shenandoah National Park, is dated Jan. 3. 2000, and gives a summary of the park’s decision on the request to make a trade for land between the town and the National Park Service, which owns Shenandoah National Park. The piece of land offered was a two acre strip of road frontage along U.S. 340, near Skyline Drive’s entrance, owned by the Eastham family.

The letter states that South District Ranger Rick Childs and North District Ranger Alan Sager examined the impacts to the park if it was to trade two acres on the west side to the property to the school board.

"They found that there is already considerable visual intrusion from the existing facility, and that an enlargement of this development would only create a greater concern." wrote Morris. "They also found an old home site that would require a National Historic Preservation Act survey, and might preclude this land from being exchanged. There might also be a National Environmental Protection Act compliance problem, in that the front of the property is a wet weather drainage."

Morris went on to say that an exchange of land may not be in the best interest of the Park. Morris said although he wishes the road frontage owned by the Easthams would never be developed, the exchange of land west of the school board property for a scenic easement along the frontage is not a priority of the park service.

"We would certainly consider acceptance of a scenic easement donation along the Eastham property road frontage," wrote Morris.

Morris also wrote that he understands the need of the school board is important, but the park could not trade away land that is so close to the Skyline Drive and that could have a negative impact on the park’s resources and visitors.

Lauder said there are a lot of ‘ifs," "buts" and "maybes" in the letter from Morris, but not a definite "no", we can’t do this."

"It looked like it was on hold," said Lauder. "I didn’t see any (answers of no) in there . I saw some obstacles we might be able to get around."

Lauder said one way to hide the bus maintenance facility so it doesn’t become an eyesore to park visitors and sightseers is to line the facility with different types of trees. Lauder said he talked with the Warren County Tree Stewards about the idea and they didn’t think it was impossible.

"It wouldn’t be as conspicuous when you drive down the road." Lauder said. "A good mixture of trees... might shield the property."

Lauder said his motivation for exploring the trade "is not to preclude the school board from going to the (Avtex parking lot)."

Instead, lauder said he wants to add a tax a base to the town’s coffers by creating a high tech telecommunications center at the Avtex lot. Lauder said he envisions a three or four story brick building filled with offices. He said the people working in the offices would add to the area’s tax base because they would have to eat and sometimes shop in the town or county.

Lauder said he believes the National Park Service cannot by or sell land, but it can trade.

"Maybe there’s another piece in the Shenandoah Valley that the park service would like to own," Lauder said. "So basically, we’ll trade two acres for two acres."