THE WARREN SENTINEL
Article date: July 18, 2002

Avtex redevelopment committee endorsed

Joint County-Town group will oversee future plans for site

By Roger Bianchini

At its Tuesday night meeting, the Warren County Board of Supervisors unanimously endorsed a town-county committee suggested by the Avtex Stakeholders Group to facilitate and advise on future decisions concerning Avtex redevelopment.

After a 10-minute recess the board included approval of a request from the Front Royal Town Council that two of the eight committee directors appointed by the county be town residents.

In making his motion for approval of the 12-member Avtex Redevelopment Advisory Committee, Tony Carter drew laughter when he commented, "The only thing I have to ask is, are we going to ask that the four town appointees have to be county residents?"

Seeking more town influence on the committee to which it will appoint four and the county eight members, the town council had come up with the proposal that two of the county appointees be town residents at a June 17 work session.

The Avtex Stakeholders Group had recommended the formation of the committee at its November 2001 meeting. The Stakeholders Group noted that with remaining issues of redevelopment likely to have financial and staff impacts on both the town and county, both governing bodies should take more direct involvement in the decision making process.

Both town and county approval of any proposals at the site was already required. At least one supervisor, Ben Weddle, has suggested in the past that he felt that the Front Royal-Warren County Economic Development Authority, which is responsible, among other things, for the direct oversight of Avtex redevelopment, has taken on the role of the "tail wagging the dog" in regard to some of its decision making regarding the economic development of the community.

Weddle made some scathing comments earlier in Tuesday's meeting about news reports of a June 24 EDA resolution requesting that the town and county complete a proposed joint future water use study by the end of the year.

The EDA resolution followed a joint council-supervisors work session at which four candidates to head the study were interviewed. Weddle and others had sought assurances then that the study could be completed by Dec. 31.

The EDA resolution may have been directed at the town council, which hadn't make a recommendation on a firm to head the study nearly three weeks after the work session. The supervisors make their recommendations two days after the interview were conducted.

The next phase of Avtex demolition work began this month at Shipping Area Number 3.

Tony Carter noted on Tuesday that 51 acres of redeveloped land at the site is due to be released shortly.