[Joint Planning Commission / Town Council Work Session on October 20, 2021.]
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UM, KATHY LATIC ASSISTANT TOWN MANAGER, AND I JOINED THE POUND THE SAME TIME WARREN DID.
I'M ACTUALLY JOINING WARREN AND I THIS EVENING, UM, ON THIS IMPORTANT PROJECT FOR THE TOWN.
I MEAN, IT'S REALLY, WE'RE DELIGHTED TO BE HERE AND GLAD EVERYBODY HAS BEEN ABLE TO TAKE SOME TIME OUT AND, AND WORK WITH US ON THIS PROJECT.
UM, AS I MENTIONED, YOU KNOW, IT'S BEEN SINCE 1998 THAT, YOU KNOW, WE'VE UPDATED THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AND, AND THE ZONING CODE AND THE SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE.
SO I THINK WE CAN, ALL THAT REALLY JUST SPEAKS TO THE FACT THAT IT'S A VERY IMPORTANT PROJECT, YOU KNOW, FOR THE TOWN.
UM, GETTING BACK TO THAT, JOINING IT, LAUREN AND I THIS EVENING ARE AND DARBY, AND MY FIRST PAPER FROM SUMMIT ENGINEERING, THERE ARE CONSULTANTS ON THE PROJECT AND FOR, UM, I DON'T WANT TO TAKE TOO MUCH AWAY FROM THE PRESENTATION, SO I WILL TURN IT OVER TO ANN FOR SURE.
AND THANK YOU SO MUCH AGAIN, MY NAME IS ANNE DARBY.
I'M THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT MANAGER FOR SUMMIT DESIGN AND ENGINEERING.
I MEAN, REALLY, TRULY EXCITED TO BE HERE WITH YOU AND KICK OFF THIS PROCESS.
AND THIS IS GOING TO BE SUCH AN IMPORTANT EVENING JUST TO LAY THE BASELINE AND EXPECTATIONS FOR WHAT WE'RE GOING TO ACCOMPLISH OVER THE NEXT 18 MONTHS WITH DOING BOTH A COMPREHENSIVE, FULL, COMPREHENSIVE PLAN UPDATE, AND ALSO A FULL ZONING ORDINANCE AND SUBDIVISION REWRITE.
SO AGAIN, UM, IF YOU LOOK IN YOUR PACKETS, THE SECOND ITEM IN YOUR PACKETS IS A DOCUMENT THAT WE'VE CREATED CALLED A GUIDE GUIDE TO SUCCESS, AND THAT YOU DON'T HAVE TO READ IT ALL NOW.
CAUSE I'M GOING TO, MY, MY PRESENTATION IS GOING TO BE FAIRLY REDUNDANT TO THAT, BUT YOU CAN REFERENCE THIS ATTENDANT AT ANY TIME DURING, UH, THE NEXT 18 MONTHS.
IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, IT OUTLINES THE BASICS OF A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN, INCLUDING A LOT OF VIRGINIA STATE CODE THAT, UM, WE WILL BE MAKING SURE TO STAY IN ALIGNMENT WITH THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS.
IN A NUTSHELL, SOME OF THIS IS GOING TO BE VERY BASIC TO YOU.
UM, BUT JUST TO MAKE SURE WE'RE ALL ON THE SAME PAGE, IT'S BETTER.
I WOULD SAY IT'S BETTER TO SAY IT TWICE AND MAKE SURE WE'RE ALL ON THE SAME PAGE THAN TO GLOSS OVER ASSUME, YOU KNOW IT AND REALIZE WE'RE NOT ON THE SAME PAGE LATER, RIGHT? SO IN A NUTSHELL, THE COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING PROCESS IS EXTREMELY SIMPLE.
YOU ESTABLISH A FIRM BASELINE OF WHERE THE COMMUNITY IS, UH, WHERE THE TOWN IS BASED ON DATA.
AND THAT'S A LOT OF CENSUS DATA AND IT'S A LOT OF MAPPING.
AND THEN WE START, WE ESTABLISH WHERE WE ARE IN TERMS OF, UM, OPINIONS, UH, HOW PEOPLE FEEL ABOUT THE TOWN WHAT'S WORKING, WHAT ISN'T, THEN WE ESTABLISH A VISION.
AND THAT'S A VERY COMPREHENSIVE PROCESS OF TALKING TO ALL OF YOU AND TALKING TO OTHER STAKEHOLDERS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
AND THEN THE PLAN ITSELF IS SIMPLY THE STEPS THAT IT TAKES TO GET FROM WHERE WE ARE TODAY, TO WHERE WE WANT TO BE.
AND THAT'S A HORIZON OF 20 TO 25 YEARS.
AND, UM, AND THE DOCUMENT WILL COVER A NUMBER OF, UM, A NUMBER OF CATEGORIES.
YOU HAVE SOME ICONS HERE, CAPITAL IMPROVEMENTS, ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, TOURISM PARKS, AND OPEN SPACE.
AND IT'S BASICALLY MOSTLY TO DO WITH LAND USE, BUT CAN, UM, CAN BRANCH OUT INTO OTHER, UM, INTO OTHER CATEGORIES.
IT'S LIKE, UM, MOST OF THESE ARE HOUSES, BUT H EXCUSE ME, MOST OF THESE ARE LAND USES.
UM, BUT SOME OF THEM ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND TOURISM ARE, ARE TANGENTIALLY RELATED, BUT STILL, UM, A LITTLE BIT DIFFERENT THAN LAND USE.
SO WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO UPDATE THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN? SO, AS KATHY MENTIONED, THE LAST COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING PROCESS IN FRONT ROYAL WAS STARTED IN 1996, AND THE PLAN WAS ADOPTED IN 1998.
SO A LOT HAS CHANGED IN THAT TIME.
THE TOWN HAS CHANGED, THE DEMOGRAPHICS HAVE CHANGED THE REGION, THE STATE, EVERYTHING IS BASICALLY EVERYTHING HAS CHANGED, EVEN THE TOWN BOUNDARY, DEMOGRAPHIC, MAKEUP, ET CETERA, UM, TO UPDATE THE PLAN.
NOW THAT MEANS THAT CURRENT LEADERSHIP GETS TO HAVE A ROLE IN, IN UPDATING THE PLAN AND MAKING SURE THAT IT'S A PLAN THAT YOU CAN STAND BEHIND, THAT YOU AGREE WITH.
UM, AND IT ALSO GIVES A CHANCE FOR THE COMMUNITY, THE PUBLIC TO WEIGH IN, UM, AND TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S A, THAT IT'S A CONTEMPORARY GUIDING DOCUMENT THAT CAN BE USED TO, TO MAKE PRIORITIES IN TERMS OF FUNDING, LAND, USE DECISIONS, ET CETERA, THE BOTTOM BOX HERE ON THE POWERPOINT.
I DON'T NEED TO, I DON'T WANNA HAVE TO READ IT ALL TO YOU, BUT THE KEY PURPOSES OF A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN ACTUALLY WAS LOOKING AT Y'ALL'S WEBSITE FOR YOUR CURRENT COMP PLAN.
AND THESE ARE THE BULLET POINTS AND THEY ARE JUST AS TRUE TODAY AS THEY WERE IN 1996, WHEN THAT PROCESS STARTED.
SO, UH, I THINK THE FIRST TWO ARE, OR I GUESS THE FIRST THREE ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT, UH, IN MY OPINION, AND THAT'S PROVIDING A GUIDE FOR A PUBLIC TO SEE THE DECISIONS THAT WILL FORM THE FUTURE OF FRONT ROYAL, PROMOTING THE INTERESTS OF THE TOWN AS A COLLECTIVE WHOLE.
I REALLY LOVE THAT PHRASE BECAUSE THIS IS A TIME TO GET TOGETHER AND TO THINK ABOUT, UM, WHAT, WHAT WE HAVE IN COMMON, UH, WHAT OUR COMMON GOALS ARE AND HOW WE'LL MOVE TO AN IDEAL FUTURE,
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AND THEN COMPARING AND CONTRASTING SHORT-TERM ACTION AGAINST LONGTERM GOALS.THEY SAY THAT A PLAN IS A GREAT WAY TO AFFECT THE FUTURE BY ACTING NOW.
AND THAT'S EXACTLY, THAT'S EXACTLY WHAT IT IS THINKING ABOUT THE FUTURE AND MAKING SURE YOU HAVE THIS GUIDING DOCUMENT.
SO THE SECOND PART OF THIS PROCESS IS UPDATING THE ZONING AND SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE, THE ZONING AND SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE HASN'T BEEN UPDATED IN COMPREHENSIVELY IN 2005, WHICH IS, I WILL TELL YOU YOU'RE AHEAD OF A LOT OF OTHER COMPANIES IN THAT THAT SAID SOME OF THE UPDATES HAVE BEEN, UH, HAVE BEEN PIECEMEAL.
AND, UM, AND THERE ARE BARRIERS TO DEVELOPMENT.
THERE ARE SOME, UH, EXTRANEOUS PROCESSES AND SOME, UH, SOME REDUNDANCIES AND SOME CONTRADICTIONS IN THAT.
AND SO WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT, UM, THAT WE HAVE A DOCUMENT THAT IS THE IMPLEMENTATION PHASE OF THE PLAN, AND THAT'S GOING TO BE THE ZONING AND SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE.
WE DO THIS, WE DO THIS DRONING IN A SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE AFTER WE DO THE COMP PLAN A BECAUSE WE HAVE SO MUCH PUBLIC INPUT IN THE COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING PROCESS, THAT THAT MEANS THAT A WE'RE USING THE ZONING AND SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE TO IMPLEMENT A PLAN THAT THE COMMUNITY HAS.
I'M SORRY, HAVING IT BACK TO YOU GUYS, BUT IMPLEMENT A PLAN THAT THE COMMUNITY HAS BEEN INVOLVED IN.
UM, AND IT ALSO MAKES IT IF YOU WANT TO BE CYNICAL ABOUT IT, IT MAKES IT, UH, LEGALLY DEFENSIBLE, THE MORE, THE MORE, UM, COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT YOU HAVE IN THE COMPREHENSIVE PLANNING PROCESS, THE MORE COMMUNITY VOMITING YOU HAVE IN THAT PLAN, THE STRONGER THE PLAN IS.
AND THE MORE LEGALLY DEFENSIBLE YOU'RE IN SUING ZONING MAP CHANGES ARE.
SO HOW DO THEY FIT TOGETHER? UM, I'VE BASICALLY COVERED A LITTLE BIT OF THIS, BUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN, THE HUB OF THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN IS THE FUTURE LAND USE MAP.
AND THAT IS GOING TO BE THE RESULT OF MANY, MANY DISCUSSIONS, MANY, UM, MANY I'M SURE, MANY TOURS, MANY DISCUSSIONS OF PROS AND CONS, BUT WHERE FUTURE LAND USES SHOULD GO, WHERE SHOULD INDUSTRIAL GO? WHERE, WHAT SHOULD THIS NEIGHBORHOOD LOOK LIKE? SHOULD WE HAVE MORE WALKABLE AREAS OR MORE OR MORE COMMERCIAL AREAS? SO ALL OF THIS GOES TO THE FUTURE LAND USE MAP, THE FUTURE LAND USE MAP THEN INFORMS A CHANGE TO THE OFFICIAL ZONING MAP.
AND THEN THAT CHANGE THAT, AND THEN THAT CORRESPONDS WHAT'S KNOWN IN CATEGORIES.
SO THEY'RE THERE, THEY'RE CONNECTED.
AND THEN BECAUSE OF THIS PROCESS, BECAUSE THERE'S A SENSE OF URGENCY TO GET IT DONE, 18 MONTHS MAY SEEM LIKE A LONG TIME, BUT IT'S ACTUALLY, IT'S A PRETTY AGGRESSIVE SCHEDULE FOR BOTH OF THESE PROJECTS.
WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO IS DOVETAIL THEM.
SO AS SOON AS WE HAVE FINISHED THE FUTURE LAND USE MAP AND THE GOALS, OBJECTIVES, AND STRATEGIES, WHICH ARE REALLY THE, UM, THE CLAWS OF THE PLAN, AS SOON AS TOWN COUNCIL AND PLANNING COMMISSION HAVE BOTH SAID THAT THESE ARE OKAY, WE'LL GO AHEAD AND START THE ZONING ORDINANCE AND SUBDIVISION REWRITE.
SO THERE MAY BE BACK AND FORTH.
THE PLAN, THE DRAFT PLAN WILL BE POSTED.
ALL OF YOU WILL HAVE A CHANCE TO, TO GIVE FEEDBACK, TO CRITIQUE, TO SAY THAT YOU IT'S SOMETHING'S MISSING, OR YOU DON'T LIKE XYZ, THOUGH.
THERE'LL BE SOME BACK AND FORTH THERE.
AND SO IN ORDER FOR THAT TO BE ABLE TO TAKE AS LONG AS WE ALL NEED IT TO, UM, AND NOT HOLD UP THE ZONING UPDATE PROCESS, WE'RE GOING TO START THAT AS SOON AS THE FUTURE LAND USE MAP AND THE GOALS, OBJECTIVES, STRATEGIES, UM, ARE DONE SO THAT IF YOU HAVE ALSO HAVE A SCHEDULE IN HERE.
AND SO IN THE 18 MONTHS, IT'S ABOUT, IT'S ABOUT NINE MONTHS FROM NOW THAT WE'LL START THAT.
SO IN ONE OF THE QUESTIONS WE'VE ALSO GOTTEN ABOUT THE COMP PLAN IS HOW DO WE KNOW, HOW DO WE REPLICATE? WHAT'S ALREADY WORKING WHAT YOU LOVE ABOUT FRONT ROYAL.
UM, AND THEN HOW CAN THE PLATE, IT'S SORT OF A REDUNDANT QUESTION, BUT WE'VE GOTTEN THEM BOTH.
HOW CAN THE PLAN AND THE ZONING ORDINANCE GUIDE US TOWARD A MORE ATTRACTIVE AREAS IN A MORE ATTRACTIVE TOWN? SO AGAIN, A LOT OF THIS HAS TO DO WITH YOUR INVOLVEMENT AND STAKEHOLDER INVOLVEMENT TO SAY, YOU KNOW, THESE ARE THE THINGS WE LOVE ABOUT FRONT ROYAL.
WE LOVE OUR HISTORIC DOWNTOWN.
WE LOVE BEING ABLE TO WALK AROUND WHAT WE DON'T LIKE, FOR EXAMPLE, OR SOME OF THE MORE AUDIENCE THAT WE'VE HEARD, SOME OF THIS ALREADY, SOME OF THE MORE, UM, AUTOMOBILE CENTRIC AREAS OR SOME OF THE COMMERCIAL USES ARE LESS DESIRABLE.
SO WE TAKE THIS INFORMATION, WE IDENTIFY THOSE ELEMENTS.
SO THE, YOUR PLANNING TEAM, WHICH IS MY STAFF, AND ALSO, UH, LEARN, AND CATHY FROM TOWN STAFF, WE, WE TAKE THIS, WE CAN TAKE AN IDEA, A VISION, UM, UH, JUST, UH, AN IMPRESSION OF TOWN, ANYTHING, ANYTHING THAT EVERYBODY GIVES IT.
SO YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE A PLANNING EXPERT TO BE PART OF THE PLANNING PROCESS.
AND IN FACT, THERE'S, THERE'S NO REASON THAT YOU SHOULD BE AT ALL.
IT'S OUR JOB TO INTERPRET THAT AND TO PUT IT INTO GOALS, OBJECTIVES, STRATEGIES THAT AGAIN, ARE THE TEETH OR THE CLAWS OF THE PLAN.
WE'VE HEARD A LOT ABOUT, UM, ABOUT WANTING TO, TO BE SUPPORTIVE OF NEW BUSINESSES AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
UM, AND, AND I JUST WANT TO BE VERY CLEAR THAT WE CAN HAVE A PLAN AND A ZONING ORDINANCE AND A SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE THAT IS BOTH PRO RESIDENT PRO PEOPLE.
AND ALSO PRO-BUSINESS THAT MANY, MANY STUDIES HAVE SHOWN THAT THAT BUSINESSES WANT
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TO LOCATE WHERE THEIR STAFF, WHERE THEIR EMPLOYEES WANT TO LIVE.AND SO LIVABILITY AND BUSINESS ATTRACTION ARE VERY, ARE VERY HAND IN HAND.
UM, AND THE OTHER THING IS THAT IN THE ZONING AND SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE REWRITE, WE NEED TO ELIMINATE SOME BARRIERS TO DEVELOPMENT.
THERE ARE A LOT OF EXTRANEOUS BARRIERS TO DEVELOPMENT AND ZONING ORDINANCE, UM, AND, AND MANY DON'T, IT'S NOT JUST THIS FRONT ROW.
UM, AND SO, SO BY ELIMINATING THOSE, BY SMOOTHING THOSE OUT, WE BECOME MORE, MORE PRO-BUSINESS.
UM, AND THEN ALSO JUST BY ESTABLISHING EXPECTATIONS, FOR EXAMPLE, UM, A SPECIAL USE, JUST AS AN EXAMPLE OF SOMEONE WERE TO APPLY FOR A SPECIAL USE PERMIT INSTEAD OF HAVING ARBITRARY, UH, QUALIFICATIONS THAT HAVE TO BE SATISFIED TO MEET THE SPECIAL USE PERMIT, IF IT'S VERY CLEARLY IN THE PLAN.
AND, UM, THEN THAT TELLS A PROPERTY OWNER, A DEVELOPER, EXACTLY WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN ADVANCE OF THE PROCESS AND ALL OF THAT SMOOTHS OUT THOSE PROCESSES SKIPPED AHEAD.
SO THIS IS AN IMPORTANT ONE, AND THIS IS ONE OF THE REASONS THAT WE'RE ALL SITTING IN THIS ROOM TOGETHER, AND THAT IS TO ESTABLISH THE ROLES AND UNDERSTAND THE ROLES AND EXPECTATIONS OF BOTH TOWN COUNCIL AND PLANNING COMMISSION.
SO IF YOU READ STATE CODES, CHAPTER 15.2 2 2, 2 3, IF ANYONE WANTS SOME LIGHT READING WHEN THEY LEAVE HERE THIS EVENING.
UM, SO THE, THAT CHAPTER PUTS THE, THE ONUS OF THE CREATION OF THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN ONTO THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND THEN THE, THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR ADOPTING THE PLAN ONTO TOWN COUNCIL.
IN REALITY, IT'S VERY, VERY RARE THAT A PLANNING COMMISSION SITS DOWN AND WRITES THE PLAN, ALMOST EVERY LOCALITY.
AND CERTAINLY EVERY LOCALITY WE WORK WITH THE STAFF STAFF AND GENERALLY A CONSULTANT IN THIS CASE, A PLANNING TEAM MADE OF STAFF AND CONSULTANTS CREATE THE PLAN, AND THEN WE'LL COME BEFORE YOU AS BENCHMARKS TO GET FEEDBACK.
SO THAT IT'S AN ORGANIZED PROCESS.
UH, WE MOVE IT ALONG AND WE GET TARGETED FEEDBACK.
SO, UH, WE HAVE ORGANIZED MEETINGS.
WE'RE ABLE TO TAKE ALL OF YOUR COMMENTS AND INCORPORATE THEM.
UM, AND THEN WHAT WE'LL MOVE THE PROCESS FORWARD WITH BOTH BODIES TOGETHER.
SO AGAIN, A LITTLE BIT ABOUT PUBLIC PARTICIPATION, PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IS OFTEN THE MOST DIFFICULT PART OF CREATING A PLAN, BUT IT'S ALSO THE MOST IMPORTANT.
AND I TOUCHED ON THIS BEFORE, BUT A, BECAUSE FOR ONE WE'RE PLANNING FOR THE FUTURE, AND MOST OF US, AREN'T GOING TO BE LIKE, WE'RE PLANNING FOR THE NEXT GENERATION.
WE'RE PLANNING FOR PEOPLE THAT WE MIGHT NOT EVEN KNOW, BUT WE'RE, UM, IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE THINK BEYOND JUST WHAT W HOW WE, UH, UH, SEE THE TOWN AND THEN THINK ABOUT THE PEOPLE THAT WILL BE USING THE TOWN 20, 30, 30 YEARS FROM NOW.
UM, AND SO PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO THAT PROCESS.
WE'LL GET PUBLIC INPUT BY A SURVEY, WE'LL CREATE A WEBSITE, WE'LL HAVE INTERACTIVE MAPS, WE'LL HAVE, UH, OPEN HOUSES, WE'LL HAVE, UM, THE DRAFT DOCUMENTS POSTED ON THE WEBSITE.
UM, AND ALSO WE CAN USE ALL OF YOUR HELP WITH THIS.
SO TO TALK TO YOUR NEIGHBORS, YOUR FAMILY FRIEND, CONSTITUENTS, UM, YOU KNOW, NEIGHBORS, ET CETERA, TO SAY, PLEASE COME BE INVOLVED IN THIS PROCESS.
WE DO WANT TO HEAR YOUR VOICE.
UM, SO THAT'S SOMETHING THAT YOU CAN ALL DO IS ACT AS LIAISONS FOR THE PLAN, THE STEPS TO MAKE THE PLAN.
UM, AGAIN, I WENT JUST IN A NUTSHELL, IT'S VERY, VERY SIMPLE.
UM, AND THEN THE NEXT STEPS YOU HAVE A SCHEDULE WITH DELIVERABLES THAT THAT IS, IT LOOKS LIKE A GANTT CHART THAT'S IN YOUR PACKET.
AND THOSE, THIS CORRESPONDS TO THIS LIST HERE, YOU'VE GOT RED STARS FOR BENCHMARKS AT WHICH TOWN COUNCIL AND PLANNING COMMISSION BOTH NEED TO BE INVOLVED.
UM, AND THAT'S THE LEADERSHIP FORUM THAT YOU'RE IN RIGHT NOW, UM, RE AND THEN SOME THAT ARE OPTIONAL.
SO RED STARS, I BELIEVE ARE YOU NEED TO BE INVOLVED IN BLUE STARS ARE OPTIONAL.
WE'D LOVE FOR YOU TO BE AS INVOLVED AS YOU WANT TO BE THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE PROCESS.
UM, SO FOR REVIEWING AND COMMENT ON AN EXISTING CONDITIONS REPORT, ONE OF OUR NEXT STEPS WILL BE, UM, WE'LL CREATE THE WEBSITE, WE'LL PUT OUT A SURVEY, WE'D LOVE IT.
IF YOU WOULD, UM, HELP DISTRIBUTE THE SURVEY AND FILL OUT THE SURVEY.
AND THEN ALSO, UM, THE NEXT THING THAT WE'LL DO LARGE DELIVERABLE IS CREATE AN EXISTING CONDITIONS REPORT.
AND THAT IS A COMPILATION OF ALL OF THE DATA THAT WE USE TO INFORM THE PLANNING PROCESS.
SO THAT'LL BE A TON OF MAPS THAT WILL BE MAPS OF EXISTING SEWER, WATER, ROADS, INFRASTRUCTURE, HOUSING, ZONING, ALL OF IT.
IF YOU LIKE MAPS, THIS IS A GREAT PART OF THE PROCESS TO GET REALLY INVOLVED IN, AND THEN ALL OF THE CENSUS DATA.
SO WE'LL HAVE DATA ON WORKFORCE, ON HOUSING, ON DEMOGRAPHICS, ON AGE, RACIAL MAKEUP, ALL OF THESE THINGS.
UM, AND SO THAT WILL ALSO BE PASTED ON, EXCUSE ME, PASTED, POSTED ON THE WEBSITE.
AND WE'D LOVE TO HAVE YOUR RESPONSE TO THAT.
IT'S OPTIONAL FACILITATED TOWN MEETINGS.
WHEN WE IN JANUARY GO OUT AND TALK THE PUBLIC AND HAVE MEETINGS TO GET THEIR IDEAS AND GET FEEDBACK.
WE'D LOVE IT IF YOU'D ATTEND THIS, BUT IT'S OPTIONAL, UM, REVIEW AND COMMENT ON THE FUTURE LAND USE MAP THAT THAT'S, WE'RE GOING TO NEED
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BOTH BODIES TO SIGN OFF BEFORE WE PROCEED WITH THAT.WE, UM, IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT, WE'LL COME BACK AND WE'LL, WE'LL WORK WITH YOU.
THAT COULD BE THE FIRST PASS, AND EVERYONE COULD SAY, THIS IS A GREAT FUTURE LAND USE MAP.
I'VE NEVER SEEN THAT HAPPEN BEFORE.
UM, BUT WHAT WE'LL DO IS GENERALLY IF THAT HAPPENS, NO ONE'S PAYING ATTENTION AND THEY'LL GET, THEY'LL GET A YEAR LATER.
UM, BUT SO, UM, WE WILL MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE'S ON BOARD WITH THE FUTURE LAND USE MAP BEFORE MOVING ON.
SO THAT'S A VERY IMPORTANT BENCHMARK PUBLIC OPEN HOUSES, AGAIN, TO REVIEW THE DRAFT PLAN THAT'S OPTIONAL, AND THEN FINAL REVIEW AND ADOPTION OF THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
AGAIN, THE PLANNING COMMISSION NEEDS TO MAKE A RECOMMENDATION AND TOWN COUNCIL NEEDS TO ADAPT THE PLAN FOR IT TO BECOME OBVIOUSLY FOR IT TO BECOME ADOPTED.
AND THEN FOR THE ZONING TO BE CHANGED, UM, TO START IMPLEMENTING IT, THEN AGAIN, REVIEWING THE FINAL ZONING AND SUBDIVISION ORDINANCES AND ADOPTION OF THE ZONING AND SUBDIVISION ORDINANCES.
THAT'S ALSO GOING TO TAKE A RECOMMENDATION FROM PLANNING COMMISSION AND AN ACTION BY TOWN COUNCIL.
WE DID THIS LAST NIGHT FOR FOOD FOR THOUGHT THESE ARE BLANKS.
WE ACTUALLY HAD SOME BULLETS THAT WE WANTED TO, TO GUIDE YOU THROUGH AND THEN THOUGHT, NOPE, WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO THAT.
WE WANT TO JUST, UM, WE WANT TO JUST PUT THESE IN YOUR, IN YOUR HEAD SO THAT YOU THINK ABOUT THEM LATER.
ONE IS WHAT ARE THE PITFALLS OF THIS PROCESS AND HOW DO WE AVOID THEM? I'M NOT EVEN GOING TO PUT ANY IDEAS IN ANYBODY'S HEAD, BUT JUST THINK ABOUT THIS AS YOU'RE MOVING YOUR LAWN OR WALKING YOUR DOG, IT'S PROBABLY ABOUT TIME TO STOP MOVING LAWNS, ACTUALLY.
UM, AND THEN, AND THE IMPORTANCE OF TAKING A BIRD'S EYE VIEW.
UM, IT, I TOLD TOWN COUNCIL LAST NIGHT THAT I OFTEN FEEL LIKE I HAVE, UH, TWO PEOPLE IN ONE BODY AND THAT AS AN, AS A RESIDENT AND NANA AS A PLANNER, RIGHT? SO, UM, WE ALL THINK DIFFERENTLY WHEN WE THINK JUST ABOUT WHAT WE NEED AND WHAT WE WANT.
SO I USE THE EXAMPLE OF, WE ALL WANT TO DRIVE AS FAST AS POSSIBLE WITH NO TRAFFIC ON A ROAD.
AND THEN WE WANT TO PARK EXACTLY IN FRONT OF EVERYWHERE.
BUT OBVIOUSLY WE ALL WANT THAT BECAUSE WE'RE BUSY AND WE WANT EVERYTHING TO BE EASY.
BUT THEN WE THINK OF THAT IN TERMS OF THE BIRD'S EYE VIEW, THE SYSTEMIC VIEW, UM, WE REALIZED PRETTY QUICKLY THAT WE CAN'T ALL HAVE THAT BECAUSE NOT EVERYONE CAN PARK EXACTLY IN FRONT OF THE RESTAURANT WHEN YOU START TO BUILD YOUR WAY OUT OF WHILE YOU GET LARGE, BIG, BIG BOX STORES AND PARKING LOTS.
AND ANYWAY, SO WE'LL GO THAT, JUST, JUST START THINKING IN THOSE TERMS, AS WE REVIEW THE DOCUMENTS AND THINK ABOUT WHAT GOES IN THE PLAN, IT'S JUST THAT OUR JOB IS TO FIT IN ALL OF THESE DISPARATE, DISPARATE DESIRES, AND SOMETIMES CONFLICTING DESIRES AND DIFFERENT SYSTEMS INTO ONE PLAN TO MAKE RECOMMENDATIONS ABOUT HOW TO GET TO OUR FINAL VISION.
AND AGAIN, WE'RE GOING TO DO SOME, SOME VISIONING BRAINSTORMING IN A LITTLE BIT AFTER LAUREN SPEAKS, BUT I JUST WANT TO REITERATE THAT, UM, THIS IS JUST A KICKOFF.
YOU DON'T HAVE TO, ALL OF THE ANSWERS, WE DON'T HAVE TO BE FAR DOWN THE LINE TONIGHT.
THIS IS JUST TO ESTABLISH THE BASELINE SO THE NEXT PORTION OF THIS, WE ARE GOING TO DISCUSS THE VISION AND CORE VALUES.
SO WHERE ANN WAS JUST TALKING ABOUT THE BIRD'S EYE VIEW, UM, THE VISION STATEMENT, SORRY, IS THAT BETTER? UH, THE VISION STATEMENT AND THE CORE VALUES ARE, UM, ESSENTIALLY THE ULTIMATE GOAL FOR THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
SO THE VISION STATEMENT IS WHAT IS THE, WHAT IS THE TOWN OF FRONT ROYAL GOING TO BE IN 20 TO 30 YEARS? AND THE CORE VALUES ARE THE CREATE THE PATHWAYS.
SO THIS IS HOW WE GET THERE BY ADHERING TO THESE VALUES.
AND THE RESULT WILL BE THAT WE HAVE A VIBRANT, HEALTHY, SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITY THAT PEOPLE WANT TO LIVE IN THAT WE HAVE SIX SUCCESSFUL BUSINESSES AND A DIVERSE ECONOMY.
SO HERE WE HAVE JUST AN EXAMPLE, VISION STATEMENT.
AND SO THIS IS JUST TO PROVIDE YOU GUYS, UM, JUST SOME THOUGHTS.
SOME, I GET THE IDEAS FLOWING IN YOUR HEAD.
SO THE TOWN OF FRONT WORLD FROM THE TOWN OF FRONT ROYAL WILL BE A SAFE ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS COMMUNITY THAT PROTECTS ITS NATURAL RESOURCES AND STRIVES TO PRESERVE ITS SMALL TOWN CHARM.
IT WILL SERVE THE NEEDS OF ALL RESIDENTS WHILE PROVIDING A BUSINESS FRIENDLY CULTURE, TO PROMOTE ECONOMIC PROSPERITY AND ENCOURAGE HIGH QUALITY DEVELOPMENT.
AND TO ACHIEVE THIS VISION STATEMENT, WE'VE DEVELOPED SOME CORE VALUES FOR YOU TO CONSIDER ALSO SO SMALL TOWN, CHARACTER, ECONOMIC VITALITY, TOURISM, ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY, HOUSING, AND WORKFORCE HOUSING MOBILITY, AND ACCESSIBILITY, PUBLIC HEALTH, AND SAFETY, RESPONSIVE, AND ACCOUNTABLE GOVERNANCE, HIGH QUALITY DEVELOPMENT, AND RELIABLE UTILITIES AND SERVICES HERE.
WE'LL DIVE INTO EACH OF THESE CORE VALUES A LITTLE BIT MORE.
AND ESPECIALLY AS WE, AS I WRAP UP THIS PRESENTATION, WE WILL GO THROUGH EACH OF THESE
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AND WE CAN START TO JUST TALK ABOUT EACH ONE, BUT, UM, UNDER SMALL TOWN CHARACTER, YOU KNOW, WHAT, WHAT GIVES US THAT CHARACTER FESTIVALS, EVENTS, COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT, PUBLIC ART, UM, REVITALIZATION OF THE DOWNTOWN HISTORIC PRESERVATION.THESE ARE CONCEPTS, UM, TOURISM.
SO TOURISM RELATED ATTRACTIONS, UM, LODGING OPPORTUNITIES WITH ECONOMIC SUSTAINABILITY, WE CAN PROMOTE LOCAL BUSINESS.
HOW DO WE HAVE HIGH QUALITY DEVELOPMENT, UM, DIVERSE, LOCAL SHOPPING AND DINING OPPORTUNITIES, UM, BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, SO THAT YOU, WE NEED TO CONSIDER IS THIS GOING TO CONTINUE TO BE A BEDROOM COMMUNITY, OR IS THIS A PLACE WHERE PEOPLE CAN LIVE, WORK AND PLAY? AND THEN, UM, WHEN WE TALK ABOUT ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY, HAVING CLEAN, SAFE, UH, LOCAL WATERWAYS AND, UM, NATIONAL PARKS, THINGS LIKE THAT.
SO, AND ALSO PROMOTING TRAILS AND OPEN SPACES FOR OUTDOOR RECREATION AND THEN HOUSING SUSTAINABILITY, HAVING A DIVERSE HOUSING STOCK FOR EVERYBODY.
SO THIS INCLUDES WORKFORCE HOUSING, UM, AND HOUSING FOR DIFFERENT AGES, DIFFERENT ABILITIES, UM, AND THEN ALSO PRESERVATION OF THE HISTORIC RESIDENTIAL ARCHITECTURE.
AND THEN FOR MOBILITY AND ACCESSIBILITY, WE HAVE VARIETY OF TRAVEL OPTIONS FOR WALKING, BIKING, TRANSIT.
WE HAVE THE REGIONAL AIRPORT AND THEN WITH HEALTH AND SAFETY, THAT'S A BIG CONCERN WITH THIS TOWN IS HOW DO WE IMPROVE HEALTH AND SAFETY? SO HOW DO WE LOWER CRIME RATES? YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE IMPLEMENT DRUG PREVENTION PROGRAMS, UM, THINKING ABOUT COMMUNITY POLICING, DO WE PROVIDE FAMILY COURT SERVICES? AND HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF OUR CITIZENS HAVE ACCESS TO QUALITY, PHYSICAL AND MENTAL HEALTH CARE AND THEN RESPONSIVE AND ACCOUNTABLE GOVERNANCE SO THAT WE ARE FISCALLY CONSERVATIVE, THAT WE ARE OPEN AND TRANSPARENT, AND THAT THE CITIZENS OF THIS TOWN FEEL THAT THEY CAN REACH OUT TO THEIR LOCAL GOVERNMENT AND FEEL THAT THEIR NEEDS ARE BEING MET.
AND THEN WITH PUBLIC SERVICES, YOU KNOW, DO WE HAVE MODERN UTILITY SYSTEMS? HOW DO WE PROVIDE BROADBAND ACCESS FOR ALL RESIDENTS? HOW DO WE MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE SAFE AND RELIABLE WATER AND SANITARY SEWER SERVICES, AND THEN PROVIDING RELIABLE ENERGY SERVICES THAT AFFECT A STORM WATER MANAGEMENT.
AND THEN PART OF, UM, HOW WE REALIZE THIS VISION IS WE TAKE THESE CORE VALUES.
THESE ARE WOVEN THROUGHOUT THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN, AND THEN THESE IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES, THESE ARE TYPICALLY GOING TO BE, UM, IMPLEMENTED MORE IN THE ZONING AND SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE LEVEL, BUT THESE ARE ENACTING DESIGN STANDARDS SO THAT, UM, WE FOCUS MORE ON THE WAY THE BUILDING LOOKS OR THE USE IS CONSTRUCTED VERSUS THE ACTUAL USE ITSELF.
UM, WE REQUIRE SPECIAL USE PERMITS IN CERTAIN AREAS, SUCH AS ON, UM, MAIN HIGHWAYS OR ROADS.
SO SHENANDOAH AVENUE, ROYAL AVENUE, WINCHESTER ROAD, REMOUNT ROAD.
SO THESE PLACES, UM, NEED TO COME BEFORE PLANNING COMMISSION OR TOWN COUNCIL PRIOR TO BEING APPROVED.
UM, SO WITH THAT, WE CAN EXPAND TO ZONING OVERLAY DISTRICTS.
UM, WE CAN CONSIDER FORM-BASED CODES WHERE APPROPRIATE IN TOWN.
WE CAN REQUIRE SMALL AREA PLANS SO THAT THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND TOWN COUNCIL HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY THINK ABOUT WHAT'S GOING TO BE APPROPRIATE IN CERTAIN AREAS.
AND WHAT OPPORTUNITIES CAN WE, UM, BRING TO FRUITION THERE.
AND THEN, UM, WE CAN ALSO LOOK AT REVISING OUR PARKING STANDARDS AND REQUIREMENTS AND REEVALUATE PARKING EXEMPTIONS AND WHERE THEY ARE APPROPRIATE AND IF THEY ARE STILL APPROPRIATE.
AND SO LAST NIGHT WE HAD A MEETING WITH TOWN COUNCIL AND AT THAT MEETING, WE HAD A, I THOUGHT IT WAS A REALLY GOOD DISCUSSION, UM, ABOUT WHAT WE LIKE ABOUT THE TOWN.
WHAT DO WE NEED TO WORK AT? WHERE DO WE HAVE OPPORTUNITIES? AND I THINK THE GENERAL VISION THAT WE CAPTURED IS THAT WE WANT TO SEE IN THE FUTURE AN ABUNDANCE OF RETAIL OPTIONS.
WE WANT TO HAVE A WALKABLE COMMUNITY.
WE WOULD LIKE TO INCREASE RIVERFRONT ACCESS, PRESERVE, AND ENHANCE THE DOWNTOWN, UM, JUST PROTECT OUR NATURAL RESOURCES.
AND WE REALLY WANT TO FOCUS ON THAT SMALL TOWN, SMALL TOWN CHARM, AND THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE DOWNTOWN, BUT ALSO MAYBE LOOK AT CREATING, YOU KNOW, UH, ANOTHER DOWNTOWN AREA, LIKE A NEW TOWN, OR, UM, REALLY LOOKING AT HOW WE CAN BRING IN HIGH QUALITY AND VERY ATTRACTIVE DEVELOPMENT TO FRONT ROYAL.
BUT WE ALSO NEED TO LOOK AT DIFFERENT LODGING OPTIONS AND PUBLIC TRANSIT OPTIONS.
DO WE NEED TO EXPAND PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION? AND THEN AGAIN, THE SMALL AREA PLANNING
[00:25:01]
AND THEN THE THINGS THAT WE ALSO NEED TO CONSIDER.AND I THINK THIS SHOULD HELP KIND OF SPUR TONIGHT'S CONVERSATION IS DO WE NEED TO NARROW OUR ROADS? WE CALL IT A ROAD, DIET AND PLANNING.
UM, BUT OUR, OUR ROADS, UM, CONSTRUCTION STANDARDS, ARE THEY APPROPRIATE FOR THE COMMUNITY? UM, THE EXPANSION OF THE ENTRANCE CORRIDORS, MINIMIZING TRIP TIME FOR BASIC NECESSITIES.
SO THAT'S, YOU KNOW, IF YOUR KID'S SICK AT NIGHT, DO YOU HAVE TO GO 20 MINUTES TO GET TO A STORE OR IS IT RIGHT THERE? UM, AND THEN THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WITH INDUSTRIAL ZONE AND COMMERCIAL ZONING, WHERE ARE THE BEST PLACES IN TOWN TO HAVE THESE USES AND TO CHANNEL THESE USES, DO WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO CHANNEL INDUSTRIAL USES INTO A FLOODWAY? UM, AND THEN WE ALSO NEED TO THINK ABOUT DESIRABLE VERSUS MAYBE THE UNDESIRABLE USES AND HOW DO WE KIND OF MITIGATE SOME OF THESE UNDESIRABLE USES.
AND THEN AGAIN, WE ALSO WANT TO DEAL WITH TRAFFIC CONCERNS, YOU KNOW, CONGESTION, UM, BIKE AND PEDESTRIAN SAFETY ON SOME OF OUR ROADWAYS AND EXPANSION OF OUR PUBLIC TRANSIT SYSTEM, ANY QUESTIONS? ALL RIGHT.
AND, AND I CAN, NOW WE CAN KIND OF START TO GO THROUGH THE EXERCISES.
YOU HAVE A PRINTOUT OF THE FOUR VALUES AND THE VISION STATEMENT, AND THEN YOU GUYS ALSO HAVE A PRINTOUT OF THE CURRENT COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
THESE ARE, I GUESS, THE FUTURE CONSIDERATIONS CHAPTER.
AND SO WHAT WE CAN DO HERE IS GO THROUGH THESE GOALS AND CONSIDERATIONS AND KIND OF TALK THROUGH THEM.
SORRY, WE'RE DEBATING ON, WHICH WAS THE MORE COMFORTABLE TO GET THE BEST INVEST INPUT FROM YOU GUYS.
SO WE CAN GO, I JUST WANT TO START TO HEAR FROM THE PLANNING COMMISSION ABOUT WHAT YOU THINK REALLY WORKS IN FRONT ROYAL AND WHAT YOU THINK MIGHT NEED SOME WORK IN FRONT ROW AND ALSO MEMBERS OF COUNCIL THAT WERE NOT.
AND THERE WAS SOMETHING THAT I DIDN'T, I DIDN'T THINK IT WAS NOTED.
ONE OF THE THINGS, UH, I WALK A LOT, I RIDE A LOT AND I RUN A LOT AROUND TOWN AND WE'VE GOT A LOT OF BIKE LANES THAT ARE INCOMPLETE LATELY.
JUST GO, AND THEN THEY JUST STOP.
AND YOU'RE LIKE, WHERE DO I GO FROM HERE? I'D LOVE TO SEE IN 25 TO 30 YEARS, IF WE CAN MAKE SURE ALL THOSE BIKE LANES ARE LIKE CONNECTED.
AND THAT ALSO GOES WITH SIDEWALKS.
I THINK WHEN WE TALK ABOUT WALKABILITY, WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? AND I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF PLACES WHERE CURB AND GUTTER EXISTS AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN IT'S GONE AND YOU'RE ON THE STREET WITH CARS GOING PRETTY FAST PAST YOU.
SO THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS I WOULD LIKE TO SEE.
I THINK THE OTHER, THE REST OF THE STUFF THAT THE REST OF COUNCIL CAME UP WITH LOOKED GREAT.
TO ADD, TO, TO JOE'S POINT THEIR HONESTY, HAVING WRITTEN A BICYCLE FOR THE FIRST TIME IN A LONG TIME THROUGH TOWN, JUST A COUPLE OF THIS LAST WEEK, I NOTICED THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE A LOT OF INCONSISTENCIES, EVEN WITH HANDICAP RAMPS, FOR INSTANCE, YOU KNOW, ALONG SOME OF THESE INTERSECTIONS.
SO A LOT OF IT, INFRASTRUCTURE INFRASTRUCTURE GOES HAND IN HAND, YOU KNOW, SIDEWALKS OF COURSE.
AND ONE OF THE WAYS THAT WE CAN KIND OF START TO FIX THAT JUST AS WE'RE THINKING ABOUT IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGIES IS WE NEED TO HAVE STRICTER STANDARDS FOR A CURB AND GUTTER WAIVERS.
AS WE, AS THOSE COME BEFORE COUNCIL AND COME BEFORE STAFF, WE NEED TO PUT THOUGHT INTO WHETHER OR NOT WE SHOULD BE GRANTING THOSE WAIVERS.
AND RIGHT NOW WE DON'T HAVE STANDARDS REALLY TO GO OFF OF.
SO THAT'S KIND OF A, JUST A WAY WE CAN GET THAT MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
UM, I DON'T KNOW IF IT WAS MENTIONED, BUT UNDER THE REVISIT WE COME UP TO TALK ABOUT THESE A LOT, BUT, UM, LONG-TERM STAY MOTELS.
I DON'T, I DON'T SEE IT ON THE LIST AND IT'S SOMETHING I'D LIKE TO SEE ADDRESSED IN THE FUTURE.
I, UH, BECAUSE THAT WAS ENVISIONED A LITTLE BIT.
SO IT'S ON LODGING AND I WAS THINKING ABOUT GETTING MORE LODGING, ENCOURAGING HOTEL BUILDS AND OUR SHORT-TERM RENTAL POLICY.
A LOT OF GUYS, A LOT OF CONSTRUCTION WORKERS, FOR INSTANCE,
[00:30:01]
THESE, THESE CAMPGROUNDS THAT STAY HERE IN THE CAMPGROUND.A LOT OF THESE GUYS, SOME OF THESE GUYS DO YET, IF THEY'LL, THEY'LL COME OUT HERE AND WORK SEASONALLY, BRING A CAMPER, BUT YOU GO OVER SOME OF THESE CAMPGROUNDS.
I CAN, I CAN SEE THAT AS AN OPTION FOR LIKE TERM WORK OR WHATEVER.
I HAVE A COACH AT MY GYM WHO LIVES AT, UM, AT, UM, SKYLINE RANCH RESORT.
AND HE WORKS IN FOR THE GOVERNMENT OR WHATEVER, AND THEN COACHES AT MY GYM.
BUT THE, UM, I WAS JUST THINKING ABOUT THE ISSUES IN TERMS OF REVISIONS, VISITING SOME OF THESE THINGS THAT WE KEEP RECYCLING THE TOPICS ON THAT NOTE.
I'D ALSO SAY BLIGHTED BUILDINGS, LIKE, IS THAT ON THERE? IT'S NOT SPECIFICALLY OUTLINED, BUT I WOULD PUT THAT ON THERE.
I ALWAYS SAY GENERALLY, I THINK I ALREADY SAID TONIGHT'S APPEARANCE RATHER THAN, YEAH.
I JUST DON'T WANT THEM TO GET LOST IN A NICE TALK AND NICE SPEAK.
W W WE NARROWED DOWN TO BULLETS AND WE REALLY HAVE MANY PAGES AND WE HAVE A VERY FAST TYPER BACK HERE WHO IS TYPING EVERYTHING.
MR. JONES, YOU'RE SAYING IT ON THE RECORD.
UM, PARKING ALSO DOESN'T SEEM TO HAVE QUITE AS MUCH EMPHASIS, I THINK IT NEEDS BECAUSE WE SORTED THAT LEAD TO BECOMING A CRUNCH AND 10 OR 20 YEARS FROM NOW.
UH, AND SO THAT, THAT NEEDS TO BE CONTINUED.
IS THAT, DO YOU THINK THAT IT'S JUST IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA? OKAY, CHRIS, I DID SAY THAT THE PARKING, WE NEED A PARKING LOT CONTACT.
WHAT ELSE WHAT'S WORKING, WORKING THAT YOU LOVE ABOUT FRONT ROW? WELL, GETTING READY TO SEE IT HERE NOW, ACTUALLY THAT'S OUR TOURISM FROM, UH, YOU KNOW, FOLIAGE IT'S GOING TO BE COMING UP.
SO I THINK WE ALL CAN AGREE THAT THAT'S, THAT'S A BIG PART OF A PUSH FOR A YEAR.
SO I THINK, UH, EVERY YEAR IT SEEMS LIKE DISCUSSIONS COME UP ABOUT HOW TO CHANNEL THAT TRAFFIC COMING INTO TOWN.
YOU KNOW, YOU MENTIONING, WIDENING THE, DO YOU HAVE CORRIDOR ENTRANCE CORNERS PROBABLY ALLEVIATE SOME OF THAT, BUT YOU'RE LOOKING AT WAYS TO CAPITALIZE ON THAT.
YOU KNOW, UM, ONE QUESTION REGARDING COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, UH, IS YOUR INTENT TO HAVE A CITIZEN COMMITTEE, UH, INVOLVED IN THE PROCESS AS SOME COMMUNITIES DO OR WE HAVE NOT.
UM, WE HAVE NOT TALKED ABOUT A CITIZEN COMMITTEE.
WE HAVE TALKED ABOUT JUST ROBUST ACROSS THE BOARD AND WORKING WITH BOTH, UH, PLANNING COMMISSION AND TOWN COUNCIL.
WELL, TO THAT POINT, WE HAVEN'T, WE HAVEN'T DISCUSSED THIS AS, I DON'T THINK IT WAS IN ANDY'S YET SEPARATELY, SOMEWHERE ELSE, BUT, UM, HAS THERE EVER BEEN ANY THOUGHT ABOUT HAVING A JOINT GROUP OF PEOPLE BETWEEN THE NEXT DAY OF THE COMMISSION AND THE COUNCIL WORKING AS LIAISONS TOGETHER? I MEAN, YEAH, BUT I MEAN, WE'RE DOING IT NOW, BUT I MEAN, I JUST KNOW THAT THERE'S LIKE A COUPLE OF KEY P KEY OR A COUPLE OF KEY CONTACTS OR SOMETHING.
I WOULD JUST MANY PLANNING PROCESSES DO HAVE KIND OF A STEERING COMMITTEE THAT THEY INVOLVE PLANNING COMMISSION MEMBERS, TOWN, COUNCIL MEMBERS, AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC, MAYBE SOME OTHER KEY STAKEHOLDERS.
IS THAT SOMETHING THAT, YEAH, YEAH.
THAT'S CERTAINLY SOMETHING WE CAN PROBABLY WORK WITH THE STEERING COMMITTEE.
I JUST LIKE TO SEE THAT THIS MUCH CITIZEN FOR THIS WEEK, YOU DID IT.
AND I THINK SOMETIMES EXPERIENCED IS DIFFERENT THINGS LIKE THAT IS THAT WHEN THERE IS A BOARD OR WHATEVER, PEOPLE TEND TO STEP BACK AND THINK, FIND THAT GROUPS ALREADY ADDRESSED.
SO THEN THEY DON'T NECESSARILY ALL THIS.
SO WE GET LOTS OF CITIZEN INPUT, DISCOURAGE ANYBODY FROM AGGRAVATING.
I FUNDAMENTALLY AGREE WITH YOU.
AND, AND, UM, BUT THAT'S ANOTHER THING IF YOU DID, EITHER OPTION IS FINE.
IF YOU DID WANT TO FORM A STEERING COMMITTEE, ONE OF THE, UM, ROLES THAT THAT STEERING COMMITTEE COULD PLAY IS TO ACT AS LIAISONS AND TO MAKE SURE THAT, UM, THAT IT IS VERY INCLUSIVE THAT YOU ARE GOING OUT AND TALKING TO PEOPLE, ENCOURAGING PEOPLE TO ATTEND MEETINGS, TO FILL OUT A SURVEY, TO TALK ABOUT YOUR VISION, THEIR VISION.
UM, SO MAYBE YOU WANT A STEERING COMMITTEE SO THAT THERE'S LESS OF A HEAVY LIFT ON COUNCIL AND PLANNING COMMISSION, UM, BUT SORT OF SENDING PIECES OF THAT.
[00:35:01]
BUT, UM, JUST SOMETHING TO CONSIDER.I WANT A SECOND LAUREN'S POINT ABOUT NOT DOING ANYTHING TO CREATE THE APPEARANCE OF TOP-DOWN PROCESS.
THAT'S REALLY, REALLY CRAZY TAKE CARE OF IT.
WE WANT THIS TO BE, WE WANT IT TO BE TOTALLY TRANSPARENT AND INVITING AND IN AN AREA THAT DOESN'T HAVE UNIVERSAL BROADBAND ACCESS.
I DON'T KNOW IF JUST DOING IT THROUGH THE WEBSITE IS GOING TO GET THE JOB DONE.
OH, NO, WE'RE NOT, WE'RE NOT, I THINK WE MAYBE WANT TO HAVE SOME KIND OF PERMANENT PLACE IN A COUPLE OF PLACES AROUND TOWN OR WHERE THERE'S A SUGGESTION BOX THAT ANYBODY COULD, YOU KNOW, WRITE A COMMENT AT ANY TIME, SORTA SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
I MEAN, SOMETHING WHERE WE CAN CATCH PEOPLE WHO MAYBE BY THE GAZEBO, WE'LL BE SENDING OUT SURVEYS.
AND I MEAN, WE CAN EVEN ATTACH THEM TO, YOU KNOW, THEY'LL COME OUT IN THE, IN A MASS MAIL ENVELOPE AND THEY'LL GO IN THE TRASH PEOPLE.
WE GOT TO FIGURE OUT A WAY TO GET PAST THAT.
SO YEAH, LIKE PAPER, THAT'S A GOOD IDEA.
YEAH, NO, THAT'S A SUGGESTION BOX IS A REALLY GOOD IDEA IN MY EXPERIENCE.
IT'S THE, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE TO USE MANY, MANY DIFFERENT METHODS.
IF YOU JUST DO A PAPER SURVEY, YOU'RE GOING TO LOSE ALL OF THE PEOPLE WHO WANT TO DO IT ON THEIR CELL PHONE OR ALL OF THE PEOPLE THAT ARE TOO BUSY TO COME TO A MEETING.
I MEAN, SO YOU HAVE TO HAVE ACROSS THE BOARD, YOU'VE GOT TO HAVE PAPER SURVEYS AND ONLINE SURVEYS.
YOU'VE GOTTA BE ABLE TO MAIL THEM IN OR DROP THEM OFF.
YOU'VE GOTTA BE ABLE TO HAVE A WEBSITE AND HAVE IN-PERSON PUBLIC MEETINGS.
YOU'VE GOT TO MEET A BUNCH OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE, EXACTLY WHERE THEY ARE.
AND, UM, AS I SAID, IT'S ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT PARTS OF A PLANNING PROCESS.
AND YET CERTAINLY ONE OF THE VERY, MOST IMPORTANT YOU WANT TO INCLUDE THE PUBLIC LIBRARY IN YOUR, YOUR OUTREACH AND GET THEM TO HELP YOU SET UP MEETINGS AND EDUCATE PEOPLE.
AND THINK ABOUT LAST NIGHT, BUT POSSIBILITY OF SOME FORM OF A SURVEY CAN BE AT THE VISITOR CENTER SO THAT PEOPLE COME TO, YOU KNOW, AS PEOPLE COME AND VISIT OUR AREA, THAT THEY GIVE US AIR.
WE, YES, IT MAY BE THAT THAT'S A DIFFERENT SURVEY THEN THE, THEN THE RESIDENT STAKEHOLDER SURVEY, JUST BECAUSE, UM, WE WOULD BE ASKING DIFFERENT THINGS.
BUT WHAT I COULD SEE THAT IN IN FACT, WE ALREADY HAD A GREAT CONVERSATION WITH THE, UM, VISITOR CENTER WHO WAS VERY, THEY WERE VERY WILLING TO HELP.
SO YEAH, AND NOT JUST THE LIBRARY, BUT SOME OF THE OTHER BIG PLACES IN THE COMMUNITY WHERE PEOPLE GATHER CHURCHES COME TO MIND, THERE'S SOME BIG CHURCHES THAT HAVE BIG OUTREACHES.
AND THAT WE SAID THAT LAST NIGHT TO CHURCHES, WE TALKED ABOUT THAT, YOU KNOW WHAT I LOVE THAT MINISTERIAL ASSOCIATION THAT YOU WERE REACHING OUT TO THAT WOULD BE MAYBE GET TO REACH OUT TO THAT GROUP.
AND AGAIN, ALL OF YOU, YOUR NETWORKS, YOU, BUT IN THIS ROOM, THERE'S PROBABLY AT LEAST A, YOU KNOW, SECOND OR THIRD, UH, CONNECTION TO EVERYBODY IN THE TOWN.
ALL OF YOUR, IF YOU MOBILIZE YOUR NETWORKS, UM, THEN, THEN IT CAN REALLY BE HELPFUL TO GET AN, OBVIOUSLY THAT'S AN ADDITION TO PUTTING THINGS IN WATER BILLS OR HAVING THE ONLINE SURVEY, HAVING A WEBSITE, USING SOCIAL MEDIA, ALL OF IT.
SOUNDS LIKE A LITTLE BIT, IT'S ACTUALLY A LOT FOR A COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
SO THAT'S 10% OF POPULATION IS ABOUT 1500 PEOPLE.
IT'S A, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO WORK TO GET THERE, BUT IT'S VERY ATTAINABLE, I THINK.
UM, AND, AND ALSO IN YOUR PACKET, THERE'S A PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PLAN.
I MEAN, I'D LOVE TO GET 80, 90% OF THE PEOPLE INVOLVED.
I THINK ABOUT 4%, UM, INVOLVEMENT IS, IS NORMAL, BUT, UH, WE DON'T LIKE TO SETTLE FOR THAT, BUT IF YOU LOOK IN YOUR PACKET, YOU'LL ALSO SEE A PUBLIC PARTICIPATION PLAN.
I THINK IT'S ABOUT THE FOURTH PAGE FROM THE END.
I JUST HAVE ONE QUESTION AND SOMETHING I DID NOT ASK LAST NIGHT, UM, IS THE COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS, ARE THEY GOING TO HAVE ANY KIND OF PROCESS IN THIS AT ALL? CAUSE I, I THINK, I THINK,
[00:40:01]
YOU KNOW, AND I KNOW THIS IS THE TOWN'S COMPREHENSIVE PLAN, BUT I THINK, YOU KNOW, LEAVING THEM OUT OF THIS MIX IS, WELL, THE COUNTY IS ALSO WHEN THEY'RE DOING A COMPREHENSIVE EDIT RIGHT NOW.UM, YEAH, I MEAN, AT SOME POINT OR ARE THEY GOING TO COME IN HERE AND CAUSE I THINK WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO AND TO KIND OF MATCH, YOU KNOW, AT DIFFERENT ASPECTS, THERE ARE ASPECTS THAT REALLY IN, IN THEORY IT WOULD BE GREAT TO WORK WITH THEM TO FIGURE OUT HOW ARE OUR, HOW WE IMPACT DEVELOPMENT THERE AND WHAT THAT RELATIONSHIP NEEDS TO BE.
SO KIND OF GOING OFF OF WHAT LAURIE SAID, I THINK IT WAS A GREAT IDEA ABOUT COLLECTING DATA FROM VISITORS AND FOLKS LIKE THAT.
WHAT'S TO STOP SOMEBODY FROM RESPONDING TO ONE OF THESE THINGS THAT ISN'T A RESIDENT.
IS THERE ANY, I MEAN, WE'RE TRYING TO CAPTURE A RESIDENT.
IS THERE ANY, LIKE THEY'RE GOING TO HAVE TO PUT THEIR NAME AND ADDRESS OR IS THERE SOMETHING THAT SHOWS THAT THEY ARE ACTUALLY A RESIDENT OF THE TOWN OR THE COUNTY? THERE'S NOTHING TO PREVENT GENERALLY, BUT MOSTLY I FIND THAT MOST PEOPLE DON'T, UM, AND, AND WE'RE, WE'RE GOING TO USE, UM, WE'RE GOING TO USE A WEBSITE THAT HAS A SURVEY EMBEDDED IN IT AND YOU CAN, YOU CAN DO ANALYSIS IN THE SAME WAY YOU WOULD WITH SURVEY MONKEY, ET CETERA.
AND WHAT GENERALLY THE, WHENEVER I MAKE A SURVEY, THE FIRST QUESTION IS, UM, WHAT'S YOUR INVOLVEMENT IN THE TOWN? ARE YOU A RESIDENT OR YOUR PROPERTY IN OUR STAKEHOLDER, VISITOR, WHATEVER.
AND THEN YOU, UM, WE CAN FILTER OUR DATA THAT WAY.
AND SO WE CAN HAVE, YOU KNOW, THE UNIVERSE OF ALL SURVEY RESPONDENTS RESPONDED THUS LEAD TO QUESTION FIVE OR NARROW THE UNIVERSE, TWO OF THE RESIDENTS OR PROPERTY OWNERS RESPONDED VISCERALLY TO, DOES THAT MAKE SENSE? LIKE W W WE'LL BE ABLE TO MANIPULATE THE DATA AND EXTRACT THAT WAY.
I'M JUST, YEAH, WE, WE GET A LOT OF INPUT FROM FOLKS THAT LIVE ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF THE COUNTY, OUTSIDE THE COUNTY.
AND SO I'M JUST WONDERING, YOU KNOW, HOW MUCH OF THAT'S GOING TO IMPACT IMPACT ACTUAL COUNTY AND TOWN RESIDENTS FROM WHEN ANYWAY, I'M SURE.
AND I'M SURE WITH THE AVERAGES AND EVERYTHING LIKE THAT, IT WON'T, I WON'T EVEN BE A PROBLEM.
SO, WELL, IT'S ALSO SOMETHING THAT WE'RE HAPPY TO DISCUSS IN HERE FEEDBACK NOW.
CAUSE WE WERE ABOUT TO CREATE THE SURVEY.
WE HAVEN'T CREATED THE SURVEY YET.
UM, IF, IF THE TOWN LEADERSHIP FEELS STRONGLY THAT WE SHOULD PLACE MORE EMPHASIS ON TELLING RESIDENTS ONLY, OR CETERA, I MEAN, WE, SO I GUESS WHERE I'M COMING FROM IS THERE'S FOLKS THAT MOVE AWAY FROM FRONT ROYAL.
THEY HAVE THEIR, YOU KNOW, BORN IN FRONT ROYAL TAG ON THEIR FACEBOOK PAGE, BUT NOW THEY LIVE IN SOME OTHER STATE AND THEY'RE STILL VERY INVOLVED IN THE TOWN.
BUT TO BE HONEST, ARE NOT HERE ON THE GROUND, LIVING IT EVERY DAY.
THEY'RE NO LONGER INVESTED PHYSICALLY IN THE TOWN.
AND SO I JUST WONDER WITH LIKE SOCIAL MEDIA, BECAUSE THEY CAN JUST, YOU KNOW, YEAH, I'M THE TOWN I'VE BEEN FOR.
I WAS FROM FRONT-WHEEL OR I LIVED THERE FOR 40 YEARS OR WHATEVER IT IS.
WHAT'S ANYWAY, THAT'S, I DON'T KNOW, GETTING TOO FAR INTO THE WEEDS ON DATA AND METRICS AND EVERYTHING LIKE THAT, BUT I'M JUST, I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE FOLKS THAT ARE REALLY INVESTED IN FRONT ROYAL ARE HERE FOR THE LONG HAUL ARE STILL HERE FOR THE LONG HAUL.
ARE THE ONES THAT THEIR VOICES ARE HEARD.
SO A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT ONE GENERALLY MOST, MOST COMMUNITIES DO PUT MORE EMPHASIS ON PEOPLE WHO ARE THERE ALL THE TIME.
UM, LIVE THERE, WORK THERE, ET CETERA, UM, TO THE, UM, LET'S SEE, WHERE WAS I GOING TO GO WITH THIS? UH, THERE ARE LOTS OF WAYS, THERE ARE LOTS OF DIFFERENT WAYS TO, TO ADDRESS THIS AND WE COULD, UM, TOTALLY LOST MY TRAIN OF THOUGHT.
I MEAN, I KNOW IT'S A LARGE MAILER, BUT I'M LIKE GOING OLD SCHOOL ON THIS, JUST THINKING ABOUT WHEN I CAMPAIGNED FOR OFFICE, YOU KNOW, I DID A MAILER AND IT WAS A VERY TARGETED MAILER.
I MEAN IT'S 15,278 POSTCARDS THAT COULD GO OUT WITH A SELF-ADDRESSED OR RETURN TO SENDER THING.
AND YOU WOULD BE GUARANTEED THAT EVERY HOUSEHOLD WOULD GET AT LEAST ONE OF THOSE CARDS, LIKE THE CENSUS BUREAU DOES OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
THAT'S ALSO A GOOD, THAT'S A REALLY GOOD IDEA.
AND THE, UM, THE REST OF MY TRAIN OF THOUGHT THAT I LOST WAS JUST IN A SURVEY IF IT'S, ESPECIALLY IF IT'S AN ONLINE SURVEY.
YOUR PERSON THAT IS FROM FORT WARE, BUT LIVES IN SAN DIEGO OR WHEREVER HE SAID, YEAH.
WE CAN FILTER THAT IN TERMS OF LIKE, REPEAT IT.
A LOT OF THE, WHEN WE'RE LOOKING AT VISION STATEMENTS AND, AND TOPICS THAT ARE, THAT ARE COMING UP, UM, IT'S REPETITION THAT REALLY, UM, MAKES THINGS RISE TO THE TOP.
AND THOSE PEOPLE WHO ARE IN SAN DIEGO, MAYBE THEY'LL FILL OUT A SURVEY AND THEN OKAY.
BUT IT'S THE PEOPLE WHO, UM, WHO ARE REPEATEDLY COMING TO THINGS AND THE THEMES THAT RISE TO THE TOP THAT, SO IT KIND
[00:45:01]
OF, IT KIND OF WORKS WITH SELF-HELP.I WONDER A BANK GETTING A SITUATION IN WHICH, UH, AN ACTIVIST GROUP OF 10 OR A HUNDRED PEOPLE EARLY, TRY TO OVERLOAD THE SYSTEM, SAY TO HAVE A POOL HALL AT A CERTAIN PLACE OR SOMETHING THAT WOULD NOT BE DESIRABLE PARTICULARLY, UH, YOU, YOU HAVE WAYS OF KIND OF DEALING WITH THAT.
I MEAN, WE WOULD DEAL WITH EACH SITUATION INDIVIDUALLY AS, AS IT COMES UP.
UM, AGAIN, A NUMBER OF RESIDENTS I'VE, I'VE BEEN INVOLVED IN A PUBLIC PROCESS WHERE A BUNCH OF PEOPLE FROM NEIGHBORING COUNTIES CAME AND THIS WAS CHICKENS, THIS WAS URBAN CHICKENS.
AND, UH, THEY CAME IN AND REALLY BOMBED ALL OF THE MEETINGS.
AND THEN THE METRICS, IF YOU LOOKED AT THEM ONE WAY, I LOOKED AT UC SURVEY, RESPONDENTS AND MEETING PARTICIPANTS ALL WANT URBAN CHICKENS.
WELL, THEY DIDN'T LIVE IN THIS TOWN.
UM, SO, SO YES, W IF ALL OF THOSE PEOPLE EVOLVE IN THIS CASE, IF ALL OF THOSE PEOPLE WANT X, Y USED, AND THEY'RE ALL RESIDENTS OF THE TOWN, UM, I THINK THAT, THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT SHOULD BE LISTENED TO IF THEY'RE TRYING TO WAIT A MEETING SO THAT ONE PARTICULAR STAKEHOLDER CAN LOOK LIKE THEY, UM, HAVE MORE OF A, UM, A STRONGER CASE THEN I THINK THEN WE'RE SMARTER THAN THAT.
AND MAKING INDIVIDUALS DOING MULTIPLE ALONE AFTER HE'S OH, UM, THE SURVEY AND ONLINE, UH, PROBABLY MOST PEOPLE AREN'T GOING TO FILL OUT A PAPER SURVEY MULTIPLE TIMES, THE ONLINE LOOKS AT YOUR IP ADDRESS.
SO YOU COULD USE YOUR, YOUR PHONE AND THEN YOUR WORK COMPUTER AND THEN YOUR SPOUSE'S PHONE OR, OR, OR WHATEVER.
BUT MOST PEOPLE ARE NOT THAT DEDICATED TO, WITH, WITH THAT.
HOW DOES A HUSBAND AND A WIFE FILL OUT TWO SEPARATE IF THEY HAVE ONE COMPANY? UM, THAT'S A GOOD QUESTION.
MOST PEOPLE, I WOULD SAY PROBABLY HAVE, UM, TWO DIFFERENT DEVICES THAT THEY CAN USE.
I GET A LOT OF SURVEYS THAT SAY WE'RE HUSBAND AND WIFE TEAM, AND THESE ARE OUR OPINIONS.
UM, DEPENDS ON YOUR RELATIONSHIP, I GUESS, BUT, UM, YOU COULD ALWAYS DO A PAPER.
SO IF THAT IS THE ISSUE, IF YOU ONLY HAVE ONE DEVICE PER HOUSEHOLD, WE WILL ABSOLUTELY MAKE SURE THAT PUBLIC MEETINGS ARE WE IN AVAILABLE SURVEYS AND GETTING THE SURVEY THAT THEY CAN PRINT IT OUT AND MARYLAND.
AND IF THEY CAN ONLY HAVE ONE COMPUTER, I ALSO COME TO THE PUBLIC HEARINGS.
AND TYPICALLY WHEN THEY DO THAT, YOU WOULD SEPARATE THEM OUT AND GO TO SEPARATE TABLES.
SO WHO YOU COME WITH IS NOT USUALLY WHO YOU'RE GOING TO BE SITTING WITH AND DISCUSSING IDEAS WITH.
SO THAT WAY YOU DON'T KIND OF GET THAT TUNNEL VISION HAPPENING WHERE THE SAME GROUP OF PEOPLE ARE ALL SITTING TOGETHER.
I THINK OF THE PEOPLE WHO CAN'T COME TO MEETINGS WHO WILL DO IT ON MY ONE CATEGORY, YOU MIGHT WANT TO PUT IN A CATEGORY OF RESPONDENTS.
I HAVE MAYBE THERE MIGHT BE SOME PEOPLE WHO WERE THINKING OF MOVING TO FRONT ROW.
THAT'S A GOOD THING OF RETIRING HERE AND WANT TO KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON.
CAUSE THERE'LL BE AT THE WEBSITE, SO THEY'LL SEE IT.
AND OFTEN WE WILL, DO YOU KNOW, WHAT IS YOUR INVESTMENT IN FRONT ROYAL RESIDENTS STAKEHOLDER, OR WE COULD, WE COULD PUT AN OTHER, YEAH.
I GREW UP HERE AND I LIVE IN SAN DIEGO, BUT I STILL LOVE IT.
SO I'M GOING TO FILL OUT THE SURVEY OR I LIVE IN DC.
I'M THINKING ABOUT RETIRING THERE.
OR THEY LIVE IN A, IN A OTHER COUNTY OUTSIDE OF WARREN COUNTY, BUT THEY OWN A BUSINESS IN FRONT ROW.
THAT'S ALSO A CASE AND THEIR VOICES SHOULD BE HEARD.
SO I'M JUST, BUT THEY SHOULD BE HEARD AS A BUSINESS OWNER, RIGHT.
FROM THAT PERSPECTIVE VERSUS A RESIDENT PERSPECTIVE.
I DIDN'T SAY THAT, BUT THAT FIRST QUESTION WAS WHAT, SAY RESIDENT, PROPERTY, OWNER, BUSINESS OWNER, I JUST LOVE SHOPPING HERE OR WHATEVER.
AND THAT GOES BACK TO THE VISITOR CENTER THING.
AND THEN, AND THEN THAT'S RIGHT.
AND LUCKILY WE DON'T HAVE TO DO IT BY PAPER.
WE HAVE COMPUTER PROGRAM SO THAT WE CAN FILTER IN THAT WAY, BUT VERY EASILY.
SO ANOTHER, I THINK ANOTHER KEY POINT IS, IS, UH, OKAY.
ANNUAL ANNUAL EVENTS THAT WE HAVE HERE IN TOWN, YOU KNOW, UM, WHAT WE THINK, YOU KNOW, WE WANT TO PROMOTE IN THAT REGARD AND ALSO TO, UH, IN RELATION TO SURVEYS.
I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY OUR EVENTS ARE A HUGE DRAW FOR OUR RESIDENTS AS WELL.
YOU KNOW, MAYBE THAT WOULD BE A GOOD TIME FOR US TO TRY AND GET FEEDBACK.
YOU KNOW, SOME OF THOSE, SOME OF THESE KEY EVENTS THAT ARE COMING UP OR ANY OF THAT.
YOU KNOW, WHO SET UP OR SOMETHING.
I MEAN, I'M ACTUALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO IT.
I THINK IT'S GOING TO BE COOL.
I MEAN, IF WE ALL CHIP IN, AS YOU KNOW, BOTH THE COMMISSION AND COUNCIL AND, AND IF PEOPLE SEE US ACTUALLY ACTIVELY GOING OUT AND TRY AND GET INPUT, I THINK THAT'S GOING TO BE A WIN-WIN FOR EVERYBODY.
AND, AND, AND I DIDN'T SAY THIS BECAUSE I TRY TO NOT EVER TELL ELECTED OR APPOINTED OFFICIALS WHAT TO DO.
UM, BUT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE OPTIONAL, UH, BENCHMARKS TO BE INVOLVED, PEOPLE WANT TO SEE THEIR ELECTED AND APPOINTED
[00:50:01]
OFFICIALS AT THESE MILLING AROUND AT THESE PUBLIC MEETINGS.THEY, THEY WANT TO KNOW THAT THEY'RE REALLY BEING LISTENED TO IT.
IT'S ONE THING FOR A CONSULTANT TO BE THERE AND STAFF TO BE THERE.
UM, AND WE DO OUR BEST TO GET ALL OF THAT INPUT, BUT IT'S, IT MEANS A LOT IF Y'ALL COME AND TALK TO PEOPLE AND, UM, IT'S KIND OF A WIN-WIN SITUATION.
SORRY ON OUR TOWN FACEBOOK PAGE, WE CAN BE PUTTING IT OUT THERE.
SO WHAT WE DO, IF YOU LOOK AT THE, UH, PUBLIC PARTICIPATION, WHAT WE GENERALLY DO IS KEEP A SPREADSHEET.
I KEEP A SPREADSHEET AND I GET EVERY VISION STATEMENT FROM A WEBSITE, I GUESS, THREES A TIME SOMEONE FILLS OUT A SURVEY.
UM, AND THEN THAT EVENTUALLY GOES, THIS IS OBVIOUSLY, UH, UH, END DESIGN DOCUMENT, BUT NOT A SPREADSHEET, BUT I FILL IT IN AS IT HAPPENED.
AND SO WE REALLY CAN UPDATE, YOU KNOW, WE'RE, WE'RE 50% TO OUR SURVEY BUBBLE.
WE'RE 10% TO OUR VISION STATEMENT GOAL.
Y'ALL PLEASED OFF MORE PEOPLE FOR THE WRITTEN STATEMENT.
AND TO REITERATE, I KNOW I'M REPEATING MYSELF, BUT THIS IS THE BEGINNING OF A PROCESS WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU GUYS ALL THROUGHOUT THE PROCESS.
THERE ARE MANY, MANY DIFFERENT VENUES YOU CAN GET IN TOUCH WITH, UH, SEND COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS TO LAUREN.
SHE'LL MAKE SURE THAT IT GETS TO THE REST OF THE PLANNING TEAM.
YOU'LL PROBABLY SEE ME ABOUT ONCE A MONTH OR ONCE EVERY TWO MONTHS FOR THE NEXT 18 MONTHS.
I HAD A QUESTION ABOUT SOME OF THIS STUFF.
I HAD ANOTHER SPEAKING ENGAGEMENT.
UM, THE QUESTION WAS ABOUT THE BEDROOM COMMUNITY COMMENT ARE, DO WE HAVE ANY STATS ON THAT? LIKE, ARE YOU, YOU JUST SAID SOMETHING MORE AND YOU SAID, CONTINUE TO BE, DO WE WANT IT TO CONTINUE TO BE A BEDROOM COMMUNITY? I'M THINKING TO MYSELF, WHAT ARE THE PERCENTAGES OF BEDROOM COMMUNITY THAT WE ARE CURRENTLY? AND I KNOW THAT WAS A BIG DISCUSSION.
UH, SOME FOLKS ON THAT SIDE OF THE TABLE, WHERE THERE, WHEN WE TALKED ABOUT SOME OF THE PLANNED UNIT DEVELOPMENTS ON THE, UH, OVER, OFF HAPPY CREEK AND THE POSSIBILITY THAT THEY COULD BECOME A BEDROOM COMMUNITY AND IT COULD DRIVE US THAT DIRECTION.
AND DID WE WANT TO GO THAT WAY? UM, SO I'M JUST WONDERING IF THERE'S ANY STATS THAT DEAL WITH THAT.
COULD WE, COULD WE COLLECT THAT DATA IN THIS PROCESS? SO WE KNOW THAT.
SO, SO THE CENSUS DOESN'T NECESSARILY, THE CENSUS OBVIOUSLY IS BOTH WONDERFUL AND LIMITED, RIGHT? AND SO AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY, WE JUST, UH, EVERYBODY KNOWS BECAUSE JUST, UH, REDISTRICTING, UH, PROCESSES THAT THE 2020 DECENNIAL COUNTS BY LOCALITY OR OUT, BUT THE OTHER CENSUS DATA SET IS THE AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY.
AND THAT'S GENERALLY THREE-YEAR AND FIVE-YEAR ESTIMATES ROLLING.
UM, IT'S A SLIGHTLY HIGH Y'ALL NEED TO KNOW HOW THIS WE'RE GOING TO USE.
THIS DATA JUST CAME OUT IN 20, 20 AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY.
IT HAS THINGS LIKE YOUR COMMUTING TIME AND IT HAS A PLACE, A PLACE OF RESIDENCE AND PLACE OF, UM, PLACE OF WORK.
AND SO IT'S NOT NECESSARILY GONNA, BECAUSE OF, UM, ANONYMITY.
IT'S NOT NECESSARILY GOING TO TELL YOU HOW MANY PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, ARE COMMUTING TO WHERE, BUT IT'S GOING TO GIVE YOU A REALLY SOLID IDEA.
LIKE IF YOU HAVE, IF YOUR, IF YOUR TOWN, THE LONGEST IT'S GOING TO TAKE TO DRIVE IS 15 MINUTES END TO END, AND YOU'VE GOT 40% OF YOUR PEOPLE HAVE AN HOUR COMMUTE.
SO THEN THAT'LL ALL COME OUT IN THE EXISTING CONDITIONS ANALYSIS THAT WE'VE ACTUALLY ALREADY STARTED.
HOPEFULLY THAT DATA WASN'T GATHERED WHEN EVERYBODY WAS WORKING FROM HOME AT THE HEIGHT OF COVID, YOU KNOW, THAT'S FUNNY.
UM, WE, I DON'T THINK WE, AS A COUNTRY KNOW THE FULL EXTENT OF HOW COVID HAS AFFECTED.
UM, I THINK DATA COLLECTION WAS WHAT'S FINE BECAUSE YOU COULD STILL FILL OUT THE AMERICAN COMMUNITY SURVEY.
YOU CAN FILL IT OUT ON YOUR CAR, ET CETERA, BUT WE DON'T TOTALLY KNOW HOW COVID HAS AFFECTED COMMUTING PATTERNS.
AND THAT REMAINS TO BE SEEN, BUT ESSENTIALLY THIS WAS THE BEST WE'VE GOT AND TO UNDERSTAND IT AND UNDERSTAND ITS LIMITATIONS AND WHERE WE ARE.
LIKE LAST NIGHT AND STUFF LIKE THAT.
UM, DID YOU SAY THROW OUT THINGS WERE SHAPING OUR FUTURE THINGS?
[00:55:01]
OH, THAT ONE, I WOULD ADD SUSTAINABILITY TO THE VISION TOWARDS THE BACK PART RIGHT HERE.IT'S LIKE THE SECOND OR THIRD OR SECOND PAGE.
AND YOU MAY ASK TO BE CLEAR, DO YOU MEAN ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY? OKAY.
WHAT KIND OF SUSTAINABILITY? ENVIRONMENTAL CLARIFY.
COMMUNITY SERVING RETAIL, UM, BUT ALSO BROADER, I GUESS, REGIONAL SERVING.
UM, I'D LIKE TO SEE HIGHER, YOU KNOW, JUST GENERAL PLANNING PRINCIPLES OF HIGHER DENSITY DOWNTOWN.
AND THEN AS YOU MOVE OUT FROM THERE, IT WOULD BECOME LESS DENSE.
UM, BUT THE, THE, THE CORE WOULD HAVE MOST OF THE MAJOR ATTRACTIONS THE RESTAURANTS PEOPLE ARE COMING TO.
AND THEN AS YOU GET FURTHER OUT, YOU'D HAVE MORE COMMUNITY SERVING RETAIL WITH YOUR DAYCARES AND LAUNDROMATS GAS STATIONS, WHATEVER, UM, AND REALLY FOCUSING ON THE PEDESTRIAN EXPERIENCE DOWNTOWN.
UM, SO I THINK ONE CHALLENGE WE HAVE NOW IS THAT OUR SIDEWALKS ARE WHAT THEY ARE, AND IT'S HARD TO HAVE A LOT OF OUTDOOR SEATING ON MAIN STREET TO, TO NOW TO NARROW RIGHT NOW, UM, OR, YOU KNOW, THERE'S LIGHT POLES ON, IN 'EM OR, UM, ELECTRICAL, THE, AND THERE'S JUST OBSTRUCTIONS, UM, TO WALKING IN AND DINING.
I THINK WE WANT TO BE REALISTIC ABOUT SETTING EVEN OUR OWN EXPECTATIONS FOR UPSCALE, NOT DEFINED MEANS DIFFERENT THINGS TO DIFFERENT PEOPLE, BUT I THINK GIVEN THE RATE OF CONSTANT TURNOVER OF BUSINESSES ON MAIN STREET, I MEAN, I AM WONDERING IF, IF EXPECTATIONS ARE BEING CREATED THAT FRONT ROYAL IS MORE CAPABLE THAN IT ACTUALLY IS OF SUPPORTING UPSCALE BUSINESSES, BECAUSE THE FOLKS WHO COME IN ON WEEKENDS NINE MONTHS OUT A YEAR, ARE THEY ENOUGH? YOU KNOW, THEY CAN PAY WASHINGTON PRICES, BUT ARE THERE ENOUGH OF THEM TO KEEP A BUSINESS OPEN FOR THE REST OF THE YEAR? I DON'T KNOW.
UH, IT IT'S A QUESTION THAT SOMEBODY HOPEFULLY HAS MORE COMPETENCE THAN I HAS ANSWERED, BUT YES, WE WANT OUR BUSINESSES AND OUR DOWNTOWN TO BE, BUT THAT DOESN'T NECESSARILY MEAN WE WANT IT TO BE HIGH PRICED AND EXOTIC AND DC PRICES.
IT DOES FOR REAL, HAVE A SMALL BUSINESS ASSOCIATION THAT WOULD OFFER BUSINESS ADVICE OR MARKET STUDIES.
DO YOU HAVE TWO STARBUCKS, STARBUCKS? SO
CAN WE GET AN H MARK? H H MART WOULD BE GREAT.
[01:00:01]
GO FOR AN H MARK.I DON'T KNOW, ASIAN GROCERY STORE.
I DON'T THINK WE HAVE, I DON'T THINK WE HAVE THE BUG.
I COULD BE WRONG CENTERVILLE TO GO.
I WISH MAYBE TRADER JOE'S TOO, BUT I HONESTLY DON'T PICK THAT WITH SURVIVE.
CAUSE I DON'T THINK THERE ARE THAT MANY PEOPLE WHO HAVE, I MEAN, I THINK A LOT OF THOSE, THOSE, UH, CHAIN BUSINESSES HAVE VERY, VERY SPECIFIC PERFORMANCE BASED ON VERY SPECIFIC MARKET CRITERIA.
AND SO I DON'T THINK THAT THAT'S JUST, WE LOVE THOSE.
I DON'T, IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT THAT CAN'T BE A GOAL.
CAUSE WE'RE TALKING 20, 30 YEARS, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ADDING ROOFTOPS.
WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ADDING DENSITY.
SO MAKE NO SMALL PLANS AS THIS
AND, AND UH, AND WE, WE DIDN'T HAVE THE BASE TO SUPPORT, BUT WAS HERE.
WELL, AND BEFORE THAT THERE WERE INDEPENDENT STORES ON MAIN STREET OIL WASN'T SUPPORTING US BECAUSE SOMEBODY ELSE BOUGHT WELL, YEAH, THEY HAD, THEY HAD, OH, IT WAS ALWAYS EMPTY.
AND THERE REALLY WEREN'T PLACES TO BUY THERE.
THEY WEREN'T REALLY, THAT WAS SOMETHING THAT CAME UP.
I WAS CAMPAIGNING IN A COUPLE OF PEOPLES THAT WE NEED SOMEWHERE WHERE THEY WERE
THERE REALLY ISN'T FOR MANY WHEN YOU, WELL, I MEAN LIKE IN THE TOWN, IN THE TOWN, BUT I MEAN, ON OUR, ON OUR OUTSKIRTS OF TOWN, WE DO HAVE RIVERS AND COMMONS AND YOU'VE GOT TARJAY SO, I MEAN, YOU'VE GOT THAT RIGHT THERE.
SO, I MEAN, I MEAN THAT'S YEAH.
LIKE WINCHESTER CAN GO SPOTS IN WINCHESTER.
YOU CAN'T GET A SUIT AT TARJAY, BUT YOU CAN GET EVERYTHING ELSE.
I MEAN,
IT'S THE CHANGES ARE GOING TO HAVE FIVE TO SEVEN YEARS, ALL THE VERY
JUST THE STARBUCKS, FOR EXAMPLE, UM, WHEN THE MARKET STARBUCKS KNOWS THAT WHEN THE MARKET HITS A CERTAIN, CERTAIN NUMBER OF ROOFTOPS, CERTAIN INCOME, THEY'RE GOING TO FIGURE OUT WHERE TO LOCATE.
IT'S GOING TO BE ON A CORNER SOMEWHERE AND, AND THEY'RE GOING TO, THEY'RE GOING TO COME IN AND THEY'RE GOING TO PUSH AS HARD AS THEY CAN
[01:05:01]
TO HAVE THE EASIEST, MOST AUTO FRIENDLY, UM, SITE PLAN THAT THEY POSSIBLY CAN HAVE.SO, SO A GOOD EXAMPLE OF, OF A STEVEN WAS TALKING ABOUT GETTING AHEAD OF WHEN THESE THINGS HAPPEN.
SO IF WE'VE ALREADY DONE ALL OF THIS THINKING, ALL OF THIS INPUT, ALL OF THE ZONING AND SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE CHANGES SO THAT WE KNOW THAT WE WANT A WALKABLE FRONT ROYAL.
AND SO THAT WHEN, WHEN STARBUCKS COMES, WE'VE ALREADY PUT IN PLACE LANDSCAPING STANDARDS, ACCESS STANDARDS, DRIVE THROUGH STANDARDS, ET CETERA.
SO THAT, SO THAT WHEN THAT COMES, WHEN THE MARKET'S READY FOR THAT, FOR THAT CHAIN BUSINESS OR WHATEVER, WE'RE NOT JUST TALKING ABOUT CHAINS, BUT TO COME, UM, THEN, THEN WE'VE ANTICIPATED IT.
AND IT HAS TO GO IN THE BOX THAT YOU ALL HAVE DECIDED THAT YOU WANT.
EARLIER IN OUR ECONOMIC CATALYST FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.
AND PART OF THAT WAS TALKING ABOUT DEFINITELY GETTING AN INVENTORY OF ALL THE POSSIBLE
IS IT, AND THE OTHERS HERE SOLD OUT.
WHAT ARE THEY WAITING ON? CHICK-FIL-A IF YOU'RE WATCHING THIS COM OKAY.
ARE THERE ANY OTHER MAJOR THEMES THAT WE WANT TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE DISCUSSED FROM THE OUTSET? AND AGAIN, JUST REMEMBER, THIS IS THE BEGINNING OF THE PROCESS.
IT'S GOING TO BE A LONG PROCESS AND YOU CAN GIVE INPUT AND PLEASE DO GIVE INPUT AT ANY TIME ALONG THE WAY.
I THINK WE SHOULDN'T OVERLOOK THE, WE LOVE NATURE AND WE LOVE THE RIVERFRONT, BUT BUSINESSES THAT HAVE A RIVER VIEW LIKE RESTAURANTS, HOTELS, AND A CHARMING, YOU KNOW, RIVERWALK TYPE OF BUSINESS AND RETAIL ENVIRONMENT ARE SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD BE OPEN TO.
WE SHOULD MAKE SURE THAT WE DON'T JUST RESTRICT RIVERFRONT TO NATURE PRESERVES.
I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF COMMERCIAL POSSIBILITY THAT DOESN'T HARM THE ENVIRONMENT THAT DOES, WOULD MAKE FRONT ROYAL, A UNIQUE DESTINATION THAT WE WOULD HAVE, YOU KNOW, A ROTATING RESTAURANT THAT COULD SEE THE WHOLE MOUNTAINS, TOP OF TOWER, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
UM, THAT COULD BE, YOU KNOW, A, A WAY TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THEIR RIVER LOCATION FOR COMMERCIAL EXPLOITATION IN THE GOOD SENSE OF THE WORD.
I DEFINITELY THINK THAT RIVER ACCESS AND RIVER VIEWS IS GOING TO BE A STRONG THEME IN THIS PLAN ALREADY.
I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE I HEARD IT MENTIONED IN LAST NIGHT'S MEETING, UH, BUT UNDER SMALL TOWN CHARM, DOES THAT INCLUDE MAYBE LIMITING NEON LIGHTS ON OUR INSURANCE SINCE I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE IT'S LIKE IN HERE CAPTURE SPECIFICALLY, WE CAN CHANGE THAT I HAD MORE THAN THE MORE NEON LIGHTS WE WANT TO BECOME THE VEGAS OF THE EAST.
AND THE REASON WHY WE CAN'T CITE THEM AS THEY'RE NOT FLASHING, BUT WE CAN CHANGE IT.
I JUST DON'T KNOW HOW THAT MEETS SMALL TOWN, CHARM ARCHITECTURE, ALL THE COMMUNITY, APPEARANCE, ALL THOSE THINGS.
AND THEN WE HAVE LIKE WHEN SOMETHING'S BY RIGHT WINDED AND YOU GUYS DON'T GET TO LOOK AT IT.
ISN'T ARMY LOOKING AT THESE CHANGES, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT CHANGING MATH AND ALSO A VERY STRONG THEME IS THAT THERE THERE'S SOME CONTRADICTIONS BETWEEN, BETWEEN USES IN DIFFERENT AREAS COMING THROUGH LOUD AND CLEAR
[01:10:37]
YEAH.WE LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU THROUGHOUT THIS, THIS PROCESS AND STAY IN TOUCH.