As a resident of Front Royal, I’ve often had ideas of how to improve its appeal while enjoying what it has to offer, as well as comparing it to other towns.

Parks

• Rockland park – add asphalt walkway between parking lot and main path behind playgrounds
• Add at least one J-1772 electric vehicle charging station to each park
• Miller Park – add a second bridge over the water at the other end of the park
• Eastham Park – add a dock/pier along part of the river with benches, a few covered roofs, and areas in fence to hold fishing poles.
• Rockland park – improve area down by river to have a bench, trash can, flat area, light, and an area to cut and grill fish.
• Add fish / bird / duck / squirrel food vending machines

Attractions

• Love lock fence, metal tree, or sculpture for attaching locks
• Yearly time capsule events created on a road called “Memory Lane”
• Shoe Tree
• Labyrinth walking
• Bike Path
• Path around a lake or pond

Stores

• Board Games
• Comic Shop
• Malt Shop
• Used Lego

Technology

Although we are a small mountain town, the urban sprawl from DC and Fairfax are getting closer every year. With more people moving into the area, the technological offerings of Front Royal could help attract more people to living in our community and help retain existing residents.

Drones & Model Aircraft

Drones are an attraction for many types of individuals looking for the freedom of flight, thrill from racing, or simply a technical curiosity. Many people who get a drone quickly find out that they are unable to make much use of it, or are unknowingly flying them illegally and potentially irritating neighbors.

Providing a drone-friendly area within, or near town will make the town more appealing to technically minded individuals.

Any consideration with introducing drone-friendly activities and destinations should consult with a wide range of individuals including local airport authorities, wedding photographers, past competition participants, as well as model airplane hobbyists.

• Large indoor drone race course for VR flight
• Outdoor drone race course at a park
  • Handicap accessible
  • Night flight permitted
  • Outdoor electrical outlets at various places for lighting portable obstacles
• Multiple “H” pads for training to take off and land with drones and model helicopters
  • Pads may be at different heights
  • Pads may be different colors
  • Pads may be different distances anywhere from 10 feet to 1000 feet away.
• Take off & landing strip for model airplanes
• Notices
  • Agreement with local airport on best location for flying drones away from most flight plans of local aircraft
  • Map of where drone flight is allowed
  • Requirement of Part 107 license for commercial flying
  • Current local flight restrictions/ordinances currently imposed
  • Number to call local airport if notification is required for specific flight plans out of the park
  • “No Drone Zone” signs when leaving the drone-friendly area
• Restrictions
  • Not near any livestock
  • Not within restricted airspace
  • Not near protected wildlife area
  • Not near or overlapping any common area where pedestrians may be walking on a path through the park, other than to retrieve a drone or maintain the course.

Maker Space / Hackerspace

People in the community who like to make things may enjoy access to use machines that are on the cutting edge of technology. However, they are too costly to purchase one for their own personal use – let alone an entire collection of machines.

I propose setting up a makerspace where people in the community may have access. We can also have mandatory safety classes before some machines may be used. Workshop sessions can be used to teach residents how to make a specific project – anywhere from building a birdhouse to creating a computer with microchips.

Regarding machines that take a long time to complete, such as a 3D printer, way may end up charging by the hour to use these machines.

1. Sewing
   1. Embroidery Machine
   2. Sewing machine
   3. Loom
2. Tech
   1. Laser Cutter
   2. CNC Milling Machine
   3. 3D Printers
   4. 3D Scanners
   5. 3D body scanner
   6. Egg printer / EggBot
3. Molds
   1. Pressure Pot for making silicone molds
   2. Resin epoxy tools
4. Engineering & Robotics
   1. Soldering Station
      1. Hot Air
      2. Soldering Iron
   2. Variable power supply
   3. Signal generator
   4. Oscilloscope
   5. Circuit board etching
   6. Fabricating circuit boards
   7. Programming computers
5. Wood / Metal shop
   1. Table saw
   2. Drill Press
   3. Milling Machine
   4. Lathe
   5. Buffing
   6. Planer
   7. Bandsaw
   8. Grinding
   9. Paint mixer
   10. TIG welder
6. Paint shop
   1. Large room with proper venation to paint a car
   2. Ventilated painting booths