Government: Town of Front Royal, Virginia
Body: Town Council
Date: June 22, 2026, 7:00 PM
Location: Warren County Government Center
Type: Regular Meeting
Timestamp: 00:20:13
Duration: 1:31
During public comment at the Town of Front Royal’s June 22, 2026, Town Council meeting, I spoke about public records transparency and the Town’s FOIA request process. This comment was separate from the public hearings that evening and focused on how the Town could make its public information system more useful to residents.
I had seen an item in the agenda packet related to helping new staff manage the Town’s FOIA process, and I appreciated that effort. My suggestion was that the system should also become more public-facing, so residents can see what records have already been requested and released.
I compared this to Warren County’s public records portal, which had become more transparent earlier in 2026. With that system, residents can browse prior requests, see what others have asked for, and sometimes find answers without submitting a duplicate request. That saves time for the public and reduces repeated work for staff.
I also mentioned recent requests I had made to understand what was already happening inside the Town’s system. My point was not just about my own requests, but about the broader public benefit of making commonly requested information easier to find.
I understand that tools like NextRequest and ArchiveSocial can be expensive depending on population, features, and records volume. Even so, I believe the Town should look for a practical way to make more of its public records activity visible, searchable, and accessible.
Public records belong to the public. A more transparent request system would help residents, staff, reporters, researchers, and local government simultaneously.
Transcript (auto-generated)
Mayor Lori Cockrell: I bet you are. I bet you are.
Lewis Moten: That’s enough for everything, but the papers are gone. My name is Lewis Moten, 1132…
Mayor Lori Cockrell: Hold on one second, please. We have to be able to hear the speaker and they do have a microphone, so… Hold on one second.
I’m sorry, Lewis. Ok, we’re going to start again. I’m going to I’m going to We’re going to give our best. Here we go.
Lewis Moten: Ready?
Hello, my name is Lewis Moten from 1132 Kesler Road. I am a resident of Front Royal Virginia.
I’d like to talk about the FOIA and transparency. I saw in the agenda packet. I like that you’re helping out new staff. I would like to recommend that your system become more public.
I don’t know if you noticed this, but the county has made their system transparent back in February. So, I can now browse everybody’s requests and find information instead of making repeated requests for things people already returned.
You may have noticed the recent requests I made just finding out what’s been going on in the system. So, I know NextRequest and ArchiveSocial are priced based on population and feature set, but I would like something to actually bring some of this available to the public so that we can all see what everybody’s been requesting that we all have a right to.
So, thank you very much.
Mayor Lori Cockrell: Thank you.
