Developers were there to talk about a redevelopment project in its earliest stages (so much for dictionary definitions).
Town and county economic development leaders also were there.
But Leesburg council members were absent.
“Charettes only work when you bring all the decision-makers to the table. The key decision-makers were pretty much left out of this charette, ” Mayor Kristen C. Umstattd said.
The sense of feeling left out did not just apply to council members. In a flier that was given to town officials and local newspapers, the invitation stated that participation in the charette was “limited to invited public officials and guests. Members of the general public are welcome to observe.” During the charette, a Leesburg Today reporter was told the session was a “private meeting,” and was asked to leave. She refused.
Any redevelopment of the property will have to go through Leesburg’s planning commission and town council — and, apparently, another “charette.”