Leesburg Town Council hears safety presentations on emergency preparedness, water system reliability, and traffic study

By Sophia Clifton

At the beginning of the Leesburg Town Council Work Session on June 9, Council members listened to three substantive presentations, each addressing a cornerstone of municipal well-being: emergency preparedness, water system reliability, and traffic safety.

Emergency Management Security Coordinator Amy Cornell‑Titcomb first walked Council through significant updates to the Town’s Emergency Operations Plan.

Virginia State Code mandates that every locality conduct a comprehensive review and revision of its Emergency Operations Plan at least every few years to “make sure it stays current” and then formally adopt those changes. As Cornell‑Titcomb explained, the EOP “is the base level plan that guides emergency management activities across all Town departments. It identifies roles and responsibilities, lines of authority, and organizational relationships, and provides a description on how activities are organized and coordinated.”

One of the headline additions this year is an explicit focus on minority and vulnerable populations, per Virginia Code Title 44. Cornell‑Titcomb emphasized that the updated plan “addresses the needs of minority and vulnerable populations. This includes those with access and functional needs, limited English proficiency, aging seniors, and families with young children.”

To meet these goals, the Town will deploy “different ways and methods of communicating,” enhance its citizen preparedness guides, and build flexibility into response and recovery to “adjust … to meet the needs of those impacted.”

The plan replaces the old Emergency Operations Center structure with a more scalable Emergency Coordination Hub. In Cornell‑Titcomb’s words, “This [ECH] correlates to the Town functions and capabilities. This is a combination of the incident command structure and an incident support model … We still have the command functions at the top … then that coordination with Loudoun County Emergency Operations Center, but we’ve added the function of a business liaison as dictated by the incident.”

Under partial activations (e.g., snowstorms or planned events like Flower & Garden), the primary department’s Department Operations Center (e.g., Public Works for snow) leads operations, supported by ECH management and a policy group that briefs elected officials. Full activations stand up standalone Planning, Situational Awareness, Resources & Logistics, and Finance & Administration sections.

Cornell‑Titcomb walked the Council through an integrated three‑year training and exercise cycle, aligned with FEMA’s Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program. She noted the creation of an after‑action policy. “Following any incident, exercise, or planned event… we have an after‑action and then we put it in the spreadsheet for improvement planning,” she explained.

When questioned on ECH activations in 2024, she confirmed that “our snowstorms … operate in that fashion. … We did Flower and Garden. We had a command center here for both those days.” However, Leesburg has not recently provided a liaison to the county EOC, though Loudoun County has offered one due to its larger staffing resources.

Councilmember Nicholas Krukowski asked about the process for declaring an emergency. Town Manager Kaj Dentler recalled only two declarations in his 11 years— “the blizzard … and COVID”— and noted that any declaration must “convene the Council at some point to certify” according to state statute.

Councilmember Neil Steinberg probed whether the plan relies on federal assistance that may not materialize. Cornell‑Titcomb cautioned that FEMA is shifting more burden to states and locals, noting, “It’s possible [we won’t be able to count on FEMA] … they want to put the onus back on the State and locals to figure out the housing” in a disaster.

The Council confirmed that online and printed citizen preparedness guides (in English and Spanish) outline recommended emergency kits, notifications (Everbridge), and sheltering, and that multiple communication channels (social media, local news, cell phone alerts) are in place for public messaging.

At the close of the presentation, Council agreed to place the updated EOP on the consent agenda for formal adoption at the June 10 meeting.

ollowing Council comments on Cornell‑Titcomb’s presentation, Utilities Director Amy Wyks
evaluated Leesburg’s preparedness in light of the January Richmond water crisis.

On Jan. 6, Richmond lost power at its water treatment plant for barely 1 hour and 20 minutes, yet the downstream effects triggered a five‑day boil‑water advisory for Richmond and its service area. As Wyks summarized, operators could not close valves during flooding, leading to “compromised critical electrical gear” in the building’s basement. Though power returned by 7:05 a.m., “the plant was offline … [and] it took until January 11 in order to have the boil water advisory lifted.”

VDH commissioned Short Elliot Henderson Inc., whose report cited four failures in Richmond’s response: Avoidable single point of failure in their power‑backup design, poor maintenance of generators and switchgear, over‑reliance on manual processes without adequate automation, and insufficient training on power‑outage procedures.

Wyks methodically aligned the consultant’s findings with Leesburg’s own procedures. Regarding training & SOP Reviews, she said, “Our staff … receives training … and then annual training thereafter. We also review standard operating procedures on an annual basis.” When it comes to back‑up power testing, Leesburg maintains a VDH‑approved plan for extended outages, exercises generators, and holds a fuel contract to “always get fuel” for on‑site generators.

A formal, storm‑event staffing plan (enhanced during COVID) ensures round‑the‑clock coverage at both water plants, which operate on 10‑hour rotating shifts. Leesburg grants VDH full access and has recently hosted state inspections on April 25 and May 9, reports pending.

Finally, membership in regional WARN networks, the Metropolitan COG, and a computerized asset management system bolster mutual aid and preventative maintenance.

Wyks concluded by noting that “Similar to what was in the consultant’s report, the Richmond incident was avoidable… Leesburg has redundancy. We have backup systems. We’re training our staff. We have a robust preventative maintenance program… We are in the process of modernizing and upgrading our SCADA.” She also explained how the town is budgeting for capital reinvestment— the “3R program” and a five‑year rate plan— to ensure long‑term resilience.

Mayor Kelly Burk asked whether flooding in Leesburg’s basements could compromise electrical gear. Wyks responded that “our plant is constructed differently … when the flooding started into the basement, that’s where all the critical was [in Richmond],” and Leesburg’s layout substantially reduces that risk.

Under new state law effective January 1, 2026, waterworks must report equipment failures within two hours. Wyks explained this requirement “was … to make certain [VDH is] aware of a boil water advisory or a complete system failure going down,” so state officials can mobilize support more rapidly.

No Council action was requested; the discussion served as an informational briefing ahead of routine regulatory filings.

After Wyks’ presentation, Transportation Engineer Niraja Chandrapu reviewed the results of the Downtown “after” speed study, gauging whether the 20-mph limit is delivering the intended safety benefits.

In February 2023, Leesburg reduced the core downtown speed limit from 25 mph to 20 mph. Staff then installed optical speed bars and roadway legends at key entry points (e.g., West Market & Loudoun Streets) that “give the illusion that vehicles are speeding, encouraging drivers to slow down.”

Following Council’s vote to lower the speed limit and the installation of new signage, staff partnered with a consultant to compare operating speeds (85th percentile & average), crash data (total, injury-related, pedestrian, and speed-related) and traffic volumes (annual average daily traffic). Data was gathered at seven core downtown locations and six “expanded” entry points at gateways such as North King, West Market, and Loudoun Street, with “before” periods from November 2018 to July 2021, including COVID impacts, and “after” snapshots in February 2025.

The collision analysis was as follows: Pre‑2023 (Nov 2018–Jul 2021) averaged 19 crashes per year, including 6 injury‑related incidents. Post‑limit (2023–2025) averaged 26 crashes per year, but with 5 injury‑related collisions—a net reduction of one injury crash. Pedestrian crashes remained flat, and speed‑related crashes dropped from two over three years to just one.

“The historic data included the COVID-impacted years … injury-related crashes were five crashes per year, if you take the average. There is a drop in the injury-related crashes,” Chandrapu explained.

She highlighted that expanded corridors saw the greatest speed drops—“on Market Street … a drop of 10 mph on the 85th percentile speed and 9 mph in the average speed”— though traffic volumes have rebounded 20–25 percent as Federal employees return to in‑person work.

Councilmembers noted ongoing resident complaints about speeding, particularly on West Market Street. Chandrapu confirmed that police continue targeted enforcement, such as “ticketing … when somebody is over 10 mph,” especially in problem corridors, and that complaints on West Market have declined somewhat, even if core downtown speeds remain largely unchanged.

Councilmember Steinberg asked why planners use the 85th percentile speed as a benchmark. Chandrapu explained it balances realistic travel behavior with enforceable limits, preventing ticketing of all drivers.

While overall crashes rose slightly (driven by traffic rebound), injury crashes edged down, and expanded corridors saw meaningful speed reductions. Staff and the Residential Traffic Commission therefore “recommend to maintain this existing 20 miles per hour speed limit” in downtown Leesburg. No further Council action is required unless members wish to revert to 25 mph, which would trigger a public hearing.