Day laborer dispute attracts more voices

A controversial proposal to open a day labor hiring site in Herndon, on property owned in part by Loudoun County, gained notoriety this week as a gubernatorial candidate and a syndicated radio talk show host each joined local opposition to the project.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Jerry Kilgore said Aug. 8 that he opposes using tax dollars to pay for day laborer centers in Northern Virginia if they are used to benefit illegal immigrants.

Day laborers who daily scramble for jobs at make-shift hiring sites in Herndon parking lots became the center of the controversy after a non-profit organization proposed the establishment of a formal hiring site. Fairfax County officials are considering granting as much as $400,000 for day laborer centers at Herndon and two other locations.

The proposed facility in Herndon would be located on Rock Hill Rd., off the Herndon Parkway, on a site currently used by the Herndon Police station. The property, which straddles the Herndon-Loudoun border, will become available later this summer when the police move to new facilities. The site would operate seven days a week from 6 a.m. until 1 p.m.. If the site is approved, the Town Council has indicated it would also pass an ordinance banning curbside job solicitation elsewhere in Herndon.

The issue has been the focus of several public meetings, including an Aug. 1 public hearing. Herndon has received two petitions, from residents of Herndon and Sterling, opposing the site, according to town zoning administrator Elizabeth Gilleran.

The Herndon Planning Commission voted last week to not recommend approval of the application. The 4-3 vote came at 2:30 a.m., following nearly seven hours of public comment and debate. The Town Council, which is not bound by the Planning Commission vote, is scheduled to make a final decision on the issue Aug. 16.

The formal day labor hiring site was proposed by Project Hope and Harmony, a group of area non-profit organizations, business representatives, day laborers and others. Representatives of the organization have said they want the site to provide job placement, job training and humanitarian services for day laborers who now spend their days searching for work.

Project Hope and Harmony has applied to Fairfax County for a $175,000 grant to help open the center.

Herndon officials have reportedly been bombarded with phone calls, e-mails and letters from across the country, most voicing opposition to the proposed day labor center. The Herndon Town Hall reportedly received hundreds of phone calls after the host of a syndicated radio talk show asked listeners to complain about the proposal.

Town Manager Steve Owen said phone lines in the Herndon municipal building were unplugged because of the flood of calls.

During an Aug. 8 conference call with reporters, Kilgore said centers like the one being considered in Herndon will "attract illegal immigrants and encourage further evasion of federal and state laws." Kilgore said that if it can be guaranteed that illegal immigrants will not be provided taxpayer supported services at the day labor centers he would support the proposals.

Some Loudoun County officials have stated their opposition to the day laborer center. The main entrance to the site and portions of the building and parking lot are located on the Loudoun side of the jurisdictional border and would require rezoning before the day laborer center could be opened, according to Loudoun County Zoning Administrator Melinda Artman. In an unofficial opinion forwarded to Owen by County Administrator Kirby Bowers Aug. 3, Artman wrote that Loudoun County officials would probably have to approve a special exception permit before the project could move forward.

In an Aug. 4 e-mail to Herndon Planning Commission Chairman Carl Sivertsen, Loudoun County Supervisor Steve Snow (R-Dulles) said several conditions must be met before he could support the Herndon proposal. Snow wrote that to mitigate potential impacts on adjacent neighborhoods the proposed center will need increased police presence, and public transportation must be available to workers. Snow said the proposed site requires additional screening and buffering, and said a study should be done to evaluate if the proposal will accomplish the goals set forth by the Herndon Planning Commission, Town Council and Project Hope and Harmony. Snow suggested that any approved permits be revoked after six months or less if performance standards are not met.

Snow said he felt the application was moving too quickly through the approval process.

“As you know, Loudoun County has made it clear that there are potential zoning issues with this site and the portion of the parcel that resides in Loudoun County,” Snow wrote. “I am very disappointed that the applicant is not interested in working with the citizens, planning or zoning staff and elected officials in Loudoun County to resolve these issues.”

Snow asked that Herndon officials delay taking any action on the application for six months in order to evaluate the impact on adjacent neighborhoods, resolve outstanding zoning ordinance issues and complete a traffic study for the site.

According to Loudoun County Supervisor Eugene Delgaudio (R-Sterling) the Herndon controversy is a small part of a larger issue. In a letter he sent to Herndon officials last month, Delgaudio wrote that “the problem of day labor in your community is one without borders.” Delgaudio asked Herndon officials to deny the application or make it contingent on the requirement that all laborers using the site show identification verifying their legal status.

In an Aug. 9 interview, Delgaudio said one recent study indicated that as many as 85 percent of Herndon's day laborers may be illegal aliens.

“These are people who can not get jobs at regular job sites because of their immigration status,” Delgaudio said. “These people should be rounded up, arrested, prosecuted and deported. Massive disobedience of the law can never be allowed.”

“This issue backs right up to my district and people in Sterling Park are unanimous in their support of my position,” Delgaudio said.

Delgaudio said he and other Loudoun officials will fight the day laborer center, regardless of the outcome of the Herndon Town Council vote next week.

“We're now hunkered down at the edge of Loudoun County, saying 'you didn't check with us, and whatever you do from here on out doesn't conform with our zoning,'” Delgaudio said.

I think this bears repeating. In an Aug. 9 interview, Delgaudio said one recent study indicated that as many as 85 percent of Herndon's day laborers may be illegal aliens.

I've met Delgaudio. Too bad he isn't running for Gov.

Thanks for the heads up CJ!

It's only a matter of time before we see these illegals starting to riot. There are literally hundreds that mull around that 7-11 in Herndon. I won't stop they there anymore for any reason.

3 posted on 08/13/2005 6:20:49 AM PDT by appalachian_dweller ( Islam = Evil. Don't believe me. Read the koran for yourself.)

Delgaudio's my supervisor. He needs to run for Delegate in 2007.

This is one of the few times I agree with the editors at the Loudoun Times-Smear.

Doh! Leesburg Today, not the Times-Mirror, ran a similar editorial; I read too quickly and thought this was the same one.

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