Day Labor Site Tensions Consume Herndon Race

From left, Connie H. Hutchinson, Steven D. Mitchell, Jorge Rochac and Carol A. Bruce appear at a candidate debate last week. An anonymous telephone poll and postcards, both on immigration, have sprung up as the election nears. (By Katherine Frey -- The Washington Post)

"This is a battle for the soul of Herndon," said Reece, a retired Marine lieutenant colonel and three-term council member, calling the election a choice between "fear, pessimism and division" and "hope, unity and resolve."

"There are those who would build walls in our community to keep our cultures apart," said Jorge Rochac, a first-time council candidate who has worked at the labor center and as a Spanish-language instructor for Herndon police. If elected, he would be the town's first Hispanic council member.

Several challengers evoked nostalgic imagery from the town's past. "Herndon is very special to me," said Connie H. Hutchinson, a former council member and manager of the Herndon Dulles Visitors Center, who said she wants to preserve the "hometown atmosphere" she believes is at risk. She proposes moving the center to an industrial park and establishing a "virtual labor-matching system" in which workers would come only once to register and then would be contacted when an opportunity emerges that fits their skills.

O'Reilly's opponent, health club operator Steve DeBenedittis, and council candidate William B. "Bill" Tirrell, a member of the Town Planning Commission, also want the center moved and government funding cut off.

David A. Kirby, a retired federal government IT officer, said the labor center should deal only with documented workers. According to his Web site, he also wants to work with the General Assembly "to give our local law enforcement the authority to check legal status of those suspected of committing a crime."

Charlie D. Waddell, president of the Herndon Community Association Coalition, said he wants to forge a "consensus" among opposing factions but did not elaborate.

As for the center, established to eliminate the chaotic ad hoc hiring site that had sprung up in a 7-Eleven parking lot, daily operations have moved ahead without recent incident. Bill Threlkeld of Project Hope and Harmony, which operates the center for Reston Interfaith Inc., a nonprofit group that has received slightly more than $200,000 from Fairfax for the project, said that with the milder spring weather, about half of the 100 or so workers who come out in the morning find employment. Herndon police report no serious complaints from the nearby residential neighborhood, save for the occasional call about workers cutting across lawns.

"Just a few here and there," said Sgt. Darcy Burns, the department's spokeswoman.

The election has played out against a backdrop of incidents that some candidates say confirm the presence of outside money and influence. The automated push poll asked questions in a way that would elicit negative answers about the town's policies.

"The questions were like, 'Do you think it is right to pay your tax dollars to support illegal immigration?' and 'Do you think there should be a change in leadership?' " said Leila McDowell, a member of HEART (Herndon Embraces All In Respect and Tolerance), a group that supports the council's decision to open the center.

Some politically active residents say council member Ann V. Null, who cast one of the two votes against the center, has been a key behind-the-scenes figure in assembling the group of challengers. "In my estimation, she has been a thorn in the side of the council and progress in this town," said former council member John DeNoyer, a HEART member. DeNoyer and Bruce said Null, who is not running for reelection, has offered to make money available to those opposed to the labor center. Candidates in towns with less than 25,000 people are not required to disclose campaign contributions.

"I'm flattered," said Null, who denied having an organizing role. Null, the object of Bruce's "Shame on you" remark, said Bruce once threw a tin of Altoids at her during a council work session (Bruce says it never happened) and added that she was "broke" and had invested "not a dime in the race."

Other developments in the campaigns have just been flat out inexplicable. Candidates and residents have received a series of anonymous, idiosyncratic postcards. One, addressed to "Pizza Lover," uses the famous photograph of 1988 Democratic presidential candidate Michael S. Dukakis riding a tank. It says: "Angry candidates look downright foolish pretending to be 'Guardians of the Gate.' Choose your Herndon Town Council candidates wisely."

"I have no idea what it means," O'Reilly said.