Mayor offers nuisance property idea

Joe Bowles has been an absolute dissappointment. I hope someone, who is truly interested in taking on the powers that be will take on Joe. We need real leadership and Joe is only giving us political theater. I live in his district and will no longer support him in any reelection bid. Joe needs to go

Emery,

Joe is term limited out...but he has two elections with two of the strongest victories the city commission has seen in years. IF you are in tune with your district, AND keep up with things like you should, you should know that.

He is calling for the resignations of Sias and Davis because CANDIDATES are not supposed to serve on such boards.

Political theater? No. Joe is more responsive than MOST elected officials, and if you were better informed you would know that.

yes and we have austin rhodes.. who lives in evans.. lecturing us on who we should vote for in Richmond County. Thank you so much.. But Joe has been a dissapointment, but as far as RC politics go, thats not saying much...We know where your bread is buttered, Austin... no one takes you seriously in this town anyway.. well heck.. you have your third rate talk show and you just like to stir the pot.. but you always side with the establishment every time... hey when are you planning on doing your David Frye investigation? I guess those big dinner parties are just too hard too turn down.

Emerydan, you make some very harsh and insulting statements about Joe Bowles and Austin Rhodes, but you offer no proof. Joe has won two elections with VERY strong support from his constituents and Austin has the top rated show on Augusta radio and is in touch with the movers and shakers in this area....and has been for a long time.
While it's obvious you disapprove of both of these men, your offensive perspective seems to be based on opinion, not their performance.

copenhaver really cut lori davis' platform down to size with this move. seems pretty sensible; hope davis has the good sense to support it, then move on to other issues outside of harrisburg for her campaign.

KEEP YOU EYE ON THE BALL HERE!!!

Emerydan, don't let them drag you eyes off the intended focus here. It is not Joe's 'toe the line' attitude in protecting the slumlords, it is Deke's campaign consultants doing their job.

Here is the Deke 'The Meek' offering more election year fodder for those who don't know any better. His campaign consultants are in high gear now.

EVERYBODY LOOK AT ME! I am trying to take the campaign issue my opposition has away from her so I can show how much I REALLY care about Harrisburg and give you no reason to vote for her.

EVERYBODY LOOK! I am DOING something as mayor, in the final three months of an election year after six years of...doing less than something.

Complete rhetoric.

The fact is, I can decode the consultant talk. Allow me to help you all understand what the mayor is saying when he says stuff. Enjoy.

When Deke says, "This has never been a dead issue for me or the commission..." he means,..... 'This was never supposed to get out of committee but now that Lori is in the race I need to point out that the commission INTENDS to take this up one day. It is not dead, just in a coma."

When Deke says, "It's just been a question of finding a stronger ordinance that's defensible under current Georgia law, to keep the city from wasting taxpayer dollars on lawsuits." it means,..... 'It's just been a question of finding one that is weak enough to give the landlord's enough wiggle room to get out of any type of accountability while LOOKING like I am doing something about the issue my main opponent in the mayor’s race has.'

When Deke says, "(H)e and the commissioners agreed during their annual retreat to keep the issue alive and beef up the city's codes enforcement department if necessary.".......it means, Deke and the other politicians have decided to close ranks to help keep him in office while giving the appearance of DOING something about the actual needs of Harrisburg to defuse Lori's campaign.

EVERYONE LOOK AT ME, 'I can REALLY work with the commission!'

You see, the problems is we are not dealing with "derelict property" here, we are dealing with "derelict property OWNERS." Slumlords, nothing more, nothing lower.

Now, I see this as another puff campaign piece, which by design is supposed to make The Boy King Deke 'The Meke' Copenhaver look VERY (said in a deep Dick Cheney sort of serious voice so the big shots know you are serious) 'Very active and in tune with his subjects needs.'

If he is so serious, and the commission is so 'active' and dedicated to seeing this problem sorted, why doesn’t he pass it at the next meeting?

Just so much window dressing,

Brad

I wish we had more Commissioners like Joe! While I am a huge fan of Lori Davis and the Harrisburg group trying to clean up the neighborhood, the reality is the ordinance has to survive in the courts. Given the fiasco of XMart, the Commission is understandably cautious. I recommend moving forward with Deke's proposal and see if it works. make Lori Davis head of the Board. No landlords or non-Augusta residents should be allowed to serve with her.

What a hard working mayor and commission...now all we need is a downtown stadium.

deke has brought a measure of compromise and stability to the area. lori is a one-trick pony who has just learned a valuable lesson: the incumbent can always snatch away a single talking point.

Uh oh, Deke has to work. After years of being mayor, somone is pressuring him to do more than cut ribbons. But then again, I agree with Brad. Is he truly doing something or is he putting on a show to appear doing something? The position of Augusta mayor has zero day-to-day responsibility, so why has it taken so long to discover Savannah and its policy? Makes you wonder.

Emery, I agree with you about Austin, but keep in mind that he doesn't do investigations. He is a "talk" show host. His job is to talk - nothing more, nothing less. Actually, he does do lots of reading of newspapers over the air too, but nope no investigating. He is very similar to Deke.

Austin,

I noticed that no one called for Steve Kendricks to resign from the DDA (and still haven't)

The fact is, Lori was the REASON the board was created so why should she have to resign? Oh by the way, she is the one who said the pointless board should be disbanded.

The facts are these, even if Joe was reelected with a huge margin against token opposition (so was Steve by the way) it doesn't mean that he is right on every issue. Nor does having a large margin mean you are a good rep, what were the margins Cynthia McKinney was reelected by so many times?

Now I happen to like Joe and think he is a good rep (even though he voted to remove me from the DDA because Hatney lied to him by telling him I was filling a 'black' seat) I do think that he toed the line here and that there was NEVER any real intention to do anything other than appease and quiet down Lori and the Harrisbug activist.

The machine learned a lot during the election of Matt Aitken and I see them as trying to manipulate this election too. In the same fashion.

Now you cannot sit here and say that Deke is REALLY interested in this all of the sudden now can you? Not with a straight face anyway. This is NOTHING more than election year campaign fodder.

Where has Mr. Bright Ideas been the past three months? Where was he when the attorney came to them and said the draft HE wrote was not good enough to pass? I know, he was saying NOTHING because he doesn't want a CNPO because all of his buddies would be affected.

It is funny that with all the blathering on about who is good and who is not, the fact that NOTHING has been done by the Mayor cannot be overlooked now can it? Unless you care about style over substance.

Brad

When they formed the committee to work on the nuisance property issue, I doubt that they set up criteria for serving. Now, Joe Bowles has asked for the two candidates to resign. Nothing wrong with that, but I think Lori and Sammie should politely decline Bowles' request and continue to serve. Their serving while candidates violates no city ordinance.

Now there is an ordinance that forbids two or more city employees or city officials from serving on the Downtown Development Authority, but Steven Kendrick and J. R. Hatney violate this ordinance and our law enforcement agencies turn a blind eye. Said Col. Klink, “I see nothink. I see nothink.”

I'm thinking Deke is saying all this now because it is near election time,I would not give him they benifit of being relected,this is just a set up,he thinks Lori might win so he is trying to fool every one at this late date.

I gather the mayor is afraid to upset the "stakeholders" who are sometimes called slum lords! I think a;; we really need are some laws to insure that section 8 people live like human beings. If you are a section 8 person who lives like a human being, and havent been on the program for years, I appologize for you and wish you success in getting off the program immediately. Maybe what we need are little signs that identify section 8 propertys and a reward system for reporting people abusing the system (daddys who live there but aren't supposed to) and maybe if we had signs, people wouldn't want to stay long.

Brad, you back in Augsuta, or still overseas?

Brad Owens wrote:

The fact is, I can decode the consultant talk. Allow me to help you all understand what the mayor is saying when he says stuff. Enjoy. . . . . When Deke says, "This has never been a dead issue for me or the commission..." he means, ..... "This was never supposed to get out of committee but now that Lori is in the race I need to point out that the commission INTENDS to take this up one day. It is not dead, just in a coma."

Good point, Brad. The election is in November. There are plenty of commission meetings before then. The commission had better pass some kind of an ordinance soon, or the Boy King's strategy could backfire. Then again, even if they do pass an ordinance like Savannah's, it could still work to Lori's advantage because she could take the credit. She could rightly point out that there would be no ordinance had she not pushed for it.

Does the mayor mean a law like this one? --
"Sec. 1-6-1. General penalty for violation of Code, etc.; continuing violations.
Whenever in this Code or in any ordinance of Augusta-Richmond County or any rule or regulation or order promulgated by any officer or agency ofAugusta-Richmond County under authority duly vested in him or if any act is prohibited or is made or declared to be unlawful or an offense or a misdemeanor, or whenever in such Code or ordinance or rule, regulation or order the doing of any act is required or the failure to do any act is declared to be unlawful or an offense or a misdemeanor where no specific penalty is provided therefor, the violation of any such provision of this Code or any such ordinance, rule, regulation or order shall be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars or by imprisonment not exceeding sixty (60) days, either or both, in the discretion of the judge of the court having jurisdiction. Each day any violation of any provision of this Code or of any such ordinance or rule, regulation or order shall continue shall constitute a separate offense."
How does Savannah's law compare with Augusta's?

p2p,

Nope, I am still in West Africa. I haven't been home for more than 18 months now, except a short one week visit for dental work back in Dec, but I have a long three week holiday coming up and I intend on voting while I am home on it.

This race is about more than Deke or his lack of backbone on anything. It is about our city and what type of city we want our kids to grow up in. Right now Deke has not passed my test to get my vote.

Between his betrayal of the Goshen residents by trying to get Section 8 put into the community without ANY discussion and his absoulte refusal to ever take a stand on anything, I say he should looks elsewhere for a job. Now that says it all right there.

As far as the CNPO goes, I noticed the mayor lives in Connifer Place off Wheeler Road. Very expensive and exclusive. I wonder how long it takes to get a Sheriff's car there on the scene? I digress, anyway he doesn't have to worry about all the things the little people do now does he?

I want a leader in the mayors office this time. I like the idea of a community activist with a fresh way of doing things in there. If the commission is getting along and no debate is taking place, I am reminded of an old saying a veteran politico told me once, "If you have the votes you need, never debate." That one reminds me of this saying, "If the fix is in, you don't even need to watch the match."

And that is what super short meetings mean, the fix is all in. The meetings are for show and all the issues have alreday been decided. Some call that good, I call it a farce.

But then again, if you all agree I guess you can have plenty fast meetings.

All is well, nothing to see here. Move along.

Brad

Thanks Deke. Another useless board that will give these people numerous chances to make their money-making property adhere to the law before hitting them with a threat of a fine. I'm scarred!

By the way LL, the DDA rule is a the state rule which is supposed to be enforced by the local government.

Brad

Brad (aka Peter North), The CNPO is not about Harrisburg! We have slumlords all over Augusta and some of the slumlords live in there own Slums. That is who I am after, not trying to appease any one group. This is about restoring neighborhoods in all of Augusta.
As for asking Lori and Sammie to step down, She did and did so with class. However, Sammie refused, so I will not accept Lori's resignation unless she still wants to resign.

As for the DDA members, that is currently being addressed and we will soon have something for you there.

Brad,
If I am not mistaken (and I could be) weren't you appointed to the DDA by a commissioner who left the board? "Professional courtesy" on these boards is that the appointed member leaves if the replacement commissioner wants them to go. Tommy Boyles did that to me on the Coliseum Authority when he beat Jerry Brigham. (Shortly thereafter the Authority dumped their management company and the rest is history)

Hey Emery...who are you and where do you live and how do we know? Not that I really care, but if you are attempting to have media only comment on the areas where they reside then you are gonna be left with about 10% of the current media workforce you have in the Augusta city limits.

That is a pretty weak little rock to throw...but hey...if I didn't have to sign my work I could throw out all kinds of crap.

Like you do.

Now THAT was funny. Like the stache huh? I am clean cut but I love that picture for some reason.

I understand about the ord needing to be one for all of the county however, you all might want to NOT make it countywide. If you do not make it a countywide ord and instead use the same argument we did on the DAP to get the aggressive panhandling ban done, you might be better off. Our argument was that the downytown area is a tourist area and needs a different set of rules. The entire Harrisburg area, due to the Kroc and Canal, can be called a 'destination' section of the city. That will give you some room to add in special restrictions on types of activities.

And thanks for looking at the DDA and the membership issue. It states in clear terms that one member of the DDA may be a city/government official. It has always been one commissioner and Steve should have resigned once he won the Tax Commissioner position.

But then again, the DDA has never answered to anyone for anything, much less you commissioners who pay their bills like you.

I think YOU should replace Hatney or better yet, Matt Aitken. After all, it IS his district.

By the way, good to see you still have your sense of humor. Stay cool Joe, I am on your side in all this.

Brad

Can anyone explain how Lori Davis is qualified to run a city the size of Augusta? I have asked this question before and get no response. It is not an attack on her, I am just asking what she brings to the table for the good of ALL citizens not just Harrisburg. I see she has backers on this post that won't skip a beat to insult the Mayor, Joe Bowles or Austin Rhodes...so can any of you list how Lori Davis is qualified to be the Mayor? I would appreciate the response.

I believe that the bad landlords will oppose any ordinance that holds them accountable for the behavior of others. As I understood it, this was the issue with the CNPO from the outset. I know it was with Cliff Channell, and he has the ear of the Mayor and City attorney, because he is serving on the CNPO Committee. Imagine that. The Savannah ordinance also holds landlords accountable for behavior, so what makes it any different? Also, I can not see using an ordinance from any city that has crime worse than ours, and Savannah does. The Savannah ordinance also threatens court and fines very quickly. In a true CNPO, only 2% of landlords end up in court, and these are the worst of the worst. National research has proven this 2%. The Savannah ordinance is more about derelict property than behavior. Also, criminal behavior has to be proven, so now we are back to square one. The CNPO only calls for a preponderance of the evidence before the ordinance kicks in. Until State code is changed which says that landlords are not responsible to third parties I believe there will always be a conflict and a reason for the Cliff Channels of the world to bring suit. Lastly, in the Mayor's job description it states, "The Mayor shall be the chief executive officer of Augusta-Richmond County. It shall be his duty to have the ordinances and laws governing Augusta-Richmond County put in full force." I believe this is where he had been weak and our neighborhoods are suffering incredibly because of it. Let's get the right ordinance.

Austin,

Sorry Bro, you are wrong. The DDA was set up by state law and it only has seven members. All commissioners vote on the seven and I replaced Mrs. Howard's unexpired term when she left to serve in the State House.

I know you were thinking that it was a regular board where veryone had an appointment but with the DDA that is not the case.

I was up for reappointment and I was voted off when everyone else was voted back one.

Joe voted against me, so did Bernie Harper.

The fact was, afetwards when I asked Joe why he voted against me even though I had known him my whole life and supported him when ran in the 3rd, and he said Hatney had told him I was in a 'black' seat and that we needed to restore th race balance on the DDA. If true, that was a bald face lie on Hatney's part.

Even if it WAS the case, why play race politics anymore? Is there such a thing as a 'black' seat? If so, please tell me which ones are the 'white' seats. I digress.

Anyway, the fact remains I was voted off for requesting a ethics hearing on Paul King's dirty sidewalk deal and lost Deke's support when I asked for a copy of the loan agreement that the DDA did with Boardman on the Widow's Home and Haughton School.

By the way, I was told I would have to pay $500 as a board memeber to get the documents even though I was still required to vote on these issues. Funny enough, the $375,000.00 was paid back quick after I started asking questions. I still think King was involved in that deal and made money out of the DDA transaction on it. But I guess I will never know now.

I guess it is the price I pay for standing up and trying to shed light on all the unethical dealings the DDA has been involved with.

But no sir, you are wrong on this one. Hey can I be a guest on your show about the elections when I am home?

Brad

Brad,

I stand corrected...and you KNOW I backed you on that Paul King deal. Stunk to high heaven then...and it STILL stinks...

I coulda sworn Lee Beard appointed you...or you were his "pick". And yes...I know all commissioners vote on all appointments, but AGAIN, only as a formality. I have NEVER seen a "choice" appointment blocked by the full body (for a legally qualified appointee, that is).

AR

chel,

Why don't you tell me what you think the requirments are to be mayor. That might make this easier.

Brad

Deke states, " The threat of a $1000 fine would make a landlord take notice...Recently in Harrisburg, residents were able to expose 4 illegal boarding houses operating in the area. They had been illegally outfitted with several showers and toilets so that the slumlord could rent to many people. Very lucrative at $130 per person per week. When caught, the city did not fine this person because,"He cooperated." This slumlord went to great lengths to outfit these houses and hide it. It was an elaborate plan to get it done, and soooo against code, yet he was not fined. This is how this Savannah code will operate as well, yet the problem renters will remain.