DISTRICT 8
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What is the largest problem for residents of your district?
Regina-Renae Bryant: The single largest problem for residents of my district would be infrastructure. Drainage. Storm drains. Sewer systems. Because without modernized infrastructure, it is making us be counted out when business are coming to Augusta. They can't come to south Augusta because of poor, outdated infrastructure.
Robert Buchwitz: Infrastructure. Water, sewer and roadwork. Most of the dirt roads that are left in Richmond County are in this district. I would like to see those paved and work toward improving the infrastructure, such as water and sewer.
Dusty Rhodes: Property taxes. Everyone is going to the SPLOST (special purpose local option sales tax) board with hat in hand, begging for certain amounts of money. I would beg for 50 cents on every dollar to go directly toward tax relief for the property owners of Richmond County.
Jimmy Smith: I'm not sure it's the single, but we have a lot of litter, grown-up lots, abandoned automobiles, houses that need to be cleaned up. The next thing, we're trying to get some people into these abandoned strip shopping centers and grocery stores that are boarded up. Of course, economic development and something done with Regency Mall.
What is the largest problem in city government?
Ms. Bryant: It would have to be the lack of diversity. I say diversity - it should be various ages, nationalities, and most certainly gender. It must include both genders.
Mr. Buchwitz: Trust on the commission and not having a simple majority vote.
Mr. Rhodes: I think the most serious problem in county or city government is not having a chain of command, i.e., the administrator should be accountable to the commission. The department heads should be accountable to the administrator. The people underneath the department heads should be accountable to him. Each one along the line should have hiring and firing powers.
Mr. Smith: The voting structure. I think it should be simple majority.
Under what circumstances would you vote to approve a property tax increase?
Ms. Bryant: After we have exhausted all other means of raising the money that we need. I think as commissioners we must be proactive and think of ways for businesses to ... grow the tax base.
Mr. Buchwitz: Under the current services we've got, I wouldn't vote for one. I think there's room for better fiscal responsibility rather than a tax increase.
Mr. Rhodes: None.
Mr. Smith: The only way that I would vote for a property tax increase would be like a situation that's in hand right now, where the (health) insurance went up $2 million, the indigent defense went up $1 million and the way that the situation turned out where the tax digest dropped - that's a $5 million situation where we don't have a choice, and we may have to increase it. But that would be the only way that I would increase it.
How do you propose to expand Augusta's tax base and keep people from leaving for neighboring suburbs?
Ms. Bryant: The commission is going to have to be proactive. We know that Augusta is a veteran-oriented city where veterans come to retire. We need veteran representation down at the commission, and people with new ideas. New theme parks. Things in Augusta that we can do to bring in money year-round. We're going to have to be a little open-minded. We should maintain business relationships. If they need additional land, money, we should know that. We should be in tune with that.
Mr. Buchwitz: By improving quality of life issues and trying to attract biotech and technology types of industries and corporations.
Mr. Rhodes: By changing the expectations of the government, i.e., the great industrial revolution is over. We'll never have it again. And I think the government should become more friendly to service-oriented industries because that's the only thing that's going to continue to grow in this part of the country. All the manufacturing is leaving the country for cheaper labor.
Mr. Smith: With incentives to industry, to business - to do anything within common sense to attract industry. And we believe that Augusta Tech is one of the best in the country for training people for new industry.
The Augusta Video X-Mart has been open for nearly one year. Should the city continue to battle its presence in court and pay ongoing legal fees? Or should it simply let the suit drop?
Ms. Bryant: The commissioners - I think it's out of their hands, legally. From what I can tell, the business from a legal standpoint has the right to do business.
Mr. Buchwitz: If they have a legal footing, they should pursue it. If not, they should drop it rather than keep spending money on it.
Mr. Rhodes: The X-Mart or a Bible store should be allowed if they meet the letter of the law. So, no, not if they meet the requirements of the present law.
Mr. Smith: They have spent so much in litigation with that thing already. And I believe they have honestly done everything that they know to do. That's really all that I asked them to do. There are things in this country now are so far from the way it used to be when I grew up. ... I don't know what's happening to our country. I don't know how long God is going to allow us to continue with the direction that it's going without bringing us down.
Should a sales tax issue be extended to longer than five years?
Ms. Bryant: I'm a little torn on that because if they're going to be quality-of-life based ... I don't have a problem doing that. When you start talking about other ventures ... I have some reservation with that. From what I'm understanding of what the money was originally proposed for and what they're now asking for, for other projects, it's getting out of control.
Mr. Buchwitz: In order to get voter approval, you should probably keep it at the five years because the voter could be scared of extending it longer than that.
Mr. Rhodes: No. It has always been a function of the government to give an inch, take a mile. Therefore, I think it should have a positive beginning and a positive end. People who do not have the option of voting now will move into the district, so they will have a say in where the money is going.
Mr. Smith: Being on the SPLOST committee and finding out in Columbus, Ga., when we made that trip that we can - instead of using years as increments - you can use the amount of money. In other words, if the amount of money is $5 million and it takes seven years to do it, then so be it. That's my position on that.
What do you envision for Regency Mall?
Ms. Bryant: Regency Mall has become an eyesore. And I know it's political because nowhere, no one would want something in Augusta looking like that. ... I believe egos are going to have to be set aside if we are really concerned about citizens and our perception when people come to visit here. We need to get over that and do what needs to be done to correct the problem. Women don't have egos. We get the job done.
Mr. Buchwitz: I think we've missed several good opportunities to use it, such as for the board of education. And I would just hope we could find a use for it, rather than just leaving it vacant.
Mr. Rhodes: Regency Mall is a private-owned entity, and I envision nothing. I don't think the government should have any control over Regency Mall. It's on the tax books. Allow it to remain on the tax books until it's either sold or a decision is made by the owners.
Mr. Smith: Anything that would attract people. They're talking about the possibility of the arena out there. I certainly would support that. There has been some talk about the possibility of putting a retirement for seniors out there, which I think would be great. ... But in my feeling, Regency Mall could be the best thing that could happen to south Richmond County.
