The special purpose local option sales tax is going to pass in Tuesday's referendum, according to City Ink's thoroughly unscientific poll of 31 early voters at the Board of Elections office and Warren Road recreation center last week. Nineteen said they voted for it. Twelve said they didn't. Friday's decision by government reformer Woody Merry's CSRAHelp to vote no on the tax could affect that 61 percent pass projection, but we don't think so. Folks are too afraid their property taxes will skyrocket if the tax fails.
Anyway, eight of the participants in our poll were from south Augusta, seven from west Augusta, five from east Augusta and downtown, eight from general parts such as Kissingbower Road and Morningside Drive, and three from Hephzibah.
Sixteen were women. Fifteen were men. Two couples canceled each other's votes out.
"Did you talk about the sales tax before you got here?" we asked Linda and Don Bourke.
"No," Mrs. Bourke said. "You can't tell him anything."
We bet a lot of wives can relate to that. Husbands, too, probably.
Heather Carlson voted against the tax. She said it reminded her of the old story about a frog in hot water.
"You can put a frog in a pot of water, and if you keep turning up the heat, he doesn't realize he's being boiled. But if you throw him into a pot of boiling water, he's going to know the difference. With the 1-cent tax, we keep getting boiled. Eventually, we're going to be boiled to death."
Ah, to be so young and so wise!
THE BLAB FACTOR: Somebody asked us the other day who we would vote for for mayor, and we said we'd have to decide by the process of elimination. So we started thinking real hard about it, about what was important to us in a mayor. One thing is how much someone talks, how much of our time they waste droning on and on, how much longer they make or would make commission meetings. To those we award hot-air balloons. Not a good thing.
Interim Mayor Willie Mays would get the maximum 10 hot-air balloons. Helen Blocker-Adams would get 8. Tommy Boyles and Deke Copenhaver, 3.
Another thing that is important to City Ink is whether the mayor would return phone calls. Everybody but Mr. Mays passed that test, which means he didn't score well on any category. There is one thing, though. He took good care of his invalid mother, Carrie Mays, for 17 years. Now, most people will say that doesn't have anything to do with whether he would be a good mayor. That may be so, but to us seniors it carries a lot of weight.
Top Honors: Things might not end Tuesday night for Augusta's mayoral candidates, but here as the campaign winds down, it is time to hand out some awards and distinctions.
The "Most Ideas Per Minute" Award goes to Ms. Blocker-Adams, who has proposed so many new duties and offices for the mayor (the Mayor's Office of Film, Television and Media, a new grant-writing team, etc.) that the mayor may need to move out of the Municipal Building. Could this finally be a use for the old Regency Mall?
The "Filibuster Award" goes to Mr. Mays, who bragged that, since he has become interim mayor, the Augusta Commission has much shorter meetings. Considering that he was often the cause of the marathon drag-outs when he was a commissioner, he should share the award with himself.
The "Mr. Clean" Award goes to Mr. Boyles, who said during The Augusta Chronicle's background check, "I haven't even gotten a speeding ticket." He will admit to getting some parking tickets, the dirty scofflaw.
The "My Children Wear Fur" Award goes to Mr. Copenhaver, who lists his dogs, Hamp and Finn, as part of the family. We like people who are nice to dogs. He might lose some of the cat vote, however.
GENTLEMEN, DON'T START YOUR ENGINES: A move to change Augusta's noise ordinance to make possible Mayor Pro Tem Marion Williams' pet project, a drag-racing track off Mike Padgett Highway not far from Horseshoe Road in south Augusta, caused a lot of noise on the Augusta Commission last week.
Some commissioners resented the fact the issue got added to the meeting agenda at the request of city attorney Stephen Shepard without their knowing it would permit a racetrack to operate anywhere in Richmond County. Commissioner Jimmy Smith and residents don't want the racetrack because it would destroy the peace and tranquility of the rural neighborhood with roaring engines, loudspeakers and tons of traffic 52 weeks a year.
"What hasn't been brought out is the fact that a lot of people live there," Mr. Smith said. "I just cannot see telling these people we're going to put a racetrack right in your neighborhood, like it or not."
Mr. Smith then suggested Mr. Williams put the track in his own district.
"I was thinking, Preacher, that maybe you could go put it on Olive Road. It's been so bad over there for about three or four months, I thought you were building a racetrack over there," Mr. Smith said, referring to the ongoing construction work.
Without missing a beat, Mr. Williams shot back, "We can't get sewage on Olive Road. We sure can't get a racetrack."
WERE IT ONLY TRUE: Meanwhile, Commissioner Andy Cheek's assertion at the meeting that the Carolina Dragway in Jackson clears $7 million a year is way off, according to track owner Jeff Miles.
"I wish to God we did make that much money," he said. "If the county thinks they're going to make $50 million, I can promise they are sadly mistaken. They are way off."
And while Mr. Williams is saying the International Hot Rod Association would hold one national event in Augusta each year, which would bring in $30 million to the local economy, association officials say they wouldn't make that commitment until the track is built to their specifications.
REACH OUT AND TOUCH SOMEONE: Augusta commissioners are so fed up with the criticism they're getting over the stalled Warren Road improvement project and BellSouth's failure to complete its utility relocation work by Nov. 1, they voted Tuesday to post signs on the utility poles saying, "This Project Is Delayed By BellSouth."
Mr. Cheek made the motion after clearing it with Mr. Shepard.
"Mr. Attorney, is that possible?" Mr. Cheek asked.
"It's the truth," said Mr. Shepard, who then suggested writing the utility company a demand letter, but Commissioner Roy Rearden said if they pursued the issue with letters, they would be in the same situation this time next year. He suggested summoning a BellSouth official to the meeting and settling the matter right then and there.
That didn't fly, and Mr. Cheek returned to his motion for the signs, saying that would carry more weight with BellSouth than a "letter exchange program."
REACH OUT AND TOUCH UPDATE: On Friday, three BellSouth trucks were out on Warren Road working on the utilities.
City Ink thanks Tom Corwin for his contribution to this week's column.
Reach Sylvia Cooper at (706) 823-3228 or sylvia.cooper@augustachronicle.com.
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