This past Tuesday, Jan. 2, I sat, watched and listened to Augusta Mayor Garnett Johnson give his first State of the City address. As he was speaking of the greatness and wonderful things the Augusta government had accomplished in the year 2023, my thoughts began to wander.
Back when us Baby Boomers went to what was then called junior high school, we all had to read the Charles Dickens classic novel, “A Tale of Two Cities.”
The beginning paragraph stated, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all doing direct the other way.”
For me, Dickens pretty much could have been talking about Augusta’s real state of affairs.
Of course, the mayor had to be positive and sell the notion that all is well in River City, and he did an excellent job of it. As he spoke with a lilt in his voice and a joyous smile on his face, I almost expected Commissioners Sean Frantom and Jordan Johnson to suddenly appear as their alter egos, “The Arena Boyz” and go into their hyped wrestling duo routine.
You’ve seen it before, slapping their chest and telling us all how great it all is and how much better it’s gonna be. Hey, it worked for the arena vote, why not the state of the city address?
The mayor was doing so well at selling the city’s wonderful achievements that in mid-stride he changed Augusta from the Garden City to the “Feel Good” City.
The mayor forgot that he is not one of the Gang of Five nor partners with the friend with a benefit, a vote. He just can’t be changing names of anything much less the city’s moniker without their express approval.
The mayor thanked some members of the city government. One notable was housing director Hawthorne Welcher. Mr. Welcher is a shining star. He and his team have worked very hard and with diligence to transform the Laney Walker Bethlehem neighborhood of our city to a nicer and more comfortable neighborhood in which to reside.
The mayor mentioned the Engineering Department under the direction of Dr. Hameed Malik and the hard work they have done to keep up with issues. The Engineering Department even managed to fill 901 potholes in 2023.
Just think all the Columbia County Engineering Department did in 2023 was to restructure many roadway intersections to make them more efficient, safer and traffic friendly, as well as ADA compliant. All while doing that they also only managed to resurface miles upon miles of highways.
No worries, Augusta filled 901 potholes.
The mayor also mentioned the fun fact of placing the grass cutting, litter control and tree maintenance under one department. But which department will that be? Engineering, Parks and Recreation, Storm Water or the RCCI?
They all want into that money bucket and no one wants to let a piece of that action loose. After all, that may lead to accountability.
Two more outstanding city employees that should have been mentioned, but weren’t are the Clerk of Commission Lena Bonner and Finance Director Donna Williams.
Bonner manages to perform the duties of clerk of commission with only two employees and that office is responsible for gathering and putting together all of the material that the mayor and commissioners will be covering in session.
Bonner’s office also makes all arrangements for the speakers before a meeting, organizes and handles quickly scheduled meetings and keeps all minutes of all meetings. It is not an easy job at all.
Williams has to maintain and keep track of the city’s monies. She gives sound financial advice to the commissioners which in turn they all don’t take. Her door is where the buck stops.
In fact, it tries to stop there when it shouldn’t. For instance, the IRS possible fine of $2 million to $10 million dollars for not reporting the use of federal funding properly. The buck should have stopped at the door of Human Resources.
Many people who help mold and shape any of the success that Augusta may have are never mentioned or thanked. They should be. Let me mention just a few and there is no way I can mention all that should be.
Cal Wray of the Augusta Economic Development Authority. Without him, many of the new companies that have come to Augusta and brought with them hundreds of new jobs wouldn’t be here.
Margaret Woodard of the Downtown Development Authority and her staff promote expanding businesses and adding new business to the downtown area of Augusta. It is an ongoing endeavor that Woodard puts her heart and soul into and it’s paying dividends to our city.
Ashley Brown of Turn Back the Block and her associates are revitalizing the blighted Harrisburg neighborhood one block at a time. Theirs is a struggle that really needs the support of our city and citizens.
Brenda Durant of the Greater Augusta Arts Council and her associates have worked hard and with complete passion to transform our city to that of a city that embraces art in all forms and expressions. Arts in the Heart has been built into a festival that many claim is the largest anywhere East of the Mighty Mississippi River.
Monique Braswell is an advocate for the children of Augusta. She has raised funds for student scholarships and advocated for a better school system. In fact, she is, so to speak, putting her money where her heart is.
Braswell will be running for the District 5 school board seat. She also founded what is known as The Feast before The Feast. A yearly event around Thanksgiving that feeds the hungry.
Kevin de l’Aigle is a lifelong resident of district one. Tired of the neglect that was occurring in the downtown area, especially the Greene Street corridor, he founded the Coalition for Action in Downtown Augusta (CADA). He and his group have cut, trimmed and planted new flowers along the Green Street center mediums. Yes, they also maintain them at no cost to the city.
He (de l’Aigle) has tirelessly beat the drum for the repair of the Tubman Memorial that was mostly destroyed when a motorist ran into it with a vehicle.
Despite the persistence, so far it has been all to no avail. The repeated requests have continued to fall on deaf ears.
These are just a few of the unsung folks in our community who do so much. There are just too many to list or name here. As the year goes by, we can and will mention more.
Now, if it has sounded like I don’t appreciate Mayor Johnson, you would be wrong. His is a job with no power except persuasion. Previous mayors have been able to accomplish goals that they fought for; however, they didn’t have the Gang of Five and Friend with a benefit to fight.
Does the Augusta mayor need the power to vote? Yes. In fact I will go on record and say I will vote Yes to that item on the ballot. If it were the previous mayor, the vote would be a hard NO.
A mayor has to use the vote wisely and with consideration of what the taxpayers want. Not their self or their cronies’ interest.
Since consolidation, I believe all the mayors with that one exception, Hardie Davis Jr., would have used the vote wisely and with caution. Putting the citizens and taxpayers first. I would hope that Mayor Johnson would do the same. I tend to think he would. Only if he gets the vote will we know.
If the position of mayor does get the vote, future mayor candidates must be vetted closely. Electing another self important narcissist with a vote and it will certainly bring only doom and gloom to the taxpayers.
To use the vote evenly and with surety, the mayor must vote on every item on the agenda. Not just the ones he wishes to vote on, if it is a true use of the vote.
Having to constantly fight the Gang of Five and Friend, will his vote matter or will it change nothing?
TAP reader James Murray Jr stated, “The Mayor getting a vote, I will vote for, will change nothing. 6 to 4 will become 6 to 5.” Indeed, that may be the case.
Two more TAP readers seem to think the commission should be cut down to only five super districts and the mayor having a vote. I agree with Stoney Turnage and Tedd Antonacci on that point.
Folks, as always, you just can’t make this stuff up.
