The situation at the Augusta Land Bank is quickly evolving to become one the biggest local scandals in recent memory.
In fact, a Hollywood script writer would have a field day concocting all the elements into a cinematic epic: proposed strip clubs, fancy suits, backroom deals, mysterious financial transactions and sumptuous feasts paid for with public money.
At the last Augusta Commission meeting, Commissioner Wayne Guilfoyle pulled the land bank potato out of the oven and tossed it into the air. Commissioner Bobby Williams immediately grabbed the hot potato and attempted to toss it out the window.
Watching Guilfoyle attempt to get at the truth led Commissioner Jordan Johnson to exclaim, “This is getting dangerous!”
You bet it is. The situation is getting dangerous for those who are now being exposed for operating in a possibly illegal manner.
It is clear that the Augusta Commission is not going to take action. The possible “sixth vote” to keep the conversation going at the Dec. 5 meeting was Al Mason, who is the ex-officio commissioner for the Land Bank Authority, and he mysteriously left the meeting before the vote was held.
Mason’s unexplained absence meant there could be no majority vote, nor a tie that the mayor could break, not that Bobby Williams et. al would allow Mayor Garnett Johnson a tie-breaker vote.
Now that the Georgia Attorney General’s office has declined to step into the local morass, it is time for citizens to appeal to the local legislative delegation.
If the legislators became involved, they could work with the mayor to restructure the Land Bank Authority.
Members could be appointed by the mayor and confirmed by the commission and a rule should be included that authority members cannot also be employees of the city government while sitting on the authority, it is just too much of a conflict of interest.
Now that the wrongdoing has been exposed, action and accountability must follow; otherwise, the wrongdoers will feel emboldened to continue on in their spending on the taxpayer’s dime.
We strongly urge that citizens call or email the members of the local legislative delegation and demand they get involved. Below are the names and contact for all legislative members:
Rep. Gloria Frazier
State Representative, District 126
Phone: 404.656.0265
gloria.frazier@house.ga.gov
Rep. Lynn Gladney
State Representative, District 130
Phone: 404.656.0116
lynn.gladney@house.ga.gov
Rep. Karlton Howard
State Representative, District 129
Phone: 404.656.6372
karlton.howard@house.ga.gov
Rep. Mark Newton
State Representative, District 127
Phone: 404.656.7855
mark.newton@house.ga.gov
Rep. Brian Prince
State Representative, District 132
Phone: 404.656.0298
brian.prince@house.ga.gov
Sen. Harold Jones
Senator, District 22
Phone: Capitol Office 404.656.0036; Augusta Office 706.229.1424
Sen. Max Burns
Senator, District 23
Phone: Capitol Office 404.463-1376
Editor’s note: The senators do not include email addresses on their legislative profile pages, but they have contact boxes there that send emails to their offices. Reach Sen. Burns at https://www.legis.ga.gov/members/senate/4979?session=1031 and Sen. Jones at https://www.legis.ga.gov/members/senate/851?session=1031
