Crime, the proliferation of illegal drugs and gang warfare are the three biggest problems we face in Richmond County.
We should be going to the polls on Tuesday, November 7, 2023, to approve a J (New Jail) SPLOST – not a C SPLOST to fund building a new James Brown Arena at the site of the present arena.
I believe that improving public safety is more important than building a new entertainment venue. And that the Augusta Commission should devote more of our tax money toward hiring additional sheriff deputies, paying them competitive salaries, and providing our law enforcement officers with state-of-the-art vehicles and equipment.
We need a J SPLOST so we can build a new jail capable of being expanded in the future and we need to build a new drug rehabilitation center adjacent to it.
When you go to the polls on Tuesday, November 7, 2023, I urge you to vote NO to the proposed C-SPLOST.
Your NO vote will send a message to the Augusta commissioners that you put Public Safety first and foremost.
Sonny Pittman
Augusta, Ga.
