Even with Buie gone, the scandal that just won’t go away continues to rock downtown. In addition to what has already been written here, we find out that Buie only charged a whopping $1 in rent to the Dollar Square. Now that is a deal. Doesn’t it just make one wonder how a business can get a deal like that?
What’s more, Lajunna Woods part in this story just keeps getting deeper. I’m wondering just how far the rabbit hole goes, especially with more missing downtown money.
WALB reported last night that Woods grant from ADICA for $50,000 was improper in yet another way, this time because her operation was outside of the bounds of “downtown”. So Woods, an ADICA board member who got a grant without board approval for a restaurant that was outside of the boundaries for downtown has to have some powerful friends, right? Of course she does.
Some time back, the Albany Journal ran a story about campaign donations to Albany City Commissioner Tommy Postell. Most of the article regarded renowned zoologist Jim Fowler making his donation, but of particular note is this paragraph:
Just as notable, perhaps, as Fowler’s donation to Postell is the only other contribution Postell received during the month preceding his Nov. 6 re-election. LaMos Management Services gave $2,500 to Postell’s campaign on October 30, and on Nov. 20 and Nov. 27, Postell voted to award LaMos with a beer consumption/wine retail license at L’Jua’s Restaurant, 704 Radium Springs Road.
Then, on Jan. 14, Postell successfully pushed through the appointments of LaMos principal Lajuana D. Woods to the Albany-Dougherty Inner City Authority.
Now, doesn’t it strike one as funny how a $2,500 donation is made and rules get bent all over the place? Keep in mind that $2,500 is, from my understanding, a serious donation for a local seat. Most tend to be significantly smaller in amount. Was this a case of greasing the skids? Keep in mind that L’Jua’s Restaurant is apparently a bit to close to ASU to get an alcohol license per city ordinance.
However, if this wasn’t enough, we have a missing $50,000 of taxpayer’s money that ATI was supposed to pay contractors but never was. Of course, former ATI chairman C.W. Grant doesn’t think there was anything illegal dealing with the missing money, but think it just got spent on the wrong stuff. Sure. I mean, nothing else that could be described as illegal has been going on downtown, right?
I’m sorry, but missing $50,000 that ATI was supposed to pay contractors with didn’t just go for other bills. Odds are that the $50,000 went into a general fund, and while other bills were paid from that fund, that $50,000 is still missing. While it may have been incompetence, something else that’s apparently not exactly unusual for downtown, forgive me if I don’t just accept the word of someone who may be implicated in any wrong doing with ATI.
Between the missing ATI money, ADICA board members getting grants they shouldn’t have, and the Dollar Square only being charged a whopping $1 in rent (and there’s apparently no record of them even paying that), it was an eventful day for downtown. It’s enough to make you wonder what today will bring.
May I suggest that the “downtown” is not corrupt or culpable. The downtown has been much maligned in the press lately. It is simply a place with buildings and many honest concerned owners who have spent years being kicked to the curb by these self dealing jerks.
Kindly consider that there are many downtown property owners who have had no part of this outrageous conduct and politics. They too are victims of this corruption. The long promised funding support has been misused and some public sentiment has even more been turned against legitimate redevelopment efforts. Does anyone think an investor or lender or partner wants to get embroiled in this mess? The market has been further chased away by these self-dealing and dishonest officials and politicians.
In the end, a viable city center is still the core of every successful city in America. These shenanigans affect all Albanians. Albany is losing businesses, talent, capital and other valuable assets to Lee County and the rest of America. This trend will not stop, if ever, until the city fabric has been totally destroyed or until a genuine community effort replaces these characters with real leaders.
In all realities, like it or not, a successful downtown is vital to all Albany’s future. Pleae don’t let these bad apples – yes plural – taint a place that can yet emerge as a successful self-sustaining asset for all Albany.
Any use of the term “downtown” in this blog refers to the georgraphic and political happenings, not individual businesses that happen to occupy that geographical area.
That said, I have to disagree with the need for development downtown. Development should exist purely within the private sector, and the private sector has decided that downtown development isn’t financial viable for whatever reason. What downtown is currently, and I think that is just fine, is the governmental heart and soul of Albany. With the current crop of buildings, it portrays an image that is worthy of note. Several of the governmental buildings are, I feel, beautiful works of architecture.
But I feel that is all downtown will be, and I don’t see a problem with it.
I agree about the exodus to Lee County and what it will take to restore Albany to it’s once great status for this region. In time, I sincerely hope it can be done.
Now we know why it’s called the Dollar Square.
On another note, I disagree that continuing to dump taxpayer money to buy a “successful downtown” is the answer. We tried it. It didn’t work. I believe in the free market economic system.
These downtown spendfree advocates do have a development funding plan. It’s called OPM. Now they are going to use Buie as their scapegoat and trick us into a “do over”. The downtown experiment had failed before Buie ever hit town. He was just icing on the cake.
I realize the downtown property owners who gambled on development are not necessarily at fault. But they want to be bailed out of their loss, by folks who are themselves in desperate financial straits.
Here’s a message that ought to be carved on the City County Government water fountain so that everyone who works there can be reminded: “Money Isn’t Free”
Just to clarify my position on downtown, I personally think that the best course of action for downtown is to be a vibrant center for government and be happy with that. Businesses will go where they will make a profit, and frankly that isn’t downtown unless they plan on catering to government employees lunch schedules…and frankly, there’s nothing wrong with that one. However, with government being front and center in downtown Albany, why not play that up? Why not focus on what works in downtown instead of trying to make it into something it’s not?
Plenty will disagree with me. Honestly, that’s fine. What matters though is that our tax dollars don’t get wasted on silly programs that merely benefit one section of the town to the exclusion of all others.
I have to believe there were kickbacks. I could be wrong and have no independent knowledge, but the Dollar Square and Woods grants are so outrageous that it’s hard to believe they weren’t done without an ulterior motive. I think Don Buie was crooked, but I don’t think he was insane.
As for the attorneys, again, what were they doing? Did ADICA receive an itemized bill from Jay Reynolds, and if so, for what? If he wasn’t looking at ADICA’s leases and grants, what was he charging ADICA for?
I’m still convinced there will be no serious investigation beyond Don Buie. That’s sad, but I’m just that disgusted and cynical.
For clarification, to my knowledge not one existing downtown property owner has been the recipient of any of this squandered ADICA money. No one is asking to be bailed out, however the city, for years, has talked about partication is some form. It is one thing not to offer any funding in the first place. But to raise the expectation thereby encouraging years of delay and then causing a fiasco that chases away every funder takes all this to another level.
Also consider that there is now not a conventional lender on the planet that will take risk in Albany, let alone the downtown.
And so it is…
I don’t think there was kickbacks. I think it’s something much deeper than just that, but like you I have no direct evidence.
I don’t think there’s an existing property owner who’s gotten any money either, and frankly that was by design. The idea was to lure new businesses downtown, but there’s not really any incentive for those already there to stay, is there? It’s a shame, really.
If goevernment is not fulfilling its responsibility a citizen can sometimes file suit.
Also, the DA can convene a grand jury with investigative power, which I think should be done here.
Then there is the “independent prosecutor” route…and an INDEPENDENT audit, not a CITY audit.
We out here expect these funds improperly paid out to be recovered and that there be full disclosure.
If not, some of us just might pursue our own legal recourse(s).
Unfortunately, I’m not sure the city or county have any real interesting pursuing recourse on any of this except perhaps criminal charges…and I’m not 100% sure that they even wanted to pursue those.
I don’t know what the DA will do, but I’m not sure he’d want to get into this just yet. Gut feeling only though.
I agree that something more is needed though. I’m looking where I can, and I know Kevin Hogencamp at the Journal won’t stop that easily either, and neither will Tim Coley with the Dougherty County Taxpayer’s Association.
Some things are criminal…some have civil liability (like the fiduciary duty of a board of directors or an individual director)…some things lack sufficient hard evidence for a prosecutor to have enough confidence to charge…some things are political. And in Albany it all stems from the political and the confidence that some of these sleeze have that the voters will not turn them out. Sadly, they just might be right. We shall see in the next two or three years.
The root issues and causes and solutions to the greater endemic problems are rather convoluted – very difficult to get at and very very difficult to change. Sadly, as a veteran of some of these wars, I am no longer sure that enduring change is really possible here. We may be past several tipping points with momentum difficult to reverse.
Then again, it is good to see that some of us are still up for the battle.
I personally like two components in downtown redevelopment in Georgia: funky and mixed use. The main street programs in Tifton, Moultrie, Americus, Madison and Athens are so cool to me. Eccentric shops, coffee houses, sports bars, and bookstores might provide an after hour balance to the lunch spots for governmental workers in Albany. When Albany State plays FVSU in Columbus, we make an annual stop at a place called the Cannon Brew Pub on Broad Street; that area could be the model for downtown Albany with the hip college kids and people who find the mall area lacking in character. I have not been there but I hear good things about the Broad area of Augusta.
Yes, it was a rough day when Bo Henry headed west because the second floor of his place had that vibe. The old Broad Street Bistro had a chef from a local country club who took hook up a peanut entrusted pan-seared trout that was brilliant and all within minutes of my old office.
So let’s operate backwards for a second: while some people are wary of downtown Albany after dark, who are the possible brave souls who might help turn the area around. I might be wrong but I still like students from the three colleges and obviously brave Marines. I wish downtown jumped when I was in the dorm at ASU because walking across the bridge to an entertainment zone could have been too cool. Remember Morehouse College and Spelman College, and pre-Olympics Georgia Tech (Techwood Homes) are/were in some rough areas that make downtown Albany seem like nothing to fear. It is my understanding that Yale and the University of South California are in rough areas and I know every college student must be careful anywhere in D.C.
With all the concerns, different clienteles are packing them in at the Albany Theater. If I were a young person, I could get into living in the building that had the crosses on top during Christmas if it was converted into apartments and lofts with ASU upperclassmen in mind. But what am I thinking, the new dorms at ASU are great. I am having a hard time thinking of an HBCU that is closer to a hip area and I would like seeing college students living in a town where a car is not a necessity—don’t forget about the Darton and Albany Tech students as well as young working people. What about college hours at the First Tee?
Another model for downtown Albany is the cool NoDa area of Charlotte, North Carolina. They have a bar for people with dogs. I am tired of people saying that the Albany area is fine in many ways but let’s run to Atlanta every other weekend.
http://www.noda.org/
http://www.dogbarnoda.com/
http://thecannonbrewpub.com/history.php
.-= slyram´s last blog ..Downtown Albany, Georgia: Make it Funky =-.
Don’t get me wrong, I’d love all that stuff down there too. I really would.
But over the last 20 years, they’ve never been able to make that happen and I don’t really think it’s going to. Private investment is what’s lacking the confidence in downtown right now, and without that, downtown isn’t going anywhere as far as I can see.
Private investment in bricks and mortar and small businesses has gone on over the years in downtown Albany. It is not what has been lacking. Almost EVERY consumer dependant venue has struggled EXCEPT the State Theatre, Riverfront BBQ, maybe now Subway, who knows about the Cookie Shoppe and that’s just about it.
Investments have been made to renovate buildings and start and relocate businesses. A problem has been sustainability. Even tenants who have paid little to no rent have closed up.
Bo Henry has cloned the old Harvest Moon concept with the same menu on Dawson Road and the business TRIPLED. That story has played itself out before and since.
Private investment and effort has been there, but there are only so many times one can drill a dry well. There are solutions, but do not accuse the private sector of current downtown owners of asking for a handout. That has not been the case.
A problem is traffic, revenues, public purchasing power and as much as anything the neighborhoods that surround the downtown.
Buie and the city’s targeted beneficiaries were cronies, new chummy faces and parties that would scratch their backs in return. The real investors learned long before now what the real agendas have been.
Private investment is skittish for very sound reasons, not the least of which has been working in this scuzzy political and governmental environment.
There is so much more to all this. There are many solid city employees that have been pushed aside by this crowd. Sneek a talk with some of them and you will learn how some of these other areas are being trashed.
In the end, the solution has to be in the ballot box. And it has to lead to a changing of the guard at the very top of the city politic and administration …assuming that there is someone competent who is willing to step into the mess.
I love the Cannon Brew Pub in Columbus as well. And I agree, the Moon had a similar atmosphere. I think Bo gave it as good a try as anyone could expect.
We copied the Riverfront concept from Columbus back in the Albany Tomorrow days of this debacle. It was as good an idea then as it is now. A good idea followed up with ridiculous decisions and the poorest execution imaginable.
I think the next logical step in downtown development at this point is a full blown, transparent, and forensic investigation.
The lack of traffic is the reason that private investment isn’t happening at the rate the city would like. Yes, people open businesses downtown. And they fail or move away. If they’re not interested in moving there, that should tell the city something…you can’t make people go downtown, and there’s to much competition in the other parts of town that unless they can open up something truly amazing, it just won’t do any good.
We can point the fingers at whatever we want. The fact of the matter is that despite decades now of effort, there is still no improvement in downtown. The city has spent millions and so far, nothing. While corruption may be to blame, focusing on the albatross that is downtown redevelopment isn’t the way to lure businesses to that area and I’m still unconvinced that it’s needed.
If Bo Henry left downtown for greener pastures, I don’t see any other restauranteur doing any better. But there again, that’s probably a moot point because unless we have a thorough investigation and ALL (not just Don Buie) of the crooks and incompetents are driven out, no one in their right mind would invest downtown — and by “investment”, I’m talking their own money, not someone else’s.