Our first Tuesday of September voting meeting is upon us, and so uh I'm gonna go ahead and ask the clerk to call roll for us.

Here, Taylor, here right, present Fisher, Johnson, Culpepper, here, here, Thornton, here, and the we have a quorum.

All right, thank you, madam clerk.

I appreciate it.

As always, uh, we're gonna read the civility pledge provided to us by the Georgia Municipal Association, and that reads that the way we govern ourselves is often as important as the positions we take.

Our collective decisions will be better when differing views have had the opportunity to be fully vetted and considered.

All people have the right to be treated with respect, courtesy, and openness.

We value all input, and we commit to conduct ourselves at all times with civility and courtesy to each other.

Um first formal item of business today is approval of the minutes of meetings of Tuesday, August 5th, and non-voting meetings of Tuesday, August 12th, and Tuesday, August 19th.

Do I hear such a motion?

So moved.

Okay.

All right, I've got a motion from Commissioner Taylor and a second from Commissioner Fisher.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed.

All right.

Hearing none, motion carries.

Um I do need a motion to add item number 24, which is the latest of the kind of long sequence of opioid settlements, uh, because uh we just received final text today.

So could I get a motion to add item 24 to the agenda?

So moved.

Thank you.

All right.

I've got a motion from Commissioner Wright and a second from Commissioner Taylor.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed, please, same side.

Hearing none, motion carries.

Uh Madam Clerk, do we have any written communications tonight?

There are none.

All right, thank you, ma'am.

All right.

Uh tonight we have several opportunities for public input, and so I want to describe that sequence for everybody.

Uh we have an opportunity for public input on the consent agenda.

We have an opportunity on each of the two new planning and zoning items.

We have an opportunity on old and new business, and then at the conclusion of tonight's meeting, we have an opportunity for public input on any topic that was not on tonight's agenda.

Uh generally speaking, with the slight exception of zoning, that's a three-minute opportunity per person for public input.

You see a light in front of the clerk, it turns green when you begin speaking, turns yellow when you have 30 seconds remaining, and it turns red when your three minutes has concluded.

And we'll thank you for your time with us tonight.

Uh if you do provide public input, please let us know your full name and your place of residence so we can accurately capture that for the record.

There are cards on the podium.

If you fill one of those out and just drop it in the gray box uh just across the door from the podium, that will allow us to make sure we do that accurately.

So I would first like to ask members of the commission, is there any consent agenda item uh currently we have consent agenda items one through twelve that any member of the body would like to remove for later discussion.

Would anyone like to remove any of those consent agenda items again?

One through twelve.

Uh Commissioner Johnson.

Nope.

Okay.

All right.

I'll uh have attorney Drake read the ordinances associated with the consent agenda items.

Mr.

Mayor, if you recall, there's one item we need to amend the agenda to add.

Uh yeah, we did that uh a couple moments ago.

Okay, Mr.

Okay, my bad.

All right, great.

Uh yes, there are ordinances associated with items number one, two, and then two ordinances with number three.

Ordinance number one, an ordinance to amend the FY26 operating capital budget for Athens Clark County, Georgia, so as to provide grant funding if awarded from the Fox Theater grant program for expenses related to the redesign of the Morton Theaters Procenium.

I may not I may be pronouncing that right.

Number two, an ordinance to amend the transportation special purpose local option sales tax 2018 program budget so as to provide additional funding for project number 13, Westbrook Air Pedestrian Improvements and for other purposes.

Agenda item number three, uh first ordinance and ordinance to amend the schedule.

The code of Athens Clark County, George respecting the schedule of the fees to be adopted annually and for other purposes and the uh last ordinance associated with item number three, ordinance to amend the transportation special purpose local option sales tax and special purpose local option sales tax program budget so as to provide additional funding for capital projects and for other purposes.

Thanks, Attorney Drake.

Uh now would any member of the public like to speak to any of those items?

Items one through twelve.

Is there any public input on any of those items one through twelve?

Just uh step up to the podium again, provide your name and place of residence.

Good evening.

My name is Tim Johnson, and I reside in Normaltown on 545 Sunset Drive.

And I am going to speak briefly about agenda item 12.

And mainly I just want to say thank you because it's on the consent agenda.

And so that is the community energy fund franchise fee allocation.

Um in May of 2019, the mayor and commission voted unanimously to adopt a 100% clean and renewable energy resolution.

Among other components, you committed to obtain 100% of Unicov energy from clean and renewable energy sources by 2035 for our community to obtain 100% of its electricity from clean renewable sources by 2035, and for our community to meet all our energy needs from clean and renewable sources by 2050.

Thank you for working towards that goal, including committing funding from SPLAS, T SPLAS, and utility franchise fees, and also for your partnership with other communities and advocacy of the public service commission on the state and graded resource plan.

We were also helped toward these goals by national policy, especially the bipartisan infrastructure act.

Some of those national policies are being rolled back, which makes your commitment even more urgent for our community.

This is making a real difference for Athens.

It cuts across partisan and ideological lines.

Investing in renewables is better for our local economy and for our environment.

It's better for business owners and for workers, for children and for old folks.

It helps the unit of the schools, the university, commercial business, industry, homeowners, renters, everyone.

It is an investment that helps us today and will continue to help our community for generations to come.

It is truly a win-win-win-win-win for us all.

Again, I thank you for your commitment to local implementation of affordable, clean, renewable energy for our community, and for your work and your staff's work to make it happen, including your support for the four recommended areas of funding from the community energy fund included in agenda item 12 tonight.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Johnson.

Is there any other member of the public who would like to speak to any of those consent agenda items again one through twelve?

Items one through twelve.

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Aaron Jocelyn.

I live at um 274 North Rock String Rocks Spring Street.

Um I was anticipating more speakers.

Um it's gonna sound kind of like a broken record, but I would like to reiterate much of what uh Tim just spoke to.

And um so yeah, in uh 2019, the the mayor and commission of Athens Clark County passed um the clean and renewable energy resolution um by unanimously, and uh I would like to express my appreciation and gratitude for the fact that that the Athens Clark County government um passed this uh visionary um or used its uh capacity and authority to proactively step into the future with a bold and necessary necessary step towards a safer and more prosperous future.

I realize that the uh composition of the commission has changed a little bit since then, but y'all are the um safekeepers of that of that resolution and and I just wanted to express my gratitude for the continued support of that resolution.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, Mr.

Jocelyn.

Is there anyone else who would like to speak to any consent agenda item?

Again, those are items one through twelve.

All right, seeing none, attorney Drake has read the ordinances and I'll entertain a motion for approval of the consent agenda.

Second.

All right, I've got a motion from Commissioner Thornton and a second from Commissioner Myers.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

All opposed, same sign.

All right.

Hearing none, motion carries.

All right.

We're gonna move on to our planning and zoning items.

We only have two new planning and zoning items tonight.

Uh, those are items 13 and 14.

Uh there will be public input individually on each one of these uh followed by a commission uh motion and discussion.

Um there was an opportunity for folks to sign up for a 10-minute slot uh for those uh in favor and opposed to each item.

Uh we do have one of those uh who have signed up for a slot on item 14.

Um so at this point I just ask anyone who would like to speak to item 13 uh regarding making highway in Puritan Lane now is that time.

Is there anyone here to speak to item 13?

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Glade Underlood.

Uh I live at 160 Stanton Way in Athens.

Um we spoke at the agenda setting meeting and uh I don't want to be too repetitive here, but uh just want to reiterate the problems that get resolved through the approval of this rezone tonight.

Uh number one, the abandonment of Puritan Lane.

I can't stress enough how good this is for ACC's budget by removing the burden of this substandard road to nowhere.

All ACC departments support this abandonment.

Um connected sidewalks.

Right now, the sidewalk ends in front of the distillery.

We will be installing a pedestrian crossing across Macon Highway, which increases sidewalk connectivity all the way to Clark and O'Connie uh county property line at Barber Creek.

Uh adding purpose-built student housing in an already student area.

Many of you pointed to the fact that this will pull students out of our single family neighborhoods, which I completely agree.

Um and number four, access to ACC property along with parking for future use, uh, which currently does not have good access.

Um please keep in mind we're not rezoning commercial or single family land to multifamily.

We are already zoned RM1 and need the slight increase to RM2 density to make the financials work and see all the positives that I just mentioned become a reality.

Uh thank you for your time, and I hope we will have your support in expanding a community that has been very well received by the community over the last two years.

Thank you, Mr.

Underwood.

Is there anyone else here to speak to item number 13?

Even uh commissioners, thank you for your time this evening and everything that you do.

My name is Jeff Kuhn with Stratus Development Group at 2025 South Millage Avenue.

Uh we come tonight to ask for your support and lightly upzoning a property already zoned for multi-family use.

The proposed use aligns with both the current and the proposed future land use map and also the predominant use in the area.

Uh what is being offered are several community benefits in exchange for the slight increase in density.

Um first off the activation of a 12-acre park.

Currently, the county owns a large parcel.

It has no access and no parking.

We're we're agreeing to both allow access and provide parking for this 12-acre park.

Uh, this could be a game changer for the area as the closest city park is 1.5 miles away.

Uh if you want an addition additional city park in town, we ask for your support.

Uh secondly, more quality housing.

The first phase was a resounding success, and we're one of the highest rated communities in town.

I was reported in the flag poll a few weeks ago.

The housing crisis is certainly not over.

Uh, if you want additional quality housing units in town, we asked for your support.

Preservation of homes.

We've agreed to work with the city to relocate the existing homes and the property for additional affordable housing.

Uh if you want even more affordable units in town, we ask for your support and cost savings as part of the proposal.

We are offering to take over the maintenance of Puritan Lane, thus saving the county hundreds of thousands of dollars over time.

If you're looking to save the county money that could be redeployed into other areas of more important importance, we ask for your support.

Uh in summary, we believe the project will fit in with the area, aligns with county goals, and provides a way for us to work together for additional community benefits.

We humbly ask for your consideration and support.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Coons.

Is there anyone else here to speak to item number 13, uh, which is making highway in Puritan Lane?

Uh good evening.

Uh my name is Frank Pittman.

I live at 1400 Saxon Road in Watkinsville.

Um I'm the civil engineer working with the uh owners on this property and and and did the site plan that you guys have seen.

Um I just wanted to quickly uh mention this, and I think I mentioned this before that you know we are proposing this as a plan development, um, even though the we uh we're only asking for one waiver, otherwise we're we're meeting you know everything in the zoning um uh code as is.

Uh the only waiver is for conserved tree canopy, which we we could have asked for administratively through staff, but we did a PD because we wanted you guys to know exactly what they're gonna build instead of asking for a straight rezone.

Um you know, there was some conversation about the the tree canopy.

We the code requires a conserved canopy of 25 percent.

We're asking for a waiver uh to provide 17 percent conserved.

We are proposing um to plant back to have a total canopy of 60 percent, which is a 20 percent increase over the required 50 percent.

I know Commissioner Davenport had um concerns about planting trees last time, so we we are proposing 20 percent higher than even what is required.

Um this is um one of the few areas in in town where we've got some really good sewer capacity um and um to uh provide housing in this area would would be a good good use of that as well.

So um again, we're here for any questions and ask for y'all support tonight.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Pittman.

Is there anyone else here to speak to item number 13?

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is uh Nancy Flowers.

I live at 1500 Morton Road in Athens, and I don't think there's anything that I can say that hasn't already been said except to say that I uh am a property owner near this property that's being proposed.

These guys have a reputation that precedes them.

I'm in total support of what they're doing.

Uh they've got uh uh they've got a safe place for people to live next door in the development that they've already finished.

And um if there's anything else that I could say that would be positive, I'd say it, but it's already been said, so thank you for your time.

Thank you, Ms.

Flowers.

Is there anyone else here to speak to item 13?

All right, this is in District 7, so I'll ask Commissioner Culpepper to place a motion on the floor.

Motion to approve second.

All right, I've got a motion from Commissioner Culpepper and a second from Commissioner Hambee.

Commissioner Culpepper remarks.

Uh yeah, um everything that we discussed at the agenda setting session.

You know, this is where students are already there, located there, and so we're just slightly increasing the density there versus increasing density in single family neighborhoods.

Um the infrastructure is there with the sewer.

Um, we don't have to do any work on adding capacity.

Also, um they've offered to work with the county uh on relocating some of the mill houses uh to county owned property uh to create affordable housing.

Commissioner Hambey, any follow-up?

No.

Commissioner Wright.

Um yeah, I have a question for the motioner and the second determin.

Um in the report on page 245 of the the full uh packet of uh it talked about how uh staff recommends the following conditions if we're gonna approve it.

Are you including those three conditions with your motion?

Yes, there yes.

Okay.

Thank you.

Second or same.

Uh Commissioner Link.

Yeah, I have a question.

Are there clear plans underway to um relocate those houses?

Um, from what I understand.

Um, you know, being on the Go ops committee that looked at uh available land and and considering a land bank authority, we have very little feasible land that's suitable for housing.

I know staff provided some context for that prospect, and I don't know if uh manager cow would like to summarize that.

A little bit so I'll say it's a work in progress is how I'll describe it.

So there's two two pathways that we're taking.

One is looking at what homes make sense and can be relocated from that property onto a temporary location until a permanent location can be found.

That's one path.

The other path is actually talking with some of the other providers or some of our partners in the community to see if there is a way in which they can partner in it so we can locate it directly on property that they might have, and that's kind of where we are currently.

The building department has gone in and assessed each of the mill houses to determine kind of their current condition.

There are a couple that probably may not be uh able to be moved, but there are certainly a few of them that that can be.

So that's the the path that we're on currently Commissioner Thornton.

Commissioner Thorn.

I definitely uh support the um the uh movement of the mill houses that that can be moved.

But I but I do want to be clear um or or or maybe somebody can clarify for me.

The idea of moving the mill houses is not actually contingent upon this rezoning.

I mean, if if it passes, it passes.

But if it doesn't, you know, it's not together in a package, it's not in a proposal that we are going to uh move these mill houses if the rezoning there's no condition attached to the rezoning, there's you know certainty that we open, so there's just a certainty that we're working toward that and that the property owner is is working with us on that.

Okay, thank you.

Anyone else?

Uh Commissioner Myers.

Yeah, just uh going over there.

So what we have is an expressed interest in doing this with Clark County and discussions and the developer owner of the property and discussions.

And um, fortunately, I went by and looked at it, and fortunately I ran into Commissioner uh Thornton there because the houses on Puritan Lane, I was like, oh, these are really run to you know, they look like they're falling down.

And then she was at the other ones which were in much better condition.

So I think there is a need to evaluate what can be moved and what's capable of being moved or worth being moved.

And that is uh the the so the building department has done that initial assessment, and then they're also talking uh and getting estimates of what it would cost to move the ones that appear to be able to be moved.

So yeah, having gone through the personal escapade of moving a home one time, I can tell you that spending a lot of money to move a piece of sawdust probably is not an endeavor that we want to enter into, but um I I think at least based on staff's initial assessment, there are a few homes that definitely would be worthy of moving.

Uh Commissioner Down.

So is the 20% tree canopy over?

Um is that binding?

I can't find it in the application.

Uh I I'm I'm seeing a nod from planning director Lonnie.

Okay.

I love my trees.

All right.

Any other input from the body?

All right.

Let me have uh attorney Drake read the ordinance for us.

In order to amend the code of Athens, Clark County, Georgia, with respect to rezoning parcels of land, totaling approximately 9.49 acres located at 1030, 1040, and 1060 Macon Highway and 104, 110, 120, 140, and 150 Puritan Lane from RM 1 mixed density residential to RM2 PD mixed density residential plan development and for other purposes.

Thank you, Attorney Drake.

There's a motion from Commissioner Culpepper and a second from Commissioner Hambey.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

No.

No.

Let's do a roll call.

I apologize.

We'll start with uh Commissioner Culpepper.

Yes.

Myers, yes, Thornton.

Yes.

Andy?

Yes.

Davenport?

Yes.

Link.

No.

Taylor?

No.

Wright?

Yes.

Fisher?

No.

Johnson.

Yes.

Okay.

Seven, yes, three, no.

All right.

Motion carries.

Thanks, everybody.

All right.

We're going to move on to any public input on item 14.

We do have a signatory for this 10-minute opportunity.

So we'll begin by calling Buck Bacon to the podium.

And then we'll follow up with other public input on item number 14.

Mr.

Mayor.

I can't get on the internet, and I was curious if there was a problem.

I can't either.

Okay.

Sorry, I think internet's down in the room.

Is there can just be a good question?

Well that you make a recording of it.

Do you know if they're yes, the uh uh the film is working and the uh YouTube feed is working?

Yeah.

Also the FTP site is uh Mr.

Bacon.

10 minutes is yours.

You don't have to use all of it.

I didn't do it.

My name is Bucky.

Uh I serve as the government and community services director at Better Communities Collaborative and WA engineering.

Our office is located at 355 uh Oneita Street here in Athens, Georgia.

Uh part of my role at W ⁇ A includes managing a team of professional engineers, landscape architects, and surveyors that lead programs and projects for our nonprofit clients uh like farm to neighborhood.

I'm here on behalf of the applicant, the East Athens Wellness Experience and Farm to Neighborhood, and we are asking for your support and approval of the proposed amendment uh to the existing plan development.

The proposed project amends the existing binding site plan to allow for reconfiguration of the existing parking lot, creation of new community garden, new street trees, and new green green space.

The proposed amendment is consistent with the future land use plan and is also consistent with the policies, goals, and strategies outlined in the 2023 comprehensive land use plan.

In fact, the plan before you is not significantly different than the original 1996 plan development, and that they both envisioned a community garden on the block at the intersection of Vine and Nelly B.

I'm certain that your planning director can advise you on the facts that require this amendment.

The proposed site plan amendment is binding.

In other words, no other development, no housing, no multi-story buildings.

Nothing can change this plan without the approval of this body.

The nature of a plan development offers this body and the community that you serve the assurance to manage how this site is developed now and in the future.

Both staff and planning commission have recommended approval of the amendment as presented to you tonight.

As stated during the agenda setting meeting, WA did prepare the application for the state local fiscal recovery funds grant on behalf of farm to neighborhood and is administering the grant on behalf of farm to neighborhood, pro bono.

WA has been transparent about our pro bono work for farm to neighborhood.

In fact, pro bono work for nonprofits to assist them in acquiring grants is common practice for nonprofit organizations.

WA's design and planning services are not pro bono.

In fact, WA's services were competitively acquired by our client, farm to neighborhood.

WA is not misrepresenting these facts.

WA and farm to neighborhood are happy to discuss this process in more detail with members of the community outside of this hearing.

Let me assure this commission and the public that there is nothing nefarious, no backroom deals, nothing hidden, and that the applicant and WA has made every effort to accurately and professionally represent the facts of this project.

The goals of this project are simple.

I'm proud of her team.

Respectfully, we're asking that you support and approve the proposed amendment as shown.

If you don't feel like you can approve this amendment tonight, we'd ask that you at least give her an opportunity to come before you again and revisit this.

Although I'll be honest, I don't think there's any new facts on this issue.

So respectfully, I ask for your approval.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Bacon.

Uh, any other member of the public if you'd like to speak to item number 14?

Go ahead and step up to the podium.

If there are a few folks, you can go ahead and line up.

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Alphonsa Brown.

Um, I'm part of the Eastside community.

Um, so this would be affecting the area where I live.

Um the problem I'm having with it is over the past few years, taxes have already just keep going and going up.

So putting this development here is gonna raise taxes some more.

Just like in my neighborhood of Woodridge, where I don't know how it was a path behind the neighborhood.

Now that they've put houses right behind their neighborhood, our neighborhood is being blocked out because I guess they're trying to fix the draining issue because it used to be a creek that ran behind there.

For years and years they talked about doing something with that land.

All of a sudden they did something with it, built some houses.

Now we're talking about building up this area, and it seems like if you're trying to say this community needs help, it needs help in other areas too, not just development and raising property taxes.

Not just playing and not talk to the people in the community.

Because that's gonna affect our taxes.

Well, we stay at.

And a lot of these people that talking don't even come in this area outside of development.

So that's the only thing I ask that y'all review it, that the people in that community have a chance to review it.

Because a lot of people in that community don't even know this going on.

So that's the only thing I'm asking.

We have a lot of elderly people in that area, and with fixed incomes.

So raising the property taxes.

But it definitely don't look the same.

So all I'm asking is if you're gonna develop something, make sure the people that stay in the community are gonna benefit from it.

Not just more taxes.

I appreciate the time.

Thank you, Mr.

Brown.

Good evening.

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Tammy Foote, and I live at 223 February Street.

I'm gonna read to you Isaiah 54 from the Amplified Bible.

It says, no weapon that is formed against you, which is the inner East Athens and the East Athens will succeed.

And every tongue that rises against you in judgment, you will condemn.

This peace, righteousness, security, and triumph over opposition is the heritage of the servants of the Lord.

And this is their vindication from me, says the Lord.

So we okay.

In the movie, The Color Purple, Seeley said, until you do right by me, everything that you think about is gonna crumble.

Remember that.

Let me break that down a little bit more for you.

That meant that Miss Seeley, inner East Athens and East Athens, was telling Athens Clark County government, until you all acknowledge and rectify the harm you have caused us, your entire office and all your plans will fail.

This is a powerful expression of our self-empowerment and our rejection of your mistreatment.

I want you to be blessed, and I want y'all to do the right thing by our community.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms.

Foote.

Good evening.

My name is Smith S L Bell.

I'm from 100 Woodridge Circle.

I come again, asking all of you, to search your heart.

God said, love your neighbor as you love yourself.

That means anybody can be your neighbor.

But when you come in to take advantage of people, that hurt the whole community.

So I'm asking y'all to get search your heart.

If you care about us, you would stand up for us.

That's why we have all of y'all here.

Not for somebody to come in to develop around us.

We have y'all to speak for us.

So I'm asking you again.

Search your heart.

Do you love the east side?

That's all I have to say.

And y'all have a great evening.

Thank you, Miss Bell.

Good evening.

Good evening.

I greet you all in the name of Jesus.

And for three years, God told me to pay attention.

And I did.

And it's made me a better person.

It's made my heart grieve for those who are not being treated right or who are being put upon.

And I ask you tonight to pay attention, to pay attention to what is going on in our community.

We had no input in this.

We had nothing to do with it.

It's like we got bum rushed.

And here we are right here.

So I would implore all of you not to allow this to happen to us.

As the person said before, we can even go back to the table and see if we can't work this out.

But as it stands now, what they are asking for is will eventually change the whole landscape of our neighborhood.

Because the number two PD, you can do anything with it.

You can raise, you can move streets, you can do anything.

Contrary to what I look up on AI quite a bit, and contrary to what, and it brought Athens, Clark County up.

And for what they're asking for, they don't have to come back.

They can build apartments that are up to the sky.

And if you all are believing that they have to come back to this body, I ask you, you got computers in front of you, got phones in front of you, look it up and ask for Athens, Georgia.

Thank you.

Ms.

Van Brug, make sure you leave your name for the record for the clerk.

I did.

I say it on Will Fabro 1053 Spring Ballet Road.

Thank you, Ms.

Fanbro.

Good evening, Mara Zorniga.

I'm a proud member of Inner East Athens, been a member for three years.

This amendment on the surface by design appears to be about a bunch of nice things.

And the righteous actions by a business person towards a community.

If you look at it, it would be ridiculous for any intelligent person to be against it.

That's because those strategically fighting this group want to make them seem ignorant, unschooled about their own history and neighborhood, and unwilling to do anything that makes things better for their own neighborhood.

Commissioner Taylor said in the last meeting nothing has changed in this area since I was little.

She said this would be a change.

But I asked myself, will it bring a positive or negative change?

Not all changes are good.

See, this is not about a community garden, about feeding people, a kitchen or green space.

Because this group is not only a highly educated, well-versed, not only in their neighborhood history, but all of Athens and their country, they're well informed of local issues and political processes, and have been fighting for many years the different strategies that have been tried by different folk, some in public office to overtake their community.

That's the only reason they're still existing.

Too many things have been thrown, too too many, too many things have been thrown in the in that area besides money and development that has brought poverty, a poverty level that has been kept in place in order for Athens Clark County to qualify for federal grants, grants that have been invested in other communities and only benefit a few.

That includes minorities that are used against minorities.

One of our greatest detriments is that minorities keep trusting the very same people that say they are helping when in fact they are creating a pathway for their own agenda.

So let's get to some truth.

Overproduction of student housing without stewardship and oversight is where the money is at.

Pushing lower and middle income households out of their areas is the outcome.

This is not only happening in East Athens, it's happening all over Athens.

Look at five points, where five new condos will be completed in October, priced at about 700,000 for 700 square feet.

This will do the same.

These players create many problems, which they already have nice solutions for.

Done over and over, this obviously creates a lack of trust.

And that's what we have.

And you, those who will justify this with an approval, are asking folk to trust a supposedly well-intentioned amendment from those who have conflicts of interest and that haven't been asked to prove that their community actions have had any positive outcomes.

Thank you, Ms.

Niga.

There's a track record of lies and deceit by some people, including some minorities community to help.

Appreciate you coming together.

With an approval child and husband are doing well.

Without oversight and care.

That will be the end of this community, and the blood will be on each of your hands.

And to the rest of our need to call up anybody else who's here to come with us this evening.

Good evening.

I am Diane Dunstan, and I am an East Athens resident because I am the uh trustee and treasurer of East Friendship Baptist Church, located at 480 Arch Street.

We are in trouble because I came to you many years ago to say, please don't fall for the bait that the houses will be affordable that will be built in our community.

Well, I heard poor people like nice things too.

We do.

We're experts in gardening and cooking.

So we're good.

What I need for you to do is be honest, be fair.

We do love our community.

We take great pride in it.

I have worked for eons to get the government to partner with organizations to do the right thing by Triangle Plaza.

You didn't.

This, that, and the other.

Give us a little bit of money, and it's thrown away, and then we go and look at the block now.

And you're telling me you're gonna have a teaching kitchen and a garden there.

When we have desperate people on the streets, as my pastor said on Sunday, stop drinking the Kool-Aid, the drugs and the cocaine, the promises, the money that you throw at certain people to say, we're gonna do this great thing for the poor folks.

And then what happens?

Well, the community is hurting, we're tired, we're gonna keep fighting because we have children and grandchildren who deserve better.

And they are going to be in Athens along with your children and grandchildren.

Because they deserve to be.

Thank you.

Thank you, Dr.

Dunston.

Anyone else here to speak to item number 14?

Good evening.

Good afternoon, everyone.

My name is Isaiah Ellison.

I'm the uh my address is 190 uh Kingswood Drive Athens, Georgia.

I'm the former owner of 585 Vine Street, uh, before I sold it to Miss Rashi Malcolm.

And I come before you today in support of Miss Malcolm's effort to improve the property at 585 Vine Street.

I mean uh 585 uh, yes, 55 Vine Street.

Now, all it takes is about 15 minutes to drive through East Athens to see all of the new construction taking place in the area.

While many of the homes owned by black families have remained in the same condition pretty much for the last 30 years.

One of the reasons being is that black families' income is not kept up with the economic progress taking place in this country, and more particularly in East Athens, where the prop poverty rate uh remains among the highest in the nation.

And from a business standpoint, other than Miss Malcolm's restaurant and rental units, the only business that's thriving in the Triangle Plaza right now is the liquor store.

Uh uh, and uh I won't go into the reasons why liquor stores thrive in poor underserved communities because I think we all know why that is.

Panown grocery store recently closed because of that of community support.

Now, a lot has been said about uh 1996 PD, and I uh think one of the unintended consequences of the 1996 uh PD is that it locked people into a mindset of perpetual poverty by causing them to think that everything will be okay as long as they stayed the same.

Many people thought that as long as we hold on to the progress we had made up to 1996 that everything would be okay.

But now it's 2025, and the people in East Athens are still holding on to 1996, while the community in and around East Athens have seen tremendous growth and development in the form of new buildings and new construction all throughout the area, and I understand that's why the community is a little bit upset because if you ride through there, you see hundreds of houses that have been built throughout East Athens, and none of them are built by black folk, by the way.

Another argument I've heard over the years is that Triangle Plaza has been a place for black folk to congregate, hang out, and socialize.

But I submit to you that uh we all know what goes on when people hang out on the block around a liquor store.

There are drug sales, drug use, gambling, prostitution, alcoholism fights.

I got videos to prove that, and to deny that these things happen on the Triangle Plaza is ludicrous and shameful.

Now, I will agree that everybody needs a safe place to congregate, but there are a number of places that uh where that are uh they can do that, which is uh at the community center in LB apartments, the Aaron Heard Park and Community Center with baseball diamonds, tennis courts, and basketball uh courts.

There are walking trails, parks, and picnic areas on Trail Creek and MLK, and there are a number of churches in the area that can provide a place for meaningful and constructive activities for children and adults alike in a single thank you, sir.

Thank you so very much.

Is there anyone else here to speak to item number 14?

Thank you.

Good evening.

Good evening.

I'm Dr.

Shanice Allen and I live at 130 Meredith Ridge Road.

I own property in Inner East Athens, and I am a business owner in East Athens.

Let's be clear.

I also I am the president of Inner East Athens Neighborhood Association.

So let's be clear.

This plan development amendment is not about a garden.

It's a cover.

And the 1996 PD plans, if they were reviewed carefully, it is plain that a garden was already included nearly 30 years ago.

And I think it's Mr.

Buck Bacon just telling you today that it's there.

These same plans show there is more than enough green space for trees and gathering areas.

And if the issue is a parking lot being out of compliance, then simply bring it up to code.

None of that requires a PD amendment.

So why the push for one?

From where we stand, this amendment looks like a back door for something much larger.

A project that includes a grocery store with student housing stacked on top of it.

It's true.

That is a major development, not a simple garden improvement.

When I said weeks ago that this is not about a garden, that was exactly our concern.

What makes this worse is how misleading the process has felt.

The planning department and WA engineering have presented this amendment in ways that, in our view, do not line up with what the documents already show.

At times it has even felt as if WA engineering suggested that our community is incapable of reading and understanding the future land use map.

Let me be clear.

We deal in documented truths.

We have the facts in black and white, and perhaps if WA and the planning department reviewed those same documents with the same care that we did, they would see what is already published.

We have taken this fight beyond Athens.

We have written the governor and filed a formal complaint with the Office of Planning and Budget in the Governor's Office.

We've done an open record request and have received the documents.

Excuse me.

The word of God reminds us in 2 Thessalonians, chapter 3, verse 3.

But the Lord is faithful.

Who shall strengthen you and keep you from evil?

Excuse me.

We claim this promise over our community today.

And make no mistake, from our perspective, this amendment presents harm, disguised as help.

It risks displacement, Dr.

Allen.

And the dismantlement of generations of community history.

We will not be fooled, we will not be silenced, we will not stand by the process.

I ask that she deny this PD amendment.

If not, please suspend it for 30 days for transparency and truth.

Thank you, sir.

Is there anyone else here to speak to item 14?

The last speaker is item 14.

My name is Mildred Lumpkin White.

I'm a resident of East Athens.

I'm within 400 feet of the block.

I received a letter in the mail to attend the initial meeting concerning it.

I didn't know why I was going to that meet meeting.

Because it has not been transparency in our community.

And when I got there, it was only two other residents.

And one of them represented her mom.

And another resident wasn't actually within that blockage, but she came on behalf of her son that lives in East Athens.

Now, this is my problem with this after finding out all the information and to see what is initially proposed.

First of all, when we talk about a garden and a teaching kitchen, it's already a garden over there.

I start to take a picture of it.

It's overgrown.

It's only about room size, and I'm figuring if you're not keeping that up, what are you gonna do with a bigger garden?

And then I'm also thinking, teaching someone to cook and to thrive, that's good too.

But this is my concern.

Once that rezoning, if it's approved, it is gonna affect me and other people.

Now this might not be a part of it, but initially it came up that I live on the front row of Nelly B.

And it came up that they wanted my property in order to build a larger walkway, driveway, well, a bicycling trail that's gonna initially benefit the uh rock quarry, which is gonna be a park, and all that's good for the community too.

But in doing this, what about our children?

What about our elderly people?

We're not thinking about the people in the community.

And Mr.

Ellison, he said he was the farmer owner and he approves this.

Well, being the farmer owner, all of this has been going on when he was the farmer owner.

All of this on the block.

It is one big mess, and I think rather than addressing a kitchen and a garden, we should be addressing what we're gonna do for East Statin to clean up some of this.

Because you can build these buildings, you can do all of that, but if you don't solve the problem of the people that's gathering, the underserved, what does it benefit?

And I asked Mr.

Sheeta this question because she approached me after the meeting, said, evidently I've heard false things about her.

I don't know her.

But you miss Lumpkin White.

I appreciate you coming down tonight.

Is there anyone else here to speak to item number 14?

Hello.

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Lisa Walker, and I am from Athens, Georgia.

I want to speak on what God approve.

And that is truth.

And so many lives have been told, lies have been told for 30 years.

I went to prison and came out, and I've been out 30 years, thank God.

And ever since I got out, I remember when I first got out.

They came and got the black to pull black folks together, talking about come on, let's come get uh uh uh money because Athens is poor.

So we've been used.

Y'all been using us to get money, and guess what?

God see it all.

I don't care what you own.

God told me I just got out of the hospital with blood cloth in my lung, fell out of my house.

But I thank God he had his hands on me.

And you better hope he got a hands on you.

Because when you start mistreating people, you're gonna need him.

You're gonna need the Lord.

Like I said, God told me he said, fight for your rights.

He said, That's the reason why I'm here.

And I'm gonna read you what he gave me out of Hosea 6.

He said, for I desire mercy and not sacrifice and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.

But they have, but they like me, have transgressed the covenant.

They that there, they they depth treachless, treacherously against me.

Y'all ain't dead treasures against us.

Y'all don't debt treacherously against God.

And guess what?

Yeah, I want all y'all to look at me.

Because he's gonna deal with everybody.

He's gonna deal with everybody.

And you fake and you think uh uh folk just get drunk on the block, go ahead and tell him at night.

The Universal Georgia, you can't even call, you can't even get through there.

I don't know, do over.

I cried for those children getting drunk.

I cried for them.

You go do go down there sometime, you better be about to roll them.

So y'all, y'all think we y'all think y'all think the black folk get drunk?

They drunk in the wheels over there.

They just educate drunk.

They educate the drunks.

So when you start dealing, make sure you deal the truth and love.

Guess what?

God ain't through with Athens.

He threw it at Athens.

And let me tell you what, that young lady got killed on Matthew University, Georgia.

Y'all got blood on your hands.

Because y'all get trash with them folks out there on the ground, sleeping in the rain.

While y'all was uh collecting money for the pocket.

I will tell it.

Because guess what?

I ain't scaling a bitch, I ain't scaling the wall-up, and I sure ain't scared of the devil.

Thank you, Miss Walker.

You got to tired the Lord time.

But he's your time.

Good evening, Miss Barbara.

My name is Barbara Daniel.

I was gonna plan on speaking on something there, but since it's up in the road up in this place right here.

Um, what I don't like for somebody to tell that they're gonna teach us how to cook.

I've been cooking there since I was seven years old.

I came from a family that cooks.

I can cook whatever I feel like I want to cook.

But y'all feel to come out and display some more people.

Less than the height.

Y'all hadn't did anything about less night.

Now you're coming over here on the east side by the block.

You know that y'all gonna plan to build some houses, student house.

I already know that.

You know why I know that?

Because over there in less than the height, they had told us departments that in the back of less than height, supposed to be low income apartment.

The investor told us that.

Told us to come and apply for it.

That's the lie they told them.

Then when it got built, guess who it was?

Student houses.

The poor man came back over there to lessen the height, the ones that been displaced, was so pitiful and sad, had to come and tell us that it was a lie.

It was a lie, and that's what's going on now.

Another lie.

Then you're not seeing these storms.

Then y'all got disrespect for one another, which you want us to respect you all.

How you gonna want us to respect y'all?

Mayor Gert, disrespect Commissioner Johnson, like she was nothing.

But now one of y'all said anything to stop it.

Now one of y'all said, Mayor Gert, that's enough.

Do you think God pleased with all that?

Oh no.

Oh no, babe.

I've been coming here for three years, telling y'all he's not.

Baby, he getting closer and closer.

But still, don't mistreat the poor.

Because the poor is one of his favorites.

Have you heard of the rich man and the poor man?

You know what they stand for, don't you?

So I will appreciate y'all too.

Vito this.

We don't need this.

We need houses for the poor, for the homeless.

We need houses for the elders.

We need houses for the vet.

Everybody that went out and served for us, y'all looking at them like they ain't nothing.

But baby, the very one y'all looking at like that.

It's gonna be the very one that he gonna have y'all to ask for a glass of water.

And what he says, it left it to you what you do when they ask for it.

Thank you, Miss Daniel.

So please respect one another.

Please respect one another in order for you to get respect.

Thanks, Daniel.

Sir anyone else here's uh ready to speak to item number 14.

Good evening.

My name is Amy Cassane.

I live at 526 Highland Avenue in Athens, Georgia.

I'm here tonight to ask for your support for the proposed PD amendment, but I do want to take a second and just I don't want to sound tone-deaf.

I've been in here, I've been listening to all these, you know, all these speeches and comments, and I just want to say that I've, you know, I I'm aware of a lot of changes that have happened in East Athens in the last 20 years, and I know a lot of it has not been good.

So I just I am here just about this amendment, but I do want to acknowledge a lot of the distress and frustration that I hear.

Um I serve as the corporate citizenship coordinator for better communities collaborative and WA engineering.

And in that role, I administer our company's wellness program.

I work on sustainability initiatives, and I provide support to nonprofits as part of WA's commitment to our local communities.

I have been provide I have been providing in-kind professional support to farm to neighborhood since the fall of 2022 when I worked with them to write the application for this grant and that has resulted in $965,000 from the Office of Planning and Budget.

That award was announced in May of 2023, and since that time I have continued to provide professional in kind grant management services such as um reporting and reimbursement requests.

And I believe that this project will allow farm to neighborhood to increase its efforts to address food insecurity, especially with the elderly, provide wellness education and recreational opportunities to the community, and provide young people with entrepreneurial and culinary skills that enhance their ability to be self-sustaining.

Again, I acknowledge a lot of what has been said here tonight, and that these are a lot of topics that need to be discussed and worked on.

But I'm here tonight just about this PD amendment.

And your approval of this amendment is the first steps towards a realizing a lot of the goals that have been mentioned as part of the grant, and I join with Farm to Neighborhood and asking for your support.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms.

Kasane.

Anyone else here to speak to item number 14 before we move to commission action.

Good evening.

Hi.

Good evening, everyone.

Hope y'all are doing okay.

Um I serve as the secretary for the board of Farm to Neighborhood.

Um, and I really want to thank everyone for the opportunity to share our vision today.

Um I came in a bit late, but I did get to hear some of what everyone was sharing, and um I'm truly grateful, and I can definitely resonate with some of the hesitation that people may, you know, have about this project.

But you know, this project is really simple.

It's rooted in um one idea, just building healthier, stronger, more sustainable neighborhoods, buying for the people who are already living here.

Farm the neighborhood has secured a 25-year lease on this land, ensuring long-term sustainability and commitment.

With this approval, we will be able to revitalize the space with new sidewalks for safer walking, new trees, a teaching garden, and renovated building that will serve um as a hub for food, education, and economic opportunity.

The neighborhood has long been a food desert, but this project changes that.

Families will be able to maybe able to grow and access fresh and local food from the local um from the teaching garden.

Children and youth will learn about agriculture, nutrition, and culinary school school um skills through a specific program called Healthy Youth.

Um, so and these skills they can take and further along there with their careers.

Um, from the teaching garden to the culinary kitchens and food truck training, every element is designed to just prepare young people for economic opportunity.

So, you know, this sustainability project can strengthen community economics, local businesses may see increased um customers think to improve walkability.

Um we'll hire directly from the community.

Um, and by collaborating with other black-owned minority-led and neighborhood businesses, we're making sure resources and opportunities stay right in the community.

And this is just not for today.

Um, this is definitely a multi-generational effort.

Our children and then the children after them will benefit from the safer sidewalks, the new green space, and a vibrant community hub that was intentionally designed to serve them.

So this project definitely belongs to the community.

Um the land was sold to um farm the neighborhood's founder Rashi because the previous owner wanted um to ensure it's state and local hands, and we're here to grow um with the neighborhood and not move away from it.

So every program that we're building within Farm the Neighborhood, um, the gardening, the culinary training, the farmers market access, the food truck development has an economic um component that will help uplift the community.

Um so this revitalization is definitely community-driven.

So um, yeah, I I just I'm I'm very happy to be here again.

I resonate with what everyone, um, everyone's concerns, and I hope that y'all will support this project.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms.

Collins.

Sir, anyone else here to speak to item 14.

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Tutorius Neal.

I'm born and raised in Athens, 1748 East Broad Street.

I reside at 101 Hill Street for four day years.

Now, do y'all remember special part of local officer sales tax?

Remember the weed and seed program.

Do y'all remember that?

Yes.

Oh, okay.

It was supposed to help community out.

Suppose the rig, I guess, drugs, and plant another sea of goodness.

Um the old people die.

I've seen houses and apartments come that replace our old black people.

Well, maybe third or four to Caucasian young students.

Which is no problem.

Don't get me wrong.

That's big money.

I appreciate that.

But when I hear that kids can't go play basketball in the gym, that's supposed to be redid and stuff like that because somebody else won't play.

Quote pickleball or something like that.

Makes it hard to believe that somebody that lives here but not from here, is gonna come here and build some for those kids to actually learn how to cook for themselves instead of eating the hot pockets and the little food bank stuff that get on my bus and they trash.

I would love that.

I would love to see that.

I would.

And I'll be a part of it if it's gonna go that way.

But if it doesn't, I'll be highly upset.

And I won't be here.

When some of y'all might not be here, I'm gonna be here.

And I'm gonna see that it's done right.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Neal.

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name is Melanie Lewis.

Um, I live at 130 Cumberland Court in Athens.

Um, I'm a board member for Farm to Neighborhood.

Um I want to refocus uh what the vote is about the amendment.

Um I know just from speaking to the Inner East Athens Association, there is a huge trust issue, and it's understandable from everything that's happened in the past.

Um, but I can only speak for me being on the board, what I've seen our um nonprofit do, what I've seen Rashi do, someone who is from Athens, who loves her community.

Um this is not a rezoning, not necessarily that y'all don't know that just to make it a public comment.

Um, this amendment, from my understanding, is solely happening because of the green space, not because of any other things within the proposed plan.

It mainly has to do with the green space because it's asphalt and has to come up.

Um so I wouldn't say farm to neighborhood is coming from any ill intent, because if it wasn't for that, we would just do what we're trying to do, which is beautify the place.

Um, I've heard it's not sustainable.

Triangle Plaza is not sustainable, hasn't been sustainable.

I feel like this plan will create that and create the space for minority businesses that are already there to grow and bring in new minority businesses, because regardless of what business you are, it is very hard to do well if the area is not doing well or does not look you know put together or cared about.

Um and I just want to, I'm just keeping it short.

I just want to reiterate that this is about really helping the businesses and the community, the teaching garden, not necessarily all about cooking, but really showing people how they can go and create their own sustainability and take it back home.

And again, I understand that there's a fear that no one likes change, especially when you see things like gentrification, student housing, that is understood.

But coming from a positive place, I would like to see the community at least try to embrace it and let it see if if it doesn't go how they want it to go to still fight how they've been fighting, but to allow some change so that if it is what we're saying it is, they can benefit from it.

And that's it.

Thank you, Ms.

Lewis.

Uming.

My name is Janine Delane.

I am at 100 Woodstone Drive here in Athens, Georgia.

Um, I originally came to Athens in 2013 and immediately got immersed into this community.

Um I currently am a tenure employee with one of the University of Georgia's health and nutrition programs called SnapEd.

So I am very in touch with the need of nutrition and health education in limited income family communities.

Not only do we work here in Clark County, but we work and provide resources throughout the state.

And if you haven't checked lately, um the younger mothers are not preparing fresh, nutritious food for their children and need to get re-educated on all of the things that we're looking to bring through the resources that we are providing.

We see obesity is up with the children, diabetes is up with the children.

So to come and say that these resources are not needed, and our community is a complete farce.

Farm to neighborhood cannot get caught in the middle of what has happened in Athens or where people think it's going.

We kind of are in the middle here as business owner space here.

Okay, so what we've here we've heard a lot about, uh, we've heard a lot about you all are not bringing the garden, you all are not, it's not them, it's us.

And this is and I'm really taking it to heart because a lot of this is my ideas that I've helped to realize the gaps that we needed to bring into the community.

So I'm I just want to clarify.

This is not their ideas of these projects, it is our ideas as farm to neighborhood nonprofit organization.

Before the grant even came onto the table, we are already planning and trying to get these resources pulled together for the community.

The grant just came up over time as a great opportunity for us to build in sustainability to what we are already doing.

Okay, so we have to separate the other issues, and I'm not uh I'm not overlooking gentrification at all in any area, but we don't have anything to do with pushing people off of properties.

We're only working on the property that is solely owned by Roshi Malcolm.

So there is no moving you off your name.

There is no moving off of neighborhood homes and all of the things.

We can't take responsibility for that.

We have to stay focused on what this amendment is about.

We appreciate everyone listening to all of our, you know, we've been here weeks and weeks going over the program, so we don't want to drive that into the soil, but we do want to again be able to provide better opportunities led by the black community for the black community, and that's what we're representing here.

We're gonna continue to protect that vision, and we appreciate all of your um support for the initiatives that we've been bringing forward.

Thank you very much.

Thank you, Mr.

Lane.

All right, we'll move to a commission discussion.

Sorry, cool.

Good evening.

Good evening.

I'm long-winded, so I did write something shorts.

Good evening.

My name is Roshi Malcolm.

I am the owner of 585 Rhine Properties and the executive director of Farm to Neighborhood.

Farm to Neighborhood is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to increase access to nutritious food by providing fresh, prepackaged, healthy, and affordable meals for limited income adults, families, children, seniors across our community.

Our aim is not only to address food insecurity, but also to promote healthier lifestyles, foster community well-being, and ensure that every neighbor has the opportunity to enjoy meals that are both nourishing and affordable.

The East Athens Wellness Experience, the community garden and teaching kitchen was born out of a vision by community members and leaders within East Athens and throughout our community who wanted to provide healthy opportunity to enhance outcomes for disproportionately affected communities.

This proposal is simple.

We are proposing a community garden reconfiguration of the existing parking areas and a teaching kitchen.

Nothing more, nothing less.

We talked about this being an opportunity for economic rollover for healthy youth for our healthy youth program.

This extends those services that we're trying to provide.

We're trying to provide soft skills so that these kids can take those soft skills and take them over into other entities.

A lot of them don't want to go into food.

However, I Rashi Malcolm, that's my lane.

That's what I know.

I know food.

And so that's how I'm able to do my part to be able to teach into the community.

This proposal is simple.

We are proposing, I'm sorry.

I said I was I wasn't gonna get distracted and I wasn't gonna get emotional, but it this is emotional because I understand gentrification.

The where I grew up doesn't even exist anymore.

They're houses.

So I get it.

I I mean I get it.

No one can no one can tell me.

I can't go back to my to my home state in Connecticut and be able to see where I was raised.

Um and I'm talking about generationally raised in the projects.

So I get it.

I do.

I understand the frustration, I understand the anger, but I do want to say, and I'm sorry I'm going off script, but I do want to say that just like this commission meeting has been going on for years and years.

I still had people ask me what's the address, the time, and the date that they're supposed to be here for this meeting.

We try to reach people, we talk to people who talk to us and who come and and they take advantage of our programs, they trust their kids to us to be able to come and be taught.

You know, we have adult classes, we have, you know, we have a lot of things going on, and I understand everybody says that they don't know anything about it, but we've tried.

I'm sorry, good night.

Thank you, Miss Malcolm.

All right.

Um Sher Taylor, this is in District 3.

So I want to attend to you for a motion.

Well, I figured since everybody was given their east side story, can I tell mine?

Uh if that concludes in a motion.

I feel good.

Um so as to was born and raised um inner East Athens, bust to Winterville.

They went, they bust the children from um Vine Street, Fairview Street, and L to Winterville.

And I still reside on Fairview as a 36th-year-old woman who's raising her children.

I too was raised on Fairview Street.

Um actually, like right behind the Neely's house.

So I I actually went to Neely on Brout Street.

Um preschool.

And so all of these issues and concerns that's been brought up tonight are my concerns too.

That's the reason why I was elected.

Everything that everybody got up on that podium and spoke about inner East Athens is what I grew up in and what I also am raising my kids in today.

I live on Fairview Street.

I know what the block looks like.

I know what eviction looks like.

I know what gentrification looks like.

I'm that's why I got elected.

So your concerns are my concerns.

But I also know before I was elected, before I was sworn in, I got a uh an inside glimpse to what Rashi is trying to do on her property.

And me and my children, we volunteered numerous times in her um food bank.

We've delivered chili.

I've personally delivered chili in Eastwood Court, another apartment complex I grew up in.

I went to gang school.

I was in kindergarten.

When when we say enter East Athens to my core.

So I know that Rashi isn't trying to harm this community.

Her garden is not.

I volunteered in her garden.

My children too.

Rashi is where East Athens is.

She just is.

And change is inevitable and it's scary and not in our backyard.

I feel the same way.

Because me and Andrew are gonna work on getting that surpriser store.

The reason why I was put here is because I feel the same way y'all feel.

And because I motion to approve this motion, does not make me less east than anybody else.

Commissioner Wright.

Second, or any further remarks.

Um I can yield my time if Miss Commissioner Taylor isn't finished.

No, I'm done.

I'm done.

Uh Commissioner Fisher.

Thank you, Mayor.

Um as I look at what we're trying to do here, and and I'm gonna go back and do a little bit of a history.

When I moved here in 1988, um the first thing that we were dealing with was from unification.

I was a graduate student and started getting involved in what they were talking about, unification.

We have the city government and a county government.

And I'm gonna get to where I'm going with this.

During that time, that was some promises made.

That was two promises made.

Well, let me go back.

Unification failed four times before it passed.

The reason passed the fifth time, because they got the black community on board.

And the reason they got the black community on board, it was two promises made.

We was gonna build economic development in East Athens.

We're gonna have sewer and water throughout this community.

Well, we fail.

We failed as a government, but did not hold up to these promises.

So now here we are today, and this community don't trust us because we hadn't lived up to our responsibility as elected officials.

Now that happened a long time ago.

But we gotta do better.

I said this before.

We gotta do better in order for people to trust us to do right by our community.

We gotta do that.

And we fail to do that.

So when we see all this community get up and say they don't want this to plan development in their community, that's why.

Because we failed in the past to live up to our responsibility.

Now I say all that to say um I'm not gonna support this, but at the same time, we gotta do better as a government.

We gotta put trust back into our community and deliver what we promise on.

Our hope that we can do better at East Athens.

And there are other pockets in our community that we need to do better about, but but we we have failed.

And I can't blame them when they get up and say they don't trust us.

I think what Miss Malcolm is trying to do is great.

And I said this in our agenda setting.

There's a garden that's there.

I don't know why we can't go and repurpose that garden.

It's a bigger footprint, provide more vegetables, vegetables, fruit, or whatever you're gonna plant there.

So I'm not sure why we can't do that.

Um, hope, and I may need to put a motion on the floor.

I will hope that maybe we can go back to the table, have some meaningful conversation and see if can we get this result?

Because I hate to see the back and forth that goes on within within this community.

Um great people that live there, some people who were born and raised here, and I wasn't born and raised here.

But I understand, and I understand about being poor, because I've been there and lived.

But at the same time, we gotta do better.

Give me a little bit more grace.

Mr.

Fisher.

Everybody okay with this time for commission.

You got the grace.

Thank you.

And but we gotta do better to serve our community.

So when things say they don't trust us, they don't want those things done.

We need to take that for what it's worth.

They're speaking out, they say they don't want it.

So that's what we also um um I'll be a no-vote, but at the same time, we gotta work with that community, talk with them, ask them what they would like to see, have these meaningful conversations, and let's see if can we move in East Athens forward to the direction that they want to be led in.

Second.

Commissioner Thornton and then Commissioner Myers.

Second.

Commissioner Thornton and Commissioner Myers.

I said, I would um I would like to uh make a substitute motion, Mayor.

Uh I think I heard from both sides, they would be interested in having a 30-day conversation.

Maybe because I went digging, but I thought tonight we were going to hear more of the objective stuff, but this was more emotional, and I get it.

But I am going to, but let me with my um my my request for um tabling this for 30 days.

And I'm so glad that Mr.

Ellison is here.

Um there's two sides of every story, and there's always a backstory.

And I know that Mr.

Ellison tried to sell that property to some other folk, and they were not able to purchase it.

If I'm if I'm wrong, correct me, Mr.

Ellison.

And Rashi came in here and really the unthinkable with her vision.

Um, and I commend her for that.

I support Rashid, um, always have.

I support the East Side, but I remember when Rashi and Mr.

Ellison sent me videos of the stuff that was going on on that block.

I got I I saw the videos and it made me wonder well, where the hell are the police who are right there across the street?

So there's a lot of problems that are not going to be solved tonight, and I think if we make a decision tonight, we'll be premature because we need to look at the facts and not the emotions.

But gentrification is real, y'all.

It is real.

And even though no no no no disrespect to anybody on Rashi's team, but I do believe there are devils that work behind the scenes.

And at the end of the day, I do not want to be the person that said when we see a student building and all the luxuries and stuff.

I don't want to be my name attached to that.

So at this point, I hope somebody will give me a second to put it on the table for 30 days.

I second that.

I've got a second from Commissioner Fisher.

I just want to make sure, Mayor, that would be the hold the next week because I think I maybe more 30 days.

Well, well, it would be uh for one cycle.

For what cycle?

You know, uh mayor may make one more comment.

Um I know my time was almost um up a moment ago.

I think it is important for the information that the inner East Athens um community have found, be put on the table next to the information that WA has produced and be able to look at both sides and see where the discrepancies are and fix it.

If there's no discrepancies, then we'll come back and vote the way it votes.

But I heard two different pieces of information.

How can you make a decision when you're getting different information?

So you can't discredit them.

Matter of fact, if folk were as in tune as Inner East Athens is reading the small print and connecting the dots, East Athens may not look like it looks now, gentrified.

So we thank folk for doing the extra work, but guess what?

There's only a little bit left to protect in East Athens.

So, oh, and I do want to give credit to um Commissioner Taylor because while we are getting sidetracked with uh uh this project, you still have a tad.

70% tag, and we need to be making plans.

But see, that's how the system works, it does everything in pieces, but you need to look at your T splots, you look need to look at your tags, you look need to look at your splots, and you built a picture.

You don't do one piece at a time.

That's how stuff gets lost.

So everybody has come down, but you got a 70%.

Y'all are I don't even know how much how much money they got in that tab, Elka.

They got a bunch, y'all can do something instead of meeting.

Okay, so let's get together, and where we can work at, let's work at, and where we can't, we'll bid you ado.

I saw uh Commissioner Myers and Commissioner Johnson.

Yeah.

Um will support that hold.

Uh, but I want to ask some of those questions that you're like the factual questions here, so that I can clearly understand what I'm voting on.

There's a lot of emotion.

I acknowledge that.

Um, but I do want to ask a couple of specific questions.

And one is, and I'll tell you what the three are, and you can one is what's the difference between a type one and a type two request?

Why is this a type one request?

Because that seems to be a uh accurate that's being made that there's a problem there.

The second is the original PD includes a green space in the area of the proposed garden.

So why is an amendment to the PD required?

And the third is does this amendment to the PD change the zoning residential density allowed or encouraged?

Right now, this is zone CN with an existing, the existing, not the one that was passed 15 years ago, future land use of main street business.

So, what steps and votes would have to happen for increased density to happen on this or adjacent properties?

Because I think that needs to be clear to everyone back on this side of the rail and in the audience.

And so if you have any responses to those, I think it would be helpful for me as I ruminate about this in the in the month that follows.

Okay.

I can begin by answering the the last one of that piece.

There is nothing in this request that amends the underlying zoning.

There is nothing in this request that actually can't hear.

There's nothing in I don't know if it's on.

It's on.

There's nothing in this request that amends the underlying zoning.

There's nothing in this request that permits residential development on this property.

Um that would require an additional process to come back through this this process.

Um and Bruce can explain what that process is.

But so I can answer that piece, at least that that one.

But Bruce can give more details on on it and the other two questions.

Got planning director Bruce Laney with us.

Okay, thank you.

So the first question was what is the difference between a type one and a type two zoning action request?

And why is this a type one?

It's actually a type two.

So um why is it a type two then?

So why is it a type two?

There we go.

So um the difference between the two of a type one and a type two is actually the duration of the evaluation of the request.

Type one actions take 120 days of evaluation from the time our department receives the application to the time that this body hears it for a vote.

Um the additional time is necessary for evaluation and to dig through some things.

And when it comes to PDs, a new plan development would it be a type one request.

An amendment to a plan development, and I'll talk about the tests that we use to decide if it's a type one or type two, but an amendment to a plan development typically is a type two request.

Um type two request has a timeline of about 60 days.

So type one has four public hearings, a type two has three.

So that's that's the fundamental difference is timeline and the type of analysis that's going on.

Uh when it comes to this request and any other plan development amendment, we have a section of code that allows for those to be heard as a type two on the shorter timeline, as long as, and this is a practice that the planning department has had for many many years, but as long as the following four things we can say yes to.

The first is the underlying zoning designation not changing.

Second, is the previously approved list of uses not changing?

Third, no new structures are proposed and no previously required structures are being removed.

Fourth, the proposed change does not represent an increase in development intensity, including an intensity increase that requires additional public infrastructure or would have an adverse effect on the surrounding community.

So as it relates to this request, the answer was yes to all four, and so a type two procedure was used for the public input and analysis.

So there's there's the answer to that.

Second question was the original PD did in fact have a green space right at the intersection of Nelly B and Vine.

That was about the quarter, a quarter of the size of what's proposed in the current amendment.

Um was much smaller.

The current amendment removes three parking spaces.

So the commercial viability of this and the fact that we have a binding plan that's making changes of that magnitude was enough to look at those four tests.

The answer was yes, we could do it as a type two.

The answer was no, we could not do this as an administrative change.

The planning director should not take a binding plan and make a change unilaterally when you have a change of this sort.

So that's why it came to you as a type two.

Um that's why an amendment was necessary.

The third question was about residential density.

Is that correct?

And what well and what steps and votes would have to happen for increased density to happen on this or adjacent properties.

Can anything be does what we decide on in a month?

Does that affect the kind of increased density that could happen then by right without coming back for approval in public infair?

So the plan development has a binding report and a binding plan.

So the answer is no, you could not have residential density inside of this PD without it coming through a process for amendment.

If that was the suggestion, that four criteria tests that I rattled off, the answer would be no to at least one of those criteria, if not two.

And in that regard, it would be a type one request for it to be amended to include residential density of any sort.

A single home is not anticipated with this PD, let alone apartments or any other kind of residential development.

So it would have to come back through a process.

Thank you.

I wanted to recognize Commissioner Johnson before I return to anyone else.

Sorry.

Thank you, Mayor.

So I want to start by saying thank you for the woman who acknowledged I was not allowed to ask questions, and I want to say I still have those questions.

Half of the questions are questions that came to me as I was reading through the document.

Half of the questions are from residents with the real name with the real address in district six.

And also I had conversations with other um commute members in the community that grew up in there, grew up in the community, lived in the community, or have neighbors, have relatives.

And so I want to start by saying I support the delay for 30 days.

And since I wasn't allowed to ask questions, I wanted to ask Ms.

Malcolm if she would be interested in meeting with me.

Because I think as Miss Delane said, you're in the middle, and I it feels like that.

I think there's a you're in the middle of the middle of planning department rules, policies, and all ways things changing.

And then you have a design engineering firm.

I just want to understand from you, um, and if you would be interested and willing to sit down with me and just answer.

They were really simple and really basic.

I just couldn't get them out.

Yes.

Thank you.

But I do support the delay.

That's all.

Anyone else before I return to Commissioner Thorne?

Commissioner.

This might be a question that went in the 30-day um on the table.

But I do I would like uh Mr.

Lani to be prepared, be prepared to discuss the future land use in compare in relationship to Vine Street and student possible student housing and a grocery store.

So I don't, you know, I'm I'm I'm I'm getting information like from everywhere, but I I'm not going to put you on the spot unless you just want to jump up there and say something.

Um, but I do want to know if there was some thoughts about student housing and uh a possible grocery store, because this community has been asking for a grocery store since I've been here, and that's been in the 80s.

So, but I'm not gonna put you on the spot to today, but that's going to be very crucial on how I'm going to move forward.

Commissioner Davenport.

Yeah, so just reading from the the email we received today.

So we're regardless of the housing or this is a straight this the zone doesn't change, and the applicant is just only asking for some trees and three parking spots to be turned into a garden.

Um it saddens me that you know we that people are finding amongst each other.

Um if you look at inner East Athens, you see like other people are like literally buying our properties.

They're they're not getting any feedback or pushback as much as another black person who's trying to at least do some good in the community.

Um and it's sad, um, but she's doing her best, you know.

You know, um the applicant is doing our best to in her own vision, and I wish that we will all sit down together and talk it out instead of finding out because we're not improving our own personal relationships if we're fine amongst each other.

But according to this for this uh reason, the strike reads on houses are not allowed.

Um if it um if any if Rashi decides to sell this property, the new owner will be binding to this PD, unless it calls back to us.

Um nothing can be built, no student houses, no townhouses, the whole just three parking spots, some trees, lumber trees, some garden, um and you know, whatever communication or activities she has with this business.

That's her own.

She bought that business by right.

That part of my right is hers.

But our merit decision, our decision today is merited only on the application of the pending um, not pending, the PD.

Not anything else.

I just want to make that clear because if we make other decisions based on other subjects, you know, it opens us up to more interesting things that I don't want to go down.

So the substitute motion on the floor from Commissioner Thornton is to hold for one cycle, so we'll begin around Robin with Commissioner Thornton.

Yes.

No.

Link, no.

Taylor, no.

Right?

No.

Fisher?

Yes.

Johnson.

Yes.

Culpepper?

Yes.

Yes.

Five yes and five no.

Right.

Um given the dynamics of kind of our understanding of the strict nature of a PD.

I'm gonna vote no on holding for 30 days so we can return to the original motion uh that was provided by Commissioner Taylor, and we'll be in the round table there.

Yes.

Right?

Yes.

Fisher?

No.

Johnson?

No.

Culpepper.

Yes.

Myers.

Yes.

Thornton.

No.

Handy.

Yes.

Davenport?

Yes.

Link.

Yes.

Seven, yes, three, no.

All right.

Motion carries.

Thank you, everybody.

Do you want to take a break now or do you want to wait till they let's take a break now?

Um quarter after is fine with me.

Uh let's let's have attorney Drake read the ordinance.

We'll we'll we'll have them do that.

Why don't you want to take a break?

585 Vine Street, one through five in the C MPD commercial neighborhood plan development district and for other purposes.

I vote again, Mr.

Mayor.

All right.

Uh everybody who voted with Commissioner Taylor's motion, please say aye.

Everybody who voted against, please say no.

Okay.

All right.

Thank you.

All right, we'll go ahead and take a 15-minute break, be back at 8 o'clock.

Thank you.

Look at old and new business.

And so in just a moment, we're gonna have public input on items 15 through 24.

Uh once again, rules of public input provide for up to a three-minute opportunity by every resident on any one of those items.

Again, please provide your name and place of residence.

And then we have uh the little card slot, and so if you slide that in there, uh Ms.

Armstrong will accurately capture your name for the record.

So uh is there any member of the public who would like to speak to any of those older new business items?

Again, items 15 through 24.

Good evening, ma'am.

Let us know the item to which you're speaking, your name and place of residence.

Sure.

All right, item number 17.

My name is Emily Alger.

I'm the president of the professional firefighters of Athens Clark County.

All right.

Uh good evening, Mayor Commission.

Uh, like I said, I'm president of our professional firefighters of Athens Clark County.

I'd like to provide some important context regarding the proposed relocation of Fire Station 5 and the recent discussion about the geographic information system study conducted by the International Association of Firefighters.

The IFF GIS study did not take into account that the station must be relocated under the terms of Splosh two thousand two thousand twenty.

The IFF study was designed using the current locations and added a new station to enhance service delivery.

They can only uh analyze the information that was provided to them, and there are many variables that are constantly changing.

Uh because of that, there has been some misunderstanding about the study.

It was never intended to delay or derail the relocation of fire station five.

Instead, it was designed as a planning tool to help assess long-term risk and guide decisions for the future as our community grows.

What remains clear and urgent is that our current fire station five is no longer adequate in terms of building itself and the location to provide adequate emergency services.

The union's position is simple.

What matters most to us is that we need a new station so we can continue providing timely and professional emergency response to Southeast Southeast Athens Clark County.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms.

Alger.

Is there anyone else here to speak to older new business tonight?

Good evening.

Uh this is for number 17.

My name is Wendy Crabey, 1822 Dorman Avenue, Atlanta.

I am an attorney, a land use attorney, and I am here representing uh Mrs.

Kathy Rodriguez Fayo.

She is the owner of 18 acres at 4710 Old Lexington Road.

It is uh this property is to the west of 4730 Old Lexington Road.

This is the property that the county is looking at possibly purchasing.

Basically, really look at this matter and reconsider voting for this.

The agenda says the negotiated price is 484,000 for 7.52 acres.

That's about 64,760 per acre.

The property tax assessment for this property is 112,800.

If you look at recent 2025 vacant land sales for that area of county, an acre of property it's going for between 9,000 and 30,000.

30,000 is very different from 67,000.

In what we've looked at, there seems to be no indication that an actual formal appraisal was done.

If you look at the old property on Witt Davis Road, this is very much at an intersection.

So once again, just asking to reconsider this.

At the very least, please reconsider the valuation and the circumstances of this property.

That's it.

Thank you, Ms.

Cray.

Thanks.

Hi.

Mayor Gertz and Commissioners, thank you again for allowing me to speak.

I am Kathy Rodriguez Fayo.

I'm a retired school teacher who lives at 4710 Old Lexington Road.

My home is directly adjacent to 4730 Old Lexington Road, the site that purchased that you're voting on tonight.

I was 30 years old when we bought the farm and built our home.

We raised cows, horses, chickens, Emmys, bees, and most importantly, two wonderful daughters.

Our girls grew up appreciating the outdoors more than most.

While being close enough to downtown Athens for the UGA games and all that comes with our great town of Athens.

Instilling a similar respect for the land, teaching them to swim, catch fireflies, and count the stars where there is no light pollution or noise beyond our chirping crickets.

No mail, no phone call, and no sign.

None of the other families adjoining this land were given notice either.

One day we saw the surveyors on the land, and when we asked what they were doing, they told us that the land had been purchased by the county.

They didn't actually tell us what for, but we because these are our lives and our homes at stake, we kept asking questions and learned that it was not a done deal.

Only by calling the county ourselves, did we learn that August 19th City Hall meeting, the first to have this land purchase on the agenda.

We attended and spoke in opposition.

Now here we are, only two weeks later for the final vote.

If we had not happened to see the surveyors, this almost certainly would have come to pass without us knowing.

In fact, this past week, my daughter and friends and I went door to door in surrounding homes in the community.

We found 90% of the residents we spoke to, or just like me.

They knew nothing about it.

Still, they knew nothing about it.

Fortunately, we still have a chance to change the outcome of the vote tonight.

I'm asking on behalf of myself and surrounding neighbors of Old Lexington Road that you please deny this location and change the radius for the new fire station to a safe, appropriate location that serves the most people now and in the future.

Mayor and Commissioners, thank you for listening to me.

Thank you, Ms.

Rodriguez Fett.

Good evening.

Good evening.

My name's Laura Carter, and I live at 3710 Barnett Shells Road.

I've lived in Athens for all of my 78 years and have been very active in the community.

I sent y'all an email explaining my concerns.

The whole point of the fire station, besides the fact that the old one is outdated and non-functional for the modern fire safety, is response time.

This is the ISO checked.

This is a problem for us to maintain our number one ISO rating, which keeps all of our insurance rates lower.

So it is very important that we locate this where we'll have the response times that the fire department thinks they can deliver service.

They are not in the business of just creating controversy.

They're trying to keep us safe.

The radius that has been projected is where the station needs to go.

And I am a little concerned about the price because that's gonna increase the property values of the surrounding property because y'all base these things on what things get sold for.

So I am concerned about that, but I definitely think we've got to do the new station.

And the everybody was offered at all these public meetings, people were offered the chance to sell land because they've always stated nobody wants to do anything within a domain.

So these people step forward, and y'all, you know, people negotiated, and that's where we are.

But the fire station needs to be within the radius that they have determined gives the response times to the currently underserved people in Athens Clark County.

Thank you, Ms.

Carter.

I wonder where this goes.

Just to your right, uh other side of the door.

Thank you.

Good evening.

Good evening.

Carly Rodriguez Fayo, 4710 Old Lexington Road.

The good news tonight is that there's a win-win solution on the table, and it doesn't just include quality of life concerns, agricultural concerns, or money concerns, but it also factors in new emergency response data provided to the public just weeks ago.

Commissioner Davenport has entered a CDO that requests shifting the current circle or radius and finding a new and better location for this fire station number five.

This is the winning solution.

I have 15 years of security and emergency planning experience, so please hear me when I say that the recent findings in this International Firefighters Association report are helpful and relevant and they need to be taken into consideration.

These statistics are not just a misunderstanding and should be factored in.

This report indicates three main aspects of fire safety that need to be calculated into a new location, any location.

The new factors are call volume, population growth, and hazard levels.

A good option is for the circle to be shifted toward Lexington Road, Highway 78, because this would place the station closer to where the majority of calls are actually happening, closer to where the majority of people currently live, where the population is growing and closer to medium and high hazard zones.

These zones enclosed include structures like commercial development, schools, grocery stores, and apartments, not single family homes.

These zones require additional resources, so a station place closer to them would allow for faster response times and more efficient assistance when additional resources are required.

A revised circle would take the burden off of station seven, not add more burden onto that station, which has already seen a 2.8 increase in incident responses over the past year.

A properly identified new location or radius would still improve call times and station proximity in an underserved area.

It would still protect and improve ISO ratings, which not only take into account the proximity of a home to a fire station, five miles are allowed, but ratings also calculate staffing, emergency communications, water supply, and more.

By taking the advice of neutral national experts, the county would improve emergency response and public safety for years to come.

The report provides interactive maps and charts that prove old Lexington Road is not where this important data points, these important data points are located.

Old Lexington Road is not the most ideal location.

It wasn't even identified in the first round of site selections.

And based on growth statistics, it's not a good location for the future.

The land under consideration is on a curvy hilly two-lane road, an agricultural agricultural farmland.

UGA's agricultural extension office confirmed that sudden noise and decibel levels from a fire station would harm livestock in close proximity.

Adjacent farmland was not calculated as part of the neighbor's dwelling.

The horse pasture is less than 100 feet away.

The farmland sits downhill in floods, and the pavement footprint print would be enormous.

You can't replace 50-year-old hardwoods, and you can't mitigate this location in a way that keeps the agricultural integrity.

Decision makers should consider all the information even as it evolves.

A holistic resolution looks at the bigger picture and prepared for what is best now and in the future.

Our fire department spent a lot of money to obtain this data, and we know our firefighters will make any place work.

This means that it's up to you, the decision makers, to provide the best solution.

It's up to you to consider all the facts and the public outcry and shift the radius.

Appreciate you coming tonight.

Is there anyone else here to speak either old or new business this evening?

Good evening.

Hi.

My name is Susan Mattern.

I live at 200 Shannon Dale Road.

That's off of Double Bridges Road on the edge of the county in Southeast Clark County.

And my comments are going to be a little boring compared to what we've heard so far, so bear with me.

I'm speaking in support of the plans to move Fire Station 5.

I never come to these meetings.

I've lived in Athens since 1998, and this is my first time.

But I felt compelled to speak up as a resident of Southeast Clark who would benefit from the relocation of the fire station.

People out where I live aren't as organized or as outspoken as the residents of the wealthy neighborhood that is mostly objecting to the relocation.

I don't have a lawyer with me today.

But we pay the same taxes as everybody else in Clark County.

Those, even though those taxes are high compared to what we would pay just across the border in Ogleflerk County and getting higher.

But we get very few of those services in rural Southeast Clark.

In particular, we are a dangerous distance from any professional fire station.

When I moved to my home in 2016, I used to live in downtown Athens.

It was hard to find home insurance because the distance to a fire station was so far.

Serving densely populated areas is important.

But so is ensuring that everyone in Clark County has minimally adequate access to fire and emergency services.

Two committees have determined that the proposed new location for Fire Station 5 best balances those two goals and best serves the public good.

Please consider our lives and our safety.

And please don't make us wait years more for remediation.

We have already waited a really long time.

Please move the fire station.

Thank you.

Thank you, Ms.

Mattern.

Is there anyone else here to speak to older new business today?

15 through 24.

Good evening.

Good evening, thank you.

Um my name is Elizabeth Lutes.

I currently reside in Comer, but spent most of my life at Lexington.

Um thank you for giving me an opportunity to speak here tonight regarding the relocation of the fire station.

Um I think it's important to know that the area in question is not just wealthy homeowners, but I'm a first-generation college student and my life growing up, spending time at 4710 Old Lexington Road really played a huge impact in why I'm here today and who I am today as a professional and community member.

So I stand here today as a member of the community in strong opposition of the proposed relocation of the fire station.

I understand and respect the vital role fire stations play in protecting life and property, but I cannot in good conscience sit quietly to the side on this issue.

This plan will deeply deeply and negatively impact the lives, homes, and legacies of families who have built this neighborhood.

For me, the issue is not abstract.

Uh there one of the homes at risk, as we've already mentioned, is 4710 Old Lexington Road, and it shaped who I am today and is at risk.

My very first sleepover was at this home.

The girls I met that night have remained my lifelong friends and support system, even into midlife and motherhood.

Since 2003, this house has been my home away from home, a place where I found love, safety, and support, even when I didn't find it in my own home.

My children.

I'm sorry.

My children have celebrated Christmas there.

I brought my past boyfriend who is now my husband there to see if he cut the mustard.

We've all been welcomed as family, even though we share no blood relation.

That's the legacy of this house and the home located by the proposed building site.

This house and others like it are not just structures.

These homes and this land are part of the fabric of the community.

They hold generations of memories and connections.

What makes Athens Clark County strong is its people, its neighborhoods, and its shared history.

The rural areas of this county are part of the diversity of the Athens community and should be honored.

I would not be who I am today without the love, grounding, and support that came from spending time at this home and using my imagination while spending time on the land.

I believe future generations deserve the same sense of peace and belonging I received in my adolescence.

Altering the landscape of old Lexington will dismantle the lives, memories, and futures tied to these homes and properties.

I urge you to reconsider this relocation site and choose a path that preserves not only safety, but also the legacy and peace of the community you serve.

There are a lot of reasons.

There have been ample reasons given tonight to reconsider and think about safety from a more holistic and broad perspective.

I'm bringing you the human aspect because that's what I can offer is my experience.

And I thank you for your time.

Appreciate it.

Good evening.

I'm not near as polished as most of the folks here are but my name's Perry Bug.

I live at 4350 old Lexington Road.

And um I'm I'm strongly opposed to this fire station.

And the reason being a study was done in East Athens or Athens all over.

First, I want to say I'm not opposed to a new fire station.

If we need it, we need it.

Nobody's opposed to doing something that's gonna create more safety for everybody.

You know, everybody's everybody's saying, well, I'm opposed, I'm opposed.

They're not opposed to a fire station.

They're opposed to the location of the fire station.

Um I look on Morton Road, 1.2 miles from this site we're talking about, is commercial property.

It's on the highway 78, uh, Morton Road, and goes on into Winterville.

25 acres is for sale.

The other corner, 10 acres is for sale.

The other corner, eight acres is for sale.

Why wouldn't that site work?

Um why do you have to go out and take agriculture area when you've already got commercial area that you can get a mile 1.2 miles.

Um I came to you as a business owner and I said, I want to relocate my business to this site that we're talking about today.

There's not one person sitting in here that would vote wanting me to do that.

You laugh me out of here.

Again, I'm a I'm all about safety, but this location needs to be moved.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Bug.

Anyone else here to speak to older new business?

All right, put the card in there for me.

Good evening.

Hi, my name is James Ward.

I live at 4740 old Lexington Road.

I came here last month speaking.

Uh I had a little bit of emotion get involved, and so this time I came prepared with a speech, so I'll just read off the speech.

Good evening, Mayor Commissioners, and members of the community.

My name is James Ward, and I've had the honor of serving as a paramedic and a member of the fire service for the past 14 years.

I come before you tonight, not just as a prior public safety professional, but also as someone who deeply cares about this community, our families, our neighborhoods, and those who are called to protect them.

I want to start by expressing my strong and unwavering support for our firefighters.

Every day they put their lives on the line to protect our property and risk their lives.

They deserve every resource and advantage that can give them to do their job safely, quickly, and effectively.

That includes policing fire stations where they best serve the community.

Recently, a study, and everyone I think has heard about this.

Before all this was given public, we had the most recent study, not the one that was presented tonight.

Provided by the IFF, provided updated evidence-based data on an optimal location for emergency response infrastructure, including fire station number five.

This study looked at call volume response times, coverage gaps, and access routes, key factors that directly impact whether we reach someone in time during their worst moment.

Unfortunately, the property currently being considered for this relocation was not one of those sites identified in the study.

While I understand the appeal of using land that is readily available, I urge you to reconsider emergency services don't get a second chance.

A few minutes, even seconds, can mean the difference between life and death.

We owe it to our firefighters and to our citizens to make data-driven decisions, not just convenient ones.

Additionally, I feel it is important to mention the financial aspect.

The property under consideration is appraised at roughly 115,000.

Yet the proposed purchase price is 487,000.

That's over four times the appraised value.

In a time where every taxpayer dollar uh every taxpayer dollar counts, this raises serious concerns.

It's not just about tax dollars and cents, it's about making sure that good stewards of public funds while also ensuring the best emergency response outcomes to our residents.

I ask you to revisit the findings of the IFFF and weigh that data heavily in your decision.

Let's do this right and for our firefighters.

Thank you very much for your time.

Thank you, Mr.

Ward.

Is there anyone else here to speak to either old or new business?

Again, that's items 15 to 24.

Evening.

Hello, uh, I'm Carla Murphy.

I live at 130 Green Hills Road, Athens, Georgia.

And I didn't write any of these.

I'm just the speaker.

I'm going to read two comments that are from a petition that opposes the 4730 Old Lexington Road Fire Station location.

Building the fire station on this proposed property when there is an alternative option with a reduced bill, severely undermines and erodes the community trust and its local leaders to look out for them, protect them and shield them from wrongful or harmful actions, which this proposal does.

To be voted into a position of leadership and then use this position to force circumstances to go your way when there is no natural or reasonable fit is shameful and detrimental to everyone.

Whether you see it now or not, the ripple effects will do substantial damage to the families who live and have made a livelihood here for many years.

The actions being proposed will by default become the criterion against which all community members will measure future decisions for themselves.

The great appreciation is that this feeble measuring stick will embolden this family and their neighbors to raise the collective voice to protect themselves from legislative tyranny.

Please do the right and best thing.

Be the leaders this family asks you to be.

Appropriate funds above board.

And above all, do everything with the love you hold for your own aging parents.

Thank you for listening to one and many voices.

May God be pleased with your final votes on decision day.

This is the second one.

I hope I have time.

Old Lexington Road is agricultural land and it's a winding road with 40 plus mile per hour speeds.

Families that live here don't want man-made disturbances, and we want to protect our green spaces and the wildlife and the livestock.

Please use our taxpayers' dollars to improve your current location or find a commercially zoned location, as Mr.

Bugs still spoke about, nearby, which are for sale close to Old Lexington Road.

We respect first responders and we are thankful for their service to the city commissioners and the folks wanting to disrupt our community.

Please respect our way, our quiet way of living.

We didn't choose to live next to a fire station, and we don't think it's appropriate for the government to force this on us.

Oh, Lexington Road is not your road.

Please find a less disruptive location.

Thank you, Mr.

Or improve the location we've already spent our tax dollars on.

Thank you, ma'am.

Is there anyone else here to speak to any item of older new business?

Again, those are items 15 through 24.

All right.

My name's Adam Kilgo.

Um live at 3541 Township Valley Court.

I'm here to speak about 159 Marlin.

This is uh not the first time that I've seen all of you, and this is not going to be nearly as emotionally charged as anything that's been going on, which y'all probably could use a break from.

Um so I just wanted to come to you guys and and speak on my family, my beautiful wife, beautiful daughter, um, what we're trying to do with our house.

We're literally just trying to um make sure that we can afford the house and and maintain our our process for retirement um to be able to actually move here to live here.

Um I've had the pleasure of having Commissioner Thornton and uh Commissioner Davenport over at the house.

I feel like a a few of you may have had the opportunity to come by and see the place for yourself.

Um I've run into you at Home Depot.

Uh you saw me looking a lot rougher than I am right now, but um that we've we've come to be part of this community, we want to be part of this community.

Uh we're doing everything that we can to improve not only the street that we're on, uh the neighborhood that we're a part of, but we're we're getting to know everyone.

Um shout out to Brown's barber shop.

If y'all need a good barbershop local, they're a good one.

Um getting to know everybody here.

So uh we love the place.

We hope that you guys can see what we see, and we want to be able to continually uh improve upon the our our neighborhood.

So thank you.

I appreciate it, and we look forward to your vote.

Thank you, Mr.

Kilgo.

Good evening, Bryce Hicks, WA Engineering 355 Onita Street here to speak about item number 15, this 360 Hawthorne extension.

Thank you all for your time and consideration.

Since the last meeting, my client and I have met with Commissioner Link to discuss the conditions that are now appended to the rezone request as the commission defined option.

We came into that meeting with a greater understanding of what her concerns were.

And since it turns out we were basically on the same page anyway, we agreed to the conditions that she presented.

Those conditions will ensure that resulting development will not be out of scale with the existing development pattern, nor will it negatively impact the neighborhood.

And rezoning the property will also crucially remove a section of commercial general zoning from an area where it has no business of being.

This is a good project, and I'm hoping for your approval tonight.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mr.

Hicks.

Any other speakers to any item of older new business again?

Items 15 through 24.

All right.

Seeing none, we'll uh come to commission discussion and as we start.

I notice item 15 uh has an ordinance attached to it, so I'll ask attorney Drake to read that ordinance for number 15.

An ordinance to amend the code of Athens, Clark County, George with respect to rezoning one parcel of land comprising approximately 0.9 acres loaded at three located at 360 Hawthorne Extension from CG Commercial General to RM-2 mixed density residential and for other purposes.

Thanks, Attorney Drake, and Commissioner Link is uh rezoning that was held over a cycle in your district, so I'll ask you to make a motion.

Um yeah, I'll move to approve the CDO.

I'll second it.

All right.

Got a motion from Commissioner Link, second from Commissioner Thornton.

Good, Commissioner Link.

Yeah, um, I think Mr.

Hicks kind of summed summed it up.

My concerns were um, you know, this is a commercially zoned acre lot which uh on a residential street, which is effectively a quiet single family neighborhood, although it the neighborhood is zoned RM2.

Um I met with the developer, I met with Mr.

Hicks, um, and the CDO effectively puts RS5 building standards onto the rezone to um assure that anything that is built on the property is effectively in the scale of the surrounding modest single family homes that have been there and um have been there for decades.

Thanks, Commissioner Link.

Any follow up, Commissioner Thornton?

No, I do appreciate the CDO.

I actually drove down Carthon extension and I reached out to um Commissioner Link when I saw um the the rezone sign because I'm paying attention to rezone signs now, and she was already ahead of the game as far as making some changes, and that's what her CDO does.

Any further input?

Motion is second on the floor.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Is there any opposed?

Hearing none, motion carries.

All right.

Um item 16 is another zoning action for commercial short-term rental on Marlin Street.

Held over cycle.

And uh Commissioner Thornton.

This is in your district, so I'll ask you to make a motion.

Mr.

Mayor, I'm making it.

Oh, yeah, I'll have my favorite read the orders.

I apologize.

In order to amend the code of Athens, Clark County, Georgia, with respect to special use approval in the RM 1 mixed density residential district for one parcel of land located at 159 Marlin Street and for other purposes.

Thanks, appreciate Attorney Great.

Commissioner Thornton.

I'm I'm making a motion to um accept this um proposal on number 16.

All right, is there a second?

All right, I've got a second from Commissioner Myers.

All right, Commissioner Thornton, any further remarks?

I know we've talked about this last cycle.

Yes.

I and I and since the last cycle, I want to thank staff for sharing um with each of us the number of CT uh CTRs in our district.

I think that is probably helpful for the past when we were going through all the CT, but we are going to be looking forward to um staff recommendations in a couple of months.

So having um this in front of us may help us be um more um objective.

I could understand why some district um commissioners are um have issues because I only have like 42 and other districts may have over a hundred.

So I do hope that staff takes that in consideration with their recommendations upcoming.

I'm just going to reiterate um about the CTR request on Marlin Street.

Um I don't think any time and may and I know it happens, but I don't think anyone who has come before us or that we've listened to talked about um creating jobs with their uh STR and Mr.

Kilgore is going to be using local folks to maintain his homes.

I assume every CTR probably does that, but I think it is um noteworthy that he brings this out without even axing.

Uh Marlin Street is a dead end street.

Um but uh and the fur and and if you remember the diagrams that he sent us, the first three houses are uh abandoned and uh dilapidated.

Uh because college students' housing surrounds Marlin Street during the day when when folk in other communities that have STRs uh are worried about parking, college students park all down that street um where those dilapidated houses are.

So parking is not going to be an issue.

Matter of fact, Mr.

Kilgore's uh driveway will host up to four cars, and he's want to put signage that you're not supposed to just block the area.

Um the other thing I thought was interesting, um, and I guess that was Mr.

Kilgore bumping into uh Miss Shimika at Home Depot, was it or whatever?

He's done all the um repairs and the um renovations himself with his wife as his personal decorator.

Um if you go into his house, there's a room for kids, so this is not going to be there's a room for for small children, so this is not going to be a party house per se.

Um the other thing that I think Commissioner Thornton, did you have anything else?

Yeah, one more thing.

Can I have a moment?

Because this is the both.

Okay for a minute.

Yes.

Um the most important thing is, and I think it should be in consideration with all STRs, is what the residents say.

And he's not just the interaction, you know, it's not just because they want he wants their support.

Their neighbors, they're talking about the grass and exchange and stuff.

They have a relationship.

So I've never seen that since I've been here.

I think he wants to be a part of the um of the community, and I think his STR will help build that community up.

Like I said, when you come down, beautiful homes, but you got to get down to them.

So I think his his uh seats.

STR will um beautify the neighborhood.

Recognize Commissioner Myers is second or Commissioner Hamby.

Yeah, um, I'm supporting this because I'm supporting the uh ordinance that we have in place right now.

I look forward to the update that we put in down the line.

Um I do you know want us to consider all the variables as uh Commissioner Thornton is doing um, but in terms of equitably moving through, I know there are some uh people who've been running short-term rentals in RM zones who are wary of coming before us now to ask for permission because we've denied other ones, not knowing if where they're gonna make the right presentation or talk about the right things.

So I think it is uh incumbent upon us to make it clearer what our uh rules and regulations are about short-term rentals in RM districts.

Thanks, Commissioner.

Commissioner Hamby, sure.

Thank you, Mayor.

And I'd just like to you know say this, you know, certain certainly certain commissioner districts have more than others, but y'all it's really not about the numbers at the end of the day.

Uh what it's about is us, you know, just recognizing that we need to we need to not approve new ones and see what we can do to lessen the ones that are here in a fair and equitable way.

I mean, every time we approve a new STR, this body uh takes a house off the market that could be for somebody that needs a house who lives in our community, uh, and an affordable house who lives in our community.

So uh just think about that as as we're as as we did this and and as we do this.

Uh I know staff is looking at uh some changes to be made to licensing, uh but that doesn't necessarily mean that we need to uh that we need to go ahead and approve this special use.

It's a special use, it's a special use for a reason.

I mean, and and and these special uses are having a um have an effect on on our community, and uh in any new ones, I think we ought to just we ought to just um say no to and and and make sure that um that we're that we're helping with the affordability and helping with the housing stock in in our community.

Thank you.

Uh Commissioner Fisher.

Yeah, I'm gonna I'll be recusing myself from this vote.

Okay.

All right, uh Commissioner Link.

Yeah, I I have mixed feelings about this, but like Commissioner Myers, um, you know, I I feel like we have this process laid out.

Um I'm really looking forward to the planning commission um coming up with some clear criteria so you know we can understand where these are appropriate and where they're not, and um hopefully you know amend this process so we don't necessarily have to vote on all of these.

Um because I'm you know I feel like it's it's not a terrible thing to have these scattered throughout neighborhoods here and there, you know.

I I've had family come to visit who stayed in an STR near my house, but to have them completely overwhelm our neighborhoods is not a good thing, and to have them take so many homes off the market is not a good thing, and to have them be so concentrated in certain areas is not as well.

Um I did spend some time in this neighborhood and I recognize the conditions on the ground.

Um, you know, I hope as we move forward with the future land use process and and some new zoning criteria and conditions, um, you know, we we can kind of bring some of these neighborhoods back.

Right.

Uh we'll go ahead and go around the room beginning with the motioner, Commissioner Thornton.

Um yes.

No.

Yes.

Yes.

Taylor.

No.

Right.

Abstain.

Johnson.

Yes.

Paul Pepper.

Yes.

Myers, yes.

Six yes to thank you.

All right.

Motion carries.

All right.

We're gonna move on to item number 16, or excuse me, uh, that was 16.

We're moving on to item 17.

Uh with item 17, would somebody like to begin by placing a motion on the floor?

This is motion to hold.

Second, second, second.

Got a motion from Commissioner Davenport to hold.

And second from Commissioner Myers.

All right.

Commissioner Davenport, any remarks?

Would you like to save this for next month?

Before I um make a remark, I want Judge because he's he's giving me a little bit.

Well, I I know we have this option to purchase agreement, so we need we may need a vote to not exercise it and look, but uh when does the option expire?

It expires 10.

So we won't meet again.

They say second, do we meet next?

Uh and so would an appropriate motion just to go ahead and kind of cover the procedural grounds be to uh hold and ask staff to extend the option.

Yes.

And I would say and if we're unable to get an extensional option, that that would be that we need a that would be uh being that would be a motion to not approve the option to purchase to deny it.

Yeah, you follow them saying, Mr.

Mayor, we don't want to not give proper notice on that contract and be have some we got to make sure we've uh so the motion would be to that so motion would be to hold uh ask staff to extend the option, and should the option not be extended, uh constituted the now.

That would constitute a de facto denial so hold to the next meeting with with all the no it's with the provisors with the provisos that I indicated so it's a it's okay to the next meeting with the option of the staff reaching out to stand the purchase agreement option agreement, option agreement.

And if we're unable to obtain that extension, then that would that that would that is the commission uh deny denies the option to purchase okay.

So move yes, second okay, all right.

Uh right any remarks, Commissioner Davenport.

This has been very stressful.

I know I've been beat up in the community.

I'm not against the um fire station to be relocated.

Um and I do not want to put our community in danger.

And yes, we finally reached some money.

You know, this was a uh a splendus.

We finally um reached some money to actually fund this project.

Um and that happened about two and a half years ago.

Um, last year, this body denied uh imminent domain and immediately we extended an offer, and in the last six months, um we've been discussing or not, we've been discussing, but staff have been discussing this particular property, so it's not that we are wasting people's time or we're kicking this guy down the road.

This property in question relatively came to us literally to the public about two months ago.

But my thing is if you if everybody look at page 373 and look at the maps, and it has been stated that we want to provide um that's 373 in the PDF um agenda, and I'm gonna need more than three minutes, but y'all bear with me.

Um if you look at the fire stations, and if the question is that we need to provide more cover average crowders, um, and if you look at that map, you'll notice that even with fire station number five in that the you know this the circle, there'll be there are a lot of gaps.

It has been stated that fire station number six will be moved, and there's potential for other fire stations to be moved as well.

I would like for staff, um, and it's not that I'm against staff or against what they're saying, but I just have some questions.

Um I would like for staff to look at it if we're planning on moving other fire stations in the future.

How about we do it uh the master plan and look at it holistically?

Look at all of them instead of doing it piecemeal.

But personally, you know, as a representative, I do not want to put it in my community or anyone in danger.

You know, my mom and some of my neighbors have had the the call to fire department for response times because of medical emergency.

So I do believe that it needs to be relocated, but at the same time, I value people's quality of life, and that's something that I ran on in 2019, something I ran on in 2022 as well, that people buy into the east side.

I buy into to this livelihood, and I think that needs that should be taken in consideration, but also I want to be a good neighbor as well, and I hope that we as all all of us will be good neighbors, and I understand that these people have a quality of life that they would like to maintain, and even with this recent, and I'm all over the place, sorry, even with the recent study that's came out.

Even with the recent study that just came out, I have questions about the IAFF new study.

It just is hard for me to believe that the discussion of moving five was on the chiefs and the fire department's model.

Everybody okay with additional time for Commissioner Davidson.

But it was not included in this study.

But it was not included in the study.

But I do look forward to seeing the the new IAF response.

But you know, but one of my main things is the price of the property.

And there are other locations that are way much cheaper.

They can save the taxpayer money and that will provide a much better coverage.

And you know, just please have sympathy for all these residents and understand their quality life.

Property is a property.

People raise their kids, they do gardens, they put in pools, they add extensions, and um it just you know, I want to be good neighbors to these to these individuals at the same time.

I just would like for the fire department to get it right.

Not saying that they got it wrong, just saying that if we look at a master plan holistically of the other fire station that are planning to be moved, let's do it all together and set a piecemeal.

Uh Commissioner Myers, any remarks in secondary, then I'll leave to Commissioner.

Yeah, I do.

Um I do just for for the for the record here, it was five months ago that we um we uh authorized staff to proceed with sending the three uh candidate site property owners an option to buy.

So it's it's been a little while here at our end, and of course, this site selection started three years ago.

Um I'd like to request that in this hold before it comes back that our new manager present the commission with background material and analysis on the following.

Um the assessment process for determining the offered price of 487,000.

We did review that a little bit, but I think obviously we weren't we don't have all the details there.

It is under the budget allowance that was in the budget for for site selection.

The effect that this government property assessed that kind of price would have on surrounding properties in terms of taxes.

Um the recent International Association of Firefighters report to our firefighters union and and their analysis concerning the firehouse placement and any new analysis that comes forth, and most importantly, an updated statement from the fire chief concerning the location of the firehouse and the reasons behind it.

Um Lexington Road, this is me on the side, old Lexington Road was in the original search area.

The circle centered around that intersection of old Lexington and Morton.

Yeah, I've seen this like dozens of times at this time.

My understanding though is that the main reason for the firehouse location in that circle is to include the additional 800 Athenians in the southeast portion of the county and give them the best response time for the emergency.

That's what the fire chief was telling saying.

Um he was asked time and again during that site selection process by the committee, by the commission uh about relocating to Morton Road and Lexington Road.

He always was adamant that the other locations would not be addressing the needs of the the better service.

So these are questions that are asking them.

Um I've served on that site selection, I've heard it much more than obviously everyone here, but I want to hear one more time from our professional staff on our emergency services, uh, which I'm clearly not an expert on, and also from our new county manager who's coming to this fresh, and um that would make me more confident in how I move forward and forth and hopefully make my colleagues more confident that they have all the details.

Commissioner Amby.

Sure.

Thank you, Mayor I guess I'm just wondering, and Commissioner Myers may have just laid some out, but all that information that was just laid out, we've heard before.

So I'm just wondering why why I mean why put these why put folks who are against this uh through another 30 days of just waiting around if I mean I'm trying to figure out what the rationale is for a hold.

So my rationale for a whole is that a new IAFF study was presented to um the fire department from the union, and they had stated um hopefully I'm articulating this well, but they have stated that uh that fire stations need to be where the density and the needs are, but according to staff, they were saying that they did not mention the fact that fire station number five was going to be um was not included in that study.

So I will feel confident and I believe my constituents feel more confident once the I'm hoping IAFF is updates their study and bring back with their recommendation that people will have a better understanding of what the the union is requested.

Okay.

Commissioner Thorn.

So the information that so we'll so we'll have the information needed within the 30 days.

That's what I'm trying to.

Do you think that's a good question?

And I don't know the answer to that particular item because we didn't commission that study.

That was a study that was commissioned by by the union, and it was a different question, as you heard earlier that was being asked.

So we will certainly follow up with them and see if that's possible.

I know they did attempt to get it updated even before this meeting, and we're we're not able to do so, but we'll certainly follow up and determine because that's that's the request is to get that information.

Right.

And to hear from the fire chief on it.

I mean, we I I don't know who I don't know anything about the IAFF before I heard about this three days ago.

I mean, so there, you know, I have credibility with the the fire chief, so I want to hear uh and I'm willing to hear more, but I would like to hear the fire chiefs um you know insight on this as well.

And the other pieces we absolutely will have within the time frame we're talking about.

So the process that was used to determine the uh the price as well as obviously the statement coming from from the fire chief and his application of those very same standards that we're talking about.

The piece that's kind of out of our control a little bit is what the union commission um and we'll just follow up with them and get that as soon as we can.

All right, uh motion and a second uh to hold with the provisos that uh attorney Drake provided.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

All right, motion carries.

All right, we're gonna move on to item 18, which is uh property acquisition uh as part of the beachhaven park.

Motion to approve.

All right, second.

All right, got a motion from Commissioner Hamby, second from Commissioner Link.

Commissioner Hamby, any remarks?

No, I'm curious what Commissioner Fisher has to say about it.

So Commissioner Link.

Um, no, I I'm I'm eager to see this move forward.

Commissioner Fisher.

But thank you, Commissioner Hamley.

Commissioner, sorry.

First of all, let me thank staff.

Um Alex Barr and Hilcom McConnell for um taking me on a hike of that property.

That's that's a lot of property there, and I want to commend them for get some exercise out there.

Yeah, get some exercise out of what I had the wrong, I had the wrong type of shoes on.

I should have held on my hiking boots.

But um, I think um to my colleagues, it's a really good project.

I think we need to go ahead and move forward with this particular purchase and uh go reconnect that um beach haven to be in Burton Park.

We have that um uh trail there, so I think it's a good um good piece of property for us to get, and also we'd be able to house our believer services department there, and they can be there, people can be on those trails.

So thank you guys for um taking me on the on that hike.

Appreciate it.

But uh I I did all my colleagues supporting this whole heartily.

Anyone else before I return to Commissioner Hampty?

Yeah, I just something just came to mind as I'm as I pass it often as um out in Watkinsville, and I can see this turning uh becoming something like this out going towards Watkinsville on Sunday Bridge Road.

They've got this new Thomas Farr's Park, uh and they've done some really really good work on on that part.

We had it done really quickly too.

Yeah.

Uh so uh nice wide sidewalks done quickly.

Uh I can see I can see this turning into some really nice amenity for our community.

It's definitely a great model for the region.

I agree.

Yeah.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye aye.

Any opposed.

All right, hearing none motion carries.

Thanks, everybody.

19 is the project concept uh for the T S PLOS 2023 project 26, which is the pedestrian improvements in uh West Hancock and West Broad neighborhoods.

Yeah, I'm gonna move that we hold this for one cycle.

I've got a neighborhood meeting uh next Tuesday at Rock Springs Pavilion, it's Christine Howard Park Pavilion.

Um I'm gonna get some of the folks from the neighborhoods there to take a look at these proposals.

I suspect we might want to re-prioritize some of them.

Um but we'll I'll probably come back with the CDO when this shows back up on the agenda.

Motion from Commissioner Link to hold for one cycle.

Is there a second?

Second.

All right, second from Commissioner Thornton.

Any further remarks from anyone?

No.

I mean, not from me.

Sorry.

All in favor hold for one cycle, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

All right, hearing no motion carries.

All right, 20 is the downtown development authority community events program funding request for FY26.

Entertain a motion from the body.

So move.

Second.

All right.

Got a motion from Commissioner Hambi.

And second from Commissioner Thornton.

Commissioner Hamby, any remarks?

No, sir.

Commissioner Thornton.

No, sir.

No, sir.

Any others?

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed.

Hearing none motion carries.

All right.

21 is the Hawthorne and Oglethorpe intersection improvement project.

Entertain a motion.

Mayor, can I uh I want to put the motion to hold us also.

Um for a single cycle.

Yes.

All right.

Hold for one cycle from Commissioner Fisher.

Is there a second?

Second.

I've got a second from Commissioner Taylor.

All right.

Any further remarks?

Yes, sir.

I um I have a reason.

So we got so just for the public knowledge.

We got two uh parcel that's still uh pending.

Um trying to get an approval um for now we're gonna what we're gonna be able to do with those.

I guess we got offers out there, and we have not heard back.

Um my biggest concern is for the um sick hole in the corner there.

Um it's a small piece of property.

Um I want to talk to the owner because I really want to get some feedback.

I mean, so I got a call in my colleague.

Um Commissioner Dad boy has gone by there also to um to meet with him, but I'm hoping he's gonna call me.

Um I hope he he's I hope he's not thinking I'm calling to put pressure on him.

I want to just get a some feedback from him and get a feeling, but we'll we'll talk about taking a put a big chunk of his property.

And uh always have I feel some way about that when we look at businesses, especially small businesses would take up that property that how it's gonna impact.

So we can hold this for one cycle.

Um I'll preach and hopefully he'll reach out.

I know we're still dealing with CVS on the corporate level.

They don't have they got a larger footprint, they may not impact them as much, but again, I'm not sure.

You know, they may play hardball with us because they are a corporate entity.

So we have to consider those two options, but I I do want to talk to the owner of that gas station.

All right.

Anyone else?

Uh all in favor of the one second hold, please say okay.

Hold on.

I I um I share the same sentiments as um Commissioner Fisher.

Um to do eminent domain is one thing.

Um if it's going to be beneficial um to the owner um in a way about traffic being able to flow in and out that you're not worried about getting hit turning left and going straight down.

Um I don't know this read anyway.

Um, and so yeah, I support the the whole.

And one of the things, and let me say just for the public.

Um, we do need to do some traffic calling no question about it.

So I'm not against what we try to do, but again, I am I have concern about small business zones because I'm not doing element domains.

So I'd like to have that conversation and hopefully I have an opportunity to um meet with them and talk with them.

Commissioner Debbie.

Just real quick, yeah.

I just did a Commissioner Fisher.

We just want to make sure we do our due diligence and making sure that these property they are aware.

Um we just want to you know just have that conversation and put make putting it on hold for one cycle, you know.

Um it's not gonna do any harm, but it just wanna just have a sit down and talk to these individuals, uh especially the gas session, sit down and talk to them and tell them why it's important that we want to do this because you know it's the Hawthorne Old Worth has I think it's one of the deadliest intersections in Athens, or if not one of the top, but you know, we want to you know express the concern to them as to why we you know we want to have them in a partnership and an agreement that um this is necessary for just not for our commission, but visitors who visit you know that area.

All right, there's a motion and second on the floor to hold this for one cycle.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

All right, hearing none.

We'll see this again next month.

Uh 22, as we discussed last month at the work session, is the ARPA funding recapture and reallocation for those two projects that are no longer viable.

There's an ordinance with this, Mr.

Mayor.

Go ahead, attorney Drake.

New urge to amend the American Rescue Plan Act ARPA program budget so as to provide additional funding for the Center for Racial Justice and Black Futures and for Affordable Housing and for other purposes.

Motion approved.

We've got a motion from Commissioner Hambey.

Is there a second?

Second.

All right, got a second from Commissioner Myers.

Commissioner Hamby, any further remarks?

Nope.

Commissioner Myers.

Any others?

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed?

All right.

Hearing none, motion carries.

All right.

Could I uh get a motion for suspension of rules because we have uh item of new business.

So move.

Second.

All right, I've got a motion from Commissioner Hamby.

Second from Commissioner Taylor.

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any pose?

All right, we are now working under suspension of rules.

Um item number 23 uh is is a bond that uh we've got to do every time we get a new manager.

And we've had to do this a few times.

And we're not gonna have to do it again.

I'm just saying it that way.

That's the way it's gonna be.

And so um, so that uh manager Cowell can actually execute the documents uh that are associated with the bonds, uh entertain a motion.

So moved, so I'm sure Judge's gonna be real happy about this, get his name on the move.

I've got Commissioner Hambi and Commissioner Wright.

Uh and uh this is just a resolution, no ordinance.

All right.

Any remarks?

All in favor, please say aye.

Aye any pose.

Adhering none motion carries.

Uh item 24, which we added to the agenda right at the beginning of our time together, uh, is the latest of a series of opioid litigation settlement resolutions.

Um these are being collected through a federal court in Ohio.

And so just as the courts kind of move through the series of engagements with the different opioid distributors and manufacturers, uh, we'll see a series of these.

So entertain a motion for approval of this one.

So move.

Second.

All right.

Got a motion from Commissioner Hambee, second from Commissioner Link.

Uh any remarks, anyone?

Commissioner Link.

Just a little scribbner's error in that uh first paragraph with the all caps letters, the second to last line.

The word setment.

Yeah, I believe should be settlement.

We'll note that make that correction.

I hope Andy Harrier.

Appreciate everybody's editing skill.

I hope it's watching this meeting.

You would make them very proud to all favor, please say aye.

Aye.

Any opposed.

All right, hearing none motion carries.

Now is the time, my friends, for that uh great opportunity for general public input on any item that was not on tonight's agenda.

So now is that time, members of the public in the audience, all three of you remaining.

That if you would like to speak to us about any item that was not on tonight's agenda, you have that opportunity.

And so I see stepping up for the mic.

Good to see Mr.

Coleman.

It's been a long way.

My name is Manny Cole.

I have made a proposal to a few uh my friends and in the community since Adam Claw Accountant as a body has divorced itself.

I would recommend that all commissioner, if it's possible, serve a full-time term instead of part time.

And the reason for that is because we need to learn to come together as a unified government.

And as you can tell, tonight it wasn't a unifying government.

We are still bigger than fussing what's going on.

In a way to put a marriage together and keep a family together, you put them in a situation where they have to work together.

So a full-time job would help us, I believe.

And I also would like to announce to you all publicly.

I am running for district seven district.

Y'all have a nice night.

Thank you, Mr.

Coleman.

Okay.

All right, is there any other member of the public who'd like to speak to us to us this evening on any item that was not on the agenda?

All right.

So uh all business being concluded.

Uh, do want to thank uh the scouts who've adopted Moss Drive for the adopt a highway proclamation.

Uh and I have one committee assignment to announce tonight.

I sent this via email to commissioners and staff earlier, and uh had a good conversation with the attorney about uh uh expediting this.

Uh we had a good retreat this summer in the downtown development authority, and it was clear uh by talking to folks in the prosecutoral world and the public safety world that there's not absolute clarity uh around acceptable use of public rights of ways given the current ordinance language.

Uh and so uh appreciate that the current standing committee chairs, Commissioners Davenport Fisher and Myers have agreed to take on this very quick and brief task, uh, and that is to work with the Athens Clark County attorney and the manager to bring forward to the full mayor and commission no later than our November voting meeting, ordinance language updates clarifying the definition of public rights of way and allowable uses thereof in a matter that provides common understanding for both staff and the public about that definition, such that the entire breadth of public right of way is considered, meaning vehicular lanes, sidewalks, and bike lanes are are all considered for their appropriate uses, uh that the danger of laying upon or sitting upon the right of way is reduced or eliminated for the public safety of pedestrian cyclists and motorists alike.

Uh similarly that debris and material storage upon public rights of way is reduced or eliminated, uh, that First Amendment rights and operations of our special events that are permitted are considered, and that any related operational fiscal needs are considered in the recommendation that returns to us.

I think this will mean we've got safer rights of way and cleaner ones as well.

So appreciate y'all taking on that task.

I think in a couple meetings with particularly attorney Drake's uh assistance and that of staff will be able to knock this out and we'll see a recommendation for a vote in November.

So that said, uh I want to uh turn to uh charter officers and ask uh anything from the manager tonight.

Nothing for me, thank you.

Anything from the auditor?

Uh not tonight.

Attorney Drake.

Yes, I'm pleased to announce that uh Alston Jackson has uh been selected as a new uh deputy chief attorney for the unified governor of Athens Clark County.

Great uh great great to see good folks who uh could put in a lot of time to be able to move up.

So that's very exciting, Attorney Drake.

I appreciate that.

All right, and uh move to commissioners.

We'll uh begin with Commissioner Johnson and uh we'll end with Commissioner Fisher.

Uh thank you.

I just want to thank the chamber for inviting me on a trip to Gainesville, Florida, to learn about how their college town um does workforce development well in different areas that are very similar to Athens.

So I wanted to thank the chamber and the chair and the individuals that put their time and effort into planning that trip.

Also want to thank the the residents of the Stonehenge neighborhood for completing the survey.

I only had one day to go out and canvas and pass out flyers with the QR code, but everyone that I I came upon actually completed a survey right in front of me.

So I just wanted to say thank you.

I hope it means something, and I just want to thank um the residents that send me recommendations to follow up on things.

Um that's what I'm here for.

And I um have my newsletter is a little late, but it's it'll be coming out either tonight or first thing in the morning.

That's all.

Thanks, Commissioner.

Um, I want to thank Bob for um what he's done so far.

We're doing a fabulous job.

Um, thank you for the quick response.

Uh Friday night.

Um, my daughter's a student at the University of Georgia.

She got the text and the phone call from the university, and I text it to you, and you got you can communicate to us immediately, and I appreciate that.

I hope these hoaxes stop because God forbid there'd be a serious situation if people not uh believe it.

But thank you for that.

Um also uh I'm appreciative of that chamber trip.

It's always good to be with colleagues both from City Hall and across the community and to learn about another community.

Um, and I look forward to our retreat as a commission coming up in two weeks or so.

So um more good bonding and discussion.

Um I also enjoyed the trip.

Um, I learned a lot.

I love the fellowship.

I do hope during the retreat we can share some of the um things that we learned.

And um Florida.

I also want to thank Bob.

I mean, you're quick.

You are like super quick.

You supermen in a suit.

Um yeah, I just want to thank you.

Follow up, you give me objective information, so I appreciate that.

And my last um shout out would be to our um the reorganizing of the get committee.

Um I think we are really going to uh put a dent into or a scratch into the housing situation, and so um opening it up to the community folk has been valuable.

And thank you to think I was going to thank you too.

Yeah, thank you too for what you're doing with the uh the mill houses.

Thank you.

Thank you, Mayor.

I don't have much.

I guess I am looking forward to whatever retreat we're going on.

I will say I'm not getting on any bus with any of y'all, so I'm I apologize on front.

Uh I'm sorry, I'm just jerking.

I'm not joking about the bus.

Thanks, Mayor.

I hope I know y'all I know y'all understand.

Y'all don't want me on that bus.

Commissioner Tap.

Um I have nothing.

Um, yeah, I I want to thank Bob for our little meeting, and and I'm looking forward to working with you and a lot and a lot of progress.

I think we see eye to eye on a lot of things, so I'm I'm really looking forward to getting some things done, especially as the future land use plan moves forward.

Um also I just want to let my constituents in the West Hancock and Rock Springs, West Broad neighborhoods know that there will be a neighborhood meeting to discuss those pedestrian traffic calming um project proposals that we'll be voting on next month.

So um I'll be putting a flyer out and and I want to encourage everyone to share it.

So be on the lookout for that.

Yeah.

Bob what everybody else said I want to address something because I my cell phone is blowing up and so is the live and so I know it's about what we voted on as far as Rashi goes.

And I want it to be very clear my my vote my leadership when it comes to district three I do it with my whole heart.

I don't do it to fit in I don't do it to appease people because for me I sit in this seat as a resident I help people with um eviction prevention I help people with groceries I help people wait on the ambulance I'm when there's a house fire I'm at that house fire.

If I'm invited to come somewhere I go there not because I sit in this seat but because as a leader that's what you're supposed to do it's all fine and well to get up and to address the things that don't happen or to say a certain person because I have a stance on wanting to make East Athens better for the youth and my children opposed to being 25 years later and the building still looking the same that doesn't make me a sellout it doesn't mean that I'm not who I was raised to be I'm my ancestor's wildest dream for my grandma to be born here in 1912 and for me to sit here as a representative and she's still on land in that community I I hate the fact that I have to use my remarks to address this but because I've came from where I came from and because certain people feel like they have a say so in me sitting in this seat let's be clear I sit here for the people that people walk by for the people who people don't take a second look at people who who get looked down on black white it doesn't matter that's why I sit here and I and you know no shade to anybody because politics are politics but I don't deal in politics I deal in real life because in East Athens in East Athens life is happening all the time and whether it makes the news whether it made social media or not that doesn't stop it from happening and it doesn't stop Commissioner Taylor from showing up no I don't get the accolades and I don't do it for the accolades.

I do it so that my children know that their mama had a say so in the edification of a community that she was born and raised in and is leading to the best of her ability I heal my time well it's all said I've really pills in comparison there but um thank you to um while you guys were in games well Florida I was at a conference in Gainesville Georgia the downtown Georgia Downtown Association under GMA and I learned a lot and uh I know where the uh ice cream shop is so just let me know when we get up there for the retreat short short um walk to the ice cream how about I didn't see any of those microscope commissioner for sure who is gonna do it all right yeah we're close with family boy out again I want to thank Bob and our staff what all you all do for us and um I enjoyed the trip also to Gamesville for it's good to go to other um community to have um universities and knowing that they there was some of the same issues that we're doing here right here in Cork County so you know um that bounce ideas off each other so I want my hats all to the people in Gainesville Florida for being great hosts and really being kind to us while we're there um I do want to say um to the residents of district five um this Thursday the plan committee um homewood village um shopping center will be on the agenda hope everybody come out we've been we've done our due dealership we met with the developer we had um town hall meetings so now the development will be presenting their plan so I hope the residents in district five come out um on this Thursday to the planning committee plan commission meeting to hear the um developers um put their um project forward to the community so um with that said um I make a motion to adjourn the meeting second and we out a let's show a second all for please say aye 915 everybody have a good meeting guys