Garden loses another foe
July 3, 2007 at 4:43 pm by Scott Henry in NewsThe Atlanta Botanical Garden notched another small victory in the ongoing lawsuit over its planned parking deck last week when a second plaintiff announced he was withdrawing from the case.
This time, however, the drop-out didn’t cite intimidation as the reason.
John Grady Burns is quoted in an ABG press release as saying he decided to bow out of the suit because garden officials have managed to satisfy his concerns about the parking deck.
“I have come to a better understanding of the project,” he is quoted as saying, “and I believe the plans are sound.”
Earlier this year, another plaintiff, Bill Lockhart, dropped out after the ABG threatened to countersue on the basis that the lawsuit against the garden is frivolous.
Burns’ departure leaves two plaintiffs, activist Doug Abramson and the Friends of Piedmont Park. Or perhaps only one plaintiff, hints the ABG release, which takes pains to point out that Abramson and his wife, Susan, operate Friends of Piedmont Park out of their home.
The lawsuit seeks to force the garden to release documents showing why it can’t build the six-story parking deck under its current parking lot rather than locate it in nearby woods, as it plans to do.
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