Fresh Loaf

As a mayoral candidate, Kasim Reed regularly blamed pension obligations for bleeding Atlanta dry. During his inaugural address, he was blunt:

The stark reality is that one out of every five tax dollars is currently going to fund a pension system that is strangling our city. We need to face this challenge head on, being mindful of the responsibility to taxpayers who fund that pension system, without breaking the faith with the public servants who have dedicated their lives to Atlanta.

Well, the Pension Review Panel has now been named. Its first meeting is scheduled for Feb. 22.

Who are these solons, these brave, private-sector volunteers tasked with saving the city budget from death by annuity? The chairman, former AJC publisher John Mellott, was named weeks ago, but here’s the rest of the list:

• Jim Wells, Chairman and CEO of SunTrust Banks
• Ed Hays, Deputy Managing Partner for Deloitte & Touche
• Ben Johnson, retired managing partner of Alston & Bird
• Richard Anderson, CEO of Delta Air Lines
• Carol Tome, CFO of Home Depot
• Calvin Vismale, an investment consultant
• Rod Edmond, an attorney who also chairs the police Citizen Review Board
• Dan Kolber, partner in the law firm Baker Donelson, who oversaw the recent restructuring of the Grady Health System

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Here’s the good news: Only days after the Clermont Hotel was condemned by county health inspectors for a staggering array of gag-inducing infractions, work began to clean up and restore the 1920s-era building for future operation as a newly renovated hotel, complete with a restaurant.

Here’s the bad news: The company that’s apparently doing the renovation and will manage the property, Cobb-based Kronos Hotels, has one of the worst reputations in the entire industry.

In fact, it’s already off to a bad start. Although work began on the hotel in early January — as evidenced by the huge dumpster for construction debris out front — it appears that nobody bothered to get a building permit. A spokesperson for the planning department confirmed to me earlier today that the work going on at the hotel was violation of city ordinance and that a stop-work order would be issued soon, if it hadn’t been already.

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Actually, they’re being announced over at City Hall as I write this, but since I already had the press release I figured I’d blog it. From the release:

The Atlanta Police Department Chief Search Committee will be chaired by Georgia State University Police Chief Connie Sampson, who will serve with Rev. Joanna Adams, Lou Arcangeli, Rosel Fann, Rev. Walter Kimbrough, Lt. Scott Kreher, Robin Loudermilk, Kyle Keyser, Tiffany Williams, Philip Rafshoon, Irene Richardson, Earl Williamson and Dave Wilkinson.

OK, what I find most interesting are the folks who don’t work in law enforcement, such as Atlantans Together Against Crime activist Keyser and Outwrite Books owner Rafshoon. I’m guessing his appointment may have been a reaction to backlash from the Eagle raid. Loudermilk is the head of the Buckhead Alliance, the group of business leaders that helped shut down the Buckhead party zone. Kreher is the police union rep. And Arcangeli is the well-known retired deputy police chief.

On to the AFD:

The Atlanta Fire Rescue Search Committee will be chaired by Cobb County Chief Sam Heaton, who will serve with East Point Deputy Chief William Ware, David Allman, Professor Bahareh Azizi, Marcia Bansley, Johnny Dixon, Vonda Henry, Charles Johnson, former State DHR Commissioner Jim Martin, Helene Mills, Hon. Mary Norwood, and Ken Prince.

Allman is chairman of Regent Partners, one of the city’s top commercial developers. Azizi is the chemistry professor of Persian descent who recently ran for City Council. Bansley is founder of Trees Atlanta. And Mary Norwood … well, you remember her.

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Fulton County Commissioner and tireless self-promoter Robb Pitts has sent out a release lambasting his colleagues for putting the ixnay on his proposal to “make meetings more accessible for citizens.”

Specifically, he’d suggested holding commission meetings during evening hours in locations around the county. The board had even tried it twice last year — at the North and South county annex buildings — but apparently decided it didn’t like being so close to the rabble.

Frankly, I think Pitt’s proposal would’ve been a great idea — 10 years ago.

It’s still not a bad idea, but now what’s the point? Fulton’s government is all but vaporized, its functions and authority having been absorbed by start-up cities on both ends of the county. Hell, it doesn’t really do zoning anymore, which is the issue that most compelled people to attend meetings.

The timing of Pitt’s proposal suggests that he’s trying to derail the effort to split Fulton asunder to create Milton County. Sorry, but that train has left the station. If it gets stopped, it will be due to heroic efforts by Atlanta state lawmakers and Mayor Kasim Reed, not by Fulton commissioners pretending they suddenly care about what the folks up in Alpharetta have to say.

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EXPANDING SCAD: After only five years in Atlanta, the Savannah College of Art and Design has opened its Digital Media Center outside the Midtown campus.

The national recession that began at the tail end of 2007 – and which may recently have ended, depending on whether the person you ask still has a job – has been a period of hunkering down and reduced expectations.

But not for SCAD.

The Savannah College of Art and Design, by some accounts the country’s largest art school, has managed to continue its kudzu-like growth both in its namesake hometown and here in Atlanta, where it opened a satellite campus in 2005.

In 2008, at a time when financial devastation was widespread, SCAD bought the former WXIA-TV studios in Midtown, a three-story, 60,000-square-foot building that would be converted into the school’s Digital Media Center. The facility opened last October, promising students hands-on experience using the latest high-tech broadcasting and recording equipment, editing suites and industry-grade sound stages.

And just last month, SCAD signed a lease for space within the office building at Pershing Point, next door to the Temple, that’s expected to open in February as the school’s new gallery for students in its Master of Fine Arts program.

With that move, the school has quietly notched a milestone: In less than five years, SCAD-Atlanta has already outgrown its home in the enormous former Equifax building at 1600 Peachtree St.

Says SCAD-Atlanta Vice President P.J. Johnson, who oversees the Atlanta campus: “We’ve exceeded our growth expectations.”

Continue Reading “Kudzu college”

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

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Michael Gidewon — one step closer

The owners of the controversial, proposed SPI Club in Midtown now have what may be the final piece of approval leading to a splashy, Kleig-lit opening on Peachtree Street.

You may recall that the Gidewon brothers received the go-ahead for a liquor license back in October, then were stalled by a lawsuit seeking to block the mayor (at the time, Shirley Franklin) from actually signing the booze permit.

Well, now the brothers have in hand the special administrative permit that was, I believe, the last thing holding them back from opening.

However, their Midtown opponents will not be going down without a fight. This coming Tuesday, the Midtown Neighbors’ Association will hold a meeting to update members on efforts to appeal the permit before the city’s Board of Zoning Adjustment on March 4. Expect a packed house.

Correct me if I’m wrong, folks, but I’m under the impression that if the appeal is dismissed, then it’s game over — no more hurdles, legal or otherwise, to the club opening its doors.

Could it be a hip-hop St. Patty’s Day?

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

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Earlier this month, in his first speech as the newly sworn-in mayor, Kasim Reed was introduced to the members of the downtown Kiwanis club by state Rep. Margaret Kaiser, D-Atlanta — one of only two Georgia politicians to publicly endorse his former opponent, Mary Norwood.

This morning, in an appearance before the state House, he was escorted by Rep. Ralph Long, D-Atlanta, the other — and certainly the most vocal — Norwood endorser.

Tonight, he’ll headline a fundraiser to help retire the campaign debt for his primary opponent, former Council President Lisa Borders — who, you’ll remember, Reed brought on to co-chair of his transition team.

I also happen to know, from talking to Reed a while back, that he likewise made overtures to bring Norwood into the fold, but she was not responsive.

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Mayor Kasim Reed gave the keynote address at the annual meeting of the Buckhead Coalition yesterday, treating the assembled captains of industry (OK, actually mostly developers) to the nine most beautiful words in the English language:

“I will not raise taxes in my first term.”

Added Reed: “You have my word.” Talk about telling people what they want to hear.

You may recall that the Buckhead Coalition, an ultra-exclusive cabal of local CEOs, did not view Reed as their favored pick for mayor. Oh, they gave him some money, as they did Lisa Borders. But they gave twice as much to Mary Norwood, who lives up there and moves in the same circles.

So it must have been music to their ears to hear the new mayor acknowledge the substantial property taxes and business fees they pay and to have him say, and I quote: “I do not view Buckhead as a bank for the city of Atlanta.”

Keep in mind that Reed isn’t stumping for votes anymore. I don’t remember hearing him speak quite so definitively about taxes on the campaign trail as he did yesterday at 103 West. But then, the Coalition luncheon is a once-a-year opportunity to speak to a good chunk of the city’s top businessmen (and a few women) all gathered in one room at the same time.

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The only horse-racing photo we have permission to use.

Would you attend the Carrollton Cup? Can we interest you in the Stockbridge Stakes? Howzabout the Dacula Derby?

Well, don’t laugh, because earlier today a Roswell legislator introduced a resolution to amend the state constitution to legalize horse racing and pari-mutuel wagering in Georgia.

OK, now you can laugh.

Yes, House Resolution 1177 is being touted by its author, Republican Rep. Harry Geisinger, as an important economic development measure. According to the press release, each horse on a race track creates seven jobs:

The average horse meet will have at least 800-1,000 horses, thus creating approximately 7,000 jobs per meet. Some of the jobs necessary for each horse include trainers, grooms, jockeys, drivers and riders, and veterinarians. Other employment expansion would also include racetrack employees and supporting industries such as hotels and restaurants.

Hey, don’t forget the gambling addiction therapists, the marriage counselors, the bookies …

But seriously, folks, horse racing and pari-mutuel betting are already legal in 38 states, including our neighbor Florida. Even more compelling is the fact that Georgia is broke and needs the revenue. And horse racing is a lot less sleazy than dog tracks or cock fights.

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There’s yet another personnel change on the way for Atlanta — wait, don’t stop reading; this one’s a biggie. This time it’s Ben DeCosta, the general manager of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. Not only is DeCosta the highest-paid city employee — with a base salary in the neighborhood of $286,000 — but he’s easily the longest serving city department head, with 12 years on the job.

More than that, however, DeCosta is unique because he oversees the world’s busiest airport. Importance-wise, his position ranks up there with mayor and police chief. Recruiting his replacement will likely attract resumes from across the globe.

Why is he leaving? Here’s his explanation, from today’s press release:

I have enjoyed my tenure at the Airport, and it has been a privilege to have been part of such a collaborative, dynamic team.  Our work has left the airport — now the world’s busiest — in much better shape than when I arrived.

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Dollar amount already cut from this year’s state budget: 3 billion

Estimated dollar amount still needed to be cut from the fiscal year 2010 state budget: 1.2 billion

Total amount of Gov. Perdue’s proposed 2011 budget, in dollars: 18.2 billion

Proposed savings, in dollars, from abolishing incentives for board-certified teachers: 7.2 million

Proposed savings, in dollars, from mandating teachers take three additional furlough days: 187 million

National ranking, out of 50, of Georgia’s public-school seniors according to SAT score: 45

Number of percentage points behind national average of Georgia’s SAT math scores: 22

Cost, in dollars, of proposed grant for construction of College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta: 10 million

Cost, in dollars, of earmarks for the Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter horse park in Perry, Ga.: 9.1 million

Sources: Governor’s 2011 budget proposal, AJC, Macon Telegraph

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State Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine got some unwanted media attention last week when it was revealed that his 13-year-old son had shot a man in the leg during a hunting excursion the previous weekend. The Oxendine boys were on a private quail plantation at the invitation of the same Alabama insurance mogul whose companies funneled $120,000 in improper contributions to Oxendine’s campaign for governor. Oxendine returned the money after it was reported in the media and the case is under investigation. Oxendine has admitted that his sons have not had gun safety training.

“Hunting in North Georgia with my boys today and tomorrow. Hoping the weather improves, but a great time of being together.”

— An Oxendine Tweet at 6:04 p.m., Sunday, Jan. 17, less than two hours after his son shot a man in the leg

“This was not a Dick Cheney situation.”

— David Crim, spokesman for “Team Ox,” explaining to the AJC on Jan. 19 that Oxendine wasn’t the shooter

“I still believe in hunting and I still believe in guns.”

— Oxendine, as quoted in the AJC on Jan. 20, after a state report indicated his son was the triggerboy

“Accidents happen. Just because you have a car accident doesn’t mean you don’t drive anymore.”

— Oxendine, as quoted by the AP on Jan. 21

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Martin investigation is ongoing

Mayor Kasim Reed spent most of this week meeting with bureaucrats in Washington, but he returned today to take decisive action regarding a billion-dollar bond deal that had begun to emit a strong odor around City Hall.

You may recall from our article in late December that a financing package worth $1.2 billion and seen as critical to the future of Hartsfield-Jackson Airport was being held up in part because of an internal investigation into some suspicious goings-on.

Specifically, Councilman C.T. Martin had been aggressively lobbying city finance officers to get a certain minority bonding firm, San Francisco-based Grigsby & Associates, a larger share of the underwriting duties. Then-Council President Lisa Borders described Martin’s actions as “grossly inappropriate.”

Also, packages were sent anonymously to Council members’ homes containing a letter purportedly written by the city contract compliance officer that advocated on behalf of Grigsby. The investigation came about when the officer allegedly denied having sent the letter.

Which brings us to today. With the Grigsby investigation apparently still weeks away from completion, the Reed administration has moved to scrap the proposed bond team, which now includes Grigsby, and start over from scratch by sending out a formal request for proposal.

A memo sent to Council members this afternoon by interim finance chief Roosevelt Council (how’s that for a name?) explains that re-bidding the bond deal will allow the city to “show transparency and avoid any hint of controversy.”

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The first gubernatorial debate of 2010 took place in Athens on Tuesday, but featured only GOP candidates (and not all of them at that — The Ox was a no-show, as he was probably home giving his boys the gun-safety training he’d neglected earlier).

Anyway, the next debate is this coming Monday and all candidates have been invited. It’s the final event capping the Georgia Municipal Association’s annual Mayors’ Day Conference. Why the confab is called Mayor’s Day I can’t understand, because it’s three days long.

The debate itself is also a lengthy affair, running from 1:45-5 p.m. Actually, it’s two full debates — one for Republicans and one for Dems, but both moderated by Matt Towery, the former GOP lawmaker who now runs Insider Advantage.

The GMA has invited 11 candidates in all, and apparently has already nailed down eight confirmations, including Roy Barnes, Carl Camon, DuBose Porter, David Poythress, Nathan Deal, Karen Handel, Ray McBerry and Austin Scott.

Carl who? I wondered that myself. A little research shows that Camon, a Democrat,  was the first black mayor of Ray City, Ga. Does that help?

Oh, the conference is in the Atlanta Hilton downtown, but I don’t know if it’s open to the public. Which makes me wonder if this whole election nonsense couldn’t be simplified by adopting Thunderdome debate rules: Two men enter; one man leaves!

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Those folks at Cox are really pinching their pennies these days.

You’ll recall that the remaining newsroom denizens at the AJC were told back in August that they’d be relocating to new offices next-door to Perimeter Mall within a year’s time.

In the intervening months, I’ve heard stories of AJC reporters scrambling to find some arrangement or accommodations — even a spare desk in the bowels of a downtown government building — rather than be forced to drive into the commuting netherworld that is Perimeter Center.

Some are hoping they’ll be allowed to cyber-commute. Others are hoping they’ll be assigned to the paper’s new “intown bureau” whose location had yet to be announced.

Well, it’s now been announced, and it’s at — no surprise — the WSB office building off Peachtree Street at the northwestern edge of Ansley Park. Cox Media Group, the withering arm of the Coxtopus that includes newspapers, radio and TV, owns both the AJC and WSB.

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Maybe we should change our official theme song from Dallas Austin’s “The ATL” to “It’s Raining Men.”

Yes, Atlanta has been named the “gayest city in America” by The Advocate, which knows from gay. Here’s writer Mike Albo’s rationale in calling us out:

Georgia isn’t the most gay-friendly state, but Atlanta is undoubtedly our gayest city—with 29 gay bars here, there’s a reason it’s dubbed Hotlanta. Atlanta’s several queer events include one of the nation’s largest Prides in October (returning to Piedmont Park this year), and MondoHomo, a May event celebrating art, drag, burlesque, film, and BBQ. The gay epicenter is Midtown, anchored by Outwrite Books, a giant gay bookstore bucking the national trend—by staying in business!

Atlanta guys are hunky, the ladies are gracious, the gay sports leagues are seriously well organized, and its housewives (and their gay BFFs, complete with handbags and heels) are now camp icons. And who doesn’t love the sweet lilt of a Georgia accent on a knockout guy or gal?

OK, that’s hard to argue with — especially the part about Georgia not being a gay-friendly state. But what about our competition? San Fran? Miami? Hell-llo?

Apparently, Mr. Albo took the counter-intuitive approach. Otherwise, how could the No. 2 gayest city be … Burlington, VT? Also on the list are such unlikely gay havens as Bloomington, IN; San Diego; and Iowa City — yes, it’s somewhere in Iowa.

(Image  borrowed from The Advocate)

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Ah, Bobby Franklin.

Even among his fellow Republican House members, the mere mention of the East Cobb lawmaker’s name reliably elicits a smile and shake of the head, usually followed by a comment along the lines of, “Bless his heart” or “You know, he’s actually a nice person.”

After all, what can you really say about a guy who’s bat-shit crazy — and, astoundingly enough, only seems to be getting crazier?

We thought Rep. Franklin had reached the lunatic fringe way back in aught-deuce, when he proposed a bill that called for women seeking an abortion to first obtain a “death warrant” from a Superior Court judge.

Since then, he’s predictably written other loony legislation to prevent abortions and expand gun rights, but this year…oooh, boy. Let’s just say ol’ Bobby’s gone off the rails on a crazy train.

First, he pre-filed a full dozen bills for the 2010 General Assembly. Four are standard Glenn Beck-ish measures aimed at limiting the power of the tyrannical, Obama-led federal government. One would prohibit government workers from taking photographs of private property without a search warrant. Another argues for a common-law “right” to drive a car. Two others would allow families to forgo vaccinations and pasteurized milk.

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What’s black and white and red all over its bottom line?

The latest Georgia-based media company to run aground financially is Morris Publishing Group, which owns the Athens Banner-Herald, Augusta Chronicle, Savannah Morning News and 10 other dailies and more than 60 non-daily newspapers and magazines scattered across the South and in places as far away as Juneau, Ala., and London — yes, that London. In Atlanta, it publishes the Where Atlanta newcomers magazine you see at grocery stores and the dentist’s office.

From what I can tell from the jargon-heavy story that ran in the Chronicle this morning, the company wanted to reduce its nearly $300 million in debt to $100 million — I should try that sometime with MasterCard. But Morris couldn’t get enough of its creditors to agree to that plan, so it filed for Chapter 11, which allows debt restructuring.

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Ehrhart, the Enforcer

The State House of Representatives has a new Speaker, Pro-Tem, Majority Whip and, from what I can discern, a newly revived sense of hope that the 2010 General Assembly won’t go down in flames as recent sessions have.

That said — and pardon the mixed metaphors to follow — there’s one last shoe that has yet to drop before the New Turks can truly begin steering the ship back on course. And that shoe’s name is Earl Ehrhart.

(Actually, there could be a pair of shoes. More of that in a moment.)

Ehrhart, the cheerful winner of CL’s Tom DeLay Lifetime Achievement in Sleaze Award, was installed as chairman of the House Rules Committee in 2005 to serve as  enforcer for his close friend, then-Speaker Glenn Richardson. During the Powder Springer’s tenure, Rules was transformed into an all-powerful Politburo that re-wrote proposed legislation and punished lawmakers by bottling up their bills.

If Speaker Ralston aims to restore transparency and fair play to the Legislature by getting rid of the “hawks” and other Richardson-era tools of oppression, it’s a no-brainer that he’ll bounce Ehrhart from Rules.

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Arteries, look out!

Ah, the Wild Hog Supper, the annual barbecue bacchanal that precedes the opening of the General Assembly, last night attracted a sizable percentage of Georgia’s political A-listers — and seemingly every single person planning to run for office across the state.

Sonny was in the hizouse — er, the Georgia Freight Depot, that is — as was Casey and Sen. Johnny Isakson. The Ox was there. So was former Secretary of State Karen Handel, while new SoS Brian Kemp and his peeps were already sporting re-election stickers.

I saw DeKalb County CEO Burrell Ellis, Fulton County Sheriff Ted Jackson, Cobb Commission Chairman Sam Olens and, of course, a boatload of state lawmakers, including new Speaker David Ralston. Surprisingly, I didn’t see Agriculture Commissioner Tommy Irvin, who, at six-and-a-half feet tall, is a pretty easy guy to spot, even in a shoulder-to-shoulder crowd like last night’s.

At one point, I overheard DeKalb Commissioner Connie Stokes tell someone she was planning to run for Congress again — presumably against Hank Johnson. She’ll need to do a lot better than last time, in 2004, when she came a very distant fourth, with a scant 5 percent of the vote.

As for the food, it was not a night for vegans or the cholesterol-averse. They were serving BBQ soaking in meat juices (aka grease), fried chicken, potato salad and peach cobbler with cream. My favorite, however, was the smell of the whole sides of pork roasting on the grill till they were blackened and crunchy. On several tables were huge mounds of fist-sized, freshly fried pork rinds.

And now, this morning, the Legislature has already opened for business. Let the wild rumpus begin!

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Jim Walls, that free-radical investigator, has a great piece on his Atlanta Unfiltered blog suggesting that a recent financial sleight-of-hand by outgoing House Speaker Glenn Richardson may not only have been sneaky and underhanded, but illegal, to boot:

On Dec. 31, a day before Richardson’s resignation took effect, he cleaned out his re-election campaign’s bank account with the transfer of $219,915 to the MMV Alliance Fund. The fund filed its 2010 registration on Dec. 30 naming Richardson as its new chairman.

You may recall from an excellent 2006 AJC expose that the MMV Alliance Fund is the state GOP’s own political slush fund. But Walls points out what could be a hitch in this sleazy undertaking:

MMV does not appear to be among the organizations that may legally accept unused campaign contributions. Under Georgia law, political campaigns may give excess funds to IRS-recognized charities; educational, philanthropic and non-profit organizations; other candidates; or political parties.

MMV, a political action committee created in 2004, is none of those. It is not registered as a corporation in Georgia, non-profit or otherwise; a spokesman for the Georgia Secretary of State said late Thursday that the agency had received no request from MMV to register as a corporation. Nor does the committee show up in the IRS’s searchable database of tax-exempt groups.

Because of Richardson’s money transfer, the PAC now boasts upwards of a quarter-million dollars in slushable funds. Let’s hope that when the House addresses the issue of ethics in coming weeks, it takes a close look at MMV and similarly slimy enterprises.

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A couple of years back, Georgia’s very active gun lobby successfully pushed for a new law that greatly expanded the list of places where law-abiding citizens could pack righteous heat, to include public parks, wildlife management areas and family restaurants.

Well, they’re back for another shot at, um, liberalizing the gun law. This time, however, instead of describing all the places where guns would be allowed, House Bill 615 simply names those places where guns would not be allowed.

It’s a short list. Here it is … wait for it… aaaand … courtrooms and jails.

That’s it. If this law passes, even fully licensed Georgia gun owners still couldn’t take their Tec-9s to traffic court. What is this — a Stalinist dictatorship?

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Panhandling may soon be even less welcome downtown.

He doesn’t want to call it a “crackdown,” but that’s what it sounds like — and it’ll come as welcome news to most folks who live or work downtown.

At Kasim Reed’s first press conference as mayor yesterday, he announced — after introducing interim Police Chief George Turner and the new APD structure — that he plans to vigorously enforce the city’s existing panhandling laws. The ATL’s many panhandlers, he says, are the number two complaint among visitors and a serious drag on downtown’s convention-based economy. (What’s the No. 1 complaint, you ask? That would be our city’s sucky nightlife.)

As you may recall, Mayor Franklin spearheaded the creation of a downtown “no-panhandling zone,” but the city has proved gun-shy about enforcement, possibly because of vocal criticism from homeless advocates.

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Your new Atlanta City Council!

Actually, the new day began yesterday, when the newly sworn-in City Council held its first meeting of 2010. A Council member had told me beforehand how much she was looking forward to a 10-minute meeting — strictly a formality, mind you — and then joining the inaugural reception in the atrium.

But it didn’t work out that way. Instead, newly reinstated Councilman Michael Bond proposed a resolution for the city to extend an apology to the victims of the Eagle raid. After much discussion and a warning by city attorneys that such a gesture, while compassionate, could open the city to increased liability, the measure was sent on to the Council’s Public Safety Committee. The Council never got to party.

Which leads me to news from yesterday (although this may only interest City Hall junkies) — committee appointments. With one minor exception, every committee chair was shuffled by new Council President Caesar Mitchell. Here’s the run-down:

• City Utilities: Carla Smith has been replaced as chair by Natalyn Archibong
• Community Development: Jim Maddox replaced by Joyce Sheperd
• Public Safety: Cleta Winslow replaced by Ivory Young
• Transportation: Clair Muller replaced by C.T. Martin
• Zoning: Ivory Young replaced by Aaron Watson
• Finance/Executive: Howard Shook replaced by Yolanda Adrean
• Committee on Council: Felicia Moore stays put

It’s considered quite a shake-up to appoint two new Council members as committee heads, although Watson has previous experience as an elected official and Adrean is a CPA. Actually, Watson and newcomer Alex Wan are also CPAs — which gives the Council three more CPAs than it used to have, which was none. All three are on the Finance Committee.

The final two newcomers — Bond and Keisha Lance Bottoms — will have to content themselves with standard committee appointments.

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

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PRESSING MATTERS: Shirley Franklin, seen here in her final City Hall press conference as mayor, never enjoyed dealing with reporters.

Talk to many voters or scrutinize poll results and you’ll likely find that people are wary of smooth-talking career politicians. They yearn to elect someone genuine who understands the concerns and challenges of average folk. They want a real person.

The problem, however, with electing a real person – that is, a nonpolitician – is that they have real emotions and real frustrations. And, if pushed hard enough, they drop the politician’s smile, they stray off-message and they can get real pissy.

At Shirley Franklin’s final press conference as mayor three weeks ago, those characteristics were on full display. She was argumentative, combative and not afraid to show her disdain for a press corps that she perceived as having treated her unfairly.

“I’m sorry this isn’t what you wanted,” Franklin said. “You get the real deal. Here I am.”

That Shirley – the prickly and confrontational one – had become a familiar presence during the waning days of her tenure, especially as she weathered frequent attacks on her administration from mayoral candidate Mary Norwood.

But Norwood’s criticisms – that crime is out of control, that city finances are in disarray, that public services are a joke – wouldn’t have gained the traction they did if many of them hadn’t already been accepted as common knowledge by a dissatisfied electorate.

It’s been a remarkable reversal of fortune for a mayor who, only four years ago, had appeared on the cover of Newsweek as a national model of female leadership, and had been named by Time as one of America’s five best big-city mayors. Could this be the same woman whom U.S. News & World Report called one of the “Best Leaders of 2005″?

Continue Reading “Life in the bunker”

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

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