Fresh Loaf

1. Atlanta job fair at Georgia World Congress Center (If this post had attracted thousands of visits a few years back, I’d have laughed to myself and said, “What next? Creative Loafing declares Chapter 11 bankruptcy?” Hahahahaha.)

2. Soapbox: Jekyll Island Authority ‘at it again’ (At 239 comments and counting, the Jekyll post is encroaching on Black Mafia Family territory. A JIA v. BMF beef? Scary.)

3. AJC layoffs: this week or next (I’m not going to make a snide remark about the abovementioned job fair. This economy is no place for snide remarks.)

4. Georgia mayor’s Facebook page confuses nation (How easy it is to offend with a can of Schlitz and a pack of Camels!)

5. Sneak peek: Creative Loafing’s website makeover (The euphoria of making our own top-five list is only slightly diminished by the fact that most commenters trashed our makeover. Meanies.)

(Photo by Joeff Davis)

Bookmark It

State Sen. Jeff Chapman

State Sen. Jeff Chapman, R-Brunswick, has been the most vocal critic of developer Linger Longer’s plans for Jekyll Island, the idyllic state park on Georgia’s coast. In this op-ed, entitled “They’re At It Again,” the senator says the governor-appointed board tasked with overseeing the island either misunderstands a recent study of the proposal or is misleading the public.

The Jekyll Island Authority (JIA) is at it again, this time endorsing a density study conducted by the Bleakly Advisory Group, which claims that the proposed 150 percent increase in the state park’s year-round residences and rental accommodations by the year 2023 would still make Jekyll “significantly less developed than other comparable coastal destinations in terms of resident and seasonal population, housing density and traffic volumes.”

Truth be told, Bleakly based his calculations on a U.S. Census Bureau Report that includes more than 5,000 acres of marshland, most of which surrounds the six-mile long Jekyll Causeway, as part of Jekyll Island. By artificially doubling Jekyll’s real size, Bleakly attempted to show that, on a per acre basis, the built-up Jekyll of the future would not be overdeveloped or overcrowded, when, in fact, the exact opposite would be true.

(more…)

Bookmark It

State Sen. Jeff Chapman, R-Brunswick, along with Democratic state Reps. Debbie Buckner of Junction City and Stephanie Stuckey-Benfield of Decatur, was one of the few voices during last year’s legislative session to criticize the Linger Longer project on Jekyll Island, a historic state park.

The op-ed below by Chapman is the first in three that the senator says will lay out the case for increased examination of the Jekyll Island Authority, the Governor-appointed state agency that oversees the park, and the idea of “selling off” state land to the private sector. In closing, he says he’s requested the state conduct an audit of the authority’s activities during the last three years.

Chapman admits it may seem strange for a senator to write a series of articles about the topic, but:

in the case of Jekyll Island State Park, there are issues involved which demand the attention of elected officials who have been given the honor to serve the public good. Transparency and accountability in government, responsible management of publicly-owned assets, and respect for the public trust are all wrapped within the Jekyll issue, as is the principle of eminent domain, not in the traditional form but in an upside down way with the taking of publicly-owned land and using it for private profit—a kind of eminent domain in reverse.

Senator, the Internetz are yours. Below and after the jump is Chapman’s full editorial:

Last year, when the Jekyll Island Authority (JIA) granted a rent reduction of some $10 million to hotel developer Trammell Crow (TC) to replace the Buccaneer Resort, there were many who saw it as a sweetheart deal. Now the authority is spreading the love.

(more…)

Bookmark It

In an op-ed distributed today, Republican State Sen. Jeff Chapman of Brunswick — an ardent supporter of Jekyll Island under the Gold Dome — says even though Linger Longer has drastically scaled back its redevelopment plan for the state park, the matter is far from settled.

On October 6th, Linger Longer Communities revealed its revised plan for a Jekyll Island town center. The new plan, at first glance, suggests a town center much different than the over-sized and condo-dense beach village in Linger Longer’s original proposal, and closer to what many Georgians have been calling for over the past year. While the town center question may be decided in the public’s favor, the long-term future of Georgia’s only coastal state park, unfortunately, is far from secure.

(more…)

Bookmark It

Ben Porter, the Macon-area developer who’s weathered a fair share of controversy as chairman of the Jekyll Island Authority, has been replaced by Bob Krueger, a telecommunications executive and current board member. (His bio follows after the jump.) According the the authority’s website, Porter’s term would’ve expired in September 2010.

Porter’s term as chairman has been stormy, to say the least. Linger Longer LLC, the development company behind Reynolds Plantation, envisioned a “town center” project replete with hotels, condos and streetscape designs intended to revamp the state park. Residents throughout the state loudly voiced their disapproval of the proposal, saying it would block public access to one of the park’s most popular beaches and make a visit to the island getaway too expensive for the average Georgian. What resulted was a statewide grassroots movement to fight the plan that ultimately sent the developer back to the drawing board.

I’ve got calls in with the governor’s office to find out more details. More to come.

CLARIFICATION: Perdue’s in China, so we must likely won’t hear from his office. Some folks at the authority did offer some clarification, however. Porter’s term as chairman has ended, but he remains on the authority’s board. The chairman serves for one year; Porter’s stepping down is part of a routine transition, the authority says.

(more…)

Bookmark It

State Sen. Jeff Chapman, R-Brunswick, fought hard and fast against members of his own party during the most recent legislative session to protect Jekyll Island, the state park and getaway.

The senator earned an Arnie award because he stood up to the powers that be during the legislative session and voiced the wishes of not only his constituents, but those around the state who protested the proposed Linger Longer development that critics said would’ve blocked public access to the beach and made the longtime vacation spot too expensive for the average Georgian.

Chapman released an editorial through the Senate Press Office that, because of space constraints, we may not be able to publish in next week’s print edition of CL. I’m posting the entire letter after the jump.

It’s a good read from a lawmaker, who along with several other legislators such as state Reps. Debbie Buckner, D-Junction City, and Stephanie Stuckey-Benfield, D-Decatur, pushed to preserve the state park.

(more…)

Bookmark It

“BOOMLET”: Demographers say the high number of U.S. births in 2007, the highest in 50 years, could signal a mini baby boom.

LONG TIME NO SEA: Dylan the sea turtle is finally in the open ocean.

RAIN CHECK: July downpours have barely made a dent in the drought after a hot, dry June. Lake Lanier levels have dropped so much that nighttime tournament fishing is no longer allowed.

A SHOT AT THE DARK: The Jekyll Island Authority is considering an ordinance to restrict outdoor lighting on the island.

HARTSFIELD-JACKSON: Named the most efficient U.S. airport for the third straight year.

DON’T BUILD IT; THEY WON’T COME: Home construction is the slowest it’s been in 17 years.

Bookmark It

Jim Galloway of That Other Paper’s Political Insider is reporting that the Jekyll Island Authority and Linger Linger Communities, partners in a controversial plan to revitalize the idyllic state park along the coast, have scaled back the design and will not build hotels and condominiums on a public parking lot. Island advocates opposed the concept because they said it would restrict public access to the beach.

Bookmark It