Millions for Macon

Macon (and Bibb County) is about to get nearly 4 million dollars to rehab blighted housing. This money comes courtesy of the first stimulus package and local leaders are excited, if not all together in agreement-what else is new-about the opportunity the money will bring. the City and the County are working together obtain and then spend this money. Most of the property that will be addressed lies within the city limits of Macon, which is also, lest we forget, also in Bibb County.

This is really good news, yet, at City Council this week, most of the time, and as a result most of the press coverage, was spend talking about the division of about 45K a year in hotel/motel taxes, only to have the matter again tabled, while this good news got very little attention. No wonder people question the capacity of their elected officials!

P.S.: I'm going to be mirroring this site with the new Tondee's site for a while until folks get used to the change.

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Council to Consider Reallocation of Hotel-Motel Tax

Whether we're talking about billions of dollars to Wall Street firms or thousands of dollars to local nonprofits, elected officials should do all they can to make sure that private entities getting tax dollars are either financially sound or have a reasonable plan to become financially sound before the tax dollars sent their way.

Today, Macon City Council will take up a resolution to divide the hotel/motel tax by adding the Georgia Children's Museum and The Tubman Museum as recipients. It's my understanding that support of the Halls of Fame has already been discussed. Currently, the Cherry Blossom Festival is the beneficiary of this tax, and that decision was predicated on the notion that the Festival puts "heads in beds." Those who support spreading the money between various museums believe that it is important that we have a viable museum district, sort of an all boats rise together approach. I agree with that and certainly support the work of all of these groups,but before public money is provided to any of these organizations, it is my hope that Council will examine the relevant financial documents, just as they would if the an organization were coming to council to ask for direct financial support from the City. The item that will come to the floor today is simply a resolution. It is our legislative delegation that would ultimately have to drop a piece of local legislation to allow the change. Given that, there is certainly time to dot the "i's" and cross the "t's" so that tax money, however generated, is spent wisely.

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Blitz to remove blight.

One of the best parts of my job as a member of Macon's City Council is to serve on the Community Resources and Development Committee which reviews and supports the work of the Economic and Community Development Department. ECDD works on numeorous issues in our community including neighborhood stabilization and revitalization. The following is a press release from ECDD regarding the demolition blitz that begins this Friday in the Bartlett Crossing Community. I urge everyone to come out and celebrate as we move forward toward improvement of that community and all of Macon.

On Friday October 24, the City of Macon through its Economic and Community Development Department (ECD) will take a bold step to eradicate blight and decline in the Bartlett Crossing Community. In partnership with the City’s environmental contractor, Geotechnical Environmental Consultants (GEC) and the Department of Public Works, ECD will demolish 35 open and dilapidated units in the two block area adjacent to the intersection of Bartlett Street and Ernest Street. The public is invited to attend the press conference at 9:00 a.m. located on the 1100 block of Ernest Street. Demolition of the dilapidated structures will commence shortly thereafter and continue for next several weeks.

Community Leaders from the Manna Community Housing and Development Organization, Lizzie Chapel Baptist Church and the City are working on a plan to revitalize the Bartlett Crossing Community. In response to their efforts, ECD has agreed to take down as many abandoned properties in the area as possible. ECD has identified over 100 units of abandoned housing units within the Bartlett Crossing Community. “I made a promise to Manna and the Bartlett Crossing community that I would do something about blight in Bartlett Crossing once I became Mayor.” says Mayor Robert A.B. Reichert. “I am pleased that we are able to this in my first year in office.”

Once these 35 properties have been removed, the City demolition total for the year will be 70 units, nearly doubling last years pace. Kevin DuBose, the Director of Economic and Community Development cites the creation of the Neighborhoods Division with his department as the biggest reason for the increased production. “The City is well on its way of making its commitment of tearing down 100 dilapidated housing units this year. We are using new tools to fight blight and we are getting results.”

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There's a New Blogger in Town

Welcome, Macon City Councilwomen, Lauren Benedict, the newest contributor to GWV! We're looking forward to hearing more from her about city business.

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Hello to Georgia Women Vote

I am glad to be added to the list of contributors for Georgia Women Vote. As a member of Macon City Council, I look forward to the opportunity to post information about the City. Look for my upcoming posts as I travel with Amy & Daryl to Denver for the Convention at the end of August.

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Cats, Dogs, Nude Dancing, and Alcohol

According to Macon City Councilwomen Benedict, despite the outcry in support of privatization on the editorial page of the Telegraph, and the known opposition of many members of City Council to the Mayor's proposal, exactly no one, that would be nada, none, zero from the public appeared at today's requisite public hearing on the budget. Members of the Appropriations Committee had to fill the minimum required time to leave the public hearing open (15 minutes) with chatter and comments on the virtues of the proposed privatization of solid waste so as to make the broadcast on Channel 14 more interesting. Ms. Lucas pointed out that unless you're talking about cats, dogs, nude dancing or alcohol, the public will not attend. While that brought a chuckle from the handful of council members and media present, this is a sad but true reflection of our tendency to get riled up about the things that matter the least* while ignoring the solid waste in the room.

*For the record, because I know it's going to come up, I love cats and dogs, rarely drink alcohol and am ambivilent about nude dancing. Councilwomen Benedict did not express her opinion on any of the above, but I hear she has two cats.

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I Really Wasn't Trying to Pick a Fight With Erick

With these comments, I think Erick Erickson is trying for a three-weeks-in-a-row feature in the Political Notebook. When I posted the attendance numbers for Macon City Council, I did so with a list of caveats that would make most lawyers cross-eyed and really made an effort to just report the numbers without a lot of finger-wagging. Like I said, there are legitimate reasons why people miss meetings, and I got an early snapshot that didn't even include some meetings like subcommittees, retreats, orientation and related committees. All that said, whether we're talking about the legislature or city council, showing up is basic to effectively representing your constituents. I just don't think "vote for me and I'll show up as little as possible" works as a campaign slogan. Doesn't fit on the signs either.

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Macon City Council, By the Numbers, Part II

If you're thinking of running for City Council, you better be prepared to attend lots of meetings. Last Monday (March 18th) I received a very prompt response to an Open Records Act request for the attendance records of our current council members. My curiosity was triggered by the reporting and blogging about the attendance records of legislators.

Over all, I think you're going to be impressed with the dedication of this group of elected officials. Eight Macon City Council members have attended 100% of Council Meetings and 100% of meetings of assigned committees. (For Lonnie Miley, that meant attending 19 of 19 assigned committee meetings.) White, Benedict, DeFore, Paris and Schlesinger have attended 100% of all council, assigned committees and work sessions. Overall, most have not just good attendance, but outstanding attendance. Many go above and beyond by attending meetings of non-assigned committees in addition to assigned committees, and that's good because like any governing body, much of the work happens in the committees. Leading that list, Rick Hutto has attended 18 meetings of committees to which he is not assigned.

Since December 11th, of the meetings for which attendance was requested, members Ellington, Lucas, White, Benedict, Hutto, Miley and Schlesinger have all attended more than 30 meetings, while Cranford, Jones, DeFore, Erickson and Ross have attended fewer than 20 meetings.

Because members of council are assigned to different committees, and those committees meet with varying frequency, I am simply reporting the raw numbers rather than % of overall attendance. As you scan the list, you will see trends. As you look at these numbers, remember:

• The records I have are only through March 14th.
• The attendance report for the O&R Committee does not include the names of non-assigned council members who attended the meetings of that committee.
• Some Council members have had deaths in the family, illnesses and other legitimate reasons for absences. I am simply reporting the numbers as reflected in the documents I was provided, not judging whether the absences are justified.
• Council members have pointed out that absences from some committee meetings can be attributed to attendance at other subcommittee meetings (like animal control).
• Because I did not ask for it specifically, the attendance at the retreat is not included in these numbers. Also, meetings of subcommittees and related committees are not included, so some members have attended even more meetings than listed here.
• Council members have pointed out that Council President, Miriam Paris, frequently drops in on committees even if she does not attend the entire meeting.
• There was an O&R Meeting listed on December 18, 2007. The committee listed was as appointed by the previous council, so it was confusing. There were no absences from that meeting, so it's possible that current members of O&R actually attended one meeting in addition to those listed here.

According to the information provided, as of March 14th:

Mike Cranford attended 5 of 6 Council Meetings, 10 of 12 meetings of assigned committees, 3 of 4 work sessions and 0 meetings of committees of which he is not a member. (18 total)

Charles Jones attended 5 of 6 Council Meetings, 9 of 10 meetings of assigned committees, 2 of 4 work sessions and 1 meeting of committees of which he is not a member. (17 total)

Tom Ellington attended 6 of 6 Council Meetings, 15 of 15 meetings of assigned committees, 3 of 4 work sessions and 9 meetings of committees of which he is not a member.(33 total)

Elaine Lucas attended 5 of 6 Council Meetings, 11 of 11 meetings of assigned committees, 4 of 4 work sessions and 12 meetings of committees of which she is not a member. (32 total)

Virgil Watkins attended 6 of 6 Council Meetings, 11 of 13 meetings of assigned committees, 4 of 4 work sessions and 1 meeting of committees of which he is not a member. (22 total)

Nancy White attended 6 of 6 Council Meetings, 9 of 9 meetings of assigned committees, 4 of 4 work sessions and 13 meetings of committees of which she is not a member. (32 total)

Ed DeFore attended 6 of 6 Council Meetings, 7 of 7 meetings of assigned committees, 3 of 4 work sessions and 0 meetings of committees of which he is not a member. (16 total)

Lauren Benedict attended 6 of 6 Council Meetings, 14 of 14 meetings of assigned committees, 4 of 4 work sessions and 13 meetings of committees of which she is not a member. (37 total)

Erick Erickson attended 4 of 6 Council Meetings, 5 of 11 meetings of assigned committees, 2 of 4 work sessions and 4 meetings of committees of which he is not a member. (15 total)

Rick Hutto attended 6 of 6 Council Meetings, 7 of 7 meetings of assigned committees, 3 of 4 work sessions, and 18 meetings of committees of which he is not a member. (34 total)

Lonnie Miley attended 6 of 6 Council Meetings, 19 of 19 meetings of assigned committees, 3 of 4 work sessions, and 3 meetings of committees of which he is not a member. (31 total)

Miriam Paris attended 6 of 6 Council Meetings, 4 of 4 meetings of assigned committees, 4 of 4 work sessions, and 11 meetings of committees of which she is not a member. (25 total)

Larry Schlesinger attended 6 of 6 Council Meetings, 13 of 13 meetings of assigned committees, 4 of 4 work sessions, and 14 meetings of committees of which he is not a member. (37 total)

James Timley attend 5 of 6 Council Meetings, 12 of 13 meetings of assigned committees, 4 of 4 work sessions, and 5 meetings of committees of which he is not a member. (26 meetings)

Alveno Ross attended 4 of 6 Council Meetings, 6 of 7 meetings of assigned committees, 4 of 4 work sessions, and 0 meetings of committees of which he is not a member. (14 meetings)

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Flu-ish

Sorry for the absence from this page. I think I've had the flu. Or something very much like the flu. Flu-ish. Victor, in particular, has been watching closely, asking for my definition of "tomorrow" and hoping for the rest of the post on City Council attendance. I'm still checking some numbers and trying to decide the most fair way to report the data. Every member of Council is assigned to committees. Some of the members are assigned to committees that meet more often than other committees, and some of the members go out of their way to attend all the meetings-whether or not they are actually members of those committees. One thing is for sure-if you are elected to City Council, and make half an effort to be informed about City business, you are going to attend a whole lot of meetings. And, if you choose not to attend the committee meetings, you risk being uninformed and probably should avoid commenting on what happened at the meeting you failed to attend. More, I hope, tomorrow.

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Macon City Council, By the Numbers

According to records I received today from the City of Macon, in response to an Open Records Act request, the vast majority of Macon's City Council members are doing an outstanding job of showing up for council meetings, work sessions and committee meetings. Many council members not only attend the committees they are assigned to, but they also make a lot of the meetings of the committees they are not assigned to. It is to be expected that members will sometimes be absent. People get sick. Families have crises. Things happen. But, showing up is an important part of serving, so here goes.

Based on the information from the City:

Of Macon's fifteen council members, ten have attended 100% of the five full council meetings held since they were sworn in on December 11th. (12/11,12/18,1/15, 2/5, 2/19, 3/4)

The Perfect Attendance Certificates go to: Ellington, Watkins, White, DeFore, Hutto, Miley, Paris, Schlesinger, Benedict and Timley.

Cranford, Jones and Lucas have attended four of the five meetings.

Ross and Erickson have attended three of the five meetings.

As is true with most legislative bodies, most of the "real" work happens in committee, so tomorrow, I will post the % of attendance at assigned committees. Overall, I think you'll be impressed. Nine members have attended all of the meetings of all of their assigned committees, but I'm checking the numbers for one member who seems to have attended less than half of the meetings of his assigned committees. More on that later. And, several members will get gold stars for also attending the majority of the meetings of committees to which they are not assigned. One has attended 18 meetings of non-assigned committees. Want to guess who that is?

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Which Macon City Council Member Has the Best-and Worst-Attendance Record?

With all the talk about the attendance records of our state legislators, I decided that it was a good time to do a little checking on our local elected officials. I started with Macon City Council and did an open records request last week for the attendance records for the new council (from December 11 forward) for council meetings, committee meetings and work sessions. I am tabulating as we speak, and you can check back here tonight for the results. You may be surprised at the results. I'll check on County Commission, School Board and Water Authority, next.

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Sources Say

Democratic Macon City Councilmembers Lauren Benedict, Tom Ellington and Larry Schlesinger may be toying with the idea of forming a PAC in support of embattled speaker Glenn Richardson-an acknowledgement of Richardson's recent advocacy for a women's right to choose and the daily bad press the Speaker provides for the Georgia GOP. Embattled blogger and Macon City Councilman Erick Erickson has been tapped to design the logo.

I am, of course, joking, but Erickson, Benedict, Ellington and Schlesinger are together in Athens this weekend at the newly elected officials training, and appear to have a little too much time on their hands.

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Together

In the last municipal elections in Macon, if we learned nothing else, we learned that a positive message of inclusion won the day. Maconites are sick of infighting, backstabbing and "ya-yaing." Experience is valuable. Fresh faces and fresh ideas are valuable. Most of all voters expect elected officials to put aside their personal agendas, their personal differences and work together, sharing knowledge, expertise and vision to benefit the city. "It's not about me" would be a pretty good motto for elected officials.

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Macon City Councilwomen Lauren Benedict

Lots of folks who read this blog supported Lauren Benedict in her house race in 2006. You may not know that she was elected to Macon City Council this year, and those who supported her in the house race helped make it possible. She was sworn in Tuesday night. Congratulations, Lauren!

Here's photographic evidence:

Erick Erickson, Nancy White, Lauren Benedict

12/11/2007, Macon City Council

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Kudos to Some New Macon Council Members

Macon's new city council, including some certified newbies, will be sworn in on December 11th. Long before the swearing in-and well before the inevitable swearing at-a number of the newly elected members have made it their business to attend committee meetings, council work sessions and regular council meetings. Lauren Benedict, Larry Schlesinger, Virgil Watkins and Tom Ellington have attended often, and Lonnie Miley has attended occasionally. Of course, Miley has been on council before. Two work session-orientation session have been held, one Nov. 29th and one on Nov. 15th. Benedict, Schlesinger, Watkins and Ellington all attended both sessions. Outgoing council member Cole Thomason even came to the first orientation session to offer helpful advice. I hear that Erick Erickson may have missed these work sessions, and I find that surprising, though I know it does take a lot of time to be, what was it, the 69th most influential conservative...

While there's no requirement that newly elected members of council start attending meeting prior to taking office, it certainly seems like it would make the transition easier for the city and for the new members. So, big props to those who have chosen to begin serving even before they are "official." I think this bodes well for the council's future work.

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Who Should Be President of Macon City Council?

Who should be the next President of Macon City Council? Of the fifteen members of Macon City Council, the five who are elected city-wide are eligible to become the next President of Council. Voters don't choose the President-the Council members do-but, here's your chance to have your say. Vote here, and feel free to post your reasons in the comments:

Opinion Polls & Market Research

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If David Corr Wins, Will Motley Crew Play the Inaugural?

I leave town for two days, and look what happens. Today, the Telegraph endorsed libertarian, David Corr. Corr is running a write-in campaign against James Timley, who currently holds the citywide seat on Council. The election is Tuesday. Tell me if I'm wrong, but I think Corr made history today just by getting the paper's endorsement. In the twenty-two years I've lived in Macon, I think this is the first time the Telegraph has endorsed either a libertarian or a write-in candidate. On Tuesday, will Macon voters hand Corr another first? Will he become the first write-in candidate to be elected to Council? And, if he wins, will Motley Crew play the inaugural? Stranger things have happened.

If James Timley doesn't win this race, he will have no one but himself to blame. Unless he's done it over the last week, he has failed to do the two most basic things in politics: tell his supporters they need to go to the polls and vote for him. There nothing on the ballot to drive voters to the polls, so those who do go will be "motivated voters." It takes a motivated voter to go to the polls, click on "write-in" and type in a name. But, with the Road Warriors in his corner, who knows? Trust me, they define motivated. Reichert is a shoe-in for Mayor, and all other council seats are unopposed. And, in a strange twist that will benefit Corr, Timley will appear, on the ballot, to be unopposed. Lot's of folks don't bother to "vote" for candidates in races where they are "unopposed." There appears to be no need.

Personally, I'm not endorsing him in this race, but I like David. We're often on opposite sides of issues-like when I co-chaired the last ELOST campaign, and he was the voice of the opposition. But, he's always been nice, and we've always been civil. Besides, it's not divergent opinion that bothers me-it's people not giving a damn. He definitely does give a damn.

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David Lucas Doesn't Think Corr Qualified in Time

Rep. David Lucas dropped by my office this afternoon. Because our municipal elections in Macon are partisan, Lucas says he believes David Corr did not qualify in time to run as a write-in campaign against James Timley. Rep. Lucas says he bases his objection on state law. Lucas has made his case to election officials and called the press.

This is going to be interesting to watch. Anyone who thinks Corr can't win a write-in campaign wasn't in Macon when he got about 25 % of the vote in the mayor's race-as a write-in candidate. Now, he has greater name ID, and, frankly, he's been working to win. He has signs out, and Corr is making the political rounds. Plus, this is an opt-in election, so motivated voters in favor of change may carry the day.

Bottom line: Democrats need to plan to vote in the general election.

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I Don't Know About This Telegraph Ad

This ad appeared in the Telegraph this week. To look at it, you would think that Maconites get to vote on who will be the next city council president. They don't. City Council members elect Council President. You could argue that voters could tell their council member who they hope they'll vote for, but otherwise, this ad is, at best, poorly worded.

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The Forest Hill Road Saga Continues...

I have heard from several sources that Bibb County Commission Chair, Charlie Bishop, is in the process of scheduling meetings with small groups of City Council members regarding the Forest Hill Road Project. I wonder what the Chairman intends to accomplish at these meetings and whether they are open to the public. I am hopeful that this signals a willingness on the Chairman's part to consider altering the plans.

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