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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCalled Commission Meeting May 27, 2014 CALLED MEETING COMMISSION CHAMBER May 27, 2014 PRESENT: Hons. Deke Copenhaver, Mayor; Lockett, Guilfoyle, D. Smith, Fennoy, Johnson, Davis and G. Smith, members of Augusta Richmond County Commission. ABSENT: Hon. Jackson, Mason and Williams, members of Augusta Richmond County Commission. Mr. Mayor: Okay, if everybody’s ready I’ll go ahead and call the legal meeting to order. Mr. MacKenzie. 1.LEGAL MEETING A.Pending and potential litigation B.Real estate C.Personnel Mr. MacKenzie: I would entertain a motion to go into a closed legal meeting to discuss pending and potential litigation, real estate, personnel and records exempt from the Open Records Act. Mr. Mayor: Can I get a motion to that effect? Mr. Guilfoyle: So move. Mr. Johnson: Second. Mr. Mayor: Commissioners will now vote by the usual sign. Motion carries 7-0. [LEGAL MEETING] Mr. Mayor: Okay, I’ll go ahead and call the legal meeting back to order. Mr. MacKenzie. 2.Motion to authorize execution by the Mayor of the affidavit of compliance with Georgia’s Open Meeting Act. Mr. MacKenzie: I would entertain a motion to execute the closed meeting affidavit. Mr. D. Smith: So move. Mr. Lockett: Second. Mr. Mayor: We have a motion that’s been made and properly seconded. Commissioners 1 will now vote by the usual sign. Motion carries 7-0. Mr. Mayor: And, Madam Clerk, I believe we have an addition to the agenda. It’s an addendum to appoint the Urban Redevelopment The Clerk: Yes, sir, we do. Agency (URA) members and there’s attached to that is a proposed Resolution crafted by attorney Plunkett and a motion for your consideration. Mr. Mayor: Do we have unanimous consent to add this agenda item? (Unanimous consent is given to add the item) Mr. Mayor: Okay, ladies and gentlemen, what’s your pleasure on this? We have two members of a five-member board. Commissioner Guilfoyle. Mr. Guilfoyle: Mr. Mayor, I realize that you actually is the one who comes before us with the appointees. If you don’t have any, there’s three, I only reached out to one, but Isaac McKinney is a gentlemen that is very focused on Augusta. Receive a lot of his emails. Mr. T. O. Clark. I actually worked beside him on numerous fish fries for the employees as well. Amanda Bryant just graduated from GRU and I think having some young blood, but that’s up to you, Mr. Mayor. I’m just throwing that out there. Mr. Mayor: Okay. I will take that as one slate of nominees. Do we have any further, Commissioner Lockett. Mr. Lockett: Mr. Mayor, at the last meeting I requested that a talent bank form be completed on any nominees that we have and I think that is in line with the Commission directives that before any appointments are made by the Commisson, that we have a talent bank form on them and be distributed to all those people that’s going to have to vote for it. Mr. Mayor: Okay, Commissioner Smith and then I’ll come back to Commissioner Guilfoyle. Mr. G. Smith: Yeah, I’d like to propose a downtown businesswoman, property owner. Family has been down affiliated with District 1 for many years. Ms. Bonnie Ruben. Mr. Mayor: Thank you, sir. Commissioner Guilfoyle. Mr. Guilfoyle: Yes, just for reference Amanda Bryant does have her talent bank sheet filled out here. Mr. Mayor: Yes, sir, Commissioner. 2 Mr. Fennoy: Mr. Mayor, is the process for these appointments for commissioners of District 1 and 2, 3 and 4, 5 and 6, 7 and 8 and 9 and 10 to make a recommendation to the Mayor? Is that the process? Mr. Mayor: No, that’s actually not the – that’s the process that was approved by Commission but generally and, Mr. MacKenzie, correct me if I’m wrong but for a URA Board the Mayor is to bring the candidates and then the commission has to approve them so my way of thinking has always been for me just to arbitrarily pick five names and put them in front of you guys without any input. You’re probably not going to get anywhere with that but, Mr. MacKenzie, is that correct? Mr. MacKenzie: That’s the general rule and I believe with respect to these particular URA appointments there was some other discussions prior with regard to different groups of commissioners selecting certain names and I think at the last commission meeting there was discussion to fill the ones that were kind of vacant from that format but that’s my recollection. I’m sure the minutes will speak for themselves. Mr. Mayor: Yes, sir. Mr. Fennoy: And my only, I guess, concern is that if the commissioners voted, you’ve got six votes, a minimum of six votes, to say this is how the appointments are going to be made then I think we need to abide by that. I mean that’s just my thoughts. Mr. Mayor: And that’s initially the path we went down but going through that process there were several groups of commissioners that submitted any name to me to bring forth. Commissioner Lockett. Mr. Lockett: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Mr. Mayor, I’m in somewhat disagreement with the assessment that the General Counsel has made in reference to the establishment of appointment for URA board members. That’s not exactly what I read and if, I would like for the General Counsel to provide some kind of documentation to support what he said because I’m in complete disagreement with that and I do believe that the Clerk read to us what the policy was on that and I did not support this vote that was made several weeks ago for Districts 1 and 2 and so forth to get together and make these appointments and I definitely don’t support the course of action that we are attempting to take now because I don’t think it is legal unless of course we’re going to change the policy. Mr. Mayor: Mr. MacKenzie, any response to that? Mr. MacKenzie: I’d be happy to address that. I’m not going to say I have a copy of the minutes in front of me. That was just my recollection of what happened before. There is a rule that deals with appointments. That rule is 1.11 - Appointments by the Commission-Council and it has a process whereby it says when appointments shall be made as necessary and it is determined by the Consolidation Act or some other rule or manner and it is time for appointments then it says a particular commissioner is to nominate a candidate for a position. Such a nominee must be elected by a majority vote of the Commission-Council. If any nominee, 3 however, nominated fails to receive a majority vote, alternate candidates may be nominated until the position is filled by majority vote. And the statement I said before is just my understanding of some of the history of what has been done with respect to these particular appointments. If I misstated the record on that, I’ll rely on the minutes with respect to what has been done but there is a rule on that and I would suggest that ya’ll follow the rule. Mr. Mayor: Okay. Correct me if I’m wrong, Mr. MacKenzie, but we now have four nominations from the floor. Is that -- Isaac McKinney, T. L. Clark, Amanda Bryant and Bonnie Ruben. Yes, sir. Mr. MacKenzie: Just to clarify, it’s my understanding that a single commissioner has made more than one recommendation which would not be the way this rule reads. Not that ya’ll couldn’t consider other names if other appointments weren’t made, but I’m just going by what the rule says. Mr. Mayor: Okay. Would any commissioners like to nominate T. L. Clark and Amanda Bryant? The individual commissioner so that no one commissioner got more than one nomination. Mr. Lockett: Mr. Mayor, if I may. Mr. Mayor: I was recognizing Ms. Davis. Ms. Davis. Ms. Davis: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. I’ll recommend Amanda Bryant. I do know her and I’ll recommend her for the committee. Mr. Mayor: Nominate her. Ms. Davis: Nominate her. Mr. Mayor: Okay. Mr. Johnson. Mr. Johnson: Yeah, I recommend T. L. Clark. Thomas Clark, Sr. Mr. Mayor: Okay. Commissioner Lockett. : Mr. Mayor, I’d like to make a motion that we don’t take any action. Mr. Lockett That this be referred to the full Commission and next week at Commission meeting that we have a slate of people with talent bank forms. Just because a person has a talent bank form, if it hasn’t been distributed to those people that’s got to make the decision, it’s just like not having one. And make sure we have the talent bank forms on these people so we can take a look at them and we’ll know who we’re voting for. At least we think we’ll know who we’re voting for. Mr. Mayor: Is there a second on that motion? Mr. Guilfoyle: I’ll second that. 4 Mr. Mayor: Okay. We have a motion that’s been made and properly seconded. Is there any further discussion? The commissioners will now vote by the usual sign. The suspense is killing me. Motion carries 7-0. Mr. Mayor: With no further business to come before the body, the legal meeting – [MEETING ADJOURNED] Lena J. Bonner Clerk of Commission CERTIFICATION: I, Lena J. Bonner, Clerk of Commission, hereby certify that the above is a true and correct copy of the minutes of the Called Meeting of the Augusta Richmond County Commission held on May 27, 2014. ________________________ Clerk of Commission 5