James May-June 2023 web - Flipbook - Page 45
After nearly a decade of a falling tax base, government mismanagement and, of course, the pandemic,
the city of Augusta appears to be re-emerging much
like the phoenix of lore. For example, the recent election
of businessman Garnett Johnson as mayor is the product of a reform groundswell.
Just this past January the administration of Mayor Hardie Davis Jr. finally came to an end after “King
Hardie”— as dubbed in the local press— gave one final
stab at taxpayers by throwing a lavish going away party
for himself. Hardly anyone attended the black-tie soiree.
Voters had long abandoned the disgraced mayor,
who spent the last two years of his term jet-setting
around the globe while embroiled in ethics investigations, lawsuits and a messy divorce where he was
accused by his estranged wife of having an affair with a
city employee.
Under Davis’ watch, the city went through multiple
city administrators and critical department heads. Over
time, the city found itself unable to conduct routine
business, such as cutting the grass on city-owned
property and keeping the streets lit. Unqualified directors and managers were hired based totally on who they
knew and not on merit. The result? Taxpayers found
themselves living in a city with no operational public
swimming pools, government-owned recreation centers
and parks with no working comfort stations and historic
properties falling into rot.
All through this time the Augusta Commission,
since its formation by the consolidation of the city and
Richmond County in 1996, remained deadlocked on
most important issues and commissioners developed
a habit of abstaining on key votes to prevent a mayoral
tie-breaking vote.
The Augusta Commission charter was crafted
to include a 50-50 racial split and included a host of
“gentlemen’s agreements” such as if the mayor is white
then the mayor pro tem must be black and vice versa.
Both sides of the racial aisle used abstentions to stymie
progress.
The result was voter apathy, at first. However, when
the taxpayers saw their taxes suddenly go up with a
“stormwater fee” added on to already higher property
taxes, a revolt was on the horizon.
There were also other things happening behind the
scenes that quietly unfolded over the years that signaled a rebirth, of sorts, for the city. The Augusta Canal
Authority, Augusta Economic Development Authority,
Augusta National Golf Club, Fort Gordon, Augusta
University, Augusta Technical College and local entrepreneurs all had shovels in the ground, so to speak.
The Canal Authority— a quasi-governmental
body— has, with the use of volunteer labor and federal
funding, turned the seven mile-long
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