The Islander. (St. Simons Island, Ga.) 1972-current, December 22, 2008, Image 4

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Newspaper Page TextPAGE 4, DECEMBER 22, 2008, THE ISLANDER Pi Rl c -o D 1 I1V/1 Ol . tv i v 11 Opinions Part 2 Jekyll Island State Park By Senator Jeff Chapman, Dist. 3 Publisher's Statement THE ISLANDER (USPS 002430), A member of the Georgia Press Association and Glynn County’s only weekly news paper is published 51 weeks a year for $17 per year in Glynn County; $19 per year in the United States outside Glynn County; $25 per year outside the US by Permar Publications, Inc., 3596 Darien Hwy. Suite 6, Brunswick, GA 31525. Periodicals postage paid at Brunswick, GA. Contents of The Islander, including advertising, may not he reprinted or reproduced in any form without written permission of the publishers. POSTMAS TER send address change to The Islander, P.O. Box 20539, St. Simons Island, GA 31522. Publication Deadline Publication Date: Every Monday Deadline: Thursdays, 12 PM for ads and news copy for the following Monday’s edition. Holiday Schedule On Monday Post Office holidays, The Islander is printed on the Friday before. 2008 Post Office Holidays Tuesday, January 1 - New Year's Day Monday, January 21 - MLK Birthday Monday, February 18 - Presidents Day Monday, May 26 - Memorial Day Friday, July 4 - Independence Day Monday, September 1 - Labor Day Monday, October 13 - Columbus Day Tuesday, November 11 - Veterans Day Thursday, November 27 - Thanksgiving Day Thursday, December 25 - Christmas Day Holiday Deadline: Wednesdays, 12 PM for ads and news copy for the following Monday’s edition. Mission Statement: to publish the truth without fear or favor. Established 1972 Matthew J. Permar - Publisher Elise J. Permar - Publisher 1972-2003 Gertrude Bradshaw - Co-Editor 1972-1991 Managing Editor & Advertising Manager Pamela P. Shierling 912-265-9654 Production Manager Sarah Banks Long Church News Patty Gibson - 912-638-8844 Sports Jake Harrison Contributors Dave Barry, Clark Gillespie MD, Sonny Doehring, Roland Willis, Diane Bowen MD Phone Numbers 912-265-9654 • Fax - 912-265-3699 entail: ssislander@bellsouth.net Award Winning Newspaper 1975 1980 1985 1976 1981 1992 1977 1982 1999 1978 1983 2002 1979 1984 2008 A State Senator writing about the practices of an Authority entrusted with stewardship of public proper ty may seem a bit unusual, how ever, in the case of Jekyll Island State Park, there are issues involved which demand the attention of elected offi cials who have been given the honor to serve the public good. Transpar ency and accountability in govern ment, 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. The following article is the second of two prompted by my concern for the issues stated above. The focus will be on the terms of the contractual agreements worked out between the Jekyll Island Authority and compa nies involved with the State Park. The message is a clear one — when the facts and figures are considered, the Authority’s fiscal practices are in need of official review. Jekyll Partnering Agreement: Who got the Real Deal? Recently, I issued a press release describing the Jekyll Island Authority (JIA) Board’s practice of providing mil lions of dollars of ‘incentives’ for pri vate development on publicly-owned oceanfront land within Jekyll Island State Park. I also requested that the Department of Audits examine this practice, with the recommendation to halt further JIA contract signings Big labor is tired of the private bal loting that workers currently enjoy when deciding whether to unionize. The unions want to get rid of such balloting. By law. There’s a bill floating around in Congress that would do this. Is a President Obama going to sign it? The unionized share of the work force has shrunk in recent decades. Many employees don’t see the benefit of joining a union. Because voting on whether to certify a union is done by private ballot, one can’t claim that they are scared of retaliation from the boss. So what would unions gain from a law that bans private balloting? Well, if union organizers know how people are voting, and people voting know that the organizers know how they are voting, there would be much more opportunity to pressure and even intimidate employees into voting the “right” way. Unions hope this would help turbo charge recruitment efforts. As colum nist Donald Lambro puts it, passage of until the investigation is completed. While a response to my request was pending, the JIA Board announced, on the day after Thanksgiving, an emergency telephone conference meet ing for the following Monday morn ing to approve the long-term contract with its private partner, Linger Lon ger Communities. The contract, which has a 50-year term, was approved by a seven to one vote, despite the fact that it is grossly unfair and includes the same inexplicable financial incentives that I have previously questioned. Originally, the public-private part nership was based on the idea that the JIA would contribute either public land or pay for infrastructure costs to facilitate Jekyll’s redevelopment, not both. The partnership agreement recently approved, however, has the JIA doing both in the Jekyll town center project - Linger Longer takes ownership of the profitable parts of the project (two hotels and a time-share complex) while the JIA assumes $25 million in bond debt to pay for a new convention center and project-related infrastructure needs. Adding insult to injury, the bond debt will be paid off through revenue generated by Jekyll's visitors, mean ing the public foots the bill for project components that benefit the private partner. Furthermore, Linger Longer’s time- share complex will displace Jekyll's most heavily- used beachside parking area, yet the JIA has accepted the financial responsibility of rebuilding this facility elsewhere while handing Linger Longer this valuable ocean- front public land free of cost. the bill would make it “easier to union ize workplaces without the bother of the private ballot to protect workers in a free and democratic election.” This anti-democratic bill has been around for a while. But now the chanc es of passage have increased dramati cally. Candidate Barack Obama, at least when addressing union crowds, often promised he would push to make it happen. Will he do so? You can bet the unions are watching. So should we. “I The timeshares alone can generate Linger Longer roughly $100 million in net revenue, thanks to the JIA’s agree ing to accept a mere 1% cut of time- share sales, even though much of the time-shares’ value is based upon their location on prime, state park land. The partnership contract continues to tilt to the advantage of Linger Lon ger through a 10-year, multi-million dollar rent reduction for the develop er’s two hotels, courtesy of a JIA Board that has handed out a massive ‘start up incentive’ for a private project on beachfront public land. Of particular interest is the fact that in the contract negotiated in December of 2006 for the replacement of the Holiday Inn by —the operators of the Jekyll Club Hotel—annual rent was reduced by a modest 2% of gross receipts for only the first 3 years of the hotel’s operation and set at 4.5% there after. That lease was drafted with the intention of establishing a model for future hotel development contracts, according to former JIA Board Chair Richard Wood, who helped negotiate the agreement, yet the JIA Board, under new leadership, turned its back on that contract and gave away the farm to Linger Longer. If Georgians must see prime ocean- front acres of their state park priva tized through commercial partnership, they should expect a partnership that is fair for both parties. Fairness, how ever, is not the word that comes to mind when looking at the partnership contract. Sweetheart deal, giveaway, and corporate welfare are more accu rate descriptors, none of which have any place in a true public-private part nership. Responsibility for this lopsided rela tionship, and for the JIA’s giveaway of millions of dollars of visitor-generated revenue, does not rest with the pri vate partner, who is simply trying to maximize his profits, but rather falls squarely on the shoulders of the JIA Board appointees who have failed the people of Georgia. The Georgia Code states that Authority appointees should “never engage in conduct which constitutes a breach of public trust.” By depriving the people’s park of millions of dollars of needed revenue while enriching a private partner, and by jamming through a critically important contract without public review, the JIA Board’s leaders have violated the public’s trust and compromised their standing as park stewards. Jekyll Island State Park and the people of Georgia deserve better. □ A Safeguard Worth Noticing In this country, politicians understand that the more you know about government, the better off we all are. So, they created public notices to be printed in the newspaper. Georgias newspapers go one step further and also make public notices, from all 159 counties in the state, available free and searchable database online. It s fast. It s easy. It Serves The Public’s Right To Know. GeorgiaPublicNotice.com Georgia Statewide Database of Public Notices Common Sense Voter intimidation you can believe in By Paul Jacob

Georgia Historic Newspapers

The Islander. (St. Simons Island, Ga.) 1972-current, December 22, 2008, Image 4