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Septeniber 17, 2011
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ATHENS NEWS AND VIEWS
Take a Couple Weeks Off, and Look What
Happens: "Road closed" signs and chain-link
fences went up across Hancock Avenue last
week, and those of us who used to use the
last eastern block of that thoroughfare to get
to the heart of downtown from Foundry Street
finally kissed our access goodbye. Now we
(and all future travelers from the east) will
have to make a left turn across busy traf
fic before we even get a glimpse of Athens'
vibrant, historic commercial center. And what,
you ask, about those going in the other direc
tion? "To what?" rings the response.
As if to ^mitigate the planning blunder
that will now allow the Classic Center to
permanently wall off downtown at Thomas
Street, the board of the Athens Economic
Development Foundation decided—after
receiving, shall we say, a "privileged" briefing
from Mayor Nancy Denson—to put the kibosh
on a plan for the cooperative redevelopment
of underused land between the eastern edge
of downtown and the North Oconee River
that just a month ago
appeared to have real
forward momentum.
Commissioner Andy
Herod, who along with
Denson serves on the
EOF board, says the
decision made last week
was simply not to hire a
coordinator for the river
district project, not to
j abandon the project
itself. The Dope can't
wait to see what further
ideas our local officials
have in store to guide
the positive, productive
development of Athens'
| most desirable available
! real estate.
For an additional
perspective, we now
j cede the floor to our
own Kevan Williams:
Closed Meetings and Open Secrets: Giving the
community and its leaders a chance to more
diligently scrutinize the river district and eco
nomic development in general were some of
the themes in the local discourse over the
summer, marked by events like commission
ers fighting their way onto the EOF board and
suggestions to appoint a project manager and
steering committee to move the river district
forward, and to hire the Carl Vinson Institute
of Government to double-check revenue pro
jections made by a consulting firm.
But that isn't exactly the way things
worked out. Mayor Denson held several meet
ings with small groups of commissioners to
skirt open meetings rules (per Blake Aued's
reporting in the Athens Banner-Herald), in
order to discuss a project in the works for
the Armstrong & Dobbs property, one of
the river district's key parcels. More recently,
discussion at a closed-door meeting of the
EOF board on whether or not to hire a project
manager candidate drifted, it seems, towards a
more philosophical discussion of that position
and the project in general. While the meeting
was eventually opened to the public after an
hour and a half, it does seem as though some
important conversations relating to things
other than the hiring of an individual position
may have taken place in private, which raises
questions about transparency.
Part of the reason for the EDF's abandon
ment of the river district concept was the
lurking project at A&D. The rumors floating
around town are that this large mixed-use
development (comprised of office, residential
and retail, with substantial parking) will likely
be anchored by what's sure to be a controver
sial tenant: Wal-mart!
The Arkansas company has a big reputation
for killing Main Streets, and well-documented
issues regarding its treatment of employees.
But Athens' downtown area is long-lacking
a grocery, and low-income folks in the area
could certainly benefit from a walkable,
affordable supermarket.
The anchor tenant is likely what makes
this developer's A&D project financially viable,
including the office and residential com
ponents. It'll likely bring in much property
and sales tax money, enough to jumpstart
downtown economic development if a tax
allocation district is enacted, ameliorating
significant risk to proposed bonds.
It's easy to make this a referendum about
Wal-mart and its corporate practices, and
then move on. However, the more important
conversation we need to have is what we want
our central business district to look like. This
needs to happen before things like Wal-Mart
land on our doorstep. [Kevan Williams]
Rolling into Town: The 2011 Georgia Bike
Summit, an annual event drawing bicycle
transportation advocates and enthusiasts from
across the state and beyond, will be held at
the Georgia Center for Continuing Education
Saturday, Oct. 8, with satellite events taking
place throughout the weekend. The schedule
features seminars, break-out sessions, group
rides, screenings, a raffle—get the full low-
down at the Georgia Bikes! website, www.
georgiabikes.org (you can register online,
as well). And when the city streets fill
with cyclists that weekend, remember—as
always—to share the road.
A Final Note: The dutiful Dope is happily
obliged to thank alt of those who wished him
well (and not to forget those who graciously
declined to wish him ill!) upon the birth of
his darlin' daughter the first of this month.
From all the Dopes, our humble and heartfelt
gratitude.
Dave Mar; & Kevan Williams news@flagpole.com
It was briefly hoped the Classic Center would offer helicopter ferry rides across
its sprawling campus (now that the easternmost block of Hancock has finally
been closed), but this whirlybird was only brought in last week as a demo for the
Georgia Emergency Communications Conference
4
FLAGPOLE.COM • SEPTEMBER 21,2011
