Newspaper Page Text
.
I sometimes feel that I'm the only person in Athens who
hasn't been invited to a meeting with Selig Enterprises to hear
about the plans for their proposed Walmart-plus development
‘ on the edge of downtown. That's mainly because the press
has been excluded from those meetings, although some of the
press has been readily available to Selig when the developer
wants to push its plans.
It is unusual in Athens for a development of this magnitude
to progress this far without a meeting open to the press and
the public. I believe that this oversight has contributed greatly
to the difficulty our community has had in coming to grips
with this project. I certainly understand the need for a big
business deal to be negotiated exclusively among the parties
whose money is involved, but there comes a point where the
public has a need to know what is going on and how it affects
our community.
As a journalist, I submit that a series of closed, private
meetings is not the same as a public meeting, where we can all
hear the facts together at the same time and respond to them
in each other's presence. When all we have is fragmented,
small groups, we become like the blind men trying to describe
the elephant: each focusing on a different part and having no
patience with somebody etse's differing perception.
We have a tradition here of open public meetings to dis
cuss big issues, though our most recent such experience, alas,
is perhaps the exception that proves the rule. Many of the
citizens who participated in last year's public hearings on the
Classic Center expansion came away feeling that they were
We become like
the blind men
trying to describe
the elephant.
its superstores in the center of Five Points. People rose up in
opposition and in support of the two locally owned pharmacies
already there. The Eckerd executives, counseled by Mayor Doc
Eldridge, bravely attended a big public meeting, heard what
the community was saying and graciously dropped their plans.
And the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility—we surely
had some community discussions about that, because it was
the federal government, and they were required to hold a series
of open meetings. They got an earful and eventually went else
where. Nobody ever knew what part the public outcry played,
but the government knew that, in spite of the open-arms wel
come extended by the university, the local government and the
chamber of commerce, now led by former Mayor Doc Eldridge:
"If not this, what?"), not everybody wanted Athens dominated
by a vast, secret facility manufacturing highly toxic materials
on the banks of the Middle Oconee.
Further back, Athens Regional Medical Center had to con
front the neighborhoods when it announced plans to tear down
50 homes along and around King Avenue. Even somebody as
strong-willed as then-hospital CEO Jack Drew listened and
heard what the public was saying and significantly curtailed
the impact of the project.
And there was the famous time when an aroused citi
zenry forced the re-design of the Classic Center the first time
around—an outcome everyone agrees was in the best interest
of the community, though the re-design was opposed by the
Classic Center Authority and most of the ACC Commission.
There's no substitute for public meetings when the public
interest is involved. Even without public meetings, though,
Selig has heard from a lot of people, and the community has
heard a lot from each other. (Doc's all for it: see City Dope.)
The Selig/Walmart project is too damned big for the location,
with unresolved impacts on traffic flow and connectivity to
downtown and the surrounding neighborhoods. At the same
time, most everybody agrees it would bring jobs and business
and groceries and tax income from a large swath of property.
The process has advanced from general outcry to pinpointing
specific problems with the Selig concept and design. One can-
only assume that Selig gives credence to these issues and is
willing to address them. Public meetings would expedite'the
just going through the motions
with no possibility of making any
difference.
Probably the closest paral
lel to the Selig development,
though on a much smaller scale,
was the Eckerd chain's proposal
several years ago to locate one of
MUSIC
. flagpole. Inc. publishes Flagpole Magazine weekfr and distributes 14.500 copies free at over
275 locations around Athens, Georgia. Subscriptions cost $70 a year, $40 for six months.
© 2012 Flagpole, Inc. All rights reserved.
mssmm
EDITOR l PUBLISHER Pete McCommons
ABYEJmSJKSTHBECTOR & PUBLISHER Alicia Nickles
PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Larry Tenner
MANAGING EDITOR Christina Cotter
ADVERTISING SALES Anita Aubrey, Melinda Edwards, Jessica Pritchard
MUSIC EDITOR Michelle Gilamrat .
CITY EDITOR Dave Marr
CLASSIFIEDS, DISTRIBUTOR & OFFICE MANAGER Jessica Smith
ASSISTANT OFFICE MANAGER Sydney Siotkin
AB DESHMOM Kelly Ruberto, Cindy Jerretl
CARTOONISTS Cameron Bogus, Lee Gatlin, Missy KuIiR, Jeremy Long, David Mack, Clint McElroy
ADOPT HE Special Agent Cindy Jerreil
CONTRIBUTORS Christopher Joshua Benton, Hillary Brown, Tom Crawford, Kevin Craig,
David Fitzgerald, Derek Hill, Jyl Inov, Gordon Lamb, Kristen Morales, Matthew PuNer,
Drew Wheeler, Kevan Williams ; „
CIRCULATION Charles Creenleaf, Jesse Mangum, John Richardson, Will Donaldson
WEB DESIGNER Kelly Ruberto
CttOMt Jessica Smith
ADVERTISING INTERN Morgan Guritz
MUSIC INTERNS Carolyn Amanda Dickey, Jodi Murphy, Erinn Waldo
STREET ADDRESS: 112 Foundry St., Athens, GA 30601
MAILING ADDRESS: P.O. Box 1027, Athens. GA 30603
EDITORIAL (706) 549-9523 • ADVERTISING: (706) 549-0301 • FAX: (706) 548-8981
Earn up to $30 for completing a
3-hour study. Men and women
between the ages 18 and 65 are
needed. Call Personality Studies
at UGA for an initial phone
screening: (706) 583-0819
Reference Code B
THIS WEEK’S ISSUE:
Kg’.- ir ~ -
1EWS & FEATURES
Citv Done 4
Athens News and Views
The story of the Selig development was picked up by regional and national media
last week.
Google That Shit .8
Search: Tim Echols TeenPact
Public Service Commissioner Tim Echols believes Jesus should dictate the laws of
our nation.
ARTS & EVENTS
Miscellany
Get Your Ath Together
Valentine's Day brings music, food, special events and more...
Grub Notes
A New Farmhand
Farm 255 has a new chef, but don’t expect big changes.
Steve Aoki’s Wonderland ..
Electro Invades Bad Manor
Pouring vodka down fans’ throats... because he loves them.
Mixtape Wars
Valentine’s Day: McKay vs. Hay
Songs for romance and to mend a broken heart.
. . .30
sl£8
Wme.
m
ms
, &
as?
See owe website for menus.
V0e.384.V801
Corner of Chase and Boulevard „
heirloomathens.com
CITY DOPE
4
CITY
5
CAPITOL IMPACT
6
ATHENS RISING
7
GOOGLE THAT SHIT ...
8
MISCELLANY
9
GRUB NOTES
.'.....10
FILM NOTEBOOK
11
MOVIE DOPE
12
MOVIE PICK
13
THREATS & PROMISES...
....14
STEVE AOKI
...16
THE B-52s
....17
THE CAl£NDAR! ...
...18
BULLETIN BOARD
...24
ART AROUND TOWN....
....25
COMICS
,..,26
REALITY CHECK
...27
CLASSIFIEDS
....28
CROSSWORD
....29
MIXTAPE WARS
... .30
ADVERTISING: adsCflagpole.com
CALENDAR: calendarOfiagpoie.com
COMICS: comicsCflagpole.com
EDITORIAL editorCflagpole.com
LETTERS: lettersCflagpole.com
MUSIC: musicCflagpole.com
NEWS: newsCflagpole.com
WEBSITE: webCflagpole.com
process.
Pete McCommons edilor@flagpole.com
VOLUME 26 .
ISSUE NUMBER 5
® Q 0
kuociitxm tit Mttrtvjtivt Hrmwttkvn
The University of Georgia
FEBRUARY 8,2012- FLAGPOLE.COM 3