Description of Actions and Reactions
Actions and reactions below are clarified by the newspaper articles, editorials,
political cartoons and movie clips on the right.
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Links to
Articles,
Cartoons
Movie Clips
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November 7, 2007
- Election results are in: Mark Streeter commemorates the vote with a
cartoon showing a hard hat on the beach with small characters stating,
“we'll just have to wait and see what develops”. Little did they know…….
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Political Cartoon
Article
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January 10, 2008
First meeting of our new council
- TIRPOA announces their inauguration ball to celebrate their victory and
reward their Council
- Four TIRPOA members or supporters are appointed to Planning
Commission
- Councilman Smith proposes changing the way council is elected making
it possible for candidates to attack one another more directly. No
explanations are offered on how it would work. Council agrees to public
hearing.
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Article
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January 23, 2008
- Tybee citizens learn council has made last minute addition to January 24
Council Meeting agenda to “consider suspending or repealing the ethics
ordinance” in order to be able to vote on matters before council
regarding the developers that helped put them into office. Citizens rally.
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Article
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January 24, 2008
- Citizens speak out at council meeting against repealing ethics
ordinance. No one on council admits to having placed item on agenda,
although it showed on agenda as “first reading”. Issue dies for lack of
support.
- Council quietly approves Master Plan, representing hundreds of hours
of Tybee citizens volunteer work, as part of the consent agenda and
without comment or show of appreciation for the effort. Only one
member of current council had significant input or showed interest in the
new plan.
- Councilman Smith introduces the concept of timeshare sales for the
campground.
- Council discusses rezoning the campground
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Article
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January 25, 2008
- Mark Streeter commemorates council's attempt to put out the light of the
ethics ordinance with a political cartoon showing council trying to figure
out how to turn off the lighthouse
- Citizens continue to rally in support of the ethics ordinance through
emails, letters to the editor and blogging
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Cartoon
Article
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February 14, 2008
- Petitioner who had been big supporter of current council withdraws
petition because five council persons must recuse themselves under the
still-breathing ethics ordinance. Although advertised as a public hearing,
citizens are not allowed to address the withdrawn petition and one
citizenis gaveled down while commenting on potential contamination on
the property.
- Council later attempts to withhold the Valentine's Day Council meeting
tape from local television or edit the comments about contamination.
Rally by citizens results in playing of tape without incident.
- Member of skate park ad hoc committee addresses council with a plea to
find “room for everyone” in the park.
- Concept of electing council/mayor by seats dies amidst citizen
opposition, including a former supporter of the TIRPOA developer slate
who waves their 20 point magna carta and says “we never talked about
this!”One TIRPOA member, one former TIRPOA member and the
sponsoring councilman's wife offer support for the proposal.
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Article
Movie
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February 28, 2008
- Councilman Crone reads a prepared motion to rescind all monies and
city support for skate park, without waiting until the first March meeting to
consider the ad hoc committee's recommendations for Memorial Park.
Motion passes.
- Councilman Wolff presents concept of recycling trailer -one of 13
statewide - awarded to Tybee to help with trash during events. Council
rejects Councilman Wolff's proposal 3 to 2 (Councilman Crone had gone
home because it was late)
- Council decides to retain any interest earned on the nearly $20,000 the
city has held for the kids trying to raise money to help with the cost of
the previously committed skate park.
- Explanation given by City Attorney as to why last meeting was censored:
Allegation by a property owner that comments made on 2-14 were
inaccurate and could harm this person economically, potentially.
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Article
Article
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February 29, 2007
- Mark Streeter cartoon commemorates Tybee Council with first WC Fields
cartoon saying “Beat it kid…” to a boy with a skate board
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Political Cartoon
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March 4, 2008
- Mark Streeter cartoon commemorates recycling trailer decision with
political cartoon again showing WC Fields as Tybee Council saying
“Never give a recycler an even break”.
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Political Cartoon
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March 13, 2008
- Official report of the Memorial Park ad hoc Master Plan committee
presented to council, which has already made the determination to kill
the skate park and amid rumors that the dog park is in their crosshairs.
- Public survey is presented to council showing that of 209 respondents
70% favor the skate park and more than half favor the city funding the
park.
- The Mayor suggests that the memorial park report be put on the city
website so that Tybee citizens can review and comment. Mayor Pro Tem
Doyle (open and transparent government) says she wants to see the
plan before allowing any citizen to do so.
- Councilman Smith says the public is not meant to see it until it has been
approved.
- Councilman Wolff protests withholding the report from the citizens,
saying that the public has a right to have input into council decisions.
Council agrees to withhold the report.
- Councilman Brewer says the five hundred foot rule for recusal is a
classic example of them not knowing something because it is buried in
that huge document. Brewer says it points out that they need to get the
ethics ordinance straight and ironed out so they can be trained and that
they could haveproceeded without knowing that condition was buried
within that document. It needs to get rolled out with training
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Article
Movie on
Memorial Park
Master Plan
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March 17, 2008
- Scott Larson, reporter for Savannah Morning News, obtains a copy of
the memorial park ad hoc committee report under Freedom of
Information Act and prints the report and the Gary Sanders conceptual
drawing in the News.
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Article
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March 18, 2008
- Councilman Crone is quoted in the Savannah Morning News proposing
that the dog park be moved, in spite of a signed agreement with the city
manager authorizing its current location.
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Article
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March 19, 2008
- Mark Streeter commemorates Tybee's new council's first month and a
half in a political cartoon showing “Tybee City Council's Worst
Nightmare” - a small dog _with a tattoo on a skateboard.
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Political Cartoon
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March 27, 2008
- Council meeting includes many vocal supporters of keeping the dog
park in Memorial park.
- A single speaker supports moving the park - Perb Fortner, new
president of TIRPOA, says the memorial park ad hoc committee did a
great job, but didn't have the information about the “new approach” of
city council, and that the skate park was gone and the dog park was to
be moved as an outcome of the election. Councilman Crone moves to
move the park to JC park, without conferring with or notifying neighbors
or putting the issue to the public for input,just move it. Crone later
modifies his motion to allow until April 10 for input, after being hammered
by citizens.
- Councilman Brewer comments that people who live on the same street
should pay the same amount for services from the city, implying that we
should not have homestead protection under Stephens-Day
- Councilman Smith continues to push drug testing for elected officials
and now appointees and committees (although doing so is reported to
be unconstitutional) Mr. Smith moves to approve for the City Attorney to
work on developing a policy to include Elected Officials and Planning
and Ethics Commission members within the drug free workplace
requirements for voluntary, random drug and alcohol testing, Mr. Brown
seconds. Mayor Buelterman asks why those two groups. Mr. Smith
explains those are the only two groups sworn in to uphold the Charter
and the Constitution of the State of Georgia and the United States of
America. The vote is unanimous.
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Article
Article
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April 10, 2008
- “Dog Park” is on agenda for council. Citizen after Citizen faces council
with logical pleas to leave it where it is - in Memorial Park. Charlie Brewer
asks representative of the Garden Club, who said they were planning to
make a project of landscaping the dog park “Why would you do that
after the election? You should have known it was going away”. In other
words, regardless of public input, hearings, committee reports, logic,
cost or reason, council seems to be driven by the 20 point pledge they
made in secret at a time when they were disclaiming any label of “slate”
or hidden agenda.
- Tirpoa member Larry Nesbitt says he had suggested to the city manager
a while back that the city allow dogs on the beach, but the prior council
wouldn't hear of it. Paul Wolff says he had researched this some time
ago and described his plan including fines, fees and licenses.
- Charlie Brewer asks twice - to Deb Barriero and Roxanne Fleetwood -
why they found JC Park acceptable at first but now are changing their
mind. Both stated that while JC Park was ok, there was no need to move
the park. Neither said it would not be acceptable.
- JC Park neighbors quietly protest moving it there. After the public
hearing is closed, Eddie moves to “have them take the park down within
30 days, and if they don't the city manager will be directed to do it for
them”. Angry and frustrated citizens rise and head out the door en
masse. Mayor Pro Tem Doyle, in the middle of the mass exodus, calls on
the police officer to “clear city hall”.
- Talk of recall, injunction run through the island.
- Mark Streeter commemorates the event with a cartoon declaring, “man
bitesdog”, his seventh cartoon the same number as City Council
meetings with the new gang.
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Article
Political Cartoon
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April 19, 2008
Council holds a workshop all day and among the items discussed:
- Charlie Brewer discussed the Master Plan, saying that it needs to be
talked about regularly or the extremist kind of groups will stand up and
make comments taking up a lot of time.
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April 24, 2008
- Deb Barreiro explains that Memorial Park dog supporters did not
understand the “Jaycee park or nothing” offer and that they would
accept a dog park in Jaycee park as opposed to nothing
- Beth Hodges attempts to present April Tybee survey results to council
but is not allowed to speak due to an agenda error by city clerk Vivian
Woods. Beth is rudely directed to sit down.
- Bonnie Nesbitt, former Tirpoa first lady, continued well beyond the 3
minute limit without interruption about Tirpoa coordinating biker event
- Barry moves to approve a variance without the five foot easement
previously proposed by Wolff to guarantee the bike trail future - motion
passes 5 to 1, effectively placing a gap in the “rails to trails” path that
would have benefited Tybee residents and visitors
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Political Cartoon
Article
Article
Article
Article
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May 8, 2008
- Council considers a variance petition brought by Mack Kitchens. While
both Barry and Dick disclose business relations with folks working on the
project, neither recuse themselves.
- Kathryn Williams points out that the petitioner had not stated a hardship
in his variance request - without a hardship to the property a variance is
not to be given. She further points out reasons of master plan, following
ordinances,density etc as valid reasons for denial.
- Council approves the variance unanimously (Paul W was absent)
- Council approves moving the dog park to the campground and creating
a 2nd dog park for small dogs. Jason asks that they take time and notify
neighbors and request public input -Wanda angrily says "we don't need
to do that, get it done." Barry asks Diane Schleicher why the area had
not already been cleared, as she had been instructed to do two weeks
earlier, once again suggesting ex parte meetings and council interfacing
with staff without public input.
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Political Cartoon
Article
Article
Movie: dog park
decision &
ignoring concerns
of neighbors
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May 22, 2008
- Citizens continue to comment on relocating the dog park - comments are
heavily in favor of leaving it in Memorial Park as no reason has been
given for moving it.
- Campground area residents complain that they were not notified of the
relocation
- Budget Amendment is made to transfer $4,500 City Manager's budget to
fund 2 new dog parks.
- Bubba Hughes gives an update on the drug / alcohol testing policy for
elected/appointed officials. Mr. Smith moves to approve. The motion
fails for lack of second.
- It is learned that the city has with the assistance of a $20,000 consultant,
made application to DNR to remove scarps and level the seaward-most
dunes to build a 20 foot wide, 2.5 mile road to provide for emergency
vehicles.
- Citizens show concern about the wisdom of spending this amount of
money for something that presumably will go away with renourishment in
the fall.
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Article
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June 12, 2008
- Council approves three variance requests; two of these had been
recommended for denial by both city staff and the planning commission.
- Charlie Brewer moves to reduce the planning commission from 9 to 7 in
order to save money and be more efficient.
- All but Paul vote to approve the Zoning Variance request for Archie
Lanier at 17 Logan Street.
- All but Paul approve the Shore Protection Variance request for Cook
and BobbyChu at 1 & 3 19th Street. (Eddie recuses himself because of
his employer-employee relationshipwith Bobby Chu)
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June 18, 2008
- The city, without notice, tears down the Memorial Park dog park in spite
of their commitment to have an orderly transition with the original dog
park volunteers.
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June 26, 2008
- While being critical of allowing golf carts to operate on Tybee's streets,
Charlie Brewer offers his expertise “since he is in the business” but does
not mention his conflict of interest or recuse himself.
- Council appoints George Dausey, to fill a Planning Commission vacancy
despite the fact that there is work underway to reduce the size of the
Planning Commission by two positions.
- Council abolishes the Economic Development Committee without the
input or prior notification of the committee members. Bubba presents his
proposed new 7 page Ethics ordinance, lifted from Cedartown, GA; it
has no “recusal” requirements for campaign contributions.
- Mayor Buelterman asks for reconsideration of the recycling trailer. He
explains that it will cost the City nothing (the supposed reason for initial
refusal) and can be a recycling asset for the City. The motion fails with
Crone and Doyle voting in favor and Brewer, Brown and Smith opposed.
Wolfe is not present as he is representing the City at a conference.
- Council unanimously approves placing the Veteran's War Memorial on
Butler Ave. in front of the Gym where the dog park used to be located.
This action is taken despite the fact that there has not yet been a public
hearing on the Memorial Park Master Plan.
- Council asks Bubba to send the Cedartown Ethics Ordinance as a model
for the future, to the Chairman of the Ethics Commission along with the
current ethics procedure. They want the Commission to develop a
simplified readable version and an ethics handbook.
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Cartoon
Article
Movie
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July 31, 2008
- Council votes to raise taxes by not reducing millage to correspond with
the 11.5% tax index increase.
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Notice
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August 14, 2008
- Council continues to grant variances that are inconsistent with zoning
laws and recommended against by both staff and the planning
commission. -100% of variances so far have been approved.
- Council takes heat over their attempt to abolish the planning commission
and reinstate a new 7: they claim it was all a mistake and they only
meant to allow terms to expire. Barry explains, after the meeting, “staff is
pushing this”.
- The planning commission's recommendation for a new shore protection
ordinance was presented to council. No one spoke against the
ordinance, although there were some questions and proposed
modifications.
- Eddie Crone moves to “rescind every bit of Tybee's shore protection
ordinance” _and let the state have full jurisdiction. The motion carried
but Bubba said it should go back to the planning commission and there
should be public hearings.
- Cullen Chambers tells council “something is wrong” and that this council
is acting to erode public trust.
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Article
Movie -
Abolishing Shore
Protection
Movie- Changing
Planning
Commission
Movie- Cullen
Chambers
Remarks
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Follow up on how we lost our Shore Protection
- At the next meeting of the planning commission, the ordinance was not
on the agenda. When the chairman attempted to bring up the subject he
was adamantly shut down by the Planning Director.
- An article in the Tybee News quoted Mayor Pro Tem Doyle as opposing
the new ordinance for a number of reasons, including a 250 foot no
build zone, inability to rebuild a home after being 80% destroyed by a
storm and a statement that the mean high water mark moves around
with the tides. She was wrong in each point she made in the article.
- At the next two council meetings a new ordinance was introduced,
abolishing all Tybee control of shore protection. This ordinance never
went to planning commission nor was there ever a public hearing on it.
At the October 9 council meeting in a 4 to 2 vote Tybee gave up its right
to protect our shores.
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Article
Political Cartoon
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August 28, 2008
- Council votes 5 to 1 to reduce the size of the planning commission from
9 members to 7, although at least partly due to public criticism, modifies
the action from immediately eliminating the entire commission and
reappointing members of council's choosing, as the ordinance proposal
was initially drafted, to allowing current terms to run out and then
reappoint a total of seven
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Movie on dog
park costs
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September 18, 2008
- At a public hearing on the Memorial Park Master Plan, Councilpersons
Crone and Doyle walked out rather than listen to input from concerned
citizens. Mark Streeter commemorated the event with a cartoon entitled
“Talk to the Hand”.
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Cartoon
Article
Article
Movie
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September 25, 2008
- Councilman Brewer questions the honesty of Tybee Neighbors surveys,
suggesting that participants are allowed to submit more than one
response and introduced the idea of Council approving any surveys
submitted with participants identified.
- Councilman Brewer asks the City Attorney for advice on recusal for
discussions about electric carts being used on the Island, a business in
which he shares ownership. No recusal is required.
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Charlie Brewer on
Surveys
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October 9, 2008
- Councilman Wolff attempts to retract his previous proposal for recusal
appeals, saying he did not intend the result to be the elimination of all
shore protection by the city, but trying to get the revised ordinance
placed into discussion. Wolff's comments are essentially ignored and the
shore protection elimination moves forward.
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Article
Article
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October 18, 2008
- At a quarterly workshop, Councilman Brewer proposes a number of
administrative changes to council meetings, including having the Mayor
limit expressing his opinions, limiting the amount of discussion allowed by
the public, limiting council minutes to vote records and action items, and
discharging committees when their initial charter has been fulfilled.
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Article
Article
Cartoon
Article
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October 23, 2008
- Variance for property located at unopened Miller and seventh was
approved without any requirement that the owner explain why the
marshlands should be allowed to be filled.
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November 13, 2008 & December 11, 2008
- In discussing the Ethics Ordinance, Councilman Wolff defended the
ordinance that had been developed by an appointed committee with the
assistance of the City Attorney, and which had provisions for recusals
when a petitioner had contributed over $500 to a campaign.
- Instead, council repealed the Ethics Ordinance and adopted a 7 page
replacement which they had modeled after Cedartown, Georgia.
- Councilman Wolff was the only vote against repealing the ordinance.
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January 22, 2009
- Councilman Brewer suggested that the Council establish Policy and
Procedures for Sign-in and Oaths for those testifying during public
hearings.
- Fortunately all but Brewer voted against this idea.
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January 28, 2009
- It was reported that an alleged attempt by four members of the six-
person Tybee City Council to fire City Manager Diane Schleicher was
derailed after "no action" was taken following a one hour and 15 minute
executive session.
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Article
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January 29, 2009
- Despite the Planning Commission’s recommendation for denial, City
Council approved the hotly contested development of 2.8 acres at 708
Butler Ave. Council persons Doyle, Smith and Brewer voted to support
the “concept” plan. Council persons Brown and Wolff voted in
opposition. This project threatens a number of historic oak trees.
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March 27, 2009 & April 9, 2009
- Denial of The Ordinance to Amend the Code of Ordinances Article 9 Sec
66-8(b)(3) to Regulate the Usage of Motorized Carts on the City Streets
for the City of Tybee Island –Councilman Brewer disclosed his business
interest in Electric Cars and abstained from voting but not from the
discussion. Council persons Crone, Smith and Brown voted for denial.
Council persons Doyle and Wolff voted to permit usage of motorized
carts.
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April 23, 2009
- Councilman Brewer continually asked questions throughout the night
about how money was being spent. When Mayor Buelterman banged his
gavel and reminded Brewer that those discussions should come either
during budget hearings or when an individual item came before council
for approval, Brewer briefly walked out of the meeting.
- In discussing the Campground Councilman Smith stated that he wants
the council to consider its options even if that means closing the
campground.
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Article
Article
Article
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May 5, 2009
- Council members Paul Wolff, Wanda Doyle and Dick Smith supported
extending the Better Hometown program, saying it needed time to prove
itself Councilmen Charlie Brewer and Barry Brown wanted to cut the
program. They lost.
- The Brown-Brewer minority continued on a motion from Brewer to spend
$55,000 to study creating a toll road to Tybee. The motion failed.
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Article
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June 25, 2009
- Another $20,000 is approved for study by Eric Olson (moving sand from
Estill Point to other needed spots)
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July 9, 2009
- During two hours of debate, tension ran high during discussions about
the proposed IGA parking lot expansion petition Councilman Eddie
Crone walked out when resident Jimmy Brown began his presentation
with musician Joni Mitchell in the background singing: "They paved
paradise and put up a parking lot."
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Political
Cartoon
Article
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August 13, 2009
- The long and hard fought battle over the IGA parking lot expansion
seemed to have reached a compromise, crafted by Councilman Brewer.
Mayor Pro Tem Doyle said she had voted for the compromise position
after she had “studied and studied the options.” She hoped the
compromise would work for everyone. The compromise was supported
by Brewer, Doyle and Wolff, with Smith and Brown voting against
compromise. The compromise was scheduled for a second reading at
the Council meeting on September 24th.
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Article
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September 10, 2009
- City Council (again) reversed the recommendation of their own
appointed Planning Commission, allowing, in a vote of 3 to 1 (Smith,
Doyle and Brewer voting in favor) a new car wash on Tybee. The
Planning Commission had cited Council’s decision to cut off beach
showers because of a water shortage. The Mayor had asked for a delay
to straighten out some questions about platting. The Planning
Commission vote had been to deny, with only 3 members voting. One
had recused herself and the rest of the commission was somewhere
else. The new car wash will not recycle the water that goes down the
drain.
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Article
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September 24, 2009
- “…residents and City Council members alike said they were blindsided
by a new proposal…” on the parking lot expansion. A proposal that no
one seemed quite sure how it originated, one that our own city attorney
would not confirm had been legally presented and one that not even the
petitioner or his engineer seemed to be familiar with. No specifications
as to number of cars allowed, or other details in the new “Neighborhood
Grocery District” were presented. Councilman Wolff asked if anyone had
seen it before today? Evidently, some had, although it was not clear
when or where. But, flawed as it may have been, it passed. Five to one,
with Councilman Wolff the lone opponent.
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Political
Cartoon
Article
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