Friday, October 25, 2002
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Friday, October 25, 2002 |
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PTC development authority worries about losing managment of tennis center, amphitheater By JOHN
MUNFORD Negotiations are progressing between representatives of the Development Authority of Peachtree City and the City Council for a new agreement that would likely reduce the authority's share of the city's hotel-motel tax funds. The authority currently receives $265,000 a year in hotel-motel tax funds to help subsidize operating the city's tennis center and amphitheater. But some authority members are worried the city wants to put both facilities under management of a new authority. "This issue is about power and control," said development authority chairman Tate Godfrey. The tennis center and amphitheater have been used to host economic development-related events and industrial prospects that visit Fayette County. Losing the tennis center and amphitheater as economic development tools would hurt the authority's mission, Godfrey said. He also questioned whether the authority would get enough funds for economic development. The current sticking point in the negotiations is that council officials want to have a 30-day clause to terminate the agreement that can be activated by the council. The current agreement requires both parties to agree before the document can be changed or terminated; some city council members have contended the current agreement is illegal. Mayor Steve Brown said the authority's previous hotel-motel tax agreements have had similar 30-day "out" clauses for the city, and he didn't see why it was a problem. The clause provides an accountability to the taxpayers, he said. Some authority members have said a 30-day termination clause wouldn't give them a chance to meet the council's edict to work on making the tennis center and amphitheater self-sufficient. The matter was discussed at Monday's authority meeting. Godfrey said he wants council to give the group at least two full years to become self-sufficient, but with the 30-day unilateral out clause, the city could terminate the deal at any time, he added. Godfrey said he was encouraged, however, that representatives from both sides have had three separate meetings on the issue to hammer out an agreement instead of the city council possibly taking the matter to court. "If they want to take the facilities back over, they're going to," Godfrey said. "But if they are, they ought to be in the best shape they can be in." Authority member Scott Bradshaw said he felt the authority's current agreement was solid "and if they (the City Council) thought they had a chance of going to the courts to void this, they'd have done it." New authority member Scott Formel said the amphitheater and tennis center play a role in helping local companies keep employees here because they increase the quality of life in Peachtree City. "How else can we make it better for business?" Formel said. Brown told The Citizen in an interview Wednesday that he felt the authority would still be able to use the facilities even if the management was transferred later to a sports and entertainment authority. Brown said he wants the Development Authority to focus on "more traditional economic development." Declines in industrial ad valorem taxes make economic development even more crucial, he added. "They did a great job as an incubator with the help of government subsidies to build an amphitheater and tennis center program," Brown said. "But at some point of time ... you have to let the thing fly." If the city changes the management at the tennis center and amphitheater, the budget will certainly be cut, Brown said. Authority member Doug Warner, however, contends that it would cost the city more to operate the tennis center and amphitheater with a separate authority. If the matter were studied, and using a separate authority to manage the facilities was in the best interest of the citizens, Warner said he felt everyone on the authority would be okay with the concept. Virgil Christian, executive director of the authority, said the authority has been doing plenty for economic development, including the attraction of Clayton State College and University to open a higher education center. The education center will be key in helping support local industries and growing small businesses, Christian said. "It took 14 years to get that in place," Godfrey remarked.
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