surepip Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Where do David Austin and the present BOC stand? Cannot they put a stop to this? The next time I talk with David I will address this issue.. You tell me. When David Austin took his chairmanship in January of 2009, the BOC had already spend $750,000 to Holland & Knight on our cases. Now they are over or approaching $1,300,000. So you tell me why the spending just keeps on and keeps on and on and on. Judge Beavers ruled on November 18th they had broken the law with the Georgia Anti-Slap Statute and had to pay our attorney's bills, and set today for a hearing. And instead, the BOC attorney, Keith Wiener from Holland & Knight came in fighting every line item our attorney deliniated in his invoices. In essence, the BOC will pay Wiener another $150,000 to $200,000 while he attempts to reduce the amount they have to pay us by $10,000 to $20,000. Good racket isn't it ? Spend $100 so you can save $10 ? And in the meantime, Holland & Knight donates thousands and thousands back to their Committee for Responsible Government to donate that same money to politicans and PACs all over the state, to donate back to Paulding Politicians to the tune of $150,000 or more. Check out just what they have donated to Richardson and his MMV Alliance Fund PAC. It should be against the law.....but it is not. Link to post Share on other sites
gwilli8866 Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Call in the news crews and put it all over the news....someone, maybe a judge will not want to be embarrassed and possibly lose his position when it all comes out. Link to post Share on other sites
MarkPalm Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Call in the news crews and put it all over the news....someone, maybe a judge will not want to be embarrassed and possibly lose his position when it all comes out. Agreed. At this point, if I were a resident of Paulding Co I'd be rallying the troops and show up en masse at every BOC meeting for the rest of time. And every news organization that would listen would be invited along. I sell homes in Paulding Co. This forum is searchable to the world through every major search engine. This isn't just bad for the taxpayers of Paulding Co this is bad for everyone. Link to post Share on other sites
mei lan Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Agreed. At this point, if I were a resident of Paulding Co I'd be rallying the troops and show up en masse at every BOC meeting for the rest of time. And every news organization that would listen would be invited along. I sell homes in Paulding Co. This forum is searchable to the world through every major search engine. This isn't just bad for the taxpayers of Paulding Co this is bad for everyone. Darlin', you read my mind. I am getting ready to do this very thing. This isn't just about SP any more...it is of course originally about him, but the larger issue is the governance of this county. I don't think they really want to deal with the doo-doo that has the potential to hit the fan. Link to post Share on other sites
thedeerslayer Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 You tell me. When David Austin took his chairmanship in January of 2009, the BOC had already spend $750,000 to Holland & Knight on our cases. Now they are over or approaching $1,300,000. So you tell me why the spending just keeps on and keeps on and on and on. Judge Beavers ruled on November 18th they had broken the law with the Georgia Anti-Slap Statute and had to pay our attorney's bills, and set today for a hearing. And instead, the BOC attorney, Keith Wiener from Holland & Knight came in fighting every line item our attorney deliniated in his invoices. In essence, the BOC will pay Wiener another $150,000 to $200,000 while he attempts to reduce the amount they have to pay us by $10,000 to $20,000. Good racket isn't it ? Spend $100 so you can save $10 ? And in the meantime, Holland & Knight donates thousands and thousands back to their Committee for Responsible Government to donate that same money to politicans and PACs all over the state, to donate back to Paulding Politicians to the tune of $150,000 or more. Check out just what they have donated to Richardson and his MMV Alliance Fund PAC. It should be against the law.....but it is not. David is just another developer,...if the housing market didn't tank,there would still be subdivisions thrown up every where. Surepip-I really hope you and your wife can get everything you deserve out of this. Link to post Share on other sites
fire911 Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Sorry SP was hoping for a great outcome and some closure.Will keep praying. Link to post Share on other sites
Baileybleu Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Interesting. Good Luck SP! Link to post Share on other sites
lowrider Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 I don't understand. I hadn't heard anything much about this and just assumed it was a small time thing that would be settled and be over with. Is this for real? I mean, really? Are our former county leaders (and evidently some current ones too) THAT corrupt? Funneling money from the tax payer to their re-election campaigns and using a lawsuit as a means to fleece us and finance themselves is just DAMNED WRONG. I'm not doubting what you're saying, but I just find it hard to believe the local Republican Party has not done something about this if it were true. Where has the local Republican Party been? Where has the Ethics Committee been? Why hasn't this been turned over to the DA or FBI for corruption charges? Again, I'm not doubting you but I just find it really hard to believe our former commission and now elected representative (plus the local Republican Party) are corrupt to that extent. First, I find it hard to believe that after all this time, you haven't seen any of surepip's posts about this. Always with great detail. Second, you can't believe politicans are corrupt? I know you don't have your head in the sand, and you are always on here, so it's just amazing to me you were not aware of the situation. Corrupt and Politican tend to be synonymous to me, regardless of the party. Link to post Share on other sites
rednekkhikkchikk Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Corrupt and Politican tend to be synonymous to me, regardless of the party. I'm with ya all the way on that^^ Want to know who really runs the country and decides elections? Make a concerted effort to have Congress subject to the same term limits as the president ... I suspect as individual voters it would become clear that we have far less influence over who actually holds office than we'd like to believe. Link to post Share on other sites
LisaKW@bellsouth.net Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Maybe I'm just jaded, but did everyone REALLY think that this was going to be, "OK, SP, here's your money. We were naughty boys. Have a nice day."? Has anyone done an Open Records Request so we can READ what's going on and get a bigger picture other than just going off of what SP says? There has to be more to this story, IMO... Link to post Share on other sites
krwills Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Maybe I'm just jaded, but did everyone REALLY think that this was going to be, "OK, SP, here's your money. We were naughty boys. Have a nice day."? Has anyone done an Open Records Request so we can READ what's going on and get a bigger picture other than just going off of what SP says? There has to be more to this story, IMO... Absolutely NOT!! I have witnessed enough crap in this county to gag a maggot. I had at least hoped it would be final for them. Paulding County officials have & will, do anything that profits themselves. How would you feel if they TOOK your family homeplace & built a sewer treatment plant on it? It has been done here too. It's going to take a real revolution to change it at all, and obviously there is not enough people willing to do that. Even I after living in Paulding 7 generations, finally gave up. SP you have the documentation and determination to get the media involved. Please do. Good luck. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
gpatt0n Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 There are databases out there. A search of the lobbying element of the Holland & Knight firm shows that Paulding county has paid over a million dollars in the last ten years to the firm for lobbying beginning with $120,000 payment in 2001 and continuing to the present where the annual contribution to the firm is $160,000. Here is the compilation of that record from the Center of responsive politics (Opensecrets.org) http://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/firmsum.php?lname=Holland+%26+Knight&year=2001 http://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/firmsum.php?lname=Holland+%26+Knight&year=2002 http://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/firmsum.php?lname=Holland+%26+Knight&year=2003 http://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/firmsum.php?lname=Holland+%26+Knight&year=2004 http://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/firmsum.php?lname=Holland+%26+Knight&year=2005 http://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/firmsum.php?lname=Holland+%26+Knight&year=2006 http://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/firmsum.php?lname=Holland+%26+Knight&year=2007 http://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/firmsum.php?lname=Holland+%26+Knight&year=2008 http://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/firmsum.php?lname=Holland+%26+Knight&year=2009 http://www.opensecrets.org/lobby/firmsum.php?lname=Holland+%26+Knight&year=2010 You'll need to scroll down the list as it is in alphabetical order. It is notable that the group showed up last year at a commission meeting - the first time I had a clue that they were performing lobbying duties for the county. The spoke of their efforts with the Congress on things like obtaining money for the airport and the reservoir. They claimed they set up meetings with our delegation and also other presumably powerful figures (Congressmen from other districts) for the commission and represented the county's interests in those matters. All that aside, the county did drop their contribution for the services from $160,000 in 2009 to $100,000 in 2010 (about a 38 percent cut) while the firm overall experienced cuts to just over 31 percent overall. They are definitely a high-power law firm with a world-wide presence. I do recall seeing on one of Jerry Shearin's campaign contribution reports a contribution by some Holland and Knight PAC (Political Action Committee) out of Atlanta. When I saw it I wondered why this law firm was so interested in Paulding. I also wonder, what with the $1 million spent litigating the Morrison case and the half-million or so a year the county spends on private counsel whether there might be some efficiencies to be had by bringing those services 'in house.' pubby Link to post Share on other sites
LisaKW@bellsouth.net Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 I have always supported "in-house" vs. "out-sourcing" services, esp with attorney fees. Link to post Share on other sites
solosoul Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 (edited) Sorry, I am too angry to post much. We spent 8 hours in court today to sit there and have the Holland & Knight Lawyers try to nit-pik every part of our attorneys bills for his work in our cases over the past 5 years. They basically spent another $100,000 of your tax payer money to try to reduce the bills by $10,000. And, they spent the day re-arguing and citing case law which has already been denied and squashed by the judge. But at the end of the day, they got concessions for another 10 days to provide cases supporting their arguments, and then we will have to wait for another couple of months while the judge reviews it all. But, they will be able to flush another $150,000 to $250,000 from the Paulding BOC to their Political Action Committees to various other PACs and candidates that can then send the money back to local Paulding politicians. We have traced $300,000 from 2006 to now of which we can show $150,000 to Paulding politicans. How much more is out there ? For those interested, Paulette Rakestraw Braddock even got $25,000+ the end of October/early November from State Reps and PACs you have never heard of who got more or equal to what they gave from Holland & Knight in the 30 to 90 days before hand. Your tax payer money, to Holland & Knight, to their PAC, to various politicians and other PACS, to Paulette. Nice scam isn't it ?Our system is broken. And this is a classic case to show how broken it is. The International Poultry Exposition opened this morning at the World Congress Center with 25,000 visitors, and for the first time since 1976 I had to sit and literally twiddle my thumbs sitting in a courtroom needlessly instead of greeting my customers from around the world at the congress center. And I left the Paulding County Courthouse with NOTHING, and knowing I have to sit and wait another 1, 2, 3 or 8 months waiting for a ruling on what we are to be paid. Our legal system is broken, and I am beginning to think it is broken beyond repair. I hope I get to live long enough to be able to spend the money the BOC will have to pay us. It has been 4 years and 8 months since we entered suit, and it has been 8-1/2 years since this fiasco started. We have expended our kids college funds, our IRAs and 401ks, all our stocks, all of our savings, and have put ourselves in hock for everything we can. And to date we have nothing to show for all we have spent. Is our legal system broken ? You tell me. By the way, the Paulding County Tax Payer part of this fiasco is approaching $1,300,000. Just so they can protect one of their developer buddies who has paid nothing. His insurance company provided his legal defense. We now have to wait while the opposition has 10 days to provide cited cases to support their position of why our attorney's fees are out of line, and then somewhere between 1 and 8 months, based on previous rulings, before we get a new ruling, based on the ruling we got November 18th from the oral arguments presented on March 17th 2010. And the Good Old Boys of Paulding County continue to get their way. Yeah, I am disgusted. Can you blame me ? Your case is one thing but I think I would lay off the attacks. Edited January 27, 2011 by SOLO Link to post Share on other sites
mei lan Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Your case is one thing but I think I would lay off the attacks. Why do you say that? I promise I'm not bustin' on you...I'm genuinely curious as to your thinking. Link to post Share on other sites
lowrider Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Your case is one thing but I think I would lay off the attacks. So, like, is that a threat? Why should he? Have U spent that much money trying to keep what is yours? Are you offended because he said Paulette's name? Anyone is subject to investigation regardless of who they know. I sincerely hope surepip finds a resolution soon and would love to see Shearin and his buddies go through an investigation. But I don't expect to see that happen as long as everyone can be bought. And I mean everyone. Link to post Share on other sites
solosoul Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Why do you say that? I promise I'm not bustin' on you...I'm genuinely curious as to your thinking. Because he may be in the right with the law suit but to keep attacking the Law Firm and others could land him in very hot water. It is just NOT a smart thing to do..but hey that is just me. I guess some people just enjoy court room drama. I would hate to win a settlement and then loose it and more because I was so bitter that I could not control myself. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
mei lan Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Because he may be in the right with the law suit but to keep attacking the Law Firm and others could land him in very hot water. It is just NOT a smart thing to do..but hey that is just me. I guess some people just enjoy court room drama. I would hate to win a settlement and then loose it and more because I was so bitter that I could not control myself. Oh, got it. Not saying I agree or disagree (I'd have to think about it), but I see what you're saying now. Link to post Share on other sites
solosoul Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 So, like, is that a threat? Why should he? Have U spent that much money trying to keep what is yours? Are you offended because he said Paulette's name? Anyone is subject to investigation regardless of who they know. I sincerely hope surepip finds a resolution soon and would love to see Shearin and his buddies go through an investigation. But I don't expect to see that happen as long as everyone can be bought. And I mean everyone. A threat??? really??? wow NO it is just what I would think of as being smart. Maybe I am the only one who gets that all this is being put out on the internet and can be reached by millions of people. There are companies who now pay people to track the use of their name being used on the net. You see and read online more and more lawsuits being filed but hey if you wish to join the party go ahead...me I think I will sit this one out. Link to post Share on other sites
lotstodo Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Pip, I'm just adding my condolences. I'm completely fed up with this situation, and like you I'm lost as to what to do. I would have hoped that the situation would have changed after the new board took office. And Zoo, you know full well what is going on and your attempt to paint corruption as a "Republican" problem is completely transparent and uncalled for in this thread. Everybody is aware of the party affiliation of the board, thank you for your concern. Link to post Share on other sites
Beach Bum Posted January 27, 2011 Report Share Posted January 27, 2011 Maybe I'm just jaded, but did everyone REALLY think that this was going to be, "OK, SP, here's your money. We were naughty boys. Have a nice day."? Has anyone done an Open Records Request so we can READ what's going on and get a bigger picture other than just going off of what SP says? There has to be more to this story, IMO... I agree. If surepip has been wronged, I certainly hope he will "be made whole". However, we are only getting ONE side of the story here on p.com. Last I heard, there are usually two sides to every story and that does need to be taken into consideration - I'm sure there are lots of variables here. Of course to get all the details of the case, I guess you would have to attend the trial, not the hearing on the attorney's fees. This is not the trial folks, it is a hearing regarding the attorney's fees and unless this case is settled and unless there is something I am unaware of, this case will go to trial where ALL the facts will be discussed thoroughly by BOTH sides, not just ONE SIDE like we see here on paulding.com. Again, IF surepip and his family have been wronged, it should be made right and I wish them the best. Should the jury of our peers in Paulding County not rule in his favor, then I will feel the judicial process has spoken - that is all we can ask of them and we all have to remember that we don't live in a perfect world. And again, (and not slamming anyone),it is beyond me why anyone would just take what they read here or on any other message forum for that matter, as gospel and not research all the details and consider the fact that there are TWO SIDES TO EVERY STORY. I mean Good Lord, there was talk earlier in the thread about embarrassing the Judge - what in the heck does the Judge have to be embarrassed about? He is simply doing his job. 5 Link to post Share on other sites
rchaos Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 There are at least two people who have posted here stating what seems to be even greater wrongs by the county to them than what surepip has gone through. What sewer plant is being referenced by krwills? Land was actually stolen from the family by a municipality for use for a public service outlet and no news about this? This is real serious stuff here. What subdivision is being referenced by cherokeewoman? Unless this developer did not have the proper environmental permits, no geotechnical and environmental engineering reports, no firm testing the density of the fill soils and no environmental, geotechnical and engineering experts monitoring each phase this development is in for some serious trouble. Significant differential settlement can occurr within a couple of months if these things are not followed correctly with just 10 feet of fill, much less 75 feet of fill. This one really scares the hell out of me and should all of you. Some of us are living in a very recently built subdivision, in the past couple of month, that our homes are fixing to fall down any minute. Link to post Share on other sites
rockster Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 There are at least two people who have posted here stating what seems to be even greater wrongs by the county to them than what surepip has gone through. What sewer plant is being referenced by krwills? Land was actually stolen from the family by a municipality for use for a public service outlet and no news about this? This is real serious stuff here. What subdivision is being referenced by cherokeewoman? Unless this developer did not have the proper environmental permits, no geotechnical and environmental engineering reports, no firm testing the density of the fill soils and no environmental, geotechnical and engineering experts monitoring each phase this development is in for some serious trouble. Significant differential settlement can occurr within a couple of months if these things are not followed correctly with just 10 feet of fill, much less 75 feet of fill. This one really scares the hell out of me and should all of you. Some of us are living in a very recently built subdivision, in the past couple of month, that our homes are fixing to fall down any minute. Although I have no dog in this fight in this fight, the subsivision I moved from last March had some serious erosion and settlement issues on a few (that I know of) homes that were built back in 1994. This developer apparently just hired his lawyers to get the pissed off homeowners off his back. It's also a known fact this developer was caught by the Corps of Eng digging what he evisioned being a bigger lake, therefore putting a halt to a few more lots he wanted to sell. This developer was also thought of being in the "good ole boy" system in PC. The subdivision is Carrington Pointe, the developer was Steve Simpson which unfortunately died in a plane crash a few years ago with some well known folks in the building industry, one of them being a PC BOC Link to post Share on other sites
gpatt0n Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 The county condemned land for the north Pumpkinvine sewer treatment plant which basically opened the entire north-eastern part of Paulding to development. Because the landowner was holding out for something approaching the value of the land, the county instead condemned it and a Paulding County Jury valued the land at the 'established value' of basically scrub forest/residential land. What may have disturbed the landowner most was that the land was condemned by the count so a major regional developer could build a sewer treatment plant. It took some heavy negotiations but that property company subsequently had to donate the sewer plant to the county with the provision that some portion - I think half the capacity - had to allow development by other businesses. So basically, folks that were friends of the local elites got a sewer plant built for them that allowed them to cash in on properties that, because they wouldn't perk (be salable) with septic tanks, were the cheapest land around. The trick, of course, was getting the deal with the county water Department for access to the sewerage. I remember one project where a state grant was made to run sewerage to a business development that, because the line needed to transgress a planned PRD, basically lowered the cost of sewer pump plant and pipe. Of course the business project was later abandoned after the sewer line was built. Of course the property the business park was proposed was also sold at a profit for residential property because it had sewerage. pubby Link to post Share on other sites
rchaos Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Although I have no dog in this fight in this fight, the subsivision I moved from last March had some serious erosion and settlement issues on a few (that I know of) homes that were built back in 1994. This developer apparently just hired his lawyers to get the pissed off homeowners off his back. It's also a known fact this developer was caught by the Corps of Eng digging what he evisioned being a bigger lake, therefore putting a halt to a few more lots he wanted to sell. This developer was also thought of being in the "good ole boy" system in PC. The subdivision is Carrington Pointe, the developer was Steve Simpson which unfortunately died in a plane crash a few years ago with some well known folks in the building industry, one of them being a PC BOC Keep in mind that erosion and sediment issues are very different than settlement issues caused by improper filling. Two entirely different processes. Erosion is the movement of the soils via wind, rain, ice and gravity. Sediment is the byproduct f erosion, and although it can look very, very bad, it is nothing compared to settlement. Settlement is caused by improperly compacted soils or unstable residual soils that break down due to pressure, time and/or other outside forces. So this was in the mid 90's then. Wow, almost 20 years ago. The EPD and EPA handled most of the erosion issues as well as some counties back then; however, the laws were not really put into a more state wide, "in your face contractor" type style until 2000. The first state wide official erosion and sediment control permits GAR100000 were issued by the EPD in 2000. I doubt very seriously, as an engineer myself, that any erosion and sedimentation issues affect this subdivision today. There are probably a few bury pits that are settleing right now due to age. Back then and as recently as about ten years ago a builder was allowed to bury trees and stumps and such in non structural areas of sites and lot. Link to post Share on other sites
rchaos Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 The county condemned land for the north Pumpkinvine sewer treatment plant which basically opened the entire north-eastern part of Paulding to development. Because the landowner was holding out for something approaching the value of the land, the county instead condemned it and a Paulding County Jury valued the land at the 'established value' of basically scrub forest/residential land. What may have disturbed the landowner most was that the land was condemned by the count so a major regional developer could build a sewer treatment plant. It took some heavy negotiations but that property company subsequently had to donate the sewer plant to the county with the provision that some portion - I think half the capacity - had to allow development by other businesses. So basically, folks that were friends of the local elites got a sewer plant built for them that allowed them to cash in on properties that, because they wouldn't perk (be salable) with septic tanks, were the cheapest land around. The trick, of course, was getting the deal with the county water Department for access to the sewerage. I remember one project where a state grant was made to run sewerage to a business development that, because the line needed to transgress a planned PRD, basically lowered the cost of sewer pump plant and pipe. Of course the business project was later abandoned after the sewer line was built. Of course the property the business park was proposed was also sold at a profit for residential property because it had sewerage. pubby I still say that the worst thing that ever happened to this county, well one of the worst, is sanitary sewer. Septic tanks meant bigger home lots, not these tiny lots out there right now. How old is this Pumpkinvine Plant. I'd like to read up on this place. Link to post Share on other sites
mei lan Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Again, IF surepip and his family have been wronged, it should be made right and I wish them the best. Should the jury of our peers in Paulding County not rule in his favor, then I will feel the judicial process has spoken - that is all we can ask of them and we all have to remember that we don't live in a perfect world. I know there are two sides to every story, and while surepip's story sounds convincing to me, I know there could be more to it. BUT what hacks me completely off is that by his own admission, he has been willing to settle from the beginning, but NOOOOOOOO...instead, our tax dollars have been poured down a frickin' rat hole to the tune of $1,300,000 to fight this thing over the course of 4+ years. THAT is what has me steamed, and THAT is what I'm ready to do something about. Link to post Share on other sites
zoocrew Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 First, I find it hard to believe that after all this time, you haven't seen any of surepip's posts about this. Always with great detail. Second, you can't believe politicans are corrupt? I know you don't have your head in the sand, and you are always on here, so it's just amazing to me you were not aware of the situation. Corrupt and Politican tend to be synonymous to me, regardless of the party. I had glanced over those posts in the past but I never had any idea of the amount of money or the extent of the problem. I'm not blaming any party but in this case, if what Surepip said is true, there is some major problems going on. Pip, I'm just adding my condolences. I'm completely fed up with this situation, and like you I'm lost as to what to do. I would have hoped that the situation would have changed after the new board took office. And Zoo, you know full well what is going on and your attempt to paint corruption as a "Republican" problem is completely transparent and uncalled for in this thread. Everybody is aware of the party affiliation of the board, thank you for your concern. Oh, get over your self-righteous self. I wasn't painting anything as a "Republican" problem but as a corruption problem since it certainly looks like there might be some sort of machine in place if what Surepip said is true. I don't care what party it is, if that stuff is true, some people have had to have turned a blind eye to it and YOU DAMNED KNOW IT. Link to post Share on other sites
rockster Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Jedi, I mentioned settlement in my post not sediment. But whatever. IMO I believe many developers got away with proper building pratices from just a "handshake" from one or more of their "buddies" in the "system". Not sure of what type of "engineer" you are, but do you really believe if Steve Simpson had the proper engineering surveys and TESTS performed on the site of the daycare building that it would've been approved??? The site I am talking about is on 92, behind the Dollar General next to the self storage place. They condemned that daycare 3 or 4 yeaars ago due to the water and septic issues. It was built on a swamp area!!! Link to post Share on other sites
solosoul Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 I don't understand. I hadn't heard anything much about this and just assumed it was a small time thing that would be settled and be over with. Is this for real? I mean, really? Are our former county leaders (and evidently some current ones too) THAT corrupt? Funneling money from the tax payer to their re-election campaigns and using a lawsuit as a means to fleece us and finance themselves is just DAMNED WRONG. I'm not doubting what you're saying, but I just find it hard to believe the local Republican Party has not done something about this if it were true. Where has the local Republican Party been? Where has the Ethics Committee been? Why hasn't this been turned over to the DA or FBI for corruption charges? Again, I'm not doubting you but I just find it really hard to believe our former commission and now elected representative (plus the local Republican Party) are corrupt to that extent. Not blaming the REPUBLICAN party??? Strange that seems to be the only party you did mention. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
zoocrew Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Not blaming the REPUBLICAN party??? Strange that seems to be the only party you did mention. Yes, because the people to whom Surepip said the money was flowing was REPUBLICAN. Does that not compute with you? Link to post Share on other sites
gpatt0n Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 I still say that the worst thing that ever happened to this county, well one of the worst, is sanitary sewer. Septic tanks meant bigger home lots, not these tiny lots out there right now. How old is this Pumpkinvine Plant. I'd like to read up on this place. This plant actually was approved in the period between 1998 and 2000. I was not covering the county during that period - I was with Times-Mirror/Classified Ventures with the auctions.com/auctionuniverse.com Internet effort. (Yep, got caught up in the boom.) I heard about it when former Post Commissioner Mike Pope was running for the Commission Chairman post in 2000. He clued me to the reality that the county condemned the property, turned it over to the private developer who built the sewer treatment plant. I might add that some things I heard at the time suggested the big company wasn't terribly happy to have to share their resource with locally connected competitors who were able to put competing properties on the market at near the same time if not concurrently. They would much preferred to restrict the use of the plant to their properties for at least the first couple of years but if the big company got any benefit for building the plant out of their pocket, it would have been measured in months instead of years. pubby PS: In one sense, and considering the time period, it would have been political suicide to write out the local development community - bar access to sewerage at the county's North Pumpkinvine plant - for any appreciable length of time. Still, knowing the political dynamic, it should come as no surprise which local developer(s) were first to benefit. Link to post Share on other sites
GreenEyedGirl Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Yes, because the people to whom Surepip said the money was flowing was REPUBLICAN. Does that not compute with you? I think until Will Avery came along, most politicians in Paulding County have chosen to register as Republican. It doesn't necessarily mean that any of the monies was funneled through the local party. I'm pretty sure those Political Action Committees and lobbyists donated to these candidates on their own - without getting approval of the local party first. I'm thinking we've virtually hijacked the post, and maybe the issue here is that truly folks should contact some of the investigative reporters if they want to see if SP's issue and any mishandling of funds could be exposed. Link to post Share on other sites
cherokeewoman Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 This one was a Legacy on Colbert Rd... I was referring to Cherokeewoman's post, not yours. Everybody knows about your case SP. BTW, you should be home now after the 2:00pm hearing. What's the word? Link to post Share on other sites
cherokeewoman Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 You should be disgusted, this should have been your day in court... How much money does the county want to waste to say they were wrong? What a crock, we all know what went on then with developments, the developers had free reign with a welcome from the county.... they destroyed land, went over their limits, and did no go by zoning restrictions.... I hope you burn them for all of us..... Sorry, I am too angry to post much. We spent 8 hours in court today to sit there and have the Holland & Knight Lawyers try to nit-pik every part of our attorneys bills for his work in our cases over the past 5 years. They basically spent another $100,000 of your tax payer money to try to reduce the bills by $10,000. And, they spent the day re-arguing and citing case law which has already been denied and squashed by the judge. But at the end of the day, they got concessions for another 10 days to provide cases supporting their arguments, and then we will have to wait for another couple of months while the judge reviews it all. But, they will be able to flush another $150,000 to $250,000 from the Paulding BOC to their Political Action Committees to various other PACs and candidates that can then send the money back to local Paulding politicians. We have traced $300,000 from 2006 to now of which we can show $150,000 to Paulding politicans. How much more is out there ? For those interested, Paulette Rakestraw Braddock even got $25,000+ the end of October/early November from State Reps and PACs you have never heard of who got more or equal to what they gave from Holland & Knight in the 30 to 90 days before hand. Your tax payer money, to Holland & Knight, to their PAC, to various politicians and other PACS, to Paulette. Nice scam isn't it ? Our system is broken. And this is a classic case to show how broken it is. The International Poultry Exposition opened this morning at the World Congress Center with 25,000 visitors, and for the first time since 1976 I had to sit and literally twiddle my thumbs sitting in a courtroom needlessly instead of greeting my customers from around the world at the congress center. And I left the Paulding County Courthouse with NOTHING, and knowing I have to sit and wait another 1, 2, 3 or 8 months waiting for a ruling on what we are to be paid. Our legal system is broken, and I am beginning to think it is broken beyond repair. I hope I get to live long enough to be able to spend the money the BOC will have to pay us. It has been 4 years and 8 months since we entered suit, and it has been 8-1/2 years since this fiasco started. We have expended our kids college funds, our IRAs and 401ks, all our stocks, all of our savings, and have put ourselves in hock for everything we can. And to date we have nothing to show for all we have spent. Is our legal system broken ? You tell me. By the way, the Paulding County Tax Payer part of this fiasco is approaching $1,300,000. Just so they can protect one of their developer buddies who has paid nothing. His insurance company provided his legal defense. We now have to wait while the opposition has 10 days to provide cited cases to support their position of why our attorney's fees are out of line, and then somewhere between 1 and 8 months, based on previous rulings, before we get a new ruling, based on the ruling we got November 18th from the oral arguments presented on March 17th 2010. And the Good Old Boys of Paulding County continue to get their way. Yeah, I am disgusted. Can you blame me ? Link to post Share on other sites
Beach Bum Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 I think until Will Avery came along, most politicians in Paulding County have chosen to register as Republican. It doesn't necessarily mean that any of the monies was funneled through the local party. I'm pretty sure those Political Action Committees and lobbyists donated to these candidates on their own - without getting approval of the local party first. I'm thinking we've virtually hijacked the post, and maybe the issue here is that truly folks should contact some of the investigative reporters if they want to see if SP's issue and any mishandling of funds could be exposed. Where is there a mishandling of funds? If you are talking about the campaign contributions and the law firm contributing to several candidate's campaigns, I hate to bust your bubble but those campaign contributions that are mentioned in this thread are perfectly legal and ethical. Link to post Share on other sites
LPPT Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Where is there a mishandling of funds? If you are talking about the campaign contributions and the law firm contributing to several candidate's campaigns, I hate to bust your bubble but those campaign contributions that are mentioned in this thread are perfectly legal and ethical. BB this may be legal and ethical on the books. We all know that lawyers in this country pretty much write the laws. The people that have responded seem to have the opinion that this should not be legal or ethical. It is very difficult for the average person to interpret the law. Most of us never know until we are personally effected by it. I think it is terrible that laws are written in a way the we have to hire an interpretor to understand the laws in this country. Link to post Share on other sites
LisaKW@bellsouth.net Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Will somebody please buy my house so I can get out of Paulding County? I used to think it Paulding was a great place to live, but after reading all of this rhetoric - Commissioners stealing (or allowing builders to steal) people's property, houses/properties being condemned due to builders not getting the proper permits 20-years ago (before the laws were really in place to enforce such things), misappropriation of funds... And when I google, P.Com pops up with lots of negative stories - SP's story, evil principals at a certain HS, schools not making AYP... Link to post Share on other sites
LisaKW@bellsouth.net Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 (edited) Jedi, I mentioned settlement in my post not sediment. But whatever. IMO I believe many developers got away with proper building pratices from just a "handshake" from one or more of their "buddies" in the "system". Not sure of what type of "engineer" you are, but do you really believe if Steve Simpson had the proper engineering surveys and TESTS performed on the site of the daycare building that it would've been approved??? The site I am talking about is on 92, behind the Dollar General next to the self storage place. They condemned that daycare 3 or 4 yeaars ago due to the water and septic issues. It was built on a swamp area!!! If you really feel this way, do an Open Records Request to support your claim. Water and septic issues are environmental health issues. EDITED TO ADD: My credentials are Level 1-B Certified Inspector for Erosion and Sediment Control and Construction Health and Safety Certification, working on active construction sites and working with OSHA and the EPD. Edited January 28, 2011 by Epiphany Link to post Share on other sites
LPPT Posted January 28, 2011 Report Share Posted January 28, 2011 Will somebody please buy my house so I can get out of Paulding County? I used to think it Paulding was a great place to live, but after reading all of this rhetoric - Commissioners stealing (or allowing builders to steal) people's property, houses/properties being condemned due to builders not getting the proper permits 20-years ago (before the laws were really in place to enforce such things), misappropriation of funds... And when I google, P.Com pops up with lots of negative stories - SP's story, evil principals at a certain HS, schools not making AYP... We are really no different than a lot of counties in this country, so don't throw in the towel on Paulding. We are growing, we have had good and bad in local gov. and that is not unusual. The fact that you have a community that is brought together and informed by the internet rather than a local newspaper is quite different. We probably have a higher than average percentage geographically on facebook. The positive to this is accountability, that probably gives us a much better chance of having better more ethical local government as time goes on. One thing you have to understand is people do business with people they know, this includes government. There are 2 basis for this, one is a kick back and the other is an issue of trust, you won't screw up and make me look bad. This county has some big things going on that are going to result in prosperity for us all. We can only hope that we have ethical people at the helm now. The current BOC inherited many problems, they may not ever get completely solved. I tell people there are 2 different types there are the good ole boys and the good boys. Both types are locals but there is huge difference in the 2. Hang in there it's not all bad!! Link to post Share on other sites
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