Albany City Commission moves proposed charter change forward

ALBANY — Despite a call to table the matter for the purpose of obtaining additional information, the Albany City Commission voted 4-3 Tuesday during its final work meeting of the year to move forward with a proposed charter change that would replace the current Water, Gas & Light Commission board with an “Albany Utility Board” and allow the city-owned utility to extend services beyond the corporate limits of the city of Albany and the jurisdictional limits of Dougherty County.

Ward II Commissioner Bobby Coleman vehemently opposed moving forward with the plan, saying, “We’re moving too fast and we’re not seeing where we’re going” with the proposal, which was presented to the board by City Attorney Nathan Davis. When Ward I Commissioner Jon Howard and Ward VI’s Tommie Postell indicated they agreed with Coleman, Mayor Dorothy Hubbard interrupted a long and often heated discussion of the matter by asking for a motion to table the issue.

With only three votes, though, the motion died and the discussion continued.

“The changes (under the proposed charter amendment) would do two main things: authorize extension (of services) into the so-called unincorporated area of Dougherty County and continue the extension beyond the Dougherty County limits,” Davis said. “My understanding is that the new Utility Board would use this authority to generate new cash flow, to bring in additional money beyond the 7 1/2 percent they are currently (moving to the city’s general fund).”

Postell quickly asked if the proposed charter change would allow the Utility Board to “supercede this board’s authority,” and Davis assured him that the City Commission would remain “the only legal entity” in such matters.

When Postell suggested that he wanted to make sure “we don’t have to deal again with the same rigmarole where they’re telling us what they’re going to do,” a common theme with the long-serving commissioner, he put Mayor Dorothy Hubbard on alert. Later, when Ward IV Commissioner Roger Marietta argued against tabling the matter because any charter change must be discussed during two consecutive business meetings before being approved, Postell sought to interject a comment. That brought a few thunderous raps of Hubbard’s gavel.

Postell tried to talk the mayor down, but she would not have it. “We’re not going to do this this morning,” she said.

Later, during a lull in the discussion, Postell asked Hubbard, “Have you forgotten me, Ms. Hubbard?”

When Marietta quipped, “We can’t forget you, Commissioner Postell,” the ward VI commissioner responded, “I know you’re not because I’m not going to let you.”

Hubbard eventually called on Postell to speak, and he mentioned the “clandestine stuff that was done by Water, Gas & Light and (former general manager) Mr. (Lemuel) Edwards.” Hubbard interrupted. “You say to this board that we’re just talking around in circles, and then that’s exactly what you’re doing,” the mayor said. “You’re going back to stuff that we already know.”

Later in the discussion, Howard mentioned that he was “leery” about providing utility services outside the county limits.

“Nothing against any of our neighboring counties, but before I could vote for this I’d like to see us take care of our home folks first,” Howard said.

The Ward I commissioner later wondered whether the city and county had the authority to “kick out” other utility companies providing services, but interim City Manager Tom Berry said that couldn’t happen.

“Trust me, I’d love to do that,” Berry joked. “But (other utilities providers) are here by law. We have to respect territory.”

Added Hubbard, who serves as chair of the WG&L board, “We’re looking at areas where we can give customers a choice, like water and sewage.”

Ward V Commissioner Bob Langstaff said he’d like to see what changes the proposal would include, so Davis said he’d make sure commissioners got copies of both for comparison. Ward III Commissioner B.J. Fletcher pointed out that, since it would take two votes to implement a charter change, as Marietta had reminded the board, there was no reason not to move forward with the proposal.

“I don’t understand some of my colleagues’ concerns about not knowing how (proposed changes) would impact the current charter,” she said. “We’ve been putting this off and putting this off. I think it’s time for us to move forward.”

The commission will take a first vote on the proposed change to the city charter at its Dec. 16 night meeting. The change would not be official until another vote is taken and approved at the commission’s January night meeting.