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By Carlton Fletcher

ALBANY — Barring some unforeseen circumstances or some wholesale mind-changing, the Albany City Commission will at last turn management of the Albany Civic Center over to private management firm Spectra by Comcast at the commission’s business meeting Tuesday morning.

The commission is also expected to approve granting Coats and Clark $400,000 from its Job Investment Fund so that the manufacturer can rebuild its distribution center destroyed in the Jan. 22, 2017 tornado that devastated the region.

Ward I Commissioner Jon Howard, who had asked that the board table a planned vote on the Civic Center last month, said Sunday he’s satisfied that privatization of the Civic Center is now a “win-win for all involved.”

“I had some concerns, but after taking the time to compare the contract we were being presented with (contracts Spectra has with) Augusta and Macon, I’m satisfied that this is a good deal for the city,” Howard said. “With the plan (Spectra by Comcast) has, I think this is an opportunity for the Civic Center to be more efficiently run and for more events to be brought to Albany.

“One of the things I did (after the issue was tabled) was talk with our employees, and pretty much to a person they’re in favor of this. I think it’s a win-win for all involved.”

Ward IV Commissioner B.J. Fletcher said she too saw no reason not to support the proposal.

“I had a couple of questions, but they’ve been answered to my satisfaction,” she said Sunday. “It’s time for us to move forward with this. Spectra has a tremendous track record. I see no negatives in this deal.”

Ward IV Commissioner Roger Marietta said City Attorney Nathan Davis had used the time between the commission’s tabling of the privatization matter until Tuesday’s planned vote to iron out the details of the contract between the city and Spectra.

“We’ve tried everything else (to improve operations at the venue), but I think we’re doing the right thing by following the example of other cities our size,” Marietta said. “It really wasn’t so much a matter of tabling the matter as it was finalizing the contract details. I’m confident that the city attorney has done that, and I will support this measure.”

All three commissioners said they support the joint city/Albany Utility Board Long-Term Financial Planning Committee’s recommendation to support the Job Investment Fund allocation of $400,000 for Coats and Clark.

“They took a devastating loss on their Holly Drive distribution center,” Fletcher said. “It was all but destroyed. They could rebuild anywhere, but we want to do everything we can to make sure those 400 or so jobs stay here. Coats and Clark is one of our oldest and most respected companies, and they go way beyond meeting the criteria for approving the Job Investment Fund allocation.”

Fletcher is a member of the Long-Term Financial Planning Committee.

Marietta said “providing incentive for businesses like Coats and Clark to stay in our community” is the intended purpose of the Job Investment Fund, which is a collection of one-third of the roughly $78 million in credits the city and Utility Board received from the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia over the past decade. Those credits were used to pay back funding that was collected from MEAG members as a hedge against threatened deregulation.

Howard said jobs are a priority in the community.

“When you can do something to keep that many jobs in your community, you can live with making this kind of investment,” he said.

Tuesday’s combined work/business City Commission meeting starts at 8:30 a.m.