The Latest News

Candidate Musical Chairs

            It’s political musical chairs, y’all!

            Here are some late game-day changes in the lineup for Washington’s November city elections.

            As expected, Rev. Larry Hill, who resigned his District One council seat and withdrew from the Mayor’s race Sept. 7, filed qualification papers for his old seat on Council Wednesday afternoon.

            But Hill can’t expect to easily regain his chair at the table; Brent Bailey, who found himself in a five-way race for the District One seat currently held by Maceo Mahoney, withdrew from the regular election slate, then immediately qualified Tuesday for the special election. They are joined by Trodondric Anderson, who also qualified Tuesday.

            In case you’re keeping score, there are now two one-time mayoral candidates — Hill and Mahoney — and one council aspirant — Brent Bailey — who have switched spots on the ballot. All candidates switching races were required to file affidavits noting their withdrawal.

            Competing for the Mayor’s office are Bruce Bailey, Angela Booker, and Ken Parris. The candidate with the most votes wins; there’s no provision for a runoff.

            The District One Council features four candidates for incumbent Maceo Mahoney's seat including Mahoney, Devito Owens, Delilah Wilburn, and John Wiley and three candidates for Larry Hill's seat being Hill himself, Brent Bailey and Trodondric Anderson which will be decided with a special election on the same day as the regular municipal election. The top vote-getters will be seated. Each voter may vote for one candidate in the regular election and one in the special election, being Hill's seat. Two seats are up for grabs on the ballot.

            In District Two, four candidates are seeking two Council positions — David Fisher, Newt Gunter, Kimberly Cork, and Juan Jackson. In this race, the two top voter-getters will be elected (again, no runoff provision).

            There will be a candidate forum September 28 at the Livery on Court Street, and the Informer is planning a three-part debate series on October 21 — one session each for Mayor, Council District One, and District Two. Please see our announcement at https://www.washingtonwilkesinformer.com/top-stories or check our Facebook page for details.

Reported by Richard Crabbe

Planning Commission Gives Thumbs Down to Vanguard Renewables

Read full story

Larry Hill Confirms Dropping Out of Mayoral Race

On Monday, former Washington City Council member, Larry Hill, confirmed in a conversation with Richard Crabbe, that he has withdrawn as a candidate for mayor. He stated he realized he does not have the time to dedicate to a campaign and that he plans to run for the seat he resigned, in the special election. The special election will be conducted November 7, 2023 and dates for interested candidates to qualify are September 12 and 13 from 8:00 am-5:00 pm and September 14 from 8:00 am-12:00 pm as listed on the City of Washington website. Qualification affidavits must be submitted to the city clerk, Wanda Dingler at Washington city hall.

Wilkes Board of Commissioners Not Prepared to Act on Waste Disposal Proposal

It appears no final decision allowing a waste processing site at Smith Dairy Farm near Rayle will be reached before October.

            The Wilkes Board of Commissioners has yet to hear from the county planning commission, which is considering a request by Smith Dairy Farms and Vanguard Renewables to rezone the dairy property for industrial use.

            While the rezoning item was not on the August 10 agenda, a number of county residents attended the meeting, intent on making an argument opposing the measure.

            At issue is the installation of a facility known as an “anaerobic co-digester”, which processes cattle manure, along with organic food processing waste. One end product is methane gas, which can be used in energy production; the process also results in liquid and solid waste materials.

            At two previous public meetings, many Wilkes County residents voiced strong opposition to the project, which Vanguard Renewables — a Weston, MA company — plans to install at the dairy farm on Centerville Road near Rayle. Forty of Smith’s neighbors have submitted a petition to the planning board in clear opposition to the plan.

            It reads, in part “This is not an industry that we wish to have in our community. We are skeptical of the claims made by Vanguard Renewables.” Their concerns include contamination of streams and groundwater, lingering rancid odors and chemical compounds escaping into the atmosphere.

            In a letter to the residents, Vanguard claims they “will take steps to locate the proposed digester away from ‘any sensitive receptors, such as homes or schools.’”

            Many of these residents are party to a lawsuit filed in December, 2020 seeking damages from dairy owner Jeff Smith and eleven co-defendants for illegally dumping “hazardous, noxious, foul, polluting, pathogenic and odorous wastes,” including “poultry carcasses and body parts.” The suit is still being litigated in Madison County Superior Court.

            A co-digester places organic waste like manure and waste from food manufacturing or retail level disposal into a closed tank without oxygen; in this “anaerobic” condition specialized microbes from the gut of the cow can digest the organic matter. While the manure comes from the dairy operation, the other waste materials are trucked in from outside the county.

            One byproduct of the process is methane gas, which can be used in energy production; in this case, the gas would be transported away from the farm. Liquid waste from the co-digester would likely be stored on-site, in open ‘lagoons’; some remaining solids can be used as “soil amendment”.

            Another concern is the amount of heavy vehicle traffic in and out of the facility; a Vanguard representative earlier admitted there could be 20-25 large trucks a day on Centerville Road, a two-lane secondary road near Rayle. One commissioner remarked the county is not inclined to absorb the cost of repairs from expected damage from overuse of the road.

            The Planning Commission will take up the matter at its next meeting in September, and the Board of Commissioner indicate the will make a decision at their regular meeting October 12 at 2:00 PM.

Reported on and written by Richard Crabbe

Featured Business Court Street Livery  wedding and event venue.

Jan Anderson Speaks on Incident with City Councilman Nathaniel Cullars Sr. that Lead to Ethics Complaint.

February 17, 2023

On Monday, February 13, 2023 I spoke to Jan Anderson regarding what occurred after the January 9, 2023 city council meeting that resulted in her husband, city councilman Andy Anderson, filing an ethics complaint against fellow councilman Nathaniel Cullars Sr.

Mrs. Anderson told me that after the council meeting, she was walking out of the room the meeting was held in, at the Pope Center. She said Cullars Sr. was also walking out and was in front of her. She was attempting to walk around him. She said he turned around and said to her “You can’t walk in back of me” in what she said was a loud and aggressive tone. He said this many times. She said “Excuse me? I can walk wherever I want to walk.” As they got into the hall she said Cullars Sr. said  “You and your husband should never have run for city council.” She corrected him and said she had not run but that her husband did run and Cullars Sr. then said “He’s a fake councilman.”  She said she was getting very angry at this point and told him that her husband is not a fake and that he works very hard. She said she did not say anything about her husband working with other black people as Cullars Sr. stated.  Cullars Sr. then told her that he has been elected to the council for more than 20 years to which she replied “Maybe there should be term limits” and Cullars Sr. replied “Put it in place.” Anderson said that as they got closer to the exit of the building he said “Your husband is a fake army man” and that he said this several times. She admitted at this point she was yelling and isn’t ashamed of it because she said “That hurt me to my core.” She went on to say councilman Anderson is a 30 year veteran, served in two wars and is 100% disabled. She explained that when he was deployed it was difficult for her too, raising their two sons. She said Cullars Sr. has no right to say what he said because he hasn’t seen his friends “come back in body bags” and that he has no idea what that is like. She said  mayor Bill deGolian and city administrator Jerry deBin were walking behind her and that deGolian had recorded a part of the conversation. Cullars Sr. then told her “You go on to your car.” She said the sheriff deputy did tell her “Ma’am you need to quiet down” and that she thought that was odd.

I asked her if she thought that telling Cullars  Sr. that there should be term limits could be interpreted as an insult by him. She said she didn’t think it would be and that she would have said that about anyone because she is a believer in term limits for everyone who is in an elected position. She said she has never “approached him or anybody and insulted them.”  When she got outside, she said “(councilman) Maceo Mahoney, Angela Booker, Kimberly Cork and maybe somebody else were coming down the stairs.” She said they did not hear the latter part of what she and Cullars Sr. had said to one another.

I asked her if she had been present for the entire council meeting. She said she had. I asked her if she thought it was possible Cullars Sr. was upset about the vote by councilmen Denard, Wagner, mayor deGolian and her husband, to strike all of his items from the agenda. She said  “Of course” and that she didn’t think it was the right thing to do. She said she told councilman Anderson later, “that was a mistake, that was wrong.” She said it would have made her angry if she were councilman Cullars Sr. or Mahoney. She said it was not a justification for Cullars Sr. behavior however “It’s not an excuse for him to attack me.” She said that if Cullars Sr. can’t control his anger, it’s a problem. “The fact that he felt disrespected or angry does in no way equal what he said to me.”

You can hear the audio of part of the conversation Mrs. Anderson is referring to below.

Ethics Complaint Filed Against Washington Mayor Bill deGolian and Councilmen Matt Denard, Charles Wagner and Edwin "Andy" Anderson Regarding Vote to Strike Agenda Items from the January Council Meeting.

February 10, 2023

On February 9, 2023 at 1:30 PM, Washington resident Angela Booker filed an ethics complaint against the mayor and District 2 councilmen, Anderson, Denard and Wagner. In the complaint, which can be read in full below, Booker alleges the councilmen named and the mayor, violated the code of ethics when they voted to strike councilmen Cullars Sr. and Mahoney's items from the agenda. She lists the particular codes that she believes were violated by that action;

(a) All city officials shall conduct themselves at all times with dignity and with respect for others in a manner to ensure appropriate decorum in the deliberations of city business and to reflect the responsibilities incumbent upon a city official.

(b) City officials shall observe decency of speech and gentleness of behavior at all meetings.

(c) No city official in speaking shall be disrespectful to any other official and shall carefully avoid reference to personalities when conducting city business.

The city of Washington municipal code states that when an ethics violation is filed, the mayor appoints an investigative committee made up of council members. The code also states that if the mayor is subject of the complaint, the mayor protem will make the appointments to an investigative committee. Councilman Matt Denard is the current mayor protem and is also a subject of the complaint. It is unclear who will appoint members to the committee to investigate the complaint. Councilman Larry Hill, Maceo Mahoney and Nathaniel Cullars Sr. are the only councilmen not named in the complaint. 

You can watch video of the portion of the January council meeting that is referenced in the complaint here

These are the agenda items that were stricken:

1. Councilman Mahoney: (1) Motion to form Exit Interview Committee, (2) Motion to discontinue $150 deposit and only collect $55 if utilities are disconnected, (3) Motion to relieve excessive water & sewer fees for residents and businesses due to cold temperatures.
2. Council Discussion Topics:
3. Councilman Cullars: (1) District 2 Councilman voting via phone at 12-29-22 meeting, (2)

New business and jobs, (3) improved public safety, (4) expanded support for citizens, (5)

work together, (6) prior vote on electric rate penalties.

1. Councilman Mahoney: Discuss the need to collect $150 deposit on accounts.

It is still unclear why councilman Denard made a motion to strike the items from the agenda or why Anderson, deGolian and Wagner also voted in favor of striking the items without asking Denard why he made the motion to strike. I have contacted them for an explanation if they wish to provide one, but have not yet received a response.

Washington City Councilman Edwin "Andy" Anderson Files Ethics Complaint Against Councilman Nathaniel Cullars Sr.

February 8, 2023

This past Tuesday, Raphael Warnock was elected to the United States Senate representing Georgia. Warnock narrowly won the seat beating his opponent, Herschel Walker, a former University of Georgia and NFL football player. Warnock is set to serve a six year term in Washington D.C.

It was a low turnout in Wilkes County with less than 30% of registered voters, actually voting in the runoff election. White voters made up the majority of votes with 59.2% and black voters made up 35.5% of votes cast. There were 5 Hispanic voters and 10 voters who identified as Asian.  1,186 women and 923 men cast their votes and voters over the age of 65 represented the largest group at 1,070. Only 193 citizens between the ages of 18-40 voted in this election. 85.6% of Wilkes County voters cast their ballots early with just 205 choosing to vote on election day. Wilkes County has a population of 9,876 residents and at least 7,134 are registered to vote.

Election integrity has been brought to the forefront of national and local conversations and is an important cornerstone of our democracy. We are researching our local election landscape to find out more in relation to who sets poll hours, who is on the board of registrars, how many sit on that board and when we can expect to have a chief registrar in place. I hope to have answers to those questions and additional insight within the next week. Stay tuned and subscribe for updates.

Voter data from Georgiavotes.com

At the November city council meeting there was some heated discussion regarding Washington Mayor Bill deGolian not having discussion topics listed on the meeting agenda but insisting on proceeding with discussions anyway. When councilmen Cullars and Mahoney attempted to stop deGolian citing rules that require the mayor and any council member to list items they wish to discuss, prior to the approval of the agenda, deGolian became upset and said "We are getting sidetracked on chicken crap." A motion was made to allow the mayor to proceed and a vote was tied with the mayor then voting to break the tie in favor of him being able to discuss what he wanted. Councilman Mahoney objected to deGolian being able to vote on a motion that directly impacted his own ability to override the rules.  I requested from City Administrator Jerry deBin a copy of the rule Cullars and Mahoney were referring to, if such a rule existed and any exceptions allowed the mayor. DeBin provided me a link to the municipal code that states the following:

• Sec. 2-12. - Meeting agenda.

  modified

  At the mayor's direction, except for any special called meetings, the city administrator shall prepare a detailed agenda on the subjects to be covered or acted on and/or objectives to be met for each regular scheduled meeting, public hearing, or work session. The detailed agenda shall be made available to each council member at least one business day before each regular scheduled board meeting, public hearing, or work session.

  The mayor or any council member may add items to the agenda at any time up to two business days before each regular scheduled meeting, public hearing, or work session if a detailed description is given to the administrator. Submission of items to the agenda by a council member shall be designated as either an item for which action will be considered or as an item for discussion only. Items submitted for discussion only may not be commented upon by a single council member for a period of time in excess of five minutes (unless granted additional time by the chair) and shall not be the basis for any motion. In case of emergency, the council may waive this requirement.

  (Min. of 1-12-2015; Ord. of 5-14-2018; Res. of 9-13-2021)

   

  It appears there is no exception for the mayor to speak at will or even for a vote to override the code as written, during a council meeting. There were discussions had regarding the topics the mayor spoke about so it seems it would fall under the discussion rather than action topics. It was mentioned by councilmen Anderson, at the November meeting, that what the mayor wanted to speak about were announcements but there is no mention of a special provision for the mayor or council members being able to make announcements at the meeting without submitting those items to the agenda prior to the meeting.

  There are several reason the rules regarding this are important. The council and the mayor serve as representatives of the citizens of Washington and the citizens have the right to be informed about what their representatives will be addressing at the council meeting. This facilitates the citizens ability to make informed decisions about whether or not they wish to attend the meetings, make public comments or even speak to the mayor or council members to voice concerns.  There is also  some risk that a precedent could be set from the actions at the November meeting and that council members will also attempt to add items to the agenda after the agenda has been set and the public notified. This could create even more division and distrust, prohibiting the ability of the council to get work done on behalf of the citizens. The Georgia Open Meetings Act states;

   

  "The agenda shall be available upon request and shall be posted at the meeting site as far in advance of the meeting as reasonably possible, but shall not be required to be available more than two weeks prior to the meeting and shall be posted, at a minimum, at some time during the two-week period immediately prior to the meeting."  If the council members receive the agenda only one day prior to the meeting, this leaves little time for the citizens to view the agenda prior to the council meeting.

  What do you think? Should the mayor have special privilege in overriding the meeting rules? Should there be time set aside specifically for announcements that don't need to be approved prior to the meeting?  Please share your comments below.

  Reported by Michelle Chaffee

   

Stories we are working on;, History of Callaway Plantation, Progress at the Gordon Street School, sludge dumping in Wilkes County.