Are we on the right path as a city? What are your thoughts as the reader? Be sure to follow Muscogee Muckraker on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to see our upcoming stories as they break throughout the coming week.
COLUMBUS, Ga. — From the city not delivering annual business licenses despite it already being August, to the approval of $740K in ‘crime prevention’ grants that magically funneled $25K through the city manager’s personal home, to CCG forgetting to order emergency medical equipment for the new $50 million city hall complex, here’s all the muck that’s fit to print from the Columbus, Georgia area, along with a look at what to expect in the week ahead.
CITY MANAGER STILL HASN’T DELIVERED ANNUAL BUSINESS LICENSES; REVENUE DOWN
This story was originally published on August 7, 2023.
COLUMBUS, Ga. — The city manager’s office still has not delivered business licenses to many local owners for the 2023 calendar year, despite it now being August.
The licenses are required to be renewed every year through the city’s finance department.
Owners have since been operating the entire year without the proper licensing due to Hugley’s bureaucratic bottleneck.
During the city council meeting held on July 25, Councilor Judy Thomas (District 9) brought the subject up to Hugley directly. The move came shortly after councilors approved a new ‘top-down’ audit plan which made Hugley’s office next to be audited.
Thomas told Hugley that if there was a problem — which there most obviously is — that he must inform council about it:
“Mister City Manager, I want to bring something to your attention, if I may. I have had numerous contacts (from) businesses in Columbus — in Muscogee County — that have not received their 2023 business license yet. We're almost to the eighth month, and they haven't gotten their business license. Would you look into that and give us a report on what's happening and what we can expect? And I mean, as I said, we're almost in August and these business licenses have not been issued. And I know of a number of businesses specifically that have not received their 2023 business license. So if there's a problem with that, we need to know.”
Hugley responded with the following:
“We will follow up with you.”
Hugley’s single-sentence reply abstained from any further elaboration.
It is unclear how the manager of a city did not have any readily-available explanation for why the majority of business licenses were now eight months late, in the city he himself is responsible for managing.
Explore the full story to see how staggeringly low the city’s occupational tax has fallen on Hugley’s watch, along with how officials called him out.
FIRE & EMS NO LONGER MOWING LAWNS ON DUTY; CITY PICKS UP $100K TAB
This story was originally published on August 8, 2023.
COLUMBUS, Ga. — The Fountain City’s Bravest will no longer be the only city employees forced to mow the city’s grass while on duty, with councilors approving a $100k annual budget to outsource the yard work instead.
Budget allocations made by City Manager Isaiah Hugley previously left our city’s firefighters to mow the lawns of the city’s firehouses while on duty, often having to respond to calls for medical emergencies while stewing in their own filth and grass-covered bodies. Fire & EMS personnel were even forced to provide their own lawn care equipment from their own pockets.
When city councilors learned of this, they immediately took action to rectify the situation at the July 25 council meeting.
During the meeting, Hugley sought approval on his plan for grounds maintenance. Councilor Judy Thomas (District 9), noticed that Hugley’s plan explicitly labeled the fire department as ‘dependent upon funds,’ though Hugley somehow managed to find the money to mow the grass at every other city structure.
Hugley intentionally left Fire & EMS off the list, leaving them to mow their own grass, out of their own personal pockets, while being on duty to service the city’s emergencies.Imagine doing that to employees at City Hall, the Finance Department, or the Mayor’s Office. Obviously, that wouldn’t fly.
Nonetheless, Hugley planned on doing that to Fire & EMS, just as he has already done for the entire 18 years that he’s been the city manager.
Explore the full story to see how councilors called out Hugley on his usual antics and approved a $100K budget to fix it immediately.
CITY APPROVES $740K OF ‘CRIME PREVENTION’ GRANTS; HUGLEY POCKETS $25K OF IT
This story was originally published on August 9, 2023.
COLUMBUS, Ga. — The Columbus Consolidated Government approved $740,000 of taxpayers’ money to be distributed to a total of 44 local organizations through ‘crime prevention grants’ at the August 8 city council meeting.
However, with the long list of beneficiaries ranging from the Columbus Symphony Orchestra to a local fraternity chapter headquartered out of the city manager’s own personal house on Steam Mill Road, the credibility of the system’s measures of effectiveness and organizational vetting seem practically non-existent.
Councilors had only received the book-length list of all 44 grant applications a week prior. The list had been prepared all the way back in June, though no one bothered to send it to them with enough time to adequately review it.
Though some councilors tried to delay the vote so they could more closely examine the grant applications, their efforts resulted in an inconclusive 5:4 vote. Some councilors then strongly urged Mayor Henderson to delay anyway — which he could have done — though Henderson refused and insisted on approving the grants without any further inspection.
Five city councilors continued to urge their colleagues to reconsider, though they slammed ahead anyway.
Ultimately, all grant applications were recklessly approved in a batch-action vote with all members of council present voting in unanimous approval.
The councilors who urged for diligence were right. They should have delayed, taken their time, and looked more closely.
Here’s why.
Explore the full story for the very public and fully-documented details, along with a complete list of the 44 organizations that also received funds.
COGLE GETS IT DONE: UPTOWN GETS FACE LIFT AFTER HUGLEY COPPED OUT
This story was originally published on August 10, 2023.
COLUMBUS, Ga. — Fountain City residents will finally have visible parking lines in the downtown area, thanks to the persistent efforts of City Councilor Joanne Cogle (District 7) and her supportive colleagues.
The restriping project began on Monday, August 7 on Front Avenue between 13th Street and 11th Street. The project will continue throughout the downtown area, block by block, until the entire Uptown district’s 1,634 parking spaces are freshly repainted.
Cogle has hounded City Manager Isaiah Hugley about the area’s lack of upkeep since she was sworn in as the downtown area’s city councilor in January. Throughout her entire eight month tenure, Hugley has continued to feed her, her colleagues, and the city excuses as to why he wasn’t able to get the job done.
So Cogle decided to do his job for him.
Explore the full story to see how Cogle’s accountability and initiative got it done in a week, despite the city manager excusing his away.
MATHIS COMES THROUGH: TAKE-HOME CAR POLICY FIXED; CITY NIXES WAIVER
This story was originally published on August 11, 2023.
COLUMBUS, Ga. — Interim Police Chief Stoney Mathis has come through once again for our city’s finest after working diligently with city councilors to fix the city’s take-home car policy.
For years, officers of the Columbus Police Department living in neighboring Alabama were unable to drive their work vehicles home across state lines due to the nature of the city’s insurance policy. With roughly ten percent of the force living across the river, the issue has been the root of a serious morale issue that ran in parallel with several others.
The take-home car problem now appears to finally be resolved once and for all, thanks to a new leadership approach combined with a solutions-oriented attitude from officials across the board, which is now beginning to establish a solid track record of positive results for officers.
Explore the full story to see how strong common-sense leadership produced results.
HUGLEY OPENED NEW CITY HALL WITHOUT AEDS; MADE $183K EMERGENCY PURCHASE
This story was originally published on August 12, 2023.
COLUMBUS, Ga. — The new City Hall complex located downtown has been open for business for several weeks, though it has not had adequate emergency medical devices according to an emergency purchase made by the city manager’s office.
That emergency purchase was for 83 Automatic External Defibrillators at the cost of $183,000. Despite the lifesaving devices being present throughout the rest of CCG’s infrastructure, no one thought to order the devices for the $50 million government building project the city has been working on for years.
As stated in the agenda of the city council meeting held on August 8, the city’s risk management division did not identify the problem until after the structure was already open and operational, having to personally notify City Manager Isaiah Hugley on July 26 of the oversight.
Given the timeline and flow of information, Hugley quite obviously did not ensure proper accountability of the building’s development and planning for its entire planning, as is evident by the lack of the devices and the need for the emergency purchase post factum.
We wonder what else might also be left out of the new judicial center if the city couldn’t even manage to remember to order AEDs on a project one-fifth the size.
Explore the full story to see how the city manager’s office made a $183k emergency purchase for 83 AEDs as an afterthought.
THE WEEK AHEAD
The next meeting of the Columbus City Council is scheduled for Tuesday, August 22, 2023 at 5:30 p.m. on the second floor of the C. E. “Red” McDaniel City Services Center located at 3111 Citizens Way, Columbus, GA 31906.
The meeting’s agenda is scheduled to include a revisit on changing the zoning atlas for property located at 119 Bascom Court, which was delayed by a vote of the council at the August 8 meeting.
The Columbus Police Department will be holding a hiring event on Saturday, August 19, from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. at the Public Safety Building located at 510 10th Street. With new effective leadership models already in place, we would highly recommend anyone who's ever considered a career in law enforcement to attend. Now is the time!
Join Today. Protect Tomorrow.
There has never been a better time to be a Columbus Police Officer! The Columbus Police Department is a state and nationally accredited law enforcement agency dedicated to protecting and serving the citizens of Columbus, Georgia. Become part of a highly trained law enforcement team focused on building and maintaining strong community partnerships that improve the safety and quality of life for every citizen. Join today and protect the promise of a better tomorrow. ProtectColumbus.ColumbusGa.gov
A Look At Personal Safety
As the Columbus Police Department continues to unify under its new leadership model, violent crime is still likely to exist at higher levels than we would all like — even in what have previously been thought of as the “safer parts” of our city.
We at the Muckraker want to encourage our readers and their loved ones to remain hyper-vigilant as they go about their daily lives.
Based on lifetimes of experience and the combined professional careers of us at the Muckraker and our associates, here are what we consider to be the most important ways Columbusites can make themselves “hard targets” to avoid becoming a crime victim:
Situational Awareness: Be aware of your surroundings at all times. Keep your head on a swivel. Don’t walk around with headphones in. Keep your eyes moving and scanning around you as you move about.
Trust Your Gut: If something inside of you is telling you that something isn’t right, trust that feeling. For example: If you’re parking your car at night and your gut tells you the dark shady spot next to the alley isn't the best place to park, don't park there. Your intuition is often more powerful and protective than you think.
Move With Confidence: Think about this one for a minute. Are criminals going to target the guy or gal who struts hard down the street like a freaking lion patrolling their own domain, or are they going to leave that hard target the heck alone? Keep your head up. Move from place to place with a purpose. Don't walk around with your face in your phone with your purse wide open. Don’t look weak. Look dangerous.
Facts are stubborn things — and we’ll keep publishing them, whether city officials like them or not.
-30-
© 2023 Muscogee Muckraker. All rights reserved.
Be sure to follow Muscogee Muckraker on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to see all the muck that’s fit to print as it breaks throughout the coming week.
