Developer Influence in MiltonPeople for Milton is not "anti-development" or "against developers." We are for managed growth. We value thoughtful developers who are willing to work with our city to create projects that enhance our character, are carefully designed, appropriately placed, and adhere to our zoning ordinance and land use plan. We believe such projects enhance our quality of life rather than diminish it. In order to ensure that growth occurs in this manner, we must have elected officials who are free of developer special interest influence. We need independent objective decision makers who observe the letter and spirit of our laws, policies, and rules. This is a win-win for citizens and the development community and ensures an equal playing field for all those wishing to do business in our city.
Unlike their opponents, we believe that Milton City Council At-Large Candidates Bernard Wolff (District 1), Al Trevillyan (District 3), and Tina D'Aversa (Incumbent - District 5) will be objective decision makers and will not be influenced by developer special interests. None of these candidates have accepted money from developers.
In contrast, not only do Karen Thurman (District 1) and Bill Lusk (District 3) have family and business ties to developers, their campaigns are largely financially supported by them.
Joe Longoria (District 5 challenger) seems to be following closely in their footsteps. Thurman and Lusk support Longoria's election bid, and his stance on growth and development is no different than theirs. Many of the same developers that support Thurman and Lusk also support Longoria, even displaying his yard signs and co-hosting his campaign events.
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What Does History Tell Us?
Thurman and Lusk say they are rural preservationists, but their financial support by developers and the way they vote indicate otherwise. What is especially troubling is that many of these same developers have had dealings with the city in the past three years, and Thurman and Lusk have voted favorably for their interests. Here are just a few examples:
April 28, 2008 - RZ07-016 - Text Amendment to the City of Milton Zoning Ordinance, Article 12G State Route 9 Overlay District regarding buffers and building height. Thurman voted against increasing buffers between residential and commercial properties and against the two-story height limitation. Lusk was absent.
Coincidence? In the months preceding this vote in a October 31, 2007 Milton Herald, Adam Orkin of Orkin and Associates and Devin Properties, a real estate development company owning land in the State Route 9 area and Thurman campaign contributor, supporter, and co-host of her 2009 Campaign Kick-off party (also a Lusk and Longoria supporter), wrote in a Letter to the Editor: "I want to express my opposition to many of the development regulatory measures which are being discussed and may be enacted within Milton. These include a two-story building height limitation, unreasonably large undisturbed buffer zones...as well as many other short sighted ordinances which could have far-reaching destructive consequences for our community." In that same editorial, Mr. Orkin discusses his favor of sewers over septic systems.
Then, on September 16, 2008, Thurman and Lusk voted to extend sewer in the City, thus paving the way for high density development. See Sept 16, 2008 AJC Article Bitter issue: Milton council agrees to extend sewer lines.
March 16, 2009 - ZM08-08/VC08-08 - South side of Webb Road. Applicant: Ken Morton, Webb Road Associates. Thurman and Lusk voted to approve two variances to reduce side yard setbacks. No extraordinary hardship existed, which is required by law in order for the city council to award a variance. Approving these variances allowed the developer to sidestep the legal Zoning Ordinance and Comprehensive Plan, permitting more density than planned. Dillard and Galloway, LLC, representing the applicant in the case, is a campaign contributor and supporter of Karen Thurman and attended her 2009 Campaign Kick-Off Party.
The choice is ours to make, and we have only one chance to get it right. We will be voting for an open, honest, transparent, and fair government who works for the People of Milton and not for developer special interests. We support candidates for Milton City Council who we trust will stand firm on ensuring only appropriate, law-abiding growth and development in our city and who will not allow for further sewer expansion. We owe it to ourselves, our property values, and our quality of life to join together to ensure we elect city council members who will work diligently towards preserving our rural, equestrian heritage.
Please vote for Tina D'Aversa (Incumbent, District 5, At-Large), Bernard Wolff (District 1, At-Large), and Al Trevillyan (Write-In Candidate, District 3, At-Large) on November 3rd!
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People for Milton believes that
our elected officials should:
Employ independent objective judgment in performing their duties. They should decide all matters on the merits, free from avoidable conflicts of interest and both real and apparent improper influence.
Honor and respect the principles and spirit of representative democracy and set a positive example of good citizenship by scrupulously observing the letter and spirit of laws, policies, and rules.
Ensure an open, transparent city government that is fair and equitable to its citizens and those wishing to do business in or with the city.
Please cast your vote wisely on November 3rd
Vote for Tina D'Aversa (Incumbent, District 5, At-Large), Bernard Wolff (District 1, At-Large), Al Trevillyan (Write-In Candidate, District 3, At-Large).
Courtesy People4Milton 916 Devon Crossing Way Milton GA 30004
24 comments:
"People for Milton" had better be registered as a political action committee or candidate committee with the State if they are raising or spending any money or I smell another state ethics complaint coming!! Al, Barnyard and Tina, beware!
"People for Milton" had better be registered as a political action committee or candidate committee with the State if they are raising or spending any money or I smell another state ethics complaint coming!! Al, Barnyard and Tina, beware!
Too funny. Tina was so happy to have the developer supporters on her Fundraiser- so happy she did not even ask permission to use their names...
Now that she has turned into a psycho-path and they have asked to not be associated with her in any way, Longoria is pro-developer.
This nonsense has got to stop. Developers are not the DEVIL. They provide an important product (namely homes, stores, restaurants)to all of us.
Haha My spell checker keeps replacing Trevillyan with Trivial.
Coincidence? I think not
Be sure to read: https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=21862313&postID=1227607451055387453
Yes please be sure to look at the above - and then better still go and research it for yourself.
It's quite deplorable!
Go Karen, Bill and Joe...
Julie groupies will try anything in the next few days, but this time the Milton voters will make the RIGHT choice with confidence.
The only way we can get a pragmatic Council with Bill, Karen & Joe is to GET OUT THE VOTE!
Lunatic Julie is already organizing.
We have all got to VOTE.
Would someone from this group please answer where Devon Crossing Way is?
Let's see , ethics, HMMM Read comments under "The Accuracy Of Accessmilton.com Polls."
Karen will be cheating orphans and widows next
We would like to know how much John Fredericks is being paid to not print the news about Karen Thurman stealing from our men in the military
And military women in Iraq.
Nothing Tina has been accused of even compares to Karen and the way she victimized our military and senior citizens. Karen, how could you? You leak Bernard's family turmoil to the Beacon, yet the Beacon hasn't reported this. You are all the things people call Julie. You have lost my vote over this. My nephew has been to Iraq four times and will be going back a fifth, to protect trash like you!
Impeach Julie! She is the only verifiable student of NAZI politics. Do not believe the evil....
Would the People4Milton please post their website information and disclosure so that we, the citizens of Milton can see your credentials? Thank you.
I think there are two "People" groups out there.
Julie this is what got you and Tart elected 2 years ago. Get on with the future, this is old news and is getting worn pretty thin.
PS: If you dont want to answer just have Bill do it as usual on these blogs.
Only thing Thurman cares about preserving is her bank account....
Hot News....read for yourself
http://www.bindermalter.com/files/12-19-08-10-01-43.pdf
Mr. Lusk's acts of placing miltiary crosses are reduced to public display as Mr. Lusk continues to support Ms. Thurman. Thurman's huge investment alone places her close to a consumer lending scam that ripped off at least 700 military families. With her background and large family investment I do not believe that she did not know what the company was perpetrating. I went to the court papers that were supplied in a post. Then I read Ms. Thurman's explanation of how hard she's working to repay herself and the other large investors. Pitiful! My nephew is in Iraq. God protect him and keep him....especially from our own citizens who would prey on him.
From: Bernard Wolff
To: John McD Wolff jmcdwolff@aol.com; Susan Lindley swlindley@comcast.net; Marian Nolan mwnolan112@hotmail.com; ferrelln9@hotmail.com; Charles Wolff chw90@windstream.net
Sent: Fri, Oct 30, 2009 12:28 pm
Subject: Fw: Preserving Farms
I haven't had a chance to review these (I shall tonight), but these appear to be examples of what I'm considering for Lahkapani and the City of Milton, or Milton + Roswell jointly.
Both Roswell and Milton are anxious to acquire park & recreational property for their citizens. It adds attractiveness to a community, which results in a better (affluent, law abiding, tax paying etc) citizenry, increasing land values, and decreased need for services.
To our benefit, it offers us a chance to sell Lahkapani before the housing market recovers, at a market price to us, & a discounted price to the municipality. If feasible, the way this would work is:
Price/acre desired: $100,000
Lease to city for 3 years at acceptable annual rent (say, $200,000/year) with option to purchase at end of lease. The Purchase contract will require that the City purchase the Property (at the end of the lease) if development rights are removed and the property use is perpetually as farm or park land (which reduces its value).
As the lease period ends and the purchase date arrives, we would
>sell develoment rights for, say, $60K/Acre to a developer to use in another area.
>We would then sell the property to the city for, say $40K/acre.
We get the targeted $100K/acre, the City purchases the park land for $40K/acre.
The numbers and transaction details may be different, but the basic concept is the same.
Thanks,
Brother
Is this guy Bernard for real, and if he is is this ethical?
You Zahnerites are absolute idiots, or disengenuous...maybe just both.
I just got an autodial from Julie, of all people.
She is "all in", as they say in Vegas. Invariably, she hides in the shadows like the wimpy Wizard of Oz, operating via dupes like Leona Cole, Paula Moore, pathetic Carol and nutty Nikky. This time, she is so desperate, the One herself has come out for her cast of candidates.
Her call says Milton will be the same if we vote her way...and it WILL!!!
In other words, no improvement, no parks, no quality of life increases, no tax relief, nothing.
Just a desperate longing for something that only exists in some minds every fall during elections. Anyone who really wants to protect, improve, save Milton needs to run away from the Z-ites as fast as they can.
Let's really do something innovative with our horse community, get parks that are the envy of the region, keep one acre,(regardless of who connects to EXISTING sewer pipes to protect the environment). Julie and her gang haven't done anything innovative in their lives. Look at Tina: uses co-hosts for events she hasn't gotten permission from, signs in places without permission, when corrected she extorts concessions or fires from City committees. She tried to veto the parks authority, didn't start disability awareness as claimed, didn't do much of anything. When an apparently reasonable opponent surfaces, she tries to bribe him to drop out...so she can save her sacred seat & title. Oh, she isn't a professor, she is an "instructor". Doesn't sound so cool.
We should be much more concerned about a man's brother going public saying he is unfit for a position of public trust, than some silly trumped up claim of an obscure company scandal.
Get real, go vote. The only truth is this IS an important election. In Dist 5, if Tina does win, we will have to pay $100k for a special election, undoubtedly, unless the City sues Tina due to her misconduct and makes her pay...which she can't.
Julie and her gang haven't run a business, held a job and most seem to have trouble selecting spellcheck when they blog. Do you really want moonbats running a $20million business, with your money and your property value at stake?
I don't.
Tina,Al,And Bernard Are not bad. They do not want to extend sewer.Just because they want to keep Milton Rural,it dosnt mean that they are not going to develop. They just arnt gonna OVERdevelop.Why are you guys targeting Julie. She knows what shes doing and she will make sure to keep milton unlike duluth, roswell,and alpharetta.We live and milton, A RURAL place lets Keep it that way!Go Tina Al And Bernard
Tina,Al,And Bernard Are not bad. They do not want to extend sewer.Just because they want to keep Milton Rural,it dosnt mean that they are not going to develop. They just arnt gonna OVERdevelop.Why are you guys targeting Julie. She knows what shes doing and she will make sure to keep milton unlike duluth, roswell,and alpharetta.We live and milton, A RURAL place lets Keep it that way!Go Tina Al And Bernard
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