When Politicians Become Bought and Sold

"When Politicians Become Bought and Sold"

There is a problem that has been building in Stockbridge for some time now.  There has been a lot of smoke screens to try and hide what has been occurring.  Power plays, money under the table, and puppet strings have been in play.  The city is wanting to have an over lay project for the area of Hwy 138 from North Henry Blvd to Daniel Drive about a quarter of a mile.  The area west of Daniel Drive to near the I-75 interchange is in Clayton County who is also in this mix.  The story unfolds into a situation that is not unlike Chicago or Detroit with the political structure.

The following from the Henry Herald Newspaper lays out what Mr. Alexander has to say on the subject.

“My goal is to establish the highest standards in metro Atlanta. Currently the level of Highway 138 is unacceptable at this time,” said Councilman Elton Alexander, who has been a vocal proponent of enhancing the corridor. “Our standards have not been high enough, which is why we’ve attracted some of the quality that we have now. This whole goal is to establish the highest code regulations with goals to bring high-quality developments and businesses.”

Existing buildings would not be affected architecturally, but going forward, new businesses would have to adhere to the overlay requirements once adopted.

Stakeholder meetings regarding Highway 138 Overlay guidelines will be held at the Ted Strickland Community Center, 130 Martin Luther King Sr. Heritage Trail. The meetings are scheduled to begin at 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 8, Aug. 29 and Sept. 19. Public hearings will be held in the on the second floor of Stockbridge City Hall, 4640 N. Henry Blvd. The hearings will be held Aug. 15, Sept. 5 and Sept. 26 beginning at 6:30 p.m.

The Collaborative Firm LLC, of East Point, will be leading the effort for the Highway 138 Overlay design guidelines at a cost of $35,000. 

The Collaborative Firm LLC is the following:

Business Name: THE COLLABORATIVE FIRM, LLC Control Number: 0257284

Business Type: Domestic Limited Liability Company Business Status: Active/Compliance

Business Purpose:  

Principal Office Address: 1514 E CLEVELAMD AVE. STE 82, EAST POINT, GA, 30344, USA Date of Formation / Registration Date: 11/18/2002

State of Formation: Georgia Last Annual Registration Year: 2017

REGISTERED AGENT INFORMATION

Registered Agent Name: MICHAEL HIGHTOWER

Physical Address: 1514 E CLEVELAND AVE. STE 82, Fulton, EAST POINT, GA, 30344, USA

Now here is where things start to get interesting involving Councilman Alexander and Mr. Hightower.  On February 8, 2016 Alexander honored Mr. Hightower with a proclamation.  

"Proclamation--Recognizing South Metro Development Outlook Conference 2016 Mayor Pro Tem Anthony S. Ford read the Proclamation presented to Michael Hightower, President of the South Metro Development Outlook Conference 2016 and was joined by the initiator, Councilman Alexander."

December 26, 2016 party for African American elected officials that Michael Hightower has aided at the Collaborative Firm in East Point.  Mr. Alexander and other Henry County elected officials attend.

  

Here is more background on Mr. Hightower for you to discern.  In 2000, he was caught up in a corruption scandal that rocked Atlanta and Fulton County governments.  He resigned his seat on the Fulton County Commission and pleaded guilty to accepting $25,000 in bribes for his vote to help a businessman win government contracts. His admitted lapse in judgment resulted in a conviction for public corruption, a sentence of six months of prison time and another six months of home confinement, 420 hours of community service and three years of supervised release.

 

The issue at hand here is there an ethical problem, moral problem and a conflict of interest with what is happening between the City of Stockbridge and Councilman Alexander having the Collaborative Firm to do an overlay for Hwy 138?   This type of activity has been going on in the city for some time now and it looks like there is a power play in the works involving Mr. Hightower helping to fund south metro African American political figures so they can gain office and then have his company do work for them.  And with him being a consulting firm he can also have different people appointed into positions where he can benefit as well.   We often hear from Mr. Alexander about the good ole boy system, but what does he call this?  This is the type of activity that got Mayor Campbell in trouble in Atlanta.  The citizens of Stockbridge and Henry County need to take a hard look at what is happening under their nose.   Look at district 2 and 5 on the county commission.  They were at that party in East Point in December 2016.  That picture of them there tells the story.  The people of Clayton County have the same problem.  Take a look at your chairman of the commission and some of the elected representatives including a state senator whose district covers a part of Henry and DeKalb Counties.  Look closely at who these people really are and who they are indebted to. When the investigations into all this begin it will look like 2000 all over again.

With information courtesy of archives : The Atlanta Journal Constitution, 2000, Creative Loafing 2000,  City of Stockbridge Minutes 2016, The Henry Herald 2017, Athens-Banner 2004, WSB TV Reports 2000, and the Secretary of State 2017.

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