Augusta, GA
Augusta Commission enters debate over future of dilapidated First Baptist Church downtown
The Augusta Commission’s discussion on the future of a downtown church Tuesday prompted questions about how the city’s Historic Preservation Commission executes its duties.
The old First Baptist Church at the corner of Eighth and Greene streets has been listed as endangered for several years by local and state historical preservationists eager to see the ornate 1902 structure saved.
The dispute over the property has sparked criticism implying that the HPC sometimes singles out owners publicly and not just the state of properties.
“The HPC has acted lawfully and appropriately per the Historic Preservation Ordinance for Augusta, Ga.,” board vice-chairman Dave Barbee told Augusta commissioners Tuesday. “The HPC is in the business of saving historic structures, not demolition by neglect.”
Augusta real-estate executive Joe Edge bought the First Baptist property in 2020 intending to renovate it, five years after the city condemned the dilapidated building.
In January, the HPC cited the property for several code violations and directed Edge to begin addressing the violations within 10 days. Edge responded by filing a certificate of appropriateness to demolish the old church, which stands on the site where the Southern Baptist Convention was established in 1845.
Edge has contended that he has paid for extensive repairs to the property, although city code enforcement officials seem to have no record of permits showing the work.
District 3 Commissioner Catherine Smith Rice and District 7 Commissioner Tina Slendak, who attended the January HPC meeting, said the commission dealt with Edge in an imperious manner.
An HPC counsel “drilled this particular owner of this church like he was in a courtroom,” Rice said, who added the line of questioning “felt like it was personal.”
District 6 Commissioner Tony Lewis also said he was at the meeting but takes issue “with the notion that (Edge) was bashed in any way. That’s not how I perceived it. I perceived it as looking for answers to a problem.”
“People have said we’re stepping out of bounds, we’re targeting,” Barbee said. “That’s the furthest thing from the truth. All we’re looking at is the building and that’s it.”
Augusta Planning and Development Director Carla Delaney suggested a more collaborative approach toward problem-solving between then HPC and property owners. Her department works with the HPC in a support role.
“A lot of times the complaint I get back as the director is that the individuals who don’t have the ability to hire an architect or pay for arbitration end up dropping and withdrawing,” she said. “So we need to look at a way to revisit this so we have the opportunity for those with less resources to be able to move forward and be able to meet the needs of the HPC.”
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The Augusta Juvenile Court received a grant of more than $1 million to prevent youth from joining gangs by addressing underlying factors that lead to criminal behavior.
The grant from the Criminal Justice Coordinating Council will allow the court to expand services beyond its current programs and serve a broader population of at-risk youth.
“This allows us to build on the work we are currently doing. It also allows us to serve a different population of youth that we have not been able to serve on such an extended level, so we have additional funds that will serve even more kids and to hopefully assist the sheriff and district attorney in not having youthful offenders become adult offenders that they have to obtain and prosecute,” said Chief Judge Tianna Bias.
Addressing root causes
The funding will target factors that make youth vulnerable to gang recruitment, including poor school attendance and reading difficulties.
“Whether it’s that they have poor school attendance, not reading on grade level. One thing we’ve seen is that when you are not reading on grade level that has an impact on many other areas of your life. It’s really just an opportunity to offer wrap-around support for these kids so we can prevent them from getting into unfortunate situations that they may not end up in front of a juvenile court judge later,” Bias said.
Dr. Audrey Armistad, chief intake officer for the juvenile court, said the court’s goal is rehabilitation rather than detention.
“We put them in programs and services that help them to be able to develop mentally, socially and physically when it comes to kids involved with the juvenile court,” Armistad said.
Expanding services
The juvenile court currently serves at-risk youth through the THRIVE program. The court is also expanding services with a new computer lab set to open next month.
“It helps us to be able to provide instruction to kids getting GEDs, parents wanting GEDs, as well as we provide learning loss instruction to kids enrolled in Richmond County who may need remediation in math and reading,” Armistad said.
A gang prevention expert will meet with the juvenile court team to provide recommendations on how the grant money should be spent.
Bias said success will be measured by fewer teens in courtrooms and more in classrooms.
“We are meant to rehabilitate not to punish and we want to help these parents get kids on track so we can see a better Augusta for everyone,” Bias said.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Augusta University is set to cut the ribbon on a new Student Health Services building on Friday.
The ribbon cutting will be held at 2:30 p.m. at 1465 Laney Walker Boulevard in Augusta.
The event will showcase the field of college health and the role the services have on students’ personal development and academic success.
The clinic relocated to the new space last month to make way for AU’s advanced research and clinical innovation, according to officials.
At the event, there will also be snacks, interactive games and clinic tours.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – There was a large law enforcement presence Thursday morning at a home in west Augusta near Fort Gordon.
The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office and Southeast Regional Fugitive Task Force were in the area attempting to find a suspect, according to deputies.
Witnesses said around 11:25 a.m. that officers had been surrounding a home at Harper-Franklin Avenue and Covington Court.
That’s in a neighborhood of mostly two-story brick-fronted homes built in the past three or four years just east of Jimmie Dyess Parkway and a couple of blocks north of Gordon Highway.
As noon approached, law enforcement had left.
But a Facebook post from earlier did show a large presence,including marked and unmarked cars, and officers all around the house. A witness said police dogs were on the scene, as well.
News 12 has reached out to the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office for information.
Copyright 2026 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
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