AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The troubled Bon Air Apartments are back in the news.

On Thursday, the director of construction for Redwood Housing – which is renovating the Section 8 apartment building that was a grand hotel many decades ago – was in the hot seat in front of the Augusta Commission.

He was trying to explain why even with millions in taxpayer money going toward repairs, there are still issues at the apartment building that draws maintenance complaints from residents, as well as enough crime to worry its neighbors.

These issues date back several years, drawing the scrutiny and criticism of U.S. Rep. Rick Allen.

Complaints of poor living conditions have been compounded by stabbings, shootings and complaints of a lack of security in the area.

It’s not just Bon Air residents speaking up, but other people who live nearby.

“I feel like that I’m hearing the same old thing that I heard a couple of years ago,” Commissioner Catherine Smith Rice said at Thursday’s meeting.

Mayor Garnett Johnson told Redwood:

“If you wanna be a great partner to this community, invest in some security.”

Commissioner Jordan Johnson threatened to put the landlord’s business license on probation “until we actually feel confident that something is going on.”

The company bought the Bon Air and the downtown Richmond Summit – another subsidized rental building that’s drawn complaints – in 2021.

Recent incidents at Bon Air include:

For its part, Redwood Housing gave an update Thursday on renovations at the Bon Air – two phases of work, including upgrading security cameras, replacing air-conditioning units and fixing the elevators.

“ I need to reassure you that we as Redwood, we develop and maintain quality properties,” said Bob Duke.

Those who live near the Bon Air disagree with the company’s claims.

“There must be two Bon Airs here because what I’m hearing doesn’t exist,” neighbor Frank Dolan said.

He says he hears gunshots constantly.

“If you are paying a security guard, you gotta get your money back because it’s not happening,” he said.

But Redwood repeatedly told neighbors and commissioners there is security at the Bon Air.

Redwood is expected to go back before the commission within the next 30 days.

“If it were up to me today, personally, I’d revoke your license,” Rice told Duke.

If conditions don’t improve at Bon Air and Richmond Summit, that could be a possibility.

Also at Thursday’s commission meeting …

• Commissioners approved supplemental funding in an amount not to exceed $10 million for Hurricane Helene waterway debris removal with Ceres Environmental Services. Commissioners also approved the use of general fund balances to pay for these services.
• Commissioners approved supplemental funding in an amount not to exceed $600,000 for Hurricane Helene waterway debris removal construction plans and monitoring services with Goodwyn, Mills & Cawood. Commissioners also approved the use of general fund balances to pay for these services.
• Commissioners heard from Moses Todd about city-owned cemetery priorities and the use of SPLOST 9 funding as well as the legality of using SPLOST funding for a veterans cemetery.

Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The company that manages Augusta University’s dorms is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

“Corvias Campus Living – USG” runs student housing at AU and several other state schools in Georgia.

It says it has worked for years to make its partnership viable with the University System of Georgia.

But now the company says it needs to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy to restructure the deal.

The company made headlines in 2023 when a pipe break delayed students from moving into Oak Hall and a year earlier when mold was found in Oak Hall and neighboring Elm Hall.

Despite those snags, it says students rely on the company “to deliver an exceptional student housing experience.”

It said in a statement that it “remains committed to delivering an award-winning housing experience for students throughout the process.”

Corvias also handles some military housing, although not at Fort Gordon. In Georgia, it has contracts at nine of the state’s higher education institutions.

The company claims the student housing program is not sustainable because things have changed a lot since it won the contracts.

It blames a number of factors, including COVID, higher costs, and lower revenue and student occupancy than expected.

It claims it has “gone above and beyond its contractual requirements – even forgoing its management fee for all but two months over the past five years.”

While the process moves forward, the company says it plans to “provide the same high-quality operations and maintenance services” and meet its obligations to employees, vendors and others by utilizing cash on hand, subject to approval as part of the process.

Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.

AUGUSTA, GA. — Blackfin Real Estate Investors LLC, a multifamily investment firm based in Arlington, Va., has purchased Sage Creek Apartments, a 120-unit garden-style community located at 1315 Marks Church Road in Augusta. The seller, an investment group led by JJM Realty Partners LLC, sold the property for $17.3 million.

Mike Riley and Ian Shaw of Berkadia represented the seller in the transaction. Patrick McGlohn, Brian Gould, Ted Hermes, Miles Drinkwalter and Natalie Hershey of Berkadia arranged an undisclosed amount of acquisition financing for Blackfin.

Built in 2016, Sage Creek represents Blackfin’s first acquisition in Georgia. The property offers one- and two-bedroom apartments ranging in size from 812 to 1,076 square feet, according to Apartments.com. Amenities include a pool, fitness center, laundry facilities, onsite maintenance, bike storage, pet play area and a dog park.