Augusta, GA
Parker’s Kitchen foes lose their fight against Augusta store
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – About 30 people showed up Tuesday’s Augusta Commission meeting to fight the opening of a Parker’s Kitchen, but they lost the battle.
The crowd of opponents claimed to have a 400-person petition in hand, fighting rezoning of 2.54 acres at 3645 Wheeler Road from agricultural to a neighborhood business.
Parker’s Kitchen wants to build a store there – where there’s a McDonald’s, a Walgreens and several other businesses that apparently haven’t drawn this sort of opposition.
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The Savannah-based convenience store chain that sells made-from-scratch meals has been expanding locally but has run into some unpredicted opposition in some other places, including Columbia County and Aiken.
Augusta residents have been more somewhat welcoming until now.
Although there was a little discussion about pedestrian safety if a Parker’s Kitchen were built on Gordon Highway, there’s been no opposition to one that’s being built at Windsor Spring and Tobacco roads.
The Wheeler Road store was apparently another matter.
“I’m over there everyday, and it is a nightmare,” said Catherine Smith-McKnight, District 3 Commissioner.
Sharon Kaminer, Hill Creek neighbor, said: “Crime is a concern of neighbors. Convenience stores are known to attract loitering, drug sales in parking lots and even murder.”
Augusta traffic and engineering officials admit the Wheeler Road intersection is already fairly busy, but say they were planning on a traffic study to add two left turns to calm the traffic.
“We’re going to add, instead of a single left turn lane on medical center drive and Augusta West Parkway, we’re going to add a second left turn lane on both of those approaches. So we’re essentially doubling the capacity,” said John Ussery with Augusta Traffic and Engineering.
So despite the 30 or so opponents, the Augusta Commission approved the rezoning 6-1.
Parker’s says the seven months of construction could start in April or May 2024.
Renamings delayed
Also on the agenda was the renaming of the Riverwalk for Edward M. McIntyre.
There has been much back-and-forth on naming the Riverwalk for Augusta’s first Black mayor, the man who started the idea for it.
But he was also convicted of extortion.
At least two people went before the commission to support the renaming, while one spoke against it.
Other renamings were also on the agenda. This included naming a baseball field at Diamond Lakes Regional Park for former Commissioner Andy Cheek and the utility building after former Utilities Director Tom Weidemeier.
All the renamings were delayed until the next commission meeting.
Also on the agenda
- Leaders pulled from the agenda a plan to give $50,000 to the Garden City Rescue Mission. The mission faced a deadline last week to raise almost $500,000 to keep from closing, but met and surpassed that goal, so it doesn’t need the city’s money.
- A special called meeting took place at which third-party hiring company Developmental Associates LLC laid out its process for finding candidates to become Augusta-Richmond County’s permanent city administrator.
- City leadership aims to hire VitalCore Health Strategies as the new jail medical services provider, after sticking with Wellpath since December of 2010.
- A discussion will take place on a new policy for employees physically clocking into work.
- Leadership wants to look into applying for a $1.7 million grant to update Augusta Transit’s Broad Street Transfer facility,
Copyright 2023 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
Augusta, GA
Augusta leaders weigh the will of voters on tax exemption
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Augusta commissioners on Monday spent a lot of their meeting discussing the law allowing the city to opt out of a “floating” homestead exemption for property taxes.
A new Georgia law was approved by voters to cap property tax increases. But as part of that law, local communities can opt out of the plan – and several in the CSRA say they intend to do so after a required series of public hearings.
Whether Augusta will do so was a topic of discussion Monday.
At the Augusta Commission meeting, Bob Young reminded fellow commissioners that 60% of Augusta voters voted “yes” for the homestead exemption.
He says the question of opting out of the cap goes beyond the homestead exemption but rather casts doubt on whether referendums mean anything in Richmond County.
“The exemption is just another incentive for people to invest in homeownership in Augusta, Richmond County,” said Young. “So my message to you is that you don’t need to schedule any public hearings about opting out. The public hearing was held on Nov. 5, when 48,000 people in Richmond County said give us our tax break.”
He said he doesn’t understand why anyone would consider taking away the voices of more than 60% and “tossing it out” in a process he called voter nullification.
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Augusta Commission: More from the meeting
- Leaders discussed the number of small signs advertising home repairs and other services in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene. Rice says she’s willing “to yank the signs up” if it helps speed up the process.
- Shovon Burton discussed the Laurel Park subdivision. She said the storm drains are “polluted” with trees and other debris. Commissioner Catherine Rice recommended Burton discuss the matter with engineering and code enforcement administrator’s office to work something out
- Commissioners approved the recommendation of the Daniel Field General Aviation Commission to award the airfield pavement rehab project to Reeves Construction under a state grant contract for $4.6 million.
He says the exemption “brings some control” to property taxes, and he doesn’t understand why officials didn’t voice concerns prior to the November vote.
Commissioner Wayne Guilfoyle said the challenge for a lot of elected officials is that they don’t know what the impact of the cap would be.
“There’s a lot of unanswered questions,” he said.
Guilfoyle also questioned what will happen to businesses and new construction in the community if commissioners take action on the homestead exemption
“We also are going to have to find funding to stay and keep our operations going, especially with our new sheriff’s department,” said Guilfoyle. “You got our judicial and you even got the marshal’s department that’s coming for us now looking for funding. Well, we are $8.7 million in the rear right now. Money’s got to come from somewhere and that’s something that we have to look at. That’s the elephant in the room for me.”
Young said these questions should have been answered before the referendum went on the ballot.
Mayor Garnett Johnson read the resolution straight from the ballot and said the opt-out potential was included in the language of the resolution voters pondered in November.
Young, on the other hand, said the ballot measure was written in “word salad.”
Commissioner Francine Scott said people need to know the 62% who voted for the measure indicated the percentage of voters, not the percentage of homeowners.
At the meeting, Sue Parr spoke on behalf of her client the Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce.
“Opting out of this measure is not a tax break for the business community,” said Parr. “It is simply a matter of assessing equitable, fair property tax value on property, whether it’s commercial or homestead. We need both.”
She agreed with Young about not wanting to nullify the vote but advocated moving forward with public hearings – saying that would be a chance for commissioners to hear what the community has to say and for business owners to explain what the tax hike would do to customers.
She said 50% of homes in Augusta-Richmond County are not owner-occupied, and that there’s a lot of new housing on the way.
“This shouldn’t be a debate,” she said. “It should be a coming together.”
City Administrator Tameka Allen said officials will meet Wednesday to discuss public hearings so officials can decide what to do before the March 1 deadline.
Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
Augusta, GA
Gas prices rise, but Ga. and S.C. are below the national average
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Prices at the gas pump continue to creep upward as sanctions continue to limit the worldwide oil supply.
However, Georgia and South Carolina both sit below the national average of $3.06 for a gallon of fuel. Columbia, Richmond, and Burke counties have some of the cheapest gas in our Georgia counties – all cheaper than $2.90.
Edgefield and McCormick counties have the cheapest gas on the South Carolina side at $2.75.
Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
Augusta, GA
Have you seen this missing 50-year-old woman in Augusta or Atlanta?
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – Have you seen this missing 50-year-old woman in the Augusta or Atlanta areas?
The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office told us Monday that Bertina Dalton was last seen on Dec. 22, 2024, at her residence on Skinner Mill Road.
Dalton is described by authorities to be around five feet and six inches in height and weighing around 140 pounds.
Dalton may be traveling to the Atlanta area, authorities say.
Last week, we reported when authorities initially reported her disappearance last week.
Dalton called family members on Christmas but refused to tell anyone where she was.
Deputies said she’s been having mental health issues recently but has refused treatment.
The Richmond County Sheriff’s Office is also searching for Azariel Williams, 14, who was reported as a runaway juvenile on Dec. 30.
Her family reached out to us to request the public’s help in locating her.
Anyone who comes in contact with Dalton or has any information as to her whereabouts is asked to contact any on-call investigator at the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office at 706-821-1464 or 706-821-1020.
Copyright 2025 WRDW/WAGT. All rights reserved.
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