Published on SavannahNow.com (http://savannahnow.com)
A middle way
By Savannah Morning News
Created 2008-03-25 23:30
THE GEORGIA House Rules Committee should give state representatives more choices in Jekyll Island revitalization plans.
To date, GOP leaders in the General Assembly have favored the $352 million development proposed by Linger Longer, which would install 1,100 hotel rooms and condos on 63 acres - taking up the last stretch of open beach easily accessible to Georgia residents on the state-owned island.
When the House Rules Committee meets Thursday morning, it has the power to send amended Senate Bill 367 to the floor for a full House vote. Failure to do so would be to ignore those who want the state park to maintain its unique, tranquil atmosphere.
As amended by Rep. Debbie Buckner, SB 367 bans major construction on Jekyll's signature open beach area.
Rep. Buckner, D-Junction City, likens Linger Longer's current development plan to killing the goose that laid the golden egg. That may be too harsh. Still, Jekyll's unobstructed beach view is a major draw for visitors who prefer a seaside experience that does not include a wall of condos between them and the dunes, the beach and the ocean.
Rep. Buckner's plan instead steers revitalization back to the development company's original plan: Tearing down the outdated convention center and building a new development from that point south and west toward the interior of the island.
This alternative could have a much smaller impact on the island. While it does not limit the size of a new development, the original footprint was only 24 acres.
The amendment is similar to House Bill 1289, also sponsored by Ms. Buckner, which died in committee - as did the Senate version sponsored by Sen. Jeff Chapman, R-Brunswick.
Make no mistake, Jekyll Island does need rejuvenation.
Existing hotels, in business for decades, have been ragged around the edges for years. However, the ongoing political debate must recognize that several of those hotels are currently under renovation. Competitive pressure should push the rest of Jekyll Island's hotels to do the same.
Allowing a floor vote on SB 367 would give representatives three options: Voting down both the 24-acre and the 63-acre plan in favor of current hotel renovations; backing Rep. Buckner's scaled down plan; or voting in favor for Linger Longer's city center plan with beachside hotel rooms and condos.
SB 367 gives representatives a "middle way" choice between a major impact on Jekyll's pristine beach area and relying solely on market pressure for renovation at existing hotels.
This, in turn, could facilitate a compromise that brings needed tourism infrastructure to Jekyll and maintains the serenity of a state park known for its sun, sand and waves - not to mention a view of the coast that's getting harder to come by each passing year.
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OUR OPINIONS: Develop right priorities for Jekyll
By Jay Bookman
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/25/08
Sometimes, important government decisions do more than determine the outcome of a particular controversy. They take on a larger symbolic value and make a statement about public priorities and values.
Certainly, that's the case with decisions involving Jekyll Island State Park, which state officials are trying to redevelop without diminishing the island's unique appeal. While there's broad agreement that redevelopment is necessary and overdue, the extent of redevelopment is very much a matter of debate.
As legislators ponder Jekyll's fate, they ought to ask themselves a question:
What would it say about Georgia and its priorities if we took the last open stretch of public beach in the state —- a half-mile stretch of property that is supposedly protected as a state park —- and convert it to condo units and hotels, as is now being proposed? What would that say about the things that Georgia holds dear, and about its commitment to preserve assets for future generations?
Under an amendment approved last week in the House Natural Resources Committee, development would be barred along roughly 2,500 feet of now open beachfront north of Jekyll's convention center.
However, chances of that provision being enacted into law are mixed at best, because that property is so highly treasured by developers. It plays a key role in a redevelopment project proposed by Linger Longer Inc. and approved in draft form by the Jekyll Island State Park Authority.
If enacted into law, the development ban —- sponsored by state Rep. Debbie Buckner (D-Junction City) —- would force a significant redesign of the Linger Longer project. Expected revenue from the project would decline, as would the number of overnight visitors the project is likely to attract.
However, the intent of a redevelopment plan for Jekyll Island should not be to maximize revenue or even visitation. The No. 1 priority should be to preserve and enhance the natural resource. If we give any other goal a higher priority, it says something less than flattering about us as a state.
—- Jay Bookman, for the editorial board (jbookman@ajc.com)
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Published on SavannahNow.com (http://savannahnow.com)
Jekyll protections back on agenda
By Savannah Morning News
Created 2008-03-20 23:30
ATLANTA - A narrow vote by a House panel rejuvenated efforts to protect a half-mile of open beach on Jekyll Island, but the measure approved Thursday faces a steep uphill climb before it becomes law.
On a 9-8 vote, the House Natural Resources and Environment Committee attached an amendment barring condominiums and other high-end accommodations on the popular beach to a Senate measure that would remove the expiration date of Georgia's Coastal Management Act.
The amendment was sparked by concerns over a $352 million plan by Linger Longer Communities, developer of the posh Reynolds Plantation resort on Lake Oconee, to redevelop the state park.
"This would be a way for us to protect what is open beach, and it would be an opportunity as our population grows for there to always be an open access to public beach in a public park that's owned by the public," said Rep. Debbie Buckner, D-Junction City, who offered the amendment. "It'll give us an opportunity to have this as a first-class amenity for our citizens in their park."
Residents and visitors who had fought for the protections were guardedly optimistic after the first win after a series of defeats for similar measures in the House and Senate.
"I'm pleased that the public still has an opportunity to get protections for the island," said Dory Ingram, a volunteer lobbyist for the Initiative to Protect Jekyll Island.
Lawmakers opposed to the measure, though, said the amendment trampled on the work done by the Jekyll Island Authority to revamp the state park's sagging tourist infrastructure.
"We have given the responsibilities to the Jekyll Island Authority of overseeing the development of that state property, and for us to go in and do something like this, I think, purely is micromanaging ...," said Rep. John Heard, R-Lawrenceville.
Eric Garvey, a spokesman for the authority, said the agency had already asked the Department of Natural Resources to clearly mark the area where no new construction could take place without a permit.
"The Jekyll Island Authority is committed to complying with all those limitations," Garvey said. "We embrace that, and we don't think there needs to be additional limitations added."
Buckner, though, said the public outcry over building on the beach should carry the day.
"It is their park," Buckner said. "It is their land. It is their property rights that are being violated if it's developed in a way other than what they would prefer. And so it's our responsibility, I feel, to help them in their efforts to protect what they hold near and dear."
Opponents also raised concerns that the maneuver could endanger the Coastal Management Act, which brings federal funds and coastal protections to the state.
"We are commingling a lot of stuff here, and I think there is confusion," said Senate Natural Resources and Environment Committee Chairman Ross Tolleson, R-Perry, who sponsored the original bill.
The measure still faces several challenges. The amendment still has to survive the House Rules Committee, the panel that controls which bills go to the House floor and can rewrite measures to its liking.
Even if the protections get through the House, they still have to gain Senate approval to go to Gov. Sonny Perdue for his signature or veto.
"We just have to keep taking a bite at the apple and hoping something's going to get to the core," Buckner said.
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Legislature 2008
Jekyll Island gets boost
By Dan Chapman
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/21/08
Protection of Jekyll Island's pristine main beach received a legislative boost Thursday when the House Natural Resources and Environment Committee voted to keep the 1/2 mile stretch of sand development-free.
However, many legislative and political hurdles remain for those who want to prevent condos and hotel rooms from lining the beach near the entrance to the state park, as a developer proposes.
"Part of our coast is under attack right now," said Rep. Debbie Buckner (D-Junction City), whose amendment to Senate Bill 367 passed 9-8. The coastal management measure "would keep open the only remaining beach on Georgia's coast that citizens can drive up to."
Now, some of the island's hotels, shops and recreational offerings wear the worn look of an old couch. Developer Linger Longer proposes a $352 million "town center" project —- condos, hotel rooms, time-share units, shops, restaurants and green space —- on 64 acres between Jekyll's dunes and maritime forest.
But public opinion is mixed on the developer's plans for the 7.5-mile-long barrier island. Linger Longer says it will unveil soon a scaled-back project.
The Jekyll Island Authority, which manages the state park, must approve any development and sign a contract with Linger Longer. Buckner and other legislators, however, don't trust the authority to do the public's bidding.
"It's the public's park. It's their land. It's their property rights," Buckner said. "So it's our responsibility to help them in their efforts to protect what they hold dear."
The legislation prohibits development along 2,500 feet of beach north of the island's convention center.
The bill's next stop is the House Rules Committee, whose members typically vote with the House leadership, most of whom already have given public support to Jekyll redevelopment.
Sen. Ross Tolleson (R-Perry), who sponsored SB 367, vowed to fight the amended bill in House Rules as well as later on the Senate floor, if necessary.
"I'd like to see Jekyll Island redeveloped," Tolleson said in a brief interview. "A lot of people just don't go there anymore."
If stymied in Rules, Buckner said she might play another legislative card by taking a similar measure to the House floor, in a ploy used successfully last year to protect Jekyll's south end from development.
"If we get it to the floor, we'll have a majority of votes in both houses" to protect the beach, Sierra Club lobbyist Neill Herring said. "Yeah, I'm optimistic."
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Jekyll Island deserves a planned, professional upgrade
By Jay Bookman
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/17/08
After a few days playing golf at Jekyll Island State Park this month, two things became painfully clear:
My golf game needs some major rehabilitation.
So does a lot of the island.
Jekyll is a special place, with lots of history and natural beauty, not to mention reasonably priced golf courses. And although it is hardly unspoiled, it is far less commercialized than other coastal resorts such as St. Simons and Hilton Head.
It is also a lot less expensive, the only resort along the coast that is still affordable to the majority of Georgians.
However, much of Jekyll's infrastructure —- its motels, its commercial district and restaurants, its convention center —- is outmoded and in decline. Visits to the island have been falling slowly over time as a result.
In response, the Jekyll Island Authority —- charged with running the park —- has committed to upgrade those facilities. Its goal is "to revitalize the island in a comprehensive way," says Eric Garvey, the authority's director of marketing.
Unfortunately, that's not what's happening. There is no comprehensive, overall plan for revitalizing Jekyll. Instead, it is occurring in a slapdash, piecemeal, unplanned fashion that endangers what makes the island special.
How many more hotel rooms can the island sustain without compromising its laid-back charm? How many peak-season visitors can it handle? What proportion of rooms should be priced for economy visitors? There are no answers to those and other important questions, a fact that has raised understandable alarm among those who love the island.
According to Garvey, the authority has plans to commission a company to conduct a study and then write a report to address such questions. But while preparations for plans to study are under way, the authority has already committed to major projects that have the potential to dramatically alter the island's character, including construction of more than 1,000 new hotel rooms and condominium units near the island's most popular beach. Several other expansions are also under way or planned, with others yet to come.
Taken separately, those projects may have merit. But on a small island such as Jekyll, they will not be experienced separately. Those developments and subsequent projects will have a cumulative and unknown impact. And while state law does limit development to 35 percent of the island, there is no limit on the density of that development.
The slapdash, amateurish nature of the revitalization effort is also apparent in how the authority has handled criticism of its efforts. The authority's nine-member board of directors is a public body, entrusted with a cherished public asset, and as such it has to expect to be the target of criticism. If some of that criticism has seemed unfair to authority members ... well, that comes with the territory. But rather than lance such suspicion with openness, it has reacted with anger and denial.
At the moment, that suspicion is being fueled by data purportedly showing a 47 percent decline in car traffic to the island since 1996. The number is cited often to justify major changes.
However, even a cursory look at the source of that number tells you it is bogus. Nonetheless, board members and authority staff have responded angrily and unprofessionally to those who have challenged it. Even now, the authority refuses to acknowledge that the number is wrong, as if any concession to their critics is impossible.
"I can't say it is and I can't say it isn't," Garvey said last week.
In itself, the number isn't all that important. But the way it is being mishandled explains a lot about the suspicions generated in this controversy.
Everyone agrees that visits to Jekyll are down; everyone agrees that its infrastructure needs updating. An authority more open to the public, more professional in its approach and less arrogant in its operations would be able to build on that agreement and accomplish something important.
> Jay Bookman is deputy editorial page editor. His column runs Monday and Thursday. (jbookman@ajc.com)
By Lori Johnston
For the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/16/08
Babs McDonald realizes that open government comes with a price.
Earlier this year, McDonald, who lives in Athens, requested documents from the Jekyll Island Authority concerning sharp declines in the number of people visiting the island.
The information she wanted was not in one file, the authority responded, but she was free to examine all the files she wished—186 boxes containing 1,000 pages each, at a cost of $425. Or she could order copies of everything, which would come to $46,500.
"I could just imagine myself walking into a room with a monitor, i.e. guard, and looking at these boxes. Where would I begin?" said McDonald, who works for the U.S. Forest Service. "As a citizen of the state and as a scientist, I believe they ought to be held accountable for sharing how they arrived at those figures. I can't imagine that the information would be on 180,000 pieces of paper."
Eric Garvey, senior director of marketing and business development for the authority, said the authority's staff was not able to reasonably fulfill McDonald's request.
"She wanted all these archived documents. It was unfortunate that it did seem like a lot of money," he said.
McDonald and others involved in the Initiative to Protect Jekyll Island, which claims 10,000 members, are concerned about plans for a giant $352 million redevelopment of the island by Linger Longer Communities. The plan envisions a "town center" built on 63 acres on Jekyll with hotels, condominiums, time shares, a convention center and a retail center. It also calls for park space and an environmental education center.
Opponents say the authority, known as the JIA, has not been forthcoming in responding to requests for information related to the project.
Garvey dismisses those charges.
"Not only does the Jekyll Island Authority take its responsibility to open government seriously with respect to documents, we also answer any correspondence we receive," he wrote in an e-mail to the AJC. "We understand we are a public entity, and if someone requests a document, most often times it is just handed to them. We do get more formal requests from time to time, and those we log and coordinate responses with our representative from the attorney general's office."
David and Mindy Egan are the founders and co-directors of the Initiative to Protect Jekyll Island. Part of the Egans' argument about the Linger Longer redevelopment plan is that the JIA has understated the number of visitors to Jekyll as a way of showing that the island is in need of redevelopment.
David Egan says visitation has not declined by 47 percent between 1996 and 2007, as the JIA reported, but by 15 percent.
In addition, the group is often told that information it wants from the JIA is not available, Egan says, or the information is not provided in a timely fashion.
The activist said he has not received a response to questions submitting in writing earlier this year about the original master plan for a 24-acre development, which now has more than doubled in size. When he asked that question at a board meeting in January, he says he was told to submit the request in writing.
"You get a question that people don't want to answer, and the response is, 'Stick it in writing.' You stick it in writing, and it dies," he said.
Garvey, the JIA's marketing chief, said the authority has "no record of receiving this question in a letter or in e-mail." He added that "we reject the charge that the JIA is not responsive to the public, and we are prepared to demonstrate our responsiveness with copies of our log, copies of correspondence, etc."
The Egans have set up a Web site —- savejekyllisland.org —- and have become lightning rods in the debate over Jekyll's future. They joined forces with McDonald in Athens and also found an ally in Atlantan Dory Ingram, a frequent Jekyll visitor who worries about the barrier island.
"Mindy and David have been completely dedicated to seeing that the visitors to Jekyll Island and the people of Georgia get their say" about development on the island, Ingram said. "This year, we've become a pretty prominent voice. It's obvious that somebody out there is listening and is aware that the people are trying to make their voice heard."
Babs McDonald, meanwhile, believes the Georgia Open Records Act is a vital tool. It was passed "so that government can be accountable, even when it doesn't really want to be accountable," she said.
"I guess I wish that the people of the state would demand, because it is their state park, that the JIA open up its records," McDonald said. "If they can't, I think we ought to say, 'Uh-uh, you can't do this kind of project and not be accountable for the numbers.' "
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Georgia Politics Unfiltered Blogspot
Thursday March 13, 2008
People’s Park in Serious Jeopardy
by
[Editor's note: the following guest column was contributed by Rep. Debbie Buckner (D-Junction City).]
As a child I remember taking vacations to Jekyll Island with my family. The drive approaching the beach was always spectacular. There is no other view quite like it on the East Cost. The dunes, the sunsets and the pure joy of spending time at the beach have stayed with me my whole life. Growing up, my family never had much money, but like thousands of other families we could save up enough for a vacation to Jekyll Island, Georgia’s most affordable state park.
My first memories of Jekyll Island are the same as what visitors see today when they go to enjoy the public beaches. My own children have experienced Jekyll the way I did when I was a child. I have been to many other beaches, but Jekyll is unique. You don’t see high-rises or large resorts. You have a state park in Georgia that is like no other in the country. That is why Jekyll Island is often called "the people’s park." State Sen. Jeff Chapman, whose district includes the park, has referred to Jekyll as a “million-dollar view for the family who doesn't have a million dollars.” How many other states have such a treasure?
Last year I was proud to be a part of efforts to protect the south end, the most ecologically sensitive area of the island. This year renewed the struggle. In 2007, after the legislative session, the Jekyll Island Authority approved a $352 million, 64-acre mega-development that would add 1,100 hotel rooms and timeshares, with a footprint almost half again as large as the project that for good reason didn't pass last year. Bigger isn't always better. This super-sized footprint would require demolishing the existing, conveniently located public parking lot, effectively obstructing that view of the beach that I grew up loving.
That's why I sponsored HB 1289, to shield the open beachfront on the Atlantic Ocean side of the island. I also wanted to require that at least 50 percent of new hotel rooms have rates comparable to the nightly rate state employees get for hotel rooms when on official business. This comes out to about $128 a night, affordable for most Georgians.
My bill, though, did not make it out of a subcommittee of the State Institutions and Property Committee. With crossover day having come and gone, the powers that be have run out the clock on my legislation. Senator Chapman has sponsored a similar bill in the Senate but it has run into the same fate.
This no-compromise, take-no-prisoners approach by the relevant committees and the JIA shows a determination to make sure this mega-development goes forward without any changes or input from even the citizens of Jekyll Island (who are overwhelmingly in opposition). Linger Longer Communities, the politically very well connected company promoting this mega-development, is about to make millions at the expense of average Georgians.
Let's be clear. Jekyll Island does need periodic refurbishing. That's true for any high-volume public attraction. I support development and investment that favors the public, favors the coast, and favors our long-running commitment to Georgians' access to this unparalleled natural resource. What I cannot support is shameless and ruinous exploitation that puts profits over the recreation needs of our hard working families. We should focus on a compromise that works for all sides.
The view of the public beach that I, my family and thousands of Georgians have enjoyed and loved will be gone if we do not act now. Instead of refurbishing areas where there are existing hotels, which is the responsible way to develop the island, the JIA has signed off on a $352 million mega-development which will change the integrity of Georgia’s treasure forever. When Jekyll Island was acquired by the state it was intended for the enjoyment of average Georgians in perpetuity. There are nine days left in the session and the people’s park is in serious jeopardy.
Jekyll Island figures just don't add up
By Dan Chapman
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 03/13/08
Jekyll Island —- depending on who's talking —- is either in danger of financially slipping into the Atlantic Ocean or is competently keeping its nose above water.
Jekyll's governing body and development partner Linger Longer say the state park is in dire straits, showing a precipitous decline in both visitors and revenues over the last 15 years. Only the construction of hundreds of condos and hotel rooms can save the state park, they say.
"A significant revitalization is something that will make Jekyll a compelling destination," said Linger Longer's Jim Langford.
But wait just a minute.
According to the state auditor, the region's top legislator and a citizens' group, Jekyll Island's condition isn't that critical. The park still makes money. Visitation drops, on average, only one percent a year. With a few new hotels and shops, Jekyll will be as good as new, they say.
"The Authority and Linger Longer are crying wolf and painting this picture of a rundown Jekyll so they can maximize their commercial activity," said Sen. Jeff Chapman (R-Brunswick), whose district includes Jekyll.
Authority officials and Linger Longer repeatedly cite a 47 percent drop in visitors to Jekyll as justification for large-scale development of the state park.
Jekyll officials say that car traffic, hotel occupancy and convention-center business have dropped significantly the last decade. And, for the first time in years, the state park registered a deficit in fiscal 2006, according to the Jekyll Island Authority's annual report.
It's a bleak picture. Problem is, it's not quite accurate.
In its 2006 annual report, the Authority stated it was $210,575 in the red. But the Authority actually turned a profit of $1,950,081 that year, according to the state auditor's office.
In all, the Authority's annual statements under-reported revenues by $11.3 million since fiscal 1997, according to a state auditor, John Thornton.
Nobody accuses the Authority of misappropriating the money. The Authority didn't include federal grants for historic preservation, or local sales tax revenues used for sewer projects, as overall earnings, according to Eric Garvey, the Authority's marketing and business development director. Instead, the money went into capital reserve accounts not listed in annual reports.
Chapman said the reserve account kept the information from being easily available to the public.
"The JIA Annual Reports are not prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles," Thornton wrote to Chapman on Feb. 14. "As such, we do not believe the JIA Annual Reports from 1997 through 2007 provide an accurate picture of JIA's annual revenues or expenditures."
Garvey denied that facts and figures are misused to portray a negative impression of Jekyll. He likened the annual reports to "marketing" documents and "snapshots of our annual performance.
The 7.5-mile long barrier island near Brunswick is poised for massive redevelopment by Linger Longer and others. Langford's company proposes a $352 million "town center" project with hotels, condos, shops and parks running from the dunes to the maritime forest. Langford said a revised project —- "with significant changes" —- should be unveiled by early April.
Chapman, along with a statewide citizens' group, has tried to thwart Linger Longer's plans. The senator introduced three bills this legislative session to keep new development off the beach, as well as to ensure the affordability of most new lodgings for middle-class Georgians, as state law intends. All bills were roundly defeated in committee last month.
Chapman first grew suspicious of the Authority's redevelopment plans last June when the island's governing body hurriedly granted the Trammell Crow Co., builders of a beachside hotel and condo project, a $10 million rent abatement. Chapman earlier this year asked the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts to investigate the Authority's books.
"JIA has given the distorted impression that it was on the brink of financial insolvency," Chapman said in a Feb. 26 statement.
Said Garvey, "We want our annual earnings statement to be reflective of what we're able to generate through normal business activity. Our full financial accounting is audited each year and, as far back as we know, we've received clean management reports from state auditors."
Thornton concurred.
The drop-off in visitation claimed by the Authority and Linger Longer is another dispute. Between 1996 and 1997, the number of estimated visits to Jekyll plummeted from 3.5 million to 1.9 million —- a 44 percent drop, according to data compiled by the Authority.
But that year, the counting method was flawed, according to Ken Cordell, a U.S. Forest Service expert on park visitation. Cordell compared the count gathered by Jekyll with one compiled by the Georgia Department of Transportation. The DOT figures showed only a slight drop-off in traffic that year.
State auditors also reported that parking fee revenues in 1996 and 1997 barely changed. Authority records show that hotel occupancy rates dipped only 1.9 percent during that time period. And the number of visitors taking historic district tours actually rose 10 percent.
"It is a relatively safe assumption that something about the JIA method of counting and estimating visitation changed between 1996 and 1997," Cordell concluded.
David Egan, co-director of the nonprofit Initiative to Protect Jekyll, the citizens' group opposed to large-scale redevelopment of the state park, said the Authority stopped counting decals affixed to cars owned by island residents or frequent visitors. In all, Egan said, visitation has declined by 15 percent —- not the 47 percent claimed by the Authority and Linger Longer —- between 1996 and 2007.
Garvey said he didn't want to haggle over statistics.
"We're much more interested in the future," he said.
COMPARING REPORTS
.........Revenues: ..FY 2005..........FY 2006...........FY 2007
JIA Annual Report: ..$15,742,794......$16,014,573.......$18,639,871
Management Report: ..$18,299,160......$18,864,349.......$17,413,676
Difference:..........+$2,556,366......+$2,849,776.......-$1,226,195
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The Florida Times-Union
March 4, 2008
Opponents set sights on 'the people's beach'
By Brandon Larrabee,
The Times-Union
ATLANTA - In the fight over the direction of Jekyll Island redevelopment, the battlefield keeps shifting from one part of the barrier island to another.
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Last year, the focus for those who wanted to shield the island from overdevelopment was the ecologically fragile south end, where sea turtles nested and where a 4-H Center and nationally known soccer field were located. This year, ground zero has shifted to a patch of beach that is one of the first sights that visitors to the island see and is at the center of Linger Longer Communities' $352 million plan to revitalize Jekyll's sagging tourist infrastructure. Sen. Jeff Chapman, R-Brunswick, chief sponsor of a measure aimed at prohibiting additional development along that beachfront, said he and supporters thought they were dealing with most of the land that needed specific protection when they pushed through legislation shielding the south end. "But no one had any idea that, now, they were going to move and build condos on the most popular public beach area," he said. The reason the beach is precious, supporters say, comes from its position. The beach is the one most open to the public along the Atlantic Ocean side of Jekyll. Go south, and there are hotels and the protected south end. Go north, and the beach narrows and gets swallowed up during high tides. "There just isn't another place to go like that," said David Egan, head of the Initiative to Protect Jekyll Island. Opponents of restrictions on the beachfront say it would hamper Linger Longer's efforts and prevent the developer and the Jekyll Island Authority from moving the "footprint" of buildings in a way that might end up more favorable for Jekyll. And the plan will only take up about 8 percent of the beachfront on Jekyll, while the beach on the other side of the buildings will still be just as open to the public. "It's pure nonsense to think that you're going to have a beach accommodation but you're not going to have any structures on the beach," said Steve Croy, a member of the authority board who spoke at a recent Senate committee hearing where Chapman's bills were voted down. Egan counters that there are already more beachfront rooms being added on other parts of Jekyll, and that the size of the land doesn't matter as much as its worth to the public - and others. "There's something real special about it to the developer as well as to the visitor," Egan said of what's called "the people's beach." Efforts to pass legislation like Chapman's aren't officially dead. A similar measure by Rep. Debbie Buckner, D-Junction City, is now in a special House subcommittee, though it would likely fare little better in the Senate panel than did Chapman's. Sponsors could try to amend the restrictions onto other legislation if they can find a bill that would make the amendment relevant.
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Political Insider
An election-year heckle from the Jekyll Island contingent
Monday, March 3, 2008, 05:30 PM
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
With their legislation tromped on and their senator sponsor dubbed a liar in a Senate hearing last week, supporters of a more cautious approach to rebuilding Jekyll Island have decided to redirect their anger toward the November ballot box.
This ad will be appearing in the AJC and other newspapers across the state sometime this week, lamenting the defeat of three bills by state Sen. Jeff Chapman (R-Brunswick) that would have “prohibited development along the park’s remaining beachfront and promoted Jekyll Island’s affordability for average citizens.”
The ad offers up names and phone numbers of the Senate Economic Development Committee, whose members voted down the legislation last Thursday.
Continues the ad: “If you are among the thousands of Georgians who are angry because their wishes for Jekyll were discounted by Sen. [Chip] Pearson’s committee, hold on to that anger for 244 days.”
David Egan, leader of Initiative to Protect Jekyll Island, said the group will be churning out bumper-stickers, too — “Remember in November Who Killed the Jekyll Bills.”
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Chapman has a defender on the Jekyll Island Authority
Friday, February 29, 2008, 04:07 PM
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
You know that on Thursday, the Senate Economic Development Committee killed three bills sponsored by state Sen. Jeff Chapman (R-Brunswick) intended to upend current redevelopment plans for Jekyll Island.
In the process, two members of the Jekyll Island Authority — chairman Ben Porter and board member Steve Croy — accused the senator of using lies to make his case. See the details here
.
This afternoon, we got this note from Ed Boshears, a third member of the Jekyll Island Authority, indicating some sharp division among members of that board:
“I want to make it clear that I have not accused Sen. Chapman of lying and I do not think he is lying.
“There is a difference of opinion about the interpretation of certain figures concerning Jekyll. Chapman may or may not be right in what he is saying. If Porter and Croy want to make shrill, hysterical accusations that Chapman is lying, then they need to provide proof and the only way to do that is to have an outside independent agency do an evaluation of the figures.
“We are taught as attorneys never to accuse anybody of lying unless you are prepared to prove it. Porter and Croy cannot prove that he is lying and they know it.
“As the dean of my law school used to say, ‘Figures don’t lie but liars can figure.’ I did not learn how true that maxim is until I got on the Jekyll Authority Board. Porter and Croy’s statements are grossly irresponsible and I do not want anybody to think that I agree with or condone their behavior.”
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Published on SavannahNow.com (http://savannahnow.com)
Letters to the editor
By Savannah Morning News
Created 2008-02-29 00:30
Revitalization effort already under way at Jekyll
I support Sen. Chapman's response to the proposed Linger Longer development. The issue goes beyond four parking lots. It's about the type, scope, affordability and accessibility of the proposed plan.
Jekyll Island is a state park, not a resort. The island must generate enough money to be self-sustaining. As a state park, it was never intended to be a huge money-making machine. Its purpose is to be an affordable park for the average citizen.
Linger Longer has chosen the only stretch of beach accessible during all tides. It is also one of the few places the public can enjoy a beach that isn't packed with hotels and condos.
What Jim Langford and LLC leave out of their Jekyll Island discussion is the island has three other large beachfront projects approved and in various stages of construction.
They will more than fill the need for better facilities. New hotels are being built on all of these properties and condos have been approved for at least two. A fourth oceanfront property is ready for redevelopment once litigation is settled.
While most of the controversy is centered on the "town center," LLC is also buying or bidding on two other oceanfront properties. Along with that, their "vision plan" obviously shows they want a presence in every corner of the island. There's a lot of "develop," "expand," "add" and "enhance" thrown around, including a part of the proposal that talks about expanding the historical district to add amenities and visitor accommodations. Once the ball starts rolling, it will be hard to stop.
As for the 47 percent decline in visitation LLC cites, I would like an explanation. Three hotel properties were closed within the past few years; it seems that would be a factor in visitation. Fewer hotels equals fewer people. However, according to occupancy rates from the last 10 years, occupancy hasn't seen a 47 percent decline; it's more in the single-digit range.
Most visitors to Jekyll agree revitalization is needed. And it is already under way. What Mr. Langford is asking Georgians to do is give away public beachfront property so that LLC can make millions on hotels and condos most won't be able to afford.
MELISSA JOHNSON
Minneapolis, Minn.
The Florida Times-Union
February 29, 2008
Jekyll bills killed by committee
By Brandon Larrabee,
The Times-Union
ATLANTA - A coastal lawmaker's attempt to reshape the Jekyll Island Authority's plan to develop the barrier island appears to have been buried in the sand.
Three proposals by Sen. Jeff Chapman, R-Brunswick, were shot down Thursday by a Senate committee as a House panel began its own consideration of similar legislation. And skeptical lawmakers sent a similar proposal by Rep. Debbie Buckner, D-Junction City, into a subcommittee. The bills proposed by Chapman failed in the Senate Economic Development Committee. Only two of the panel's 12 members voted for Chapman's proposals, indicating that even if the House approves Buckner's initiative, the measure would face an uphill battle in the Senate. After the votes, Chapman pointed at the influence of politically connected developer Linger Longer Communities, which has a state contract to redevelop the island, as a key player in the measures' defeat. Linger Longer is the developer of Reynolds Plantation on Lake Oconee, where President Bush has attended two Republican fundraisers. "It's unfortunate that the powers that be have so much influence that they shot down the voice of Georgians," Chapman said after the vote. But Eric Garvey, a spokesman for the Jekyll Island Authority, said the failure of the measures would protect efforts to revitalize the island. "To see them be voted down ... is a relief, and hopefully no other legislation will come about that would do the same," Garvey said. Chapman's bills would prevent development in undisturbed areas along much of Jekyll's public beachfront, define affordability for new accommodations on the island and prevent the building of any new residencies on the state park. Supporters say those measures would defend Jekyll's tradition as an affordable getaway for middle-income Georgians as Linger Longer moves forward with its $352 million plan to redevelop Jekyll. Members of the Jekyll Island Authority's board said that Chapman's proposals would derail efforts to revamp the island's sagging tourist infrastructure. "Passage of either of these three bills will kill revitalization of Jekyll Island," Chairman Ben Porter said. During the meeting, board members also continued a two-day assault on Chapman's assertions that the agency underreported revenues by $11 million over the last 11 years and exaggerated a drop-off in visitation to the island to help build the case for an extensive redevelopment project. "To be blindsided like we were [Wednesday] was pretty disheartening," board member Steve Croy said. Croy said the reports that Chapman highlighted as underreporting revenue were used in marketing the island and weren't presented as audited figures. One of the more hotly contested provisions would require 70 percent of any new hotel rooms on Jekyll to be at or below the average price of accommodations at other state parks. Buckner said that would keep prices for most of the rooms within reach while allowing some room for higher-end development. "We've given them the option of 30 percent to do whatever they want with absolutely no strings attached," he said. Porter said that would be comparing "apples to grapefruits" because the other parks didn't share Jekyll's status as beachfront property and the accommodations at those locations were state-owned. "We really don't need price controls," he said. Some members of the House panel had more philosophical objections. "Isn't that only a step toward nationalization of those properties?" asked Rep. John Heard, R-Lawrenceville. No vote was held by the House panel, but State Institution and Properties Chairman Terry Barnard, R-Glennville, appointed a subcommittee to begin weighing the proposal in an effort to answer concerns about the legislation. "If you can't bring me something that can make Jekyll better, then I don't want to see it again, frankly," Barnard said.
This story can be found on Jacksonville.com at http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/022908/met_252239777.shtml.
Legislature 2008
Bills to block Jekyll development killed
Plan calls for island face-lift
By Jim Galloway
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/29/08
A Senate committee on Thursday killed three bills intended to block a redevelopment plan for Jekyll Island.
Members of the Jekyll Island Authority, in charge of reconstructing the state park, accused state Sen. Jeff Chapman (R-Brunswick) of lying to make his case for the legislation.
The trio of bills would have prohibited residences from being built in state parks across Georgia, and would have restricted new construction on Jekyll Island to sites where development already has occurred.
The hourlong hearing came only days after Chapman accused the authority of fudging visitor numbers and under-reporting its revenue by $11.3 million during the past 10 years.
"That is an absolute untruth, and the senator knew it when he said so," said Ben Porter, chairman of the Jekyll Island Authority.
Chapman didn't back off. The authority's claims, he told his colleagues, "are not exactly accurate, to put it in nice terms, regarding revenue, regarding visitation."
Chapman and residents of the island say the redevelopment, approved by the Legislature last spring, has ballooned —- without sufficient public input —- from 24 acres to a 64-acre project that would add 1,100 hotel, condo, cottage and time-share units to the state park.
Specifically, the plan would do away with much of the parking immediately adjacent to the island's most popular beach.
Chapman repeatedly pointed to the origins of Jekyll Island's acquisition as a state park intended for the enjoyment of average Georgians. "Jekyll Island needs to be rebuilt —- not destroyed, not expanded," said Chapman.
Porter and another authority member, Steve Croy, testified that the legislation would kill the public-private redevelopment now under way, by unfairly capping the profits of its private partner, Linger Longer Communities.
"We understand that Jekyll Island is a state park. but people don't come there for a state park experience. They come there to be in a beach atmosphere," Croy said.
In three votes, the Republicans on the Senate Economic Development Committee defeated the bills. Democrats provided Chapman with his only support.
Afterward, Chapman said the outcome was a victory for "the powers that be" —- pointing out that the Reynolds family, which controls Linger Longer, is a significant donor to Republican causes.
Ga. Senate kills three Jekyll bills
Fri, Feb 29, 2008
By ANNA FERGUSON
The Brunswick News
A state Senate committee dealt opponents of the proposed $341 million revitalization of Jekyll Island a major blow Thursday in Atlanta.
The Senate Economic Development Committee voted down three measures introduced by Sen. Jeff Chapman, R-Brunswick, that would have upended plans by the Jekyll Island Authority and its private sector partner, Linger Longer Communities, to redevelop the commercial area of the state park.
The committee, headed by Sen. Chip Pearson, R-Dawsonville, rejected all three of Chapman's measures following a hearing at the state Capitol.
Chapman was joined at the hearing by David Egan, founder of the Initiative to Protect Jekyll Island. Egan also testified.
"Obviously, it was disappointing," Chapman said following two hours of testimony and the vote Thursday. "We now have to back up and examine our options."
The defeat of the Senate Bills 426, 427 and 428 committee is the end of the path for the measures under the normal legislative process.
The measures would have prevented additional full-time residences from being built on the state-owned island, restricted construction near the waterfront, and limited what new hotels could charge overnight guests.
Ben Porter, chair of the Jekyll Island Authority, warned committee members at the hearing what would happen to plans to revitalize the island if Chapman's legislation passed.
"If you want to kill it, you've got an easy way to do it right now," Porter said. "Pass these three bills and I promise you, you've killed Jekyll's revitalization."
The thumbs down vote clears the way for the Linger Longer blueprint, which calls for new hotels, condominiums, new convention center and new retail district.
Eric Garvey, senior director of marketing for the Jekyll Island Authority, also present at the committee hearing, said senators were concerned about the impact of Chapman's legislation on plans to revive Jekyll Island and its amenities.
"Our next step is to begin looking at the concept plans and move forward with redevelopment," Garvey said.
Thursday was not the first time Chapman was foiled in his attempt to block additional residences from being constructed on the island. A similar attempt last session of the legislature also failed.
Chapman is opposed to the Linger Longer design, maintaining that the plans would create an exclusive island not affordable to all Georgians.
The hearing follows Chapman's challenge earlier this week to financial records submitted by the Jekyll Island Authority. Chapman contends the authority lied about $11 million in financial reports and statistics on visitor counts.
The authority denied the claim, saying Chapman's figures were flawed since they included state grant monies.
"We have a clean track record," Garvey said. "The state auditor has given us a perfectly clean bill of health. This was just Sen. Chapman's attempt to discredit the authority's name."
There is still the matter of a measure introduced in the House last week by Rep. Debbie Buckner, D-Columbus. House Bill 548 would create energy efficient and green building practices on the island. It also would restrict building on the beachfront property.
The bill must pass out of committee and pass in the House before the crossover deadline, which is after the first week in March. A bill must pass one chamber of the General Assembly and cross over to the next before the cutoff date to be considered this session.
-----------------------------------------
Jekyll board stands by its numbers
Thu, Feb 28, 2008
By ANNA FERGUSON
The Brunswick News
The Jekyll Island Authority is denying accusations by state Sen. Jeff Chapman that the authority is distorting its financial picture and the number of annual visitors to the Island.
Chapman, R-Brunswick, contends the authority failed to report more than $11 million in revenue over the past decade and under reported attendance as well.
"We are taking these charges very seriously," said Eric Garvey, director of marketing and business development for the Jekyll Island Authority. "But it appears that Sen. Chapman is trying to defame our reputation.
"This is nothing more than dirty politics."
In an e-mail released Tuesday to the media, Chapman accused the authority of withholding what he calls important financial information from public documents in its 2007 annual report.
"This new information is eye-opening," Chapman said. "I've been working on these numbers for weeks, checking and rechecking to make sure I was as accurate as possible.
"What I found just didn't add up. We discovered that the authority has underreported its revenue by $11,330,368 over the past 10 years in its earning statements."
The authority debunks the accusation, noting that the funds Chapman cites were given to the authority by the state, such as from sales tax grants, and do not have to be reported to state auditors. Adding in those grants would account for the funds Chapman is referring to as unreported, Garvey said.
"This is Sen. Chapman's misunderstanding," said Garvey. "He did not contact us for information and clarification. We have a clean track record."
The authority follows budgetary accounting practices common to nonprofit organizations, he said.
Chapman also claims that the authority misstated the number of visitors to the island. According to Chapman, the authority reported a drop of 1.5 million visitors since the mid-1990s, based on traffic counts.
That number is impossible because the number of individuals staying in island motels has not declined, Chapman said.
Garvey, noting the method of counting visitors was changed in 1997 by the Georgia Department of Transportation, said Chapman's accusations are merely an attempt to halt the Jekyll Island redevelopment plans and the authority's partnership with Linger Longer Communities.
"The senator's claim of improper reporting of Jekyll visitation by the authority is also false and misleading," Garvey said. "Mr. Chapman is well aware that conventions, hotel occupancy, golf courses, the water park and all visitation to Jekyll have declined in recent years.
"Mr. Chapman's repeated attempts to derail the revitalization of Jekyll Island have failed. Now, he has resorted to false claims to further his effort."
Not true, says Chapman. He said his examination of income reports is not an attempt to defame the authority but rather in keeping with the ideals of good stewardship.
"What is the definition of dirty politics? I'm aggravated to hear that," Chapman said. "That is what weak persons say to strong information.
"This is not about politics. It's about taking care of public trust."
Chapman is currently pushing three bills in the General Assembly that would drastically alter, if not altogether stop, a $341 million redevelopment plan.
Under the plan by Linger Longer Communities, a new convention center, new hotels, part-time residences and additional parking would be added to Georgia's only oceanfront state park.
The drive for redevelopment of the island has been spurred by the deterioration of some motels and a claimed drop in the number of visitors.
The Florida Times-Union
February 27, 2008
Jekyll income figures misled, Chapman says
By Brandon Larrabee,
The Times-Union
ATLANTA - Numbers used by the Jekyll Island Authority to justify a major overhaul of the state park's creaking tourist infrastructure are overblown, a state senator critical of the authority's plans charged Tuesday.
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Sen. Jeff Chapman, R-Brunswick, released numbers he said shows the Jekyll Island Authority low-balled its revenue figures to the tune of $11.3 million over the past 11 years. He also said the authority used inaccurate numbers on visitation, creating the impression of an implosion of the island's status as a tourist destination.
That fueled the desire for an overhaul of the island along the lines of a $352 million development planned by Linger Longer Communities, developer of the posh Reynolds Plantation resort on Lake Oconee.
Chapman supports some redevelopment of hotels on Jekyll but opposes the Linger Longer plan, fearing it would undermine the island's traditional role as an affordable getaway for middle-class Georgians.
"They've ignored the affordability aspect, and it's all in the name of revenue problems and visitation problems," he said.
Eric Garvey, a spokesman for the authority, said Tuesday the authority is not prepared to respond to the numbers, but believes Chapman's assertions are the result of a misunderstanding.
Chapman got his revenue figures by comparing the numbers in the authority's annual report with the numbers kept by state auditors. For example, Chapman said the authority reported a loss of $210,575 in 2006 but actually turned a profit of almost $2 million.
"It would lead people to believe that they're in financial straits, and that's just not accurate," Chapman said.
A reported drop of 1.5 million visitors to the island between 1996 and 1997 is also problematic, Chapman said, and more likely indicates a change in the way the authority measures who is coming onto the island.
While the official visitation numbers dropped dramatically, parking fees and room nights didn't show as big a swing.
Chapman said the new numbers raise questions about the authority's oversight of the island.
"Regardless of the fact that they're an appointed authority, they should work diligently to be accurate and true in their statements," he said.
Authority Chairman Ben Porter referred questions on the specific numbers to a full-time employee of the staff, who did not respond to attempts to reach him. But Porter rejected any notion that visitation at Jekyll hasn't dropped.
"It absolutely has," Porter said.
David Egan, head of the grass-roots Initiative to Protect Jekyll Island, defended Chapman's number. Egan's group also opposes the Linger Longer development plan.
"It looks like the situation's been exaggerated in the figures significantly," he said.
Like Chapman, Egan noted that the authority's numbers were sent to Linger Longer and other developers who applied for the right to handle the redevelopment of the island. He said that might have distorted the proposals by making Jekyll's problems seem more severe than they were.
"When the figures are out of whack, the projected development is out of whack, too," Egan said.
brandon.larrabee@morris.com, (678) 977-3709
Senator: Jekyll lied about revenue, visitor numbers
More development is not needed, he says
By STACY SHELTON
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 02/27/08
A state senator on Tuesday accused the Jekyll Island Authority of misrepresenting revenue and visitor numbers to make the case for more development in the state park.
Sen. Jeff Chapman (R-Brunswick), whose district includes the barrier island, said his research showed the authority under-reported revenue by $11.3 million over the past 10 years. He said it had not reported a reserve account until recently.
"The picture is not as bad [as the authority wants] people to believe it is," he said. "This attitude that they've got to build hundreds and hundreds of condominiums and sell those condominiums and this big commercial hub, and building it on the people's open parking and beach area, is not necessary. It's unwise."
Authority Chairman Ben Porter, a businessman who has developed coastal property, said Tuesday he had not had a chance to review Chapman's numbers.
"I have no idea what he's talking about," Porter said. "I couldn't comment on anything until I see what he said."
Chapman said he has not run his figures, which he got through research in the State Archives, by the authority, which he said had not responded to earlier requests for information.
Chapman is pushing three bills to let the island's hotels and conference center be rebuilt on their existing footprints but not allow more homes or condominiums.
The authority approved a developer's $352 million, 64-acre project to add 1,100 hotel, condo, cottage and time-share units to the park, which would require demolishing the convention center and a parking lot.
"I'm sure everybody would like to have a condo or home in a state park," Chapman said, "but that's simply not the right thing."
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Senator Jeff Chapman
State Capitol
Suite, 110 D
Atlanta, Georgia 30334
404.656.0045 or 912-399-8683
Email: jeff.chapman.senate.ga.gov
For Immediate Release
DATE: February 26, 2008
PRESS RELEASE
JIA Figures Don’t Add Up
ATLANTA – According to Sen. Jeff Chapman (R-3rd District), the Jekyll Island Authority (JIA) has withheld important financial information from its public documents prior to its 2007 annual report. In an effort to validate some claims made by the JIA, Sen. Chapman researched information in the State Archives which could not be obtained from the JIA. After further review by accounting experts, it was discovered that by cross-referencing State audit reports by the Georgia Department of Audits and Accounts against public financial reports published by JIA, the figures did not match.
“We have long been told,” Sen. Chapman stated, “that the JIA has been struggling to keep its financial nose above water. After comparing the recent State audit with the Authority’s public documents, we discovered that the Authority has underreported its revenue by $11,330,368 over the past ten years in its Annual Consolidated Statement of Earnings.”
Sen. Chapman questions why and how this money was hidden from public view and put into a reserve account for capital projects. This practice does not follow Generally Accepted Accounting Principles and is highly unorthodox.
Without public disclosure of all revenue, JIA has given the distorted impression that it was on the brink of financial insolvency. This dismal fiscal picture thus provided much of the justification for the massive development project offered by Linger Longer, supposedly needed to bring the State Park back to fiscal health. As one example of its financial accounting methods, Jekyll Island State Park revenues were so understated in 2006 that the Authority reported in its original report that it was operating in the red in the amount of $210,575 when, in fact, it was in the black that year with a profit of $1,950,081, which is a difference of $2,160,656. As of the recent 2007 report, released in January 2008, the JIA has revised its public reporting and eliminated the hidden reserve account, thus reflecting different figures for 2006 from its original annual report, but JIA still does not explain past practices or make any mention that the reporting method changed in 2007.
Further, Sen. Chapman disclosed that the JIA has relied upon flawed figures to show a 47 percent drop in visitor traffic since the mid-1990s. The vast majority of the alleged drop, according to Dr. Ken Cordell, a nationally recognized authority on methods of monitoring public land visitation, must have been a change in the JIA’s traffic-count method in 1997 – a change that gave the appearance of a 1.5 million drop in visitors for that year alone. The JIA has denied making a change in its traffic count method, but it has found no records to validate that view one way or the other. As a comparison, records kept by the Department of Audits reveal that parking fee revenues from 1996 to 1997 barely changed at all. Hotel room nights for 1997 are also consistent with the previous year, which seems to make it impossible that Jekyll could have experienced a 1.5 million drop in visitors, as the JIA claims.
Rather than go back and analyze their numbers, the JIA claims that Department of Transportation (DOT) records show a huge drop in Jekyll Causeway traffic from the early 1990s through 2007. A close review of DOT records provided more accurate information. It appears that the JIA must have taken DOT records and compared one-day traffic counts recorded on peak season dates to those taken on off-season dates. In addition, even if the numbers had been compared apples to apples, the DOT says that their figures are scientifically invalid indicators of annual visitation due to the number of variables not taken into account in their 24-hour counts.
Sen. Chapman points out that JIA and Linger Longer are now falsely painting his legislative package, SB 426, SB 427, and SB 428, as being against revitalization. “The fact is that anyone who dares to disagree with their plan for a beachfront town center is accused of being against the revitalization of Jekyll Island. There happens to be many thousands of Georgians, myself included,” stated Sen. Chapman, “who fully support rebuilding Jekyll’s hotels and convention center but without commercializing the park’s most popular public beach. My legislation allows for responsible revitalization without impacting the natural beach setting. If Longer Longer’s proposal is really what is best for the people of Georgia and not just for private interests, the JIA and Linger Longer should welcome debate in the General Assembly.”
“With this latest revelation of irregular JIA accounting practices, I believe the Legislature must do its due diligence,” Sen. Chapman stated. “We cannot just delegate our authority over to the JIA without better accountability to the people. In addition, we have a responsibility to let the legislative process unfold. Whose voices and whose vision will we allow to prevail? Whose voices should count more,” he asked, “the Authority’s voice and its private partner, Linger Longer, or the people’s voice?”
Sen. Chapman represents Brantley, Camden, Charlton, Glynn, and McIntosh counties, which comprise the Third Senate District. For further information about bills sponsored or co-sponsored by Sen. Chapman, visit his website at www.jeffchapman.us or contact him directly at 912-399-8683. His email is jeff.chapman@senate.ga.gov.
The Florida Times-Union
February 24, 2008
Jekyll tug-of-war starts anew
By Brandon Larrabee,
The Times-Union
ATLANTA - The Battle of Jekyll Island is raging again at the state Capitol.
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Lawmakers and residents frustrated with plans to revitalize the state park's sagging tourist infrastructure have returned to the site of their victory last year to try to win more protections for Jekyll's beaches and the middle-income Georgians they say are being forgotten.
This time, though, they face greater resistance than in last year's successful campaign and charges that legislative meddling could undermine an attempt to bring visitors back to a park some say is fading from the memory of many would-be vacationers.
Both sides paint the looming legislative battle as a struggle for the island's soul.
Backers of legislation sponsored by Sen. Jeff Chapman, R-Brunswick, say they're trying to preserve the island's historic mission to be open and accessible to people of all incomes and from all walks of life - the very Georgians they say would be discouraged from coming to Jekyll under the plans of politically connected developer Linger Longer Communities.
"If they manage to shoot this down, they will essentially have a free hand to do with that state park whatever they please," Chapman said.
Linger Longer counters that it is simply trying to renew interest in the island, where visitation has been headed downward, and to make it a prime vacation spot once more.
"We're just trying to make it what it should be," said Jim Langford, the executive overseeing the Jekyll project.
The steepest challenge facing Chapman and his supporters, though, might simply be getting a chance to be heard.
Return to the battleground
For Chapman, it's a return to an issue that brought him key legislative victories in last year's session. Holding a firm Senate majority, Chapman managed to attach a measure preserving the island's ecologically fragile South end onto a bill extending the Jekyll Island Authority lease.
That lease measure was a key goal of the authority, which said it needed a long-term agreement with the state to persuade developers to build on Jekyll.
Chapman's new proposals aim to do three things:
- Define certain terms in the agreement, like "lowest rates reasonable and possible," that have caused many of the clashes;
- Severely restrict new development on the island's beaches; and,
- Bar new residential leases at state parks like Jekyll.
One of the key battlegrounds has become the proposal to try to limit development east of Beach View Drive, a move that Chapman and his supporters say would keep one of the island's most popular beaches open to most visitors.
The Linger Longer plan would use some of that land for a new town center complex that is anathema to opponents of the developer's proposal.
"It's a million-dollar view for the family who doesn't have a million dollars," Chapman said.
Chapman's proposals would also limit prices at new hotels built on the island, a key concern for residents worried about the island shirking its traditional role as a low-price destination.
"What we're seeing is a steady trend upward with the price of the Linger Longer project," said Dory Ingram, a volunteer lobbyist for the grass-roots Initiative to Protect Jekyll Island.
But Langford said the seemingly benign bills advanced by Chapman really have another goal: To kill the development plan entirely.
"It's designed to shut down revitalization, essentially, or any serious attempt at revitalization," Langford said.
He said the proposals for hotel rooms amounts to a price control, and ignores the fact that 72 percent of the rooms brought to Jekyll under the Linger Longer plan would go for less than $139 a night.
And pushing new development west of Beach View Drive could put pressure on wetlands, the Historic District and similar key assets, Langford said.
"There are a number of things west of Beach View that I think should be avoided," he said.
Island access debated
Much of the resistance to the developers' proposals comes from residents who don't want to see the island revitalized and who, in fact, would like to keep the island from becoming a key tourist attraction again, Langford said.
"They really don't want more Georgians to come to Jekyll, and that's not the Jekyll Island that Jekyll was meant to be," he said.
Ingram and Chapman both said they would like to see the island's hotels and accommodations redeveloped. Chapman said that Linger Longer is essentially telling the state: Trust us.
"What I'm proposing is in black and white and easy to understand," he said. "What they're proposing is all verbal."
Critics of Linger Longer also note that the $139 nightly room rental figure comes from including every individual room in a condominium, for instance, as part of the average.
That's not an uncommon practice in the hospitality industry, Langford counters, and in fact accounts for the fact that some groups use time-share condos for a limited time when they go to stay on the beach.
Stuck in committee
For now, the priority for Chapman and his supporters is to get the bills out of the Senate Economic Development Committee, where they've been parked for more than two weeks.
Chairman Chip Pearson, R-Dawsonville, said last week he's asked the Jekyll Island Authority whether the proposals would harm attempts to revitalize the park.
"We want to make sure that we're not undermining completely those efforts that have already been determined," Pearson said.
Once the authority provides Pearson with the information he's asked for, the chairman said, he'll make a decision on whether to hear the bills.
Chapman said he's received no guarantees from Pearson or Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle, who heads the Senate, on whether or when the proposals will come before Pearson's committee. He and others are aware that, unlike last year's lease bill, the Jekyll Island Authority and its supporters don't need any legislation this year.
"Having spoken to the lieutenant governor, I want to believe that the people of Georgia are going to have an opportunity to have their legislation heard and voted on," Chapman said.
But while Cagle left open the possibility Chapman's bills could be heard, he also made it clear last week that the Jekyll bills might not have enough leadership support to move forward.
"I don't know that the appetite among the General Assembly is real strong to try to micromanage the process," he said.
brandon.larrabee@morris.com,
(678) 977-3709
what they are saying Backers of legislation to preserve Jekyll Island's historic mission: "If they manage to shoot this down, they will essentially have a free hand to do with that state park whatever they please." - State Sen. Jeff Chapman, R-Brunswick Backers of plans to develop the state park: "We're just trying to make it what it should be." - Jim Langford, executive overseeing the Jekyll project
This story can be found on Jacksonville.com at http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/022408/geo_250343374.shtml.
Jekyll Island: Revitalize, but Sensitively
By David Egan
For the Atlanta Journal-Constitution
