Snellville Mayor's Board Nominations Shot Down Again; Councilmen Explain Why

Despite the complaint filed Friday (Jan. 24) by Snellville Mayor Kelly Kautz, and the council, the city clerk and the city manager being served with it minutes before the work session, the Snellville City Council meeting Monday (Jan. 27) was tamer than the one held two weeks ago. 

Read also: Marilyn Swinney: 'The Mayor Is Jeopardizing Our City's Future'

But there were still disagreements and tension between the council and mayor. For the third time in a row, the mayor attempted to appoint new members to different city boards such as the Snellville Arts Commission and the Urban Redevelopment Agency, and for the third time, all of Kautz's nominations failed because no one on the council voted in favor of them. 

During the council's report, Councilman Bobby Howard and Mayor Pro Tem Tom Witts offered their reasons why the council didn't approve the nominations. 

Howard explained that he had emailed those who were nominated that night on why he wasn't going to vote for anybody, whether he or she is nominated by the mayor or another councilmember.

"Quite honestly, here's 76 pages of why I'm not going to bring somebody into that right now," said Howard, motioning to the affidavit and complaint placed next to his nameplate on the dais. "We've got a lot of stuff to get figured out, and I've communicated that to all of them so they know my feelings and stuff. It's nothing personal, it's just I think it's the right thing to do."

Witts had a lengthier reasoning. The mayor pro tem explained in the work session and regular meeting that the fallout rate of board members had reached 35 percent over the last year, and it's because some members don't truly realize what they're signing up for. They're unable to make meetings and they don't realize how much time it takes to be a part of a board. 

Therefore, Witts proposed that, as first suggested by the president of the URA, new applications should go directly to the boards so that the boardmembers can consider them first by inviting them to meetings and explaining what the position entails. Then the board can go to the mayor with their top picks and the mayor can decide who to choose for the nomination.

"We need to have people on these boards that are invested in it, that want to belong to it, that understand it," said Witts.

Standing by his proposal, he actually removed his sponsorship of the agenda item to reappoint Tod Warner to the URA during the meeting. Witts said he wishes to talk further with the mayor and council about constructing a new protocol at the annual retreat this weekend. 

Witts also addressed the misconception of minorities for board appointments being turned away from the council. Using the overhead in the council chambers, he showed figures on the 11 different nominations from the mayor that were approved by the council since February 2013. Seven of them were white, while the remaining four were minorities. 

"This is reality," he said. "We don't turn anybody away because of their skin color. It's qualifications or people who are already on boards who are doing a good job. I am very welcoming to anybody in this city, and I speak for the rest of the members of this council: Don't drink the Kool-Aid." 

One of those nominations was Snellville resident and volunteer Claudette Forbes, who was among Monday's failed nominations for a seat on the Snellville Public Arts Commission. Forbes actually had been nominated and approved last year to work on the Urban Redevelopment Agency but was almost immediately taken off because of a technical issue, explained Witts. 

During the public comment portion of the meeting, Forbes asked Witts what exactly was the technical issue since no one ever gave her an explanation. Witts said that, when her nomination was approved, the council was under the impression that she would take the vacant seat on the URA. The mayor apparently didn't want that, he continued, and instead wanted her to replace Tod Warner, who's been on the URA since its inception.

During the next work session, City Attorney Tony Powell said the best thing to do was to nullify the nomination and let the mayor renominate Forbes for the open seat, which still remains open today.

"Your name was never once more presented by the mayor," said Witts. "Had it been put up, you would have immediately been voted again 6-0 like you were the first time."

During the explanation, the mayor smiled but never responded.