Dick Yarbrough blasts the Atlanta media for it's negative reporting on the Braves deal (Marietta: apartment, condos)

[demonta4]

Originally Posted by netdragon

No, what I'm saying is if the other alternatives had happened, you'd hear us Cobb people whining about the stadium being in Gwinnett or Dekalb. So, it's just the way the cards fell, and who was willing to pick up the cost.

Btw, Gwinnett also turned down MARTA at the same time Cobb did. Both decided to build their own transit system, as you probably know.

I didn't live here at that time. Heck, I wasn't even alive. Cobb had something in the realm of 200,000 people. A much different time. The Dukes of Hazzard hadn't even come on tv, which I watched as a little kid and from my home in NY, it was all I knew about GA as a little kid. So, obviously, I feel absolutely no responsibility whatsoever for decisions people made in the early 1970s and that point is lost on me.

Plus, with 200,000 people and still a time of suburban flight, Cobb probably made the right decision at the time.



I don't see that happening. The Falcons don't cause people to flee Atlanta.

Most of the extreme suburbanites have already left South Cobb. They fled Smyrna and Marietta just like Atlanta, and that continued into the 90s.

The suburbanites up in North, East, and West Cobb will have the HOT lanes if the traffic really bothers them any particular day. Since they are two-lane reversible, it'll open up more past I-285.

I don't see the complaint of a 95 year old NAPA CEO reflecting typical business sentiment. Weather channel showed for some time it wanted some subsidies too, but that all quieted down.

Actually, Cobb was the only county that turned down Marta. Gwinnett and Clayton didn't pass the tax but they did pass the Marta Service by a little.

[DawgPark]

Originally Posted by MattCW

With people and businesses fleeing Cobb thanks to this, they will go to the surrounding areas which will boost those areas and take money out of Cobb's taxes as well as Cobb's economy.

I've read a lot of ludicrous statements on this board re: the Braves, but I think this one might take the #1 prize for idiocy.

Criticize Lee for his handling, criticize Cobb for whatever any politician did in the last 200 years, criticize the Braves for leaving downtown, criticize Republicans for being born . . . yeah, for the 10,000th time, we get all of that.

But, if you can't see the halo effect of business development into the Cumberland area since the Braves announcement, then you have allowed yourself to be COMPLETELY blinded by your ideology.

[jsvh]

Originally Posted by netdragon

I moved to Cobb County much later than this like 1/3 of our population and most of Smyrna, so that was not my Cobb County.

Apparently it is. I cannot find any coverage that states Cobb's 1993 anti-gay bill was every rescinded. Even after demands that it be three years later and their refusal cost them participation in the '96 Olympic games.

[jsvh]

Originally Posted by DawgPark

But, if you can't see the halo effect of business development into the Cumberland area since the Braves announcement, then you have allowed yourself to be COMPLETELY blinded by your ideology.

Glad you are not blinded by ideology. We have one fortune 500 company that already publicly stated it wants to leave the area due to the Braves. Likely a reflective of many other smaller or non-public announcements of companies wishing to leave too. Then of course you have companies that would have moved there anyways that are not reconsidering that will never be announced. Can you please elaborate on this rush of businesses to Cumberland since the Braves announcement? I have seen Cobb running lots of ads trying to lure businesses to locate near the Braves but no wins.

[cqholt]

But, if you can't see the halo effect of business development into the Cumberland area since the Braves announcement, then you have allowed yourself to be COMPLETELY blinded by your ideology.

I guess you have missed the halo effect in downtown as well. Hundreds of new apartments announced.

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by Born 2 Roll

Cobb County was the ONLY county that the Braves ever considered moving to because Cobb County was the ONLY local government that was willing to pay $400 million dollars to build the Braves a new stadium.

Originally Posted by DawgPark

B2R, true on the $400 million, but that pervasive line of thinking misses one MAJOR factor in the Braves coming to Cobb . . . the availability of:
- 82 acres of undeveloped land
- from one owner
- that was willing to sell w/out gouging
- direct access to 2 major highways in 75/285
- near the highest concentration of season ticket holders
- AND . . . the potential to acquire other surrounding properties at a reasonable price

You can't do what the Braves want to do w/out an enormous chunk of land that meets all of those requirements.

I understand what you are saying about the land, but any county government can come up with a chunk of land if they are determined enough to make a major real estate acquisition as Cobb County did with the Atlanta Braves.

...Which is okay from my personal point-of-view, but let's not pretend that there were multiple other local and county governments in the running to land the new Braves' stadium, particularly when any other urban county governments (in Gwinnett, DeKalb and Clayton) that might have potentially been in the running to arrange such a deal are going through various stages of extreme dysfunction after years of really poor governance, ethics issues, corruption and/or decline.

With county governments in DeKalb and Clayton in various stages of extreme disarray and with Gwinnett having already blown their wad on the Braves' AAA stadium and recovering from years (and decades) of shady ethical dealings by its previous Boards of Commissioners, Cobb was the ONLY county that was in the financial and political position to pull-off such a deal to spend $400 million to acquire the Braves and move them out of the City of Atlanta.

No other local government in Metro Atlanta (not even the City of Atlanta and Fulton County which had spent all their financial and political capital on the new Falcons' stadium) had the financial and political capital available to arrange to what basically amounts to a large real estate deal on the part of the Cobb County business and real estate community.

[MattCW]

Originally Posted by DawgPark

I've read a lot of ludicrous statements on this board re: the Braves, but I think this one might take the #1 prize for idiocy.

Criticize Lee for his handling, criticize Cobb for whatever any politician did in the last 200 years, criticize the Braves for leaving downtown, criticize Republicans for being born . . . yeah, for the 10,000th time, we get all of that.

But, if you can't see the halo effect of business development into the Cumberland area since the Braves announcement, then you have allowed yourself to be COMPLETELY blinded by your ideology.

Just because there isn't a front-page headline about another business moving out or a family deciding to sell, or making plans to sell before the stadium is built, doesn't mean they aren't happening.

[Newsboy]

What a mess this all is. And in the end, it has further fractured and divided a metro area that can ill afford to be further fractured and divided.

Congratulations Cobb County.

[netdragon]

Originally Posted by jsvh

Apparently it is. I cannot find any coverage that states Cobb's 1993 anti-gay bill was every rescinded. Even after demands that it be three years later and their refusal cost them participation in the '96 Olympic games.

As there is a state law. Does the state law say anything about people in Atlanta?

With a state law on the books, that's most peoples' focus. The Cobb symbolic non-binding resolution is inconsequential compared to the state law, which actually takes rights away. Last year, I and a bunch of people in Cobb, Dekalb and Fulton called a couple dozen state reps to put a new referendum on the table to eliminate the old constitutional amendment, since statistics show that it would pass. That was a new development, and we thought it was a good opportunity to get rid of the amendment. The cowardly representatives gave lip-service but refused to stick their neck out. Needless to say, I'm not voting for any incumbents in my district, and I recommend you call your representatives and ask them whether they support a referendum to repeal the previous ammendment.

At this point, it's just wait-and-see how the court case pans out. If the state loses, then I think it's time to target the county resolution next, just to get rid of past embarrassments.

Btw, although I wasn't here back then, I read some history about the antigay resolution, and it was anything but cohesive, but the right had well-organized to make it look like it was highly popular. Even back then, there was opposition and most people thought it was rigged. Churches bussed in a lot of people to create a groundswell of artificial support drowning out opposition.

Results of polling by the Atlanta Journal Constitution found that the public was “deeply divided” and most felt that “the Cobb commission’s resolution condemning the gay lifestyle did not truly represent the area’s standards” (AJC 8/24/93 C-1) 54% of Cobb respondents believed that the resolution reflected the activity of a few people. Only 33% of Cobb respondents believed it reflected community standards; 71% of respondents stated they had a gay friend or relative (AJC 8/24/93 p C-1).

One commissioner:

West Cobb Commissioner Bill Cooper made brief dissenting remarks: “I have no intention of using my office as a bully pulpit to challenge any group. I don’t care whether it/s American Indians, Jews, gays or WASPS, I would oppose it.” Cooper criticized Wysong’s action as “a political game with a self serving agenda” (MDJ 8/11/93 A-1).

There were about 350 people outside the packed commission room, and 250 of those carried signs or banners supporting funding of the arts, and the gay lifestyle (MDJ8/25/93 A-1).

With both controversial hearings over, the County wanted to turn to other business and let the controversy die. But opponents of the Resolution and Cobb Commission’s attitude were just gearing up.

Cobb Citizen’s Coalition held its first organizational meeting on August 31st at Paisano’s Restaurant in Smyrna. The first Board of Directors included Co-Chairs Lynne Patterson and Noel Lytle, Treasurer David Mayersky and Secretary Karen DeLoria. Jon Greaves headed the Business Outreach Crew and Carl Lang of GLAD headed up Press Releases. Elaine Hill and Anne McPherson joined CCC not long after this, and when Lynne Patterson relocated, Elaine took her place as CCC Co Chair. CCC’s first project was a planned drive to Boycott Cobb County Galleria Convention Center.

Edna and Boyd McKeown were working with the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta to sponsor a workshop on how to deal with problems created by the religious right. The event took place in November and was well attended.

Two of the more newsworthy events carried out by CCC included sponsorship of a study exposing the number of Hate Groups based in Cobb; and raising funds for a highway billboard on I-75 near the South Loop reading “Stop the Hate- Rescind the Resolution”.

Also, the CCC, a Cobb group, helped with getting the Olympics to boycott Cobb.

In 1994 an Atlanta group formed, calling itself Olympics Out of Cobb, and pursued that mission. They joined with CCC on a number of events designed to keep awareness of Cobb’s Resolution in the public eye, and on the table for ACOG, Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games.

So this was anything but a highly supported action in Cobb County, even then. It was a political stunt by the right to appease their base.

From: https://sites.google.com/site/cobbantigayresolution/

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by Born 2 Roll

I understand what you are saying about the land, but any county government can come up with a chunk of land if they are determined enough to make a major real estate acquisition as Cobb County did with the Atlanta Braves.

I thought the Braves bought that land from a private party (BF Saul) rather than from Cobb county.