The goal of every community is “progress” – moving forward to give everyone a better life. However, some have different definitions of what “progress” actually looks like. Different visions of progress frequently lead to conflict as communities work out priorities and trade-offs.

Last Friday’s much-discussed closure of Chattanooga Street Tavern is a conflict over progress and how the term is defined for residents of LaFayette.

Tavern owners Mike and Gary Lovelady, and their supporters in the fight to illegally serve hard liquor, say that “progress” means changing the rules, allowing in hard drinks, bringing in new restaurants that represent jobs and economic growth. And while updating the city’s laws might deliver those results, that’s not what’s on the table today during a hearing about Chattanooga Street Tavern’s pouring license.

What IS on the table is ethical progress. Moving beyond a past of corruption and cronyism (or the “good ol boy system”) where misdeeds by some in the community are ignored because of last name, political position, social ties, or bank balance. Through the years LaFayette has been ethically lousy, developing a bad reputation for corruption and unfairness that has done far more to hold the city back than any restrictions on serving liquor.

This year LaFayette has its first new Mayor since 1991. The city also has three council members, an interim City Manager, a Codes Superintendent, and a police chief who have all come into their jobs within the last three years. The city has changed, considerably, since the dark days of Neal Florence, Tommy Freeman, Johnnie Arnold, Sam Parker, and Norm Hodge. New people put into positions of authority in LaFayette have made efforts to change, to reform the city both financially and ethically, but up until now they’ve not truly been put to the test.

The issue of Chattanooga Street Tavern and ALL the Lovelady-owned businesses being allowed to continue breaking city laws is that test, and a hard one. An opportunity for the city and its new leaders to decide if we’ll remain in those days of looking the other way or progress into a future where the law is applied equally to everyone regardless of who they are.

2:30 Friday afternoon, LaFayette Police Department suspended Chattanooga Street Tavern’s beer/wine pouring license. A few minutes later the Tavern and Mars Theater both closed in dramatic fashion, with signs claiming they were shut down “by order of the city.” Similar messages were posted on the organizations’ Facebook pages.

Temporary removal of the alcohol license came from reports a week earlier of hard liquor being served illegally at nearby Mars Theater on Valentine’s Day. LPD investigated the issue for a week before action was taken, speaking with employees of the Tavern and at least one individual involved with the Arts Guid, which supposedly benefitted from the V-Day fundraiser.

City sources say Chattanooga Street Tavern and Mars Theater were NOT ordered to close – the business just lost its pouring license temporarily until accusations of serving liquor illegally can be sorted out. A hearing on the issue is required within ten days, probably before the end of this week.

So why DID the businesses close?

Tavern owner Mike Lovelady has given two reasons : one is the business can’t make money without selling alcohol. However, the Tavern food isn’t terrible – some people would come in and eat. His supporters would come in and eat to back his fight against the city.

And by law, the Tavern must make at least 70% of revenue from food sales. That’s not just a LaFayette rule; even in towns where hard liquor is allowed, there are usually rules like 70/30 in place. So the owner’s claim that they NEED beer and wine sales to stay open could cost them their license permanently, and not because of what happened on Valentine’s Day.

The other reason Lovelady cited is a law saying alcohol cannot be in a business without an alcohol license even if it’s not being sold. That’s apparently true, but why didn’t he apply that same logic to having liquor at Mars Theater, which never had a pouring license to begin with? He seems awfully familiar with the law NOW but claims ignorance of the law, and the activities, of a week earlier.

That said, Lovelady’s real reason for closing down is to generate support. He needs to inconvenience his customers as much as possible, generate maximum sympathy for himself, and then use political pressure to force the city to ignore his violations of the law. He’s purposefully destroying himself, trying to become a martyr for the cause of breaking laws voters approved in 2009.

If Mike can’t do what he wants, how he wants, wherever he wants, he’ll take his ball and go home – employees and claims of community interest be damned. He’s hurting his employees, his vendors, people who perform in his restaurant. He’s also essentially destroyed the Arts Guild. All because he wanted to push the issue of liquor sales ahead of the law and can’t handle some minor punishment without throwing a hissy.

Neither Lovelady or his employee who served the alcohol have denied it was there, but have claimed the well-advertised party was a “private event” exempted from the law. They’ve also claimed the whiskey shots were given away free to those who attended the event, even though it cost $75 to get in and the “suggested” donation for each shot was $5. They’ve also refused to say who purchased the alcohol in the first place.

That may not matter: Georgia law holds building owners responsible for alcohol sales if they knew it was present. By most accounts, Lovelady knew of the liquor and plans to serve it ahead of time – meaning he could face misdemeanor charges under O.C.G.A. § 3-10-5.

A date for the hearing has not yet been decided, but an announcement will likely be made before Tuesday. So far there are no details of exactly how such a meeting will be conducted and what kind of punishments might be handed down IF accusations are substantiated, but the hearing could feature testimony from multiple witnesses, party guests, and Tavern employees. It might also feature a crowd of worked-up emotional Lovelady supporters screaming about changing the city’s alcohol rules, which is an entirely separate issue that will likely be addressed later on.

UPDATED 02/25: Hearing on this issue will be held Wednesday Feb. 26th at 11 AM.

More, much more, on this as it develops.           

Hutcheson has responded to Erlanger’s lawsuit with a countersuit, claiming Erlanger did $133 MILLION in damages during a now-ended two year operating agreement that left HMC and its county owners owing the Chattanooga hospital over $20 million.

Hutcheson and Walker County have together hired ex-governor Roy Barnes as legal counsel. Commissioner Heiskell describes attorney Barnes as “very, very good” – but he’s also very very EXPENSIVE. His legal fees could end up costing hundreds of thousands in a case the county and hospital are almost guaranteed to lose. (Catoosa County has hired its own attorney, while Dade was not included in the lawsuit.)

WQCH Radio, 02/21/14: “AMONG THE ‘BREACHES’ ALLEGED, BARNES WRITES THAT ERLANGER ‘OPERATED HUTCHESON AS A TRANSFER FACILITY, WITH THE ONLY BENEFICIARY BEING ERLANGER’ AND CLAIMS THAT COST HUTCHESON 54-MILLION DOLLARS

“FURTHER CLAIMS INCLUDE: FAILING TO HIRE A QUALIFIED CEO UNTIL 9-MONTHS INTO THE AGREEMENT, FAILING TO HIRE HOSPITAL-BASED PHYSICIANS, FAILURE TO RE-FINANCE LONG-TERM DEBT AT AVAILABLE LOWER INTEREST RATES, AND FAILURE TO PAY IRS WITHHOLDING TAXES.”

The hospital says a total of $133 million in damage was done over two years, but Hutcheson will settle the case for only $75 million (the total amount of debt to various entities) plus debt forgiveness from Erlanger.

Erlanger describes the lawsuit as “silly.” Lawyers for the Chattanooga hospital say most Hutcheson issues they “failed to fix” would have been addressed if the Hutcheson board had been more cooperative.

If $133 million in damage really WAS done, it was done by the idiots in charge at Hutcheson – not anyone at Erlanger.       

Walker County public school students will make up for recent snow days by staying at school an extra 20 minutes each day for the rest of the school year. The change begins March 3rd.

The state has decided schools are NOT required to make up nine snow days, but local school leaders were apparently concerned about lost teaching time.   

Shortly before closing Monday night, thieves stole an estimated $19,000 of phones and other electronics from LaFayette Walmart. The same pair of apparent professional robbers also hit the Trion/Penville store a few minutes earlier, swiping about $12,000 of the same merchandise.

Reportedly, the male suspect broke glass out of a display case as his female partner pretended to be a Walmart employee cleaning up his mess. The two fooled customers long enough to slip out and leave in a silver minivan with Florida tags. Police presume the thieves aren’t local since they didn’t bother to hide their faces, and think they’re likely professionals who travel store to store doing the same thing.

Anyone with information about the incidents at either store should call LaFayette PD (706 639 1540) or Chattooga Sheriff’s Office (706 857 0719).     

As expected, Hutcheson’s board rejected two of Catoosa County’s three nominees to join hospital leadership. The only man accepted was one who served on the HMC board before, when it made a series of terrible decisions.

The sitting board has a right to veto any nomination from the counties, which means they’ll never have anyone on the board willing to make necessary changes.

As LU reported earlier today, the same board now plans to reopen the Women’s Center they voted to close back in December.     

This year LaFayette Freedom Festival will be held on Friday June 27th, an entire week before July 4th. The reason? Fireworks (or, to be exact, companies to set them up and fire them off) cost half as much a week before Independence Day. Plan will save about $5,000.

City council approved the June date, 4-1. Councilman Bradford was the only “no” vote.   

LU EXCLUSIVE REPORT:

Less than two months ago, Hutcheson’s well-regarded Women’s Center was suddenly closed as part of a vague plan to save money. Now hospital leaders are preparing to reopen the unit on a smaller scale, as part of a vague plan to.. save money.

Hutcheson insiders say the hospital’s board now feels closing HMC’s OBGYN wing was a mistake (as everyone else said at the time), and have seen financial losses grow larger since it closed on New Year’s Eve.

Women’s Center employees who transferred to other areas of Hutcheson in January are now being offered their old jobs back, and the hospital is spending money it doesn’t have to remodel and update the closed building in preparation for relaunch.

A restarted OBGYN center would again offer labor and delivery, but would not have a NICU facility or nursery for premature or sick babies; 2/3 of employees at the old pre-close Women’s Center worked in those areas, so keeping them shuttered will cut payroll. (Sick or premature babies will require transfer to better equipped hospitals.)

“Rebirth” for Women’s Center at Hutcheson is tentatively planned for May – unless idiot CEO Farrell Hayes and the clueless County Hospital Board change their minds again before then.

More as this develops..

Monday morning an inmate was found dead inside Walker County Jail. Per reports, 38-year-old Tommy Barron of Trenton was found around 7 AM hanged by a bed sheet wrapped around a light fixture.

(Barron was transferred from Dade County jail to Walker when he became uncooperative. It’s unclear how housing him in LaFayette would provide law enforcement any kind of advantage over keeping him in Dade.)

Sheriff Wilson told media the deceased left notes to various family members and likely committed suicide. The GBI was called in for further investigation and an autopsy.     

A “cash bar” serving hard drinks was set up inside Mars Theater during a Valentine’s Day event last week.

Profits from the well-advertised event (and apparently from the bar) went to the Arts Guild, but it’s against city law to sell hard liquor by the drink or by the bottle within LaFayette. The city is investigating.

This isn’t an issue of being for or against hard liquor, simply one of wondering why some people are held to the law and some aren’t.

LU asked Mars Theater landlord Mike Lovelady about the event. He didn’t confirm or deny the alcohol sales, but placed responsibility for anything that happened on the Arts Guild.   

During last week’s LaFayette City Council meeting, plan to rename Barwick-LaFayette Airport to LaFayette Regional Airport was put on hold after council discovered Lafayette Louisiana’s airport already has that name.

Now the field is wide open for better ideas. One suggestion is LaFayette-Walker County Airport, but the city is unlikely to give the county credit for an airport it contributes nothing towards. Another idea, Cherokee Regional Airport, could be confused with Cherokee County Airport down in Ballground, GA.

Naming the field in honor of retired, recently deceased airport director Ronald Westbook might also be off the table because of privately-owned Westbrook Airport in Lumpkin.

If you have other usable ideas, feel free to share them in the comment area below.