Sheperd Took PAC Money while Opposing Sustainability Ordinance
(APN) ATLANTA — City Councilwoman Joyce Sheperd (District 12), Chairwoman of the Community Development/Human Resources (CD/HR) Committee, took a 1,000 dollar contribution from the Atlanta Realtors PAC while opposing the proposed Sustainable Building Ordinance, which the PAC opposed.
At the time Sheperd was a member of CD/HR, the committee which vetted and ultimately rejected the proposed ordinance.
According to Sheperd’s October 25, 2009, campaign disclosure report, obtained by Atlanta Progressive News, Sheperd’s campaign entity–Friends of Joyce Sheperd–accepted the donation from Atlanta Realtors PAC on October 07, 2009.
The PAC was a staunch critic of the proposed building ordinance. However, Sheperd did not refuse the donation, nor recuse herself from voting.
Sheperd appears to have a pattern of taking contributions from developer interests while legislation either supported or opposed by those interests is before her in Committee and in Full Council.
As previously reported by APN, Sheperd’s most recent fundraiser at Paschal’s Restaurant was co-hosted by Sharon Gay, the attorney for Jamestown, the developer in the process of acquiring City Hall East for a development project estimated to bring in millions of dollars in revenue for the developer.
Sheperd’s fundraiser, and Gay’s sponsorship, was announced the very morning before CD/HR–which Sheperd now Chairs–considered relaxing the affordable housing requirements for the property’s redevelopment.
As in the case with the sustainable building ordinance, Sheperd did not recuse herself from voting. Nor in this case did she recuse herself from chairing the Committee’s discussion and so-called debate. Indeed, Sheperd supported Jamestown’s wishes and voted yes.
Friends of Joyce Sheperd has not returned a call from APN seeking comment.
David Broome, manager of Atlanta Realtors PAC, was a vocal critic of the proposed ordinance.
“Atlanta is already a nationally-recognized leader in green development (No. 3 city in the country for green buildings, according to SustainLane.com). Why do we need an ordinance — with its accompanying red tape and cost increases — to mandate what is already a market-driven success?” Robert Broome appears to have posted as a comment on Creative Loafing Atlanta magazine’s Fresh Loaf blog.
The Sustainable Building Ordinance was introduced on July 14, 2009, by former Councilman Jim Maddox (District 11), then-Chairman of CD/HR.
It was considered at the July 28, 2009, CD/HR meeting, but held for further discussion after the real estate and developer interests opposed it.
On November 10, 2009, after Sheperd received the donation, the Committee voted to hold the legislation further.
On December 01, 2009, it was forwarded to Full Council with no recommendation, a move which Sheperd supported. There, on December 07, 2009, the Full Council voted to file–or effectively, to kill–the legislation, another move which Sheperd supported.
The ordinance would have set standards for energy and water use in new construction and renovation of commercial buildings and residential structures with more than three floors.
SHEPERD’S PREVIOUS FUNDRAISING ISSUE
Previously, Sheperd was involved in a fundraising scandal involving developer and former US Rep. Pat Swindall (R-GA).
Swindall was indicted on June 24, 2009, for funneling 8,000 dollars in contributions to Sheperd’s campaign in 2005, an amount far exceeding the maximum campaign contribution for an individual. At the time, Sheperd was facing a challenge from former Councilman Derrick Boazman, who had previously held the seat.
Chris McCreary, who had worked for Swindall, went public to local Fox 5 news in 2007, alleging that Swindall gave him 8,000 dollars and instructed him make out eight money orders for a thousand dollars each, to make each one out from a different donor and payable to Sheperd.
McCreary alleged that Swindall said that he was a downtown developer and wanted to “make friends at City Hall.”
Swindall, McCreary, and a third individual were each indicted in June 2009.
“I am pleased to see this action taken by the Grand Jury. In my testimony to them yesterday, I confirmed the fact that I was not involved or aware of the alleged contribution scheme,” Sheperd said in a statement reprinted by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution newspaper’s Political Insider blog.
“It is important for the people of District 12 to know that I would never accept contributions in exchange for political favors, and I plan to return the campaign contributions, which totaled $8,000, to the State of Georgia.”
It is not clear whether Sheperd has yet returned the funds. APN’s review of Sheperd’s campaign disclosures filed since she promised to return the funds does not reflect an expenditure of 8,000 dollars to the State of Georgia, or to any charity for that matter.
When APN looked briefly into the matter in the weeks leading up to the 2009 election, a Council Member close to Sheperd said that she had not returned the funds because “she doesn’t know who to return the funds to.”
“I have to give that money back because I never want it to be said I was a part of something that was illegal. My vote is not for sale,” Sheperd told Fox 5.
(END/2010)