After two delays,

the City Council of Peachtree City is expected to

reappoint its sitting municipal judge and current

city attorneys at tomorrow night's regular

meeting. The issue involves brewing controversy

about City Attorney James Webb's ties to a local

bank board, which includes developers who have

sued or are currently suing the city.

Letters to The

Citizen have raised questions about the propriety

of Webb defending the city against a pending

lawsuit by a fellow board member and investor in

the Bank of Georgia, Pathway Communities

president Steve Black. Pathway is suing the city

about a traffic impact ordinance that played a

role in the recent Home Depot decision affecting

the city's west side.

Webb, the current

city attorney, has written The Citizen demanding

retractions and apologies for printing the

letters, a legal precursor to filing a libel

suit.

Another letter

about the controversy appears on Page 6A.

Neither Judge A.

Mitchell Powell nor the firm of Webb, Stuckey and

Lindsey submitted the lowest rate for services,

but city manager Jim Basinger told the council in

a written statement that the costs are justified.

"Staff feels

it is worth the additional investment to retain

the services of Judge Powell in this very

critical, high-profile position," he said.

"While Webb, Stuckey and Lindsey did not

offer the lowest hourly rate, the firm's total

fees would probably be the lowest due to

increased [transportation costs] for those firms

outside Peachtree City."

Webb, Stuckey and

Lindsey was the only Peachtree City firm that bid

on the city attorney position, which it has held

since 1992, the same time Judge Powell ascended

to the bench.

The city originally

sent out notices in November that it would

consider bids for these positions, but some

confusion on the original request for proposals

necessitated a rebid in December.

Glover and Davis,

the Newnan firm of which Judge Powell is a

member, was the low bidder for the city attorney

post the first time around, and city staff

recommended them based mainly on price, saying

that Webb, Stuckey and Lindsey has provided

excellent service for the past several years.

But when the

council discussed the bids in December, it was

revealed that some confusion existed as to the

city attorney and solicitor positions. Webb,

Stuckey and Lindsey are currently filling both

roles.

But some bidders

opted solely for the solicitor job, which

prompted the city to solicit bids a second time

and more clearly state the requirements.

The council elected

to combine the positions of solicitor and city

attorney, under which conditions Glover and Davis

did not submit a bid.

Powell bid again

for the municipal judgeship, which effectively

knocked his firm out of the running for the other

job, since the same firm could not represent the

city as solicitor and serve on the municipal

bench.

The matter was to

be decided by the council during February, but

Councilman Robert Brooks was unable to attend

either of the council's regularly scheduled

meetings in February.

As for Webb,

Stuckey and Lindsey, their bid was the same both

times: a $750 monthly retainer, $130 per hour for

attorneys and $70 per hour for paralegals and

clerks.

That was not the

lowest bid among the five applicants, but it was

the only bid received from a Peachtree City firm.

There were two bidders from Atlanta and one

apiece from Fayetteville and Jonesboro.

Mayor Pro Tempore

Annie McMenamin has made clear that she would

abstain from any vote to retain Webb, Stuckey and

Lindsey, since her daughter is a lawyer with that

firm.,

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