AG scrutinizes College Park city council vote more than 200 miles outside city limits

COLLEGE PARK, Ga. - The Georgia Attorney General’s office has asked College Park city officials for answers after its city council held a special meeting in Savannah on Sunday, nearly three hours away from the city. 

"Not everybody has the luxury of taking the weekend off to go to a meeting that lasted less than 15 minutes," Jason Killip, College Park resident, said.

But, Killip did have that luxury, as did about another dozen residents who drove to Savannah to be there in person. 

He said they did so to prove a point. 

What we know:

City officials were in Savannah to attend the Georgia Municipal Association convention. 

The vote concerning the city's new Destination Marketing Association took place in a hotel conference room.

College Park Mayor Bianca Motley Broom said she was unable to attend the meeting, because she was tied up with convention business.

Public notice of the meeting went out Friday afternoon, which Killip believes, combined with the location, may have amounted to violation of Georgia's Open Meetings Act. 

"There was no discussion, no public comment, for a major economic decision," Killip said. 

Dig deeper:

On Tuesday, Georgia Attorney General’s office sent a stern letter to the College Park city attorney after getting complaints from residents. 

"It is unclear whether technical violations of the Act occurred in how the called meetings were noticed," wrote Kirstin Settlemire, senior assistant attorney general. "At the very least, however, it does not appear that the city’s actions fostered public transparency."

Of this past weekend's meeting, Settlemire wrote, "scheduling a called meeting on a weekend in a location approximately four hours away from the city most certainly does not promote public participation in city government."

Neither the College Park city attorney Winston Denmark nor city spokesperson Gerald Walker immediately responded to FOX 5's requests for comment regarding the matter.

Mayor Motley Broom applauded the residents for showing up in Savannah.

"I am proud of College Park. My neighbors showed up on Sunday and made their presence known," the mayor said in a written statement. "As elected officials, we work for them. They have told us clearly how they feel about these tactics, and I think it's time we listen. I implore my colleagues to put down the shovel and stop digging a bigger hole. We need to get back to the work that matters to the people we serve."

Local perspective:

Killip said about a dozen other community members traveled more than 200 miles to attend the meeting.

He noted that the decision impacts a major economic sector, as the majority of local hotels and motels are situated in the airport district, less than a half-mile from where residents stand at City Hall.

Killip hopes their attendance in Savannah sends a message.

"It really sets a precedent that we are watching," he said. "So either start operating in the light, or the pressure is going to keep coming."

What's next:

The Attorney General’s office has requested a formal response from the College Park city attorney within the next ten days.