The downfall of St. James II
There's been some lively discussion about the twilight years of the St. James II apartment complex on South Eugene Street. Our Margaret Banks wrote about the ailing complex in the Sunday edition, eliciting commentary on David Hoggard's blog.
Hoggard supports the contention of St. James' nonprofit managers that city leaders pushed the complex into the abyss or at least sat on their hands while crack dealers did the same. Remember that the apartments are adjacent to a site that was once pitched as the location for a new minor-league baseball stadium.
The directors of the Christian Counseling & Wellness Group, Donald and Sarah Graham, spelled out those accusations in their response to a city audit of the apartments' operation in 2004, which we have scanned and made available online in its entirety. In the audit report (click here to read the PDF) Internal Audit Director Len Lucas noting that the apartments' rehab work had been unexplainably stalled.
In response, the Grahams write (click here to read) "Are we sending up smoke screens and making excuses for the lack of progress toward completing the renovation project of St. James Homes II? The answer is absolutely not. This project has not moved forward because 'we have been redlined.'"
They continue: "We realize the sensitivity of this issue and the danger of rubbing certain individuals the wrong way, but we did not come this far to just give up all the battle that we have already fought. It is so sad to have so many people tell us that we can not save these apartments when the "establishment" - meaning city leaders and Down Town Greensboro, Inc. - wants them destroyed for their own personal agenda. We have had people call the city leaders the "Greensboro Mafia."
Lucas responds (click to read here): "I appreciate your candid responses, however there are still issues outstanding that do not appear to have a solution or plan of commitments in place to rectify."
"We appreciate both of your efforts to provide affordable housing in Greensboro. Unfortunately, it does not appear that St. James Homes II is a feasible project at this time," Lucas wrote.
City Council member Tom Phillips also responds to Hoggard's post, writing that "If this is a conspiracy, please explain it to me. Some people find it easier to blame others for their failures than to accept responsibility for themselves."
Comments (4)
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Good for you for posting the documents. Good for Hogg for being his unrelenting self. Sometimes the "truth" lies in the middle, but no one can see it without the documentation and without opening his/her eyes.
Posted on February 14, 2005 4:40 PM
Mrs Graham you should try to get some of the money back from Mr Skip Auston. The taxpayers canot keep paying for the same building.
Posted on February 14, 2005 7:47 PM
I dare say that if Mr. Alston were applying for a job with Mr. Trump, as "project manager" he would have been in the boardroom and heard the words "YOU'RE FIRED!". Not to say that Mr. Alston should be condemned for failing in his management, however, the fact that he will not accept accountability for his own actions and chooses to always blame others (the White Man) shows the man's character (or lack thereof). Whenever he accuses someone of being "racist", he need only look in the mirror.
Posted on February 16, 2005 6:59 AM
Why in the world are we not DEMANDING a review of the million dollars given to Skip Alston to renovate and keep up these buildings? It is high time the city officials started looking atthese fellows. The Grahams should never have been in the picture at all. Alston is trying to divert attention away from himself, as usual. He should thank Mrs. Rakestraw for holding him accountable, as my dad used to say, "It doesen't hurt to be honest ONCE in a while." try it, Skip, instead of blaming the whites every time your dishonest butt gets a little too close to the fire. All you are doing is creating one big ol' yawn every time you try it.
Posted on February 22, 2005 8:24 AM