Chairman Keith Wood and Vice-Chair Chris Verenes Resign
by Don Moniak
December 9, 2022
Keith Wood and Chris Verenes are original members of the Aiken Municipal Development Commission (AMDC), having attended every public meeting since May 20, 2020. Wood was elected Chairman in September 2020, and Verenes was the first and only Vice-Chair. Together with AMDC Treasurer J. David Jameson, they formed the commission’s Executive Committee, a three-person panel that, while ill-defined, functioned as a pre-decisional deliberative body addressing commission business. Along with AMDC Executive Director Tim O’Briant, they orchestrated much of the effort to pursue the $100 million plus downtown Aiken demolition and redevelopment plan known as Project Pascalis.
Chairman Wood was one of two people authorized to sign AMDC checks and negotiate with developers; the other being recently removed AMDC Executive Director Tim O’Briant. In July 2021, he authored a key letter to City Council requesting $10 million in funding for AMDC purchases of “Parkway District” properties.
On September 29, 2022, following approval of a motion to cancel downtown Aiken’s Redevelopment Plan One and the Purchase and Sale Agreement for AMDC-owned downtown properties between the AMDC and RPM Development Partners, Wood and Verenes issued statements blaming unnamed city staff for misleading the commission during the Project Pascalis procurement process.
Both Wood and Verenes demanded that the truth be made public as to why the project effectively ceased on June 23, 2022; twelve days before a major lawsuit was filed seeking an injunction of the project. Since the Blake et al vs City of Aiken lawsuit was filed, fourteen lawyers from eight different law firms have represented the various city officials and public bodies named as defendants in the suit. As previously reported in Cancelled, Stopped, On Hold, Terminated, or Ongoing, the abundance of legal counsel has led to confusion over the actual project status.
Today, Wood and Verenes emailed resignation letters (1) to Aiken City Council and City Manager Stuart Bedenbaugh. The resignation was confirmed by an unnamed source.
Both commissioners expressed alarm at City Council’s refusal to publicly reveal the reasons for the failure of Project Pascalis, and voiced strong protests against signing a “Joint Defense Agreement” (JDA) that would inhibit “open, frank, and complete information.”
In his resignation letter, Wood also appeared to disagree with the AMDC’s attorney in regard to the JDA drafted prior to a joint, closed-door Executive Session with City Council on November 21, 2022:
“David Morrison, AMDC attorney, working in tandem with Daniel Plyler, City Attorney, prepared and forwarded a Joint Defense Agreement (JDA) for all participants of the meeting to sign prior to our meeting. In our view, the JDA restricts any Commissioner’s ability to disclose information that could be shared with you. Any meeting restricting open, frank, and complete information would be a disservice to City Council, AMDC, and the citizens of Aiken.”
Chris Verenes wrote, in regard to the same issues:
“It is important to note that Mayor Pro Tem Ed Woltz and Councilwoman Lessie Price relayed to me that they were in favor of meeting with no preconditions, restrictions, or legal agreements. The Chairman and I were concerned that the joint defense agreement might limit what we would be allowed to say in a public forum. We determined that we will not agree to any restrictions being placed on us as to what could be disclosed to the public.”
Verenes also referenced a joint email (2) from both he and Chairman Wood, in which they wrote:
“Our recommendation is to have discussions without any predetermined restrictions which may impede the truth. This is based on our belief that the public expects and deserves the highest standard of ethical conduct and transparency from all appointed and elected officials.”
The resignations leave only four AMDC commissioners—David Jameson, Philip Merry, Marty Gillam, and Douglas Slaughter. Since he is in violation of city attendance rules for appointed officials, having missed four of six regular meetings this year, Reverend Slaughter will be automatically removed as a commissioner on January 1, 2023. Even with Slaughter, the AMDC does not have a quorum of members and cannot make decisions or take actions.
The AMDC has not met in a regular public meeting in six months, having cancelled every regularly scheduled meeting since the July 5, 2022 lawsuit. The commission has also refused to allow public inspection of its records, with former Executive Director O’Briant stating in early October that information will be withheld until a judge orders otherwise.
Next: The David Jameson resignation in Chamber President Blames State Law for AMDC Failings.
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Footnotes.
(1) Resignation letters of Keith Wood and Chris Verenes.
2. November 21, 2022, email from AMDC Chairman Keith Wood and Vice-Chair Chris Verenes to Aiken City Council .
Thanks again to Don Moniak and “The Aiken Chronicles” for bringing Aiken citizens and taxpayers news that is actually newsworthy. Not surprisingly, City Council (with the possible exception of two members) is anxious to muzzle any speech that might actually put the spotlight on the actions and motivations of the perpetrators of the Project Pascalis debacle. I say — let the finger-pointing begin in public, and expose for all to see just how badly (and secretly) the affairs of the municipality are being conducted. The resignation of the two AMDC commissioners is a start, but the revelation of the truth regarding the wasteful spending of tax revenue, cronyism, dereliction of duty by City Council, and secret, underhanded and illegal activity on the part of City officials will require an unraveling of quite a tangled web of misconduct. Without the July 2022 lawsuit sponsored by a group of civic-minded citizens, the egregious violations of the public trust would likely have been hidden from public view, forever.
Question…….the AMDC never voted on the minutes from that Sept 29th disjointed motion to kill Pigscalis did they? They have not had an open regular meeting to do so. So they haven’t technically killed the project all the way and they still own the land which is now under scrutiny for demolition by neglect so who do you contact? The Exec Dir? Or just call the Chamber of Commerce?
Which “indefensible actions” does Wood’s resignation letter refer to? Maybe his June 2021 confidential email you exposed in The Pascalis Attorneys?
Stuart,
Indirectly related, I have concerns relative to a conflict of interest the City Attorney may have in our process. I noted that Ray Massey submitted the Alley proposal on letterhead that included Gary Smith’s name. In addition, I am concerned that Gary’s attendance in future meetings with developers may compromise our process based on his relationship with Ray Massey (i.e. same legal firm). I recommend we ensure the proper firewall exists to alleviate any real or perceived conflict of interest.”
Or was it signing a PSA to sell the city’s massive investment at half price? Maybe calling a field trip to Vic’s a public meeting?
I was at the Nov 21st Joint Exec Session with two other citizens the front door was locked so I had to go in through the side door ……(The hallway, usually reserved for DRB overflow, was loaded with suits before the meeting) and after the City Council voted to go into Exec Session and leave the AMDC (what was left of them) comes out and debates about going in…..they were concerned with that JDA…..so they ask an attorney if they could go into exec session and he had to leave the room go ask the other attorneys about it (not kidding….how many law degrees does it take ?) oh but the attorney he needed was already in exec session with the City Council he reports back so they had to vote to go in just so they could ask…..seriously.
So we wait around to see if they are staying in the secret meeting or not and about 20 min into our wait we hear a roar of laughter through the walls (same walls we just paid 13.78M for you would think they might be sound proof) but nobody came back and about 30 min into it we got hungry and left. They did not seem like people concerned with indefensible actions or with transparency to me.
And now, well, what to do about 9.6M worth of the taxpayer’s investment when the group that technically owns it has jumped ship to the point where there is no longer a quorum? Perfect example of why the city shouldn’t cook up Commissions…… or Corporations for such investments as if this property was in the City’s name the AMDC abolishing themselves would not be an issue.
Colonel Taylors all around though as the commission on blight is disbanding itself.
This is moving forward.