Let’s make a deal: Gwinnett pays dearly for school land
The AJC has done a terrific series of reports about disheartening land purchases by Gwinnett County schools. The investigation has revealed instances where Gwinnett taxpayers paid developers far more for the property than the developers paid months or even days before.
In a four-month investigation, the AJC examined 10 land deals in which developers bought property and then sold it to the school district at much higher prices.
In response to the AJC series, the school district launched its own investigation into its land purchases, which is expected to be completed soon. District Attorney Danny Porter has said he’s considering convening a special grand jury to review the transactions.
According to the AJC’s Tim Eberly:
The district bought the 26 acres from developer and former state Rep. Keith Breedlove’s company in 2006 for $105,000 per acre — the same land that Breedlove had acquired from several property owners for about $65,000 per acre, property records show.
“That’s pretty extreme,” said Steve Palm, president of Marietta-based research firm SmartNumbers, which analyzes and forecasts real estate trends in metro Atlanta. “Do you think something should go up [that much] in seven months? No.”
Jim Steele, the school district official in charge of land purchases, said last week that the district, and taxpayers, got a good deal on the property.
“We bought a great school site in the exact location where it is needed and for a price less than the appraised fair market value,” he wrote in an email to the AJC.
“You can say that we paid $1 million more for land than Breedlove paid for it 7 months earlier, but this is misleading. What he paid for the land includes not only the price he gave the former owners but money and time he invested prior to his closing on the land and our acquiring it.”
–From Maureen Downey, for the AJC Get Schooled blog
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29 comments Add your comment
The Art of the Shady Land Deal
May 23rd, 2011
7:21 pm
Maureen, don’t you mean that Gwinnett TAXPAYERS pay dearly for school land. Gwinnett GOVERNMENT officials likely GOT PAID as part of their transactions, but you didn’t hear that from me.
Larry Major
May 23rd, 2011
8:00 pm
I’m surprised you think those articles are ethical, let alone terrific.
If there’s any possible way to justify it, I hope Mr. Porter will initiate a thorough investigation. Any improprieties, or lack thereof, concerning these transactions must be fully documented to the satisfaction of anyone two notches north of a Birther.
There is some serious wrongdoing in this situation and someone will be held responsible.
Nothing new here
May 23rd, 2011
8:00 pm
Remember Pulliam and her land deals in Clayton County?
Echo
May 23rd, 2011
8:03 pm
Until people start getting charged criminally for crap like this, don’t expect any real changes. Schools and other government entities have become personal piggy banks for the crooks at the top. So much waste and theft it is unbelievable.
Maureen Downey
May 23rd, 2011
8:03 pm
@Larry, Why would I think the articles were unethical? They rely on public documents. They are well researched. They delve into an area — contracts — that doesn’t get much attention as most media organizations simply lack the staffing to spend the time perusing contracts.
Maureen
tim
May 23rd, 2011
8:04 pm
HELLO GWINNETT! If you don’t fire Jim Steele it will prove you’re all crooks,
Hey Mr Steele…..will you ever say the taxpayers got a GREAT deal? Didn’t think so.
Both sides are hears...
May 23rd, 2011
8:25 pm
Here’s GCPS’s response to the 16 questions asked by the reporter. I think it’s only fair that all of the answers be seen and not just those chosen by the paper…IMHO…
http://www.gwinnett.k12.ga.us/gcps-mainweb01.nsf/7b206fefc3472ddf85257523004bcb46/97e0f82f6055e7f58525789700658dc7?OpenDocument
another view
May 23rd, 2011
8:50 pm
The buck (no pun intended) stops at Alvin’s desk. Seems like AJC ought have a friendly little chat with him. Those (pick your own unprintable descriptor) are stealing our tax dollars that could have been used to keep from putting teachers on the street and stop cramming kids into classrooms to overflowing. Think I’ll sign out before I get mad – - – -
GTP
May 23rd, 2011
8:57 pm
Ditto the earlier comment re. Jim Steal. Every time there’s a story about shady land deals that guy’s name pops up. How on earth is he still employed by the school system?
Amanda Helmstetter
May 23rd, 2011
9:10 pm
The higher ups at the school board think they are above the law and above reproach. They think they can do whatever they want and get away with it — because so far they have. The AJC and others need to continue to put pressure on them to hold them accountable — or this thievery will continue.
Lee
May 23rd, 2011
10:00 pm
My guess, you’ve got someone in the school system who is feeding info to the developers/speculators. I don’t believe in coincidences where money is involved.
j
May 23rd, 2011
10:37 pm
Thanks for keeping this story going, Maureen. The truth will come out. Breedlove got a deal that looks too good to be true, and soon, it will be.
QE3
May 23rd, 2011
11:51 pm
Shady land deals is just business as usual. Nothing new here. If no one used the public schools, this problem would go away.
Larry Major
May 24th, 2011
6:05 am
It’s not the sources, but the way the content was presented.
These articles took full advantage of the fact that the only experience most readers have with real estate purchases is their own home. At least one transaction described (probably more) appears to have involved land options. Most people know nothing about these contracts and are mislead into believing the negotiations happened days apart. If you use land options – and did your homework correctly – the negotiations are typically a year or more apart and the two closings will normally happen within days.
There were typically several pieces of real estate under consideration for each transaction. That means GCPS walked away from two. If they really paid too much, the other two parcels were a better deal, but the last article is the only one that even mentions the others.
There were around 10 transactions where GCPS paid more than the highest appraisal during this time. All were the result of a court order during condemnation. Why 10 percent of the acquisitions were through condemnation, which nearly guarantees a price over the highest appraisal, would have been a logical direction to go. It also would have demonstrated factors that a school system must consider that a developer does not.
The comparison with Cherokee County Schools was completely out of line. The acquisition of over 90 properties in a given time frame was compared to a school system that has only 40 schools in the entire county.
There’s more, but I’m staying out of it until all the investigations are over. Then we can compare what really happened with the impression these articles created.
catlady
May 24th, 2011
7:14 am
Gee, can I buy some property and sit on it and then sell it for a million more with the”reason” being “the money and time I had between buying it and selling it?” Getting paid a million more for 7 months of sitting seems like a pretty good deal!
And, if I understand it right, the school sytem got the less than ideal piece?
catlady
May 24th, 2011
7:16 am
Just more of what we have been getting from the “family values” crowd!
ramona
May 24th, 2011
8:16 am
Keith Breedlove has been at this a very long time. This transaction is the tip of the iceberg. I’m sure that if an investigation took place, this transaction would be the least of his worries.
The Bowens, the Breedloves, Tim Robinson just to name a few, are no more than petty theives. They have become millionaires off backroom deals and money changing hands.
This should have been stopped a long time ago but there was too much money being made by everyone involved-except the taxpayers of Gwinnett.
john q
May 24th, 2011
8:32 am
Enter your comments here
john q
May 24th, 2011
8:37 am
At some point, Mr. Breedlove, Mr. Steele and every one else involved will pay for their actions. The deal may or may not have been legal but it was also unethical.
georgiagirl
May 24th, 2011
12:00 pm
The arrogance of all the officials is absolutely amazing! They think they are above the law and can do whatever they want. This has been going on for many years. It is time for the tax payers to wake up and have a good understanding that Gwinnett is the largest district in the state and one of the largest in the country, but spends very little per student. The school district should be all about the kids and learning right? They waste money on whatever they want. They are invisible; at least this is what they think. Wake up! Hopefully this investigation will not go away and will open up all the waste in the county.
georgiagirl
May 24th, 2011
12:12 pm
The superintendent, board, Jim Steele and all involved should face jail time for this. Wait a minute, this can’t happen because they are so well connected and pay they lawyers lots of money to protect them.
another view
May 24th, 2011
12:14 pm
Nah – these guys will continue to steal taxpayer money, not pay. Unless Maureen and the rest of this great AJC crew bring ‘em to justice – ’cause the legal system certainly won’t do it on its own, and you can bet Alvin had his hands in it – unless he chooses to prove otherwise, and quickly. If he doesn’t, you can bet there’s an offshore account somewhere. Step up to the plate, Wilbanks.
EducationCEO
May 24th, 2011
3:47 pm
@AnotherView Don’t hold your breathe for that conversation with the Big Dog to happen. He is the almighty and he doesn’t have to answer to anyone. His explanation for ‘forgetting’ to report 50,000 disciplinary reports…I didn’t buy that and I am not buying this lame justification for being bamboozled on these land deals. But for those who think Wilbanks can do know wrong, I have just one question: What more does he have to do???
georgiagirl
May 24th, 2011
5:29 pm
Thanks for the article, Maureen! So many GCPS stories seem to just disappear and no one knows the outcome. I hope the AJC will continue to print this and other stories, such as the recent re-districting story, until there is some form of resolution. Thanks again!
john q
May 25th, 2011
8:06 am
Does anyone else find it interesting that Mr. Breedlove owned 2 of the 3 tracts of land that were being considered by Mr.Steele?
MrLiberty
May 25th, 2011
8:56 am
Ah yes, another example of why government should never be involved with education. Thanks reality for supporting the argument. This kind of corruption with land purchases goes on at virtually every level of government. Just look at the beltway project if you want to see real land purchase corruption.
And there are great examples in history such as the story of Lincoln, NE where the criminal president at the time made huge land purchases and then rerouted the railroad (of course heavily subsidized by tax monies taken from the south) so that the value of his land would skyrocket. Mr. Booth cut short the huge profit taking on this scheme by the president, but the incident shows that corruption in government, especially when it comes to land purchases, is rampant and just another reason why the constitutional limits on government power MUST be retored (yes, the railroad subsidies were unconstitutional too).
Sid C
May 25th, 2011
2:48 pm
Its kind of like the 387 displaced teachers in Gwinnett. You think a million bucks could have saved their jobs?
What happens is this. As of april only 37 percent had been placed- like last year, we won’t hear anything and then amazingly “all” the teachers will have been placed. When in actuallity they play a shell game and move those they couldn’t place to the non-renewed stack. its unethical but its how mr. potter works….
Joyce
May 25th, 2011
5:27 pm
Stop the wagon! I have got to get off! Why, because I smell something and it ain’t granny’s tea cakes! Where has everyone been? This has probably been going on for years in (I would say) the majority of the school systems in Georgia. Check the lawyers office for the closing papers to get a bird’s eye view. Someone had to sign off on it. There should be a full disclosure of all the tranactions that took place. Check to see what board members or staff are related in someway to this group of investors and who are they. But, are they (under some law) which they can not be disclosed. Look at who was the realtor if one was involved. There are many ways to catch a RAT. Who knows this might reach deeper into the political arena than you ever thougt. There many people who may hold real estate liscense in which no one knows. And, they could be feed the information for the system to others. Just giving my two cents worth. You can let me back on the wagon now! I got all the knee deep stuff off but I do not think the school systems have yet!
Joyce
May 25th, 2011
5:41 pm
Mr. Sid C — you are so right.. Where are the justifications that they use to shelve teachers. Just pick’n and choosing! With tongue in check, I would say no that doesn’t happen in Georgia! Get real it does happen. I work for 30 years (retired) and I have seen good teachers pushed out the door to accommodated someone else. What a day we are living in–no one cares for their fellowman. Where are the curriculum specialist in the system, etc, who are suppose to be working to make teachers better if they are not. Should they not be held accountable for not performing their jobs! No they are part of the upper crust in the educational system. In fact, if you cut out the local supplments of the Superintendent and other board office works (Associate Superitendents,etc.), Principals, assistant principals and pay them only state base pay, you would save enought money to probably save those teacher’s jobs. And, this would garuantee, they would work probably harder and better. Look at it a a promotion without and insensitive. Many educators, with leadership degrees, would love to have one of these plush jobs- walking around eating donuts and drinking coffee. Just visit the board office for yourself. I am supprise, they have not put in escalators at the office since there are so many steps to climb,