The Marietta Daily Journal – Chairman denies request to delay Braves stadium deal

Half a dozen people representing diverse political backgrounds delivered a letter to the Cobb Board of Commissioners on Monday morning asking that a Tuesday vote that would move the Atlanta Braves to Cobb County be delayed for 60 days.

The coalition of groups, which calls itself Citizens for Governmental Transparency, held a press conference on the steps of the county government building prior to handing over the letter.

“We’re here today to respectfully request the Cobb County Commission to delay their vote for a minimum of 60 days in order to give Cobb County citizens a chance to properly vet and understand that proposal,” said member Rich Pellegrino, who also heads the Cobb Immigrant Alliance. “Although we have members who are both for and against the proposed Braves stadium deal, we are unified in our belief that Cobb citizens should be given time to review and publicly comment on any Braves stadium deal that will require the use of significant county tax dollars.”

Michael Opitz of the Madison Forum, also included in the coalition, compared the board’s scheduled Tuesday vote to the passage of Obamacare.

“It’s somewhat reminiscent of Nancy Pelosi that we must push this thing through quickly so we can find out what’s in it,” Opitz said. “Pass the bill so we can find out what’s in it.”

The MDJ asked County Chairman Tim Lee how he planned to answer the request for a delay.

“My response to their request is that we’re not going to do that,” Lee said. “We’re going to proceed tomorrow night with the vote. It’s important for the time table and for moving the project forward and providing some closure and decisiveness, so we believe there has been enough time for the information to get disseminated. I believe there’s been enough time to be disseminated, details to be revised, so we’re going to be moving forward with it tomorrow.”

via The Marietta Daily Journal – Chairman denies request to delay Braves stadium deal.