Crime, infrastructure top Reed’s list for last four years as mayor

REED ON STATE RACE

Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, who many believe could make a run for the governor’s mansion following his second term as the city’s chief executive, struck a lukewarm stance Monday when asked whether he’d support State Sen. Jason Carter’s quest to unseat Gov. Nathan Deal this fall.

“The bottom line is I’m going to support the Democratic nominee but I’m going to do it on my own time. I’ve run for mayor twice and Jason didn’t support me. So I’m going to support the nominee of the party. I like Jason and I’ve said multiple times and in many forms that I think he’s a special politician with unique qualities,” he said.

Reed, known for his fundraising abilities and ties to the White House, noted he ran for mayor for nearly two years before gaining major support.

“I’m a little taken aback by the notion that somebody offers themselves for office and you line up,” he said. “… I’m not a bandwagon jumper. When you offer yourself to office you’ve got to get out here, you gotta go through it. That’s what I did.”

When asked if Carter has earned his endorsement, Reed paused and said: “I’m saying I think he needs to be out here a little longer.”

In a statement, Carter congratulated the mayor on his second term and said: “I look forward to having his support as the Democratic nominee for governor of Georgia, and to continuing to work with him to move our state forward.”

Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed seeks to re-engage Fulton County leaders in a discussion on public safety in his second term, and is considering use of the Atlanta City Jail to house more criminals, he said in his inaugural address Monday.

Crime was one of many topics Reed discussed as he laid out his agenda for the next four years at City Hall. His goals include chipping away at a $900 million backlog of infrastructure needs with a bond referendum worth up to $250 million, raising private funds to send underprivileged students to college, continuing to support the Port of Savannah expansion project and bolstering Atlanta’s technology hub.

But his primary focus was on public safety and repeat-offender rates. During his speech at the Atlanta Civic Center where he, the Atlanta City Council and municipal court judges were sworn in for a four-year term, the mayor called upon county partners to help.

“Too often in the city of Atlanta, the women and men of the Atlanta Police Department do their jobs and risk their lives as they arrest criminals, only to find that they are summarily released. We must work together to bring an end to this practice because the citizens of Atlanta pay the lion’s share of the budget of Fulton County,” he said.

In a news conference after the ceremony, Reed said he is working to change the “tone” of conversation with county partners.

“What I wanted to do today was change the approach and not make it so adversarial, but to address it as a collaborative issue that we need to address as a city and as a county,” he said, adding that he believes tackling the repeat-offender issue in the city could result in an 18 to 25 percent drop in crime in the next four years.

The issue of repeat offenders and jail crowding has long been a thorn in Reed’s side. During his first term, he bolstered the Atlanta Police Department to 2,000 officers and saw an 18 percent drop in crime, but has said jail crowding and repeat offenders released back to the community have hindered progress.

He has publicly criticized Fulton County officials for failing to solve its jail crisis and said the county should build a new facility to lock up violent criminals. He’s also said some judges there are too lenient with repeat offenders.

Fulton County Commission Chairman John Eaves, who attended Monday’s inauguration, later issued a statement in which he agreed a collaborative effort touted by Reed and Council President Ceasar Mitchell is needed. But Eaves struck a defensive posture in describing the county’s efforts.

“The rate of criminal recidivism remains a major issue and a major concern for my office,” he said, noting the county and city agencies are studying the “root causes” of crime in a Smart Justice Initiative. “… Our county is not an impediment to that effort but is addressing it every day.”

Fulton Commissioner Robb Pitts also applauded the call for collaboration.

“Finger-pointing and finger-pointing and finger-pointing does not solve anything … we’re all in it together,” he said.

Both the mayor and Pitts said it’s too early to know what would be entailed in using the city jail, but Pitts said he believes the purchase of the jail should be considered. County leaders are already in talks to purchase the Union City facility.

The county was once ordered by a U.S. district court judge to purchase the Atlanta City Jail. That deal fell through when Reed called for an appraisal of the center, resulting in the asking price jumping from $40 million to $85 million. At the time, Reed said the price increase reflected a fair market value.

In addition to combating recidivism, Reed again discussed his plans to pursue a bond referendum worth up to $250 million to combat a $900 million backlog in infrastructure needs in 2015. But first, the mayor will appoint a blue-ribbon panel to help identify savings that will pay for the project, he said. Reed pledged to not raise property taxes to fund the effort to repair roads, sidewalks, potholes, traffic lights and more.

Reed also said he will focus on improving the Atlanta Public Schools and suggested the city should set a goal to help all poor, but academically qualified students attend college through private philanthropy. Reed pointed to a similar model in Kalamazoo, Mich. schools.

“I am going to try to build the support in the philanthrophic community to make sure that people who graduate in Atlanta Public Schools have the opportunity to go to the college they can get into,” he said after the ceremony.

Reed and the majority of the council are returning to the posts they held prior to last November’s election, but Monday’s event marks the official entrance of Mary Norwood and Andre Dickens as citywide council members. Norwood held the Post 2 seat for two terms beginning in 2002 before running against Reed in the 2009 mayoral race. She defeated former Councilman Aaron Watson for her current seat, while Dickens bested former Councilman H. Lamar Willis for the job.