ALBANY, GA -
Some Albany city commissioners say taxpayers aren't getting our money's worth from an office that's supposed to help small businesses get government contracts. Today they voted not to renew a $100,000 contract with the Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center.
Mayor Dorothy Hubbard along with Commissioners Christopher Pike and Jon Howard voted not to renew the contract today, saying there may be cheaper ways to help small businesses.
The city staff recommended Albany city commissioners renew a contract with the Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center to manage a small business program designed to help local companies land government contract jobs.
The contract renewal would cost the city $100,000 but commissioners voted 3-2 not to renew the contract.
"I just want to make sure that the money that we're spending, we're getting a good return on our investment. From what I've seen thus far, a lot of the stuff that's been done by Georgia Tech, we've already been doing or we have policies in place, so I don't really see a great benefit for the $100,000 that we've spent," said Pike.
Some Albany taxpayers were happy with the decision. "When they first came on Board with the city we told them without any criteria to ensure black business participation, then results would be zero and that's what happened. So why give them another $100,000?" said President of the Economic Development Corporation William Wright.
William Wright says the program has done nothing to ensure local Black owned businesses won contract bids and even call the program a joke.
"Just go ahead and make $100,000 donation to Georgia Tech if they want to, but to try to disguise it and say you're helping black businesses is a joke," said Wright.
Pike just wants to make sure the right decision is made. "I think there are other entities here in Albany that can probably do the same thing and there are other entities that are doing the same work that Georgia Tech is doing that we can probably get at a discount rate or at a minimum keep the money in Albany."
This was a preliminary vote. It won't become official until commissioners take another vote in two weeks. Commissioners Bob Langstaff and Ivey Hines were absent this morning, so it's possible their votes could change the outcome.
The city began partnering with the Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center in August 2010 after pulling out of the office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization it operated with the county. That office eventually shut down.
Copyright 2012 WALB. All rights reserved.
Commissioner Christopher Pike
Chuck Shadl of the GT Center advocated for the contract at a meeting of the City Commission work session
President of the Economic Development Corporation, William Wright.
