Columbus City Council voted unanimously at a Wednesday special-call meeting to hire an attorney to negotiate with landowner Scott Ferguson for the return of the former Gilmer Inn property.
The meeting, held by Zoom, was entirely in executive session. After the meeting, Mayor Keith Gaskin told The Dispatch the council voted 4-0 to hire attorney Amanda Meadows to spearhead its effort to rescind the sale contract of the old Gilmer site.
Hiring Meadows to negotiate with Ferguson is necessary because City Attorney Jeff Turnage has a conflict of interest. A fellow attorney at his firm, Mitchell, McNutt and Sams, represents Ferguson’s LLCs.
Last week the council found Ferguson in breach of contract, the same week he listed the site for sale for $950,000.
When Ferguson bought the property from the city in 2021 for $270,000, the purchase contract included plans for a pair of two-story buildings that would house the Financial Concepts office, other retail space and apartments, along with 50 parking spaces. Citing a reported $7 million cost to build that development — seven times what he initially intended to invest — Ferguson in June asked for permission to build a downsized plan with a single two-story building on about one-third of the site.
Not only must the council consent to any changes in the contract, but because the property is in the Downtown Historic District, the Historic Preservation Commission must also approve any plans.
At the time Ferguson said he was happy to sit on the property, noting he could “hold it for the long term” if he was unable to reach an agreement with the council.
In 2021 the city sold the property to Ferguson for $270,000, and Gaskin said the city wants to essentially refund the money and take the property back.
“If he is not interested in going back to his original plan or modifying it to a point the council can approve it then we want to buy it back,” Gaskin said. “If he is not inclined to do that, we will look at our other options.”
Gaskin said the city doesn’t particularly want the property back, and he hopes it can be quickly sold if it ends up in the council’s hands again.
Gaskin said the city hopes the matter can be resolved without resorting to legal action, but the dispute may end up in Lowndes County Chancery Court if an agreement cannot be reached.
There is not a reverter clause in the sale contract, Gaskin said, so the city can’t just take the property back.
Meadows, who also works for the city as a public defender, did not return a Dispatch phone call seeking comment by press time.
Ferguson, when contacted by The Dispatch, declined to comment on the negotiations.
Brian Jones is the local government reporter for Columbus and Lowndes County.
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