Sister of Brooklet Mayor Files Ethics Complaint Against Sitting Councilman

The sister of the Mayor of Brooklet has filed an ethics complaint against a sitting councilman over his ownership of property in the city limits and concerns regarding conflicts of interest.

Becki Hodges filed an ethics complaint against Councilman Brad Anderson after the adoption of changes to the city’s comprehensive plan failed in a 2-3 vote by the city council on Thursday evening.

Comprehensive Plan

A comprehensive plan is a document that serves as a “blueprint” for a local government’s future growth and development. The plan is also utilized by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA) to assist municipalities in obtaining state grant funding. Ultimately, these plans are used to ‘strike a balance’ between preserving a community and accommodating infrastructure needs that match the pace of growth.

Brooklet’s Comprehensive Plan amendments were drafted over several months by city staff and the Coastal Regional Commission while Planning & Zoning members, the general public, and ultimately city council also offered input. 

You can read the entire comprehensive plan which begins on page 6 of the agenda packet.

Press Release from Hodges 

Hodges sent out a press release Saturday morning calling for Anderson’s recusal “from all related matters” and for his resignation. Specifically, Hodges took aim at Anderson’s ownership of eight parcels on Highway 80 and his recent application to rezone one of the parcels from R-1 residential to C-2 Commercial. 

Assertions of Collusion

The vote Thursday night was 2-3 with Anderson and council members Rebecca Kelly and Sheila Wentz voting against the amendment to the plan and council members James Harrison and Keith Roughton supporting the approval of the plan.

Hodges alleged collusion by Anderson, Kelly, and Wentz because more than one member of council voted against the plan. 

She then suggested that the City compromised its standing as a Certified City of Ethics, a designation which comes from the Georgia Municipal Association. The designation from GMA is based solely on whether or not the city has an ethics ordinance. Brooklet’s code of ordinances includes an ethics provision and subsequently, the city’s ethics certification is not at risk. 

Ethical Concerns

Hodges lambasted Anderson in her press release, saying he was applicant in a rezoning case “and a voting councilmember in matters that directly affect his financial interests.” (emphasis added). Hodges cited OCGA 36-67A, a state statute, regarding the requirement of local officials to disclose a zoning interest before taking a vote on a zoning action. 

The adoption of (or failure to adopt) a Comprehensive Plan is not a zoning action as a Comprehensive Plan does not amend the zoning for any actual parcels. The plan simply outlines what types of zoning are permissible for any given parcel. By Hodges’ allegations and interpretation of the statute, no city council person who owns property would be able to vote on the Comprehensive Plan because the plan has the ability to impact every property owner in the city. 

Additionally, according to the City of Brooklet’s ethics ordinance,  an elected official is not prohibited from submitting a zoning application. The practice is quite common when an official is also a landowner in an area that is growing as the zoning process is the lawful way to amend a zoning classification. 

Under both the statute cited and the city’s ethics ordinance, Anderson is not required to recuse himself from the vote until the actual zoning application for a specific parcel comes before the city council. Likewise, he is not required to resign from the city council in order to submit a zoning application. (See Sec 3-5)

As of September 22, Anderson’s zoning application has not come before the city council where he would have the opportunity to recuse himself or cast a vote, so it remains unclear when a violation of the ordinance would have occurred. 

Additionally, contrary to Hodges’ complaint, the application for a rezone request would be subject to the zoning parameters at the time the application was submitted, not any plan which was adopted after the application was submitted. Even if the Comprehensive Plan amendments had been adopted by city council on Thursday, Anderson’s application would be subject to the parameters in place at the time his application was filed. 

Property on Highway 80

Hodges wrote that the ‘professional planning guidance’ did not recommend commercial zoning for the Highway 80 corridor, but worth considering is the current use for properties currently located on Highway 80. 

Much of Highway 80 going into Brooklet from Statesboro is already commercial, with the placement of Ken’s IGA, an Enmarket gas station, Core Credit Union, and a number of other businesses. While there are a number of residential properties mixed in on the ‘west side’ of Highway 80 in Brooklet, a number of other parcels are already zoned commercial or are zoning residential but are operating commercial entities. 

On one side of the highway, twenty have a residential zoning class – of which four are vacant lots, two are zoned residential with commercial businesses operating on them, and five are owned by Anderson. Six of the parcels are zoned C-2 Commercial. On the other side of the highway, eleven parcels are C-2 Commercial, one is the Fire Station, and eleven are R-1 Residential (of which three are vacant lots and three are owned by Anderson).

According to the Bulloch County Tax Assessor records, which are publicly available: 

Starting at Brooklet Crossing shopping center on Highway 80 and Parker Avenue and traveling east, on the left side of the road, the parcels are as follows:

• 17436 Highway 80 E – R-1 zoning but used for commercial property (Brooklet Flower Shop)
• 17396 Highway 80 E – R-1 residential home – owned by Anderson
• 17378 Highway 80 E – R-1 residential home 
• 17200 Highway 80 E – R-1 residential home –  owned by Anderson
• 16994 Highway 80 E – R-1 residential home
• 16980 Highway 80 E – C-2 Commercial – vacant land
• 16962 Highway 80 E – residential home
• 16942 Highway 80 E – residential home
• 16914 Highway 80 E – 0.50 acres – residential home – R-1
• 16898 Highway 80 E – 0.50 acres – R-1 owned by Anderson
• 16880 Highway 80 E – 0.55 acres – R-1 owned by Anderson
• 16862 Highway 80 E – 0.55 acres – R-1 owned by Anderson
• Portion of 115.2 acre open parcel buts up to Hwy 80 – AG-5/R-1 
• 16714 Highway 80 E – residential home 
• 0.46 acre lot – undeveloped with a utility shed – zoned AG-5/R-1
• 0.32 acre lot – undeveloped – zoned AG-5/R-1
• 16602 Highway 80 E – AG-5/R-1 – residential home
• 16500 Highway 80 E – AG-5/C-2 – Convenience store (previously Enmark)
• 16470 Highway 80 E – C-2 Commercial – Warehouse/Storage – 2nd Base Antiques (owned by Southeastern Trade & Auction Co LLC)
• 16446 Highway 80 E – C-2 Commercial – Storage Warehouse (owned by D Brown Enterprises LLC)
• 16430 Highway 80 E – C-2 Commercial – Warehouse/Showroom Store (Antique Store)
• 16394 Highway 80 E – (Grooms)
• 16366 Highway 80 E – residential home 
• 5840 Railroad Bed Road (which butts up to Hwy 80) is a residential parcel with a pre-1900 uninhabitable home 
• 16274 Highway 80 E is zoned AG-5/R-2 but is a commercial property with a warehouse on it
• 16446 Highway 80 E– C-2 Commercial – Warehouse/Showroom Store 
• Cemetery butts up to the end of the city limits – 16198 Highway 80 E 

On the right side of the road traveling east:

• 306 Parker Avenue – residential home faces Parker-  R-1 backs up to Highway 80
• 210 Cone Street – undeveloped lot backs up to Highway 80 – R-1
• 17211 Highway 80 E – residential home R-1 – owned by Anderson
• 305 E. Lane Street – residential home, faces Lee St, backs up to Highway 80
• 1.3 acre vacant parcel at East Lee Street & Highway 80
• 16927 Highway 80 E – residential home – R-1
• 16899 Highway 80 E – residential home – R-1 – owned by Anderson
• 16881 Highway 80 E – residential home – R-1
• 16855 Highway 80 E – residential home – R-1 – owned by Anderson
• 16841 Highway 80 E – Bulloch County Fire Station 
• 8.019 acre undeveloped lot – C-2 commercial
• 16789 Highway 80 E – C-2 Commercial – Ward’s Service Garage 
• 16753 Highway 80 E – C-2 Commercial – Service garage
• 16739 Highway 80 E – R-1 residential home
• 434 Highway 80 E – 2.41 acres vacant land – zoned C-2
• 16643 Highway 80 E – C-2 Commercial – Dollar General
• 1.04 acre lot – vacant land zoned C-2
• 16583 Highway 80 E – residential home, but parcel zoned C-2
• 16517 Highway 80 E – empty commercial building, zoned C-2
• 16497 Highway 80 E – Commercial property zoned C-2
• 16421 Highway 80 E – zoning is AG-5/LI/C-2/FH – pre-1900 home considered undeveloped land (2.1 acres)
• 16441 Highway 80 E – zoned C-2 commercial – currently a service garage
• End of city limits 

Ethics Complaint Process

Ethics complaints in Brooklet are filed with the clerk of the municipal court. The complaint is then considered by the municipal court judge – Joey Cowart, who can conduct an investigation, collect additional evidence, and hold hearings on the complaint itself to hear from both parties. If a judge determines the complaint to be founded, a recommendation is provided to the city council which may publicly reprimand the officials or request their resignation. They cannot order the city official to resign.

Hodges Has Been Vocal Opponent of Anderson

Hodges is no stranger to Anderson, having posted photos of his businesses on social media with disparaging remarks as recently as last year. She was also a vocal opponent of city staff after grievances were filed against her brother, Mayor Nicky Gwinnett, for creating a hostile work environment. In those instances, Anderson and other council members were proponents of ensuring Gwinnett did not exceed his authority in the day to day operations with city employees. 

In 2024, when Gwinnett was ordered by the city attorney – at the direction of city council – to halt operations in conflict with the city’s zoning ordinances, Hodges took to social media to defend his stance. Gwinnett sued the city over his ability to operate an industrial business on a property zoned R-1 residential. In his dispute, Gwinnett sought to change the zoning to C-2 Commercial, which still did not permit the industrial business, so he continued to operate his business without a zoning change. The standoff with the city resulted in a lawsuit brought by Gwinnett. 

TheGeorgiaVirtue.com will continue to follow this story as it unfolds.