LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga. — There is more fallout from the latest scandal to hit Gwinnett County. The firm that wants to bring commercial flights to Briscoe Field now wants Tuesday's scheduled vote tabled.
CEO Brett Smith said Propeller Airports' plan to privatize the county's airport shouldn't be decided under an ethics cloud.
Last week, Commissioner Shirley Lasseter pleaded guilty to federal bribery charges for taking bribes in exchange for voting to rezone land.
According to investigators, that land was going to be used to build a pawn shop which was going to be used as a front to launder money and narcotics.
Lasseter's son, John Fanning, who served on the zoning board, and another man, Carl "Skip" Cain, were also charged in the scandal.
Now, Smith said the proposal to privatize Briscoe Field should be tabled and not left for the commission to decide.
"To allow the people to vote, to allow the people to decide," Smith said. "Just post it online. Give people a chance to see it. I have always said that," Smith said.
The county Department of Transportation has recommended the board to reject the plan.
The decision to vote came one day after Lasseter abruptly resigned. Smith said the 200,000 people she represented now don't have a seat at the table.
"Briscoe will put people back to work. It will grow the economy," Smith said.
The airport expansion has face powerful opposition, some coming from residents in nearby neighborhoods.
"If you want to build an airport, you go someplace there is no community," said homeowner Larry Yates. He is also part of the group Citizens for a Better Gwinnett.
Yates said the people have been served and he trusts the commissioners will make the best decision.
"Hopefully we'll be able to get a wooden stake and put it through the heart of this beast so we don't have to go through this again," Yates said.
"People in Dacula and Lawrenceville have more to gain from this than anybody," Smith said.
Channel 2's Kerry Kavanaugh has watched the debate shape up over the past couple months. As it appears now, the vote could come down 2-2. In that event, it would die.
Kavanaugh reached out to the county and asked if they will consider tabling the vote. A representative said they could, but that will be decided Tuesday.