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Augusta commission unanimously asks Coliseum Authority to keep 'James Brown Arena' name, seeks legal review
Summary
Commissioners demanded answers from the Augusta Coliseum Authority about reports the planned $250 million arena’s name could be changed; the commission asked legal staff to review documents and drafted a solidarity letter urging retention of the James Brown name.
Augusta Richmond County commissioners on June 3 voted unanimously to request a letter of solidarity and to ask the county’s legal staff to review records after commissioners said they learned the Colosseum Authority may be considering removing “James Brown” from the new arena’s name.
The motion followed lengthy remarks from Commissioner Alvin Mason, who said the name “James Brown Arena” was central to the referendum that voters approved in November 2021 and to outreach that helped secure approval for a $250 million sales-tax funded bond. “This is the bill of goods that was sold to this community,” Mason said, showing a Colosseum Authority video and campaign materials he said prominently used the James Brown name.
Mason and other commissioners said the Coliseum Authority’s marketing emphasized James Brown as the centerpiece of the planned entertainment complex and that the name was essential to winning public support for the bond. “We were voting for the JBA, not the NAH,” Commissioner Brandon Garrett said, using the commonly used James Brown Arena acronym.
Commissioners asked the county attorney to review the funding documents and any agreements between the county and the Coliseum Authority. County counsel said he would review “the documents between the Colosseum Authority and Augusta on the funding of this project” and incorporate any legal findings into the draft letter the attorney will prepare.
The commission’s motion called for a letter of solidarity from the governing body to the Colosseum Authority stating that the commission did not authorize removing James Brown’s name and asking the authority to explain any proposed changes. The commission’s attorney agreed to draft the letter and to include a summary of relevant legal documents when presenting it. The commission then voted; the clerk recorded the motion as carried unanimously by members present.
No formal legal action was filed at the meeting; commissioners asked staff to provide written findings and a draft letter. Commissioners requested a report on whether any agreements or public representations tied the use of James Brown’s name to the sale or use of the bond proceeds.
