With plans in the works for the construction of a new multiuse baseball stadium on a prominent, blighted parcel in the South Broad District, one lobbying firm has a client list that includes the team, the landowners and the city of Chattanooga.
The Tennessee Ethics Commission maintains a database of registered lobbyists in the state and their clients. It shows Todd Womack, CEO of Bridge Public Affairs, represents the city, the Chattanooga Lookouts and Perimeter Properties, the company that owns the former U.S. Pipe/Wheland Foundry site where the stadium will occupy several acres.
Hamilton County Mayor Weston Wamp, who has been a vocal skeptic of the stadium, argues this poses a conflict of interest.
“The conflict of interest seems obvious given that there are three parties to this deal: Taxpayers, developers and the Lookouts,” Wamp said in a phone call. “This one firm represents all of them. … I think it’s very difficult to represent the best interests of taxpayers while also advocating for as much taxpayer money as you could possibly get, which is what the developers and Lookouts are doing.”
In a phone call, Womack said this does not constitute a conflict of interest. The stadium is just one of a series of efforts the firm is working on for the city, and the company has publicly disclosed all its clients. City Mayor Tim Kelly’s office, the Lookouts and Perimeter Properties all support the stadium, he noted.