§ 2-455. Powers

The authority shall have all of the powers necessary or convenient to carry out and effectuate the purposes and provisions set forth in this law including, but without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the power:

(1) To sue and be sued;

(2) To adopt and amend a corporate seal;

(3) To make and execute contracts and other instruments necessary to exercise the power of the authority. Such contracts may be made with the county or may be made with one or more municipal corporations in the county, or may be made with the county and a single municipal corporation or multiple municipal corporations of the county. The county and all such municipalities are hereby authorized to enter into contracts with the authority. The authority may also contract with private legal entities or persons;

(4) To receive and administer gifts, grants and devices of any property and to administer trusts;

(5) To acquire by purchase, gift or construction any real or personal property desired to be acquired as a part of any project or for the purpose of improving, extending, adding to, reconstructing, renovating or remodeling any project or part thereof already acquired, or for the purpose of demolition to make room for such project or any part thereof;

(6) To sell, lease, exchange, transfer, assign, pledge, mortgage or dispose of, or grant options for any such purposes, any real or personal property or interest therein;

(7) To mortgage, convey, pledge or assign any properties revenues, income, tolls, charges or fees owned or received by the authority;

(8) To issue revenue obligations for the purpose of providing funds for carrying out the purpose of the authority;

(9) To appoint officers and retain agents, engineers, attorneys, fiscal agents, accountants and employees and to provide their compensation and duties;

(10) To acquire or damage property through the exercise of the right of eminent domain for public purposes; and to acquire by purchase, gift or lease any property owned by the city or county which has been acquired or damaged through the exercise of the right of eminent domain by the city or county; provided that said authority shall acquire such properties or damages such properties through the exercise of such power of eminent domain only in a manner prescribed by law for the exercise of such power by counties and municipalities in the state and only upon payment of just and fair compensation as required by the constitution and laws of this state; provided further that the authority shall not acquire or damage property through the exercise of the right of eminent domain unless the authority is granted prior written approval for such actions by the governing authorities of the city and the county for property located in the county within the corporate limits of the city, or the county for property located in the county but not in the city, or by the Georgia Public Service Commission for property owned by a public utility;

(11) To construct, acquire, own, repair, remodel, maintain, extend, improve and equip projects located on land owned or leased by the authority, and to pay all or part of the cost of any such project from the proceeds of revenue bonds of the authority or from any contribution or loans by persons, firms or corporations, or any other contribution, all of which the authority is hereby authorized to receive and accept and use;

(12) To issue revenue bonds for the purpose of paying all or part of the cost of any project, including the cost of extending, adding to or improving such project, or for the purpose of refunding any such bonds of the authority theretofore issued. Such revenue bonds shall bear interest at the rate or rates and shall mature in the years and amounts as may be determined by the authority and shall otherwise be issued and validated under and in accordance with the applicable provisions of the Revenue Bond Law of the State of Georgia (O.C.G.A. § 36-82-60 et seq.) as heretofore or hereafter amended. As security for the payment of any revenue bonds so authorized, any property, real or personal, of an authority may be pledged, mortgaged, conveyed, assigned, hypothecated or otherwise encumbered and any such authority may execute any trust agreement or indenture containing any provisions not in conflict with law for the security of such bonds, which trust agreement or indenture may provide for foreclosure or forced sale of any property of the authority upon default of such bonds either in payment of principal or interest or upon default in the performance of any term or condition contained in such agreement or indenture. The State of Georgia, in behalf of the state and each county, municipal corporation, political subdivision and taxing district therein, hereby waives any right it or such county, municipal corporation, political subdivision or taxing district may have to prevent the forced sale or foreclosure of any property of the authority so mortgaged or encumbered and any such mortgage or encumbrance may be foreclosed in accordance with law and the terms thereof;

(13) To make or cause to be made studies and analyses of economic changes taking place in the downtown areas of Bibb County and of the impact of metropolitan growth upon those areas;

(14) To prepare a plan or plans for the development and redevelopment of such downtown areas (such plan or plans shall be coordinated with governmental planning boards and agencies but the authority shall have the ultimate responsibility for preparation of such plan or plans);

(15) To implement any general plan of development in the urban, central or downtown areas which have been approved by the county and the municipality in which said development is located, by:

a. Coordinating development and redevelopment by public and private enterprise;

b. Encouraging private development and redevelopment in a manner consistent with the plan;

c. From time to time proposing such revisions in the plan as appear to the authority to be appropriate and in the best interest of the city, consistent with the purposes of this subdivision;

d. Constructing; acquiring, repairing, and operating any public development or project covered by the plan, or coordinating any of the foregoing among other governmental agencies;

e. In coordination with said planning boards, or agencies, develop long-range plans designed to halt the deterioration of property values in the urban, central city and downtown areas, and encourage property owners to implement the plans to the fullest extent possible;

f. To acquire in the best interest of the public, for public purposes only, on such terms and conditions and in such manner as it may deem proper and to own, convey and otherwise dispose of and to lease as lessor and lessee, any land and any other property, real and personal, and any rights and interests therein which it may determine to be reasonably necessary in furtherance of its other powers under this article, and to grant and acquire licenses, easements and options with respect thereto;

g. To improve land, construct, reconstruct, equip, improve, maintain and repair parking facilities, parks, plazas, malls, walkways and other public facilities and any necessary or desirable appurtenances thereto within project areas;

h. To fix, change and collect fees, rents and charges for the use of any project, any part thereof, and any facilities furnished thereby, and of any property under its control, and to pledge such revenue to the payment of revenue bonds issued by it;

(16) To have and exercise any and all of the usual powers of private and public corporation except such as are inconsistent with this subdivision, including the power to adopt and amend bylaws and regulations for the conduct and management of the authority;

(17) To accumulate its funds from year to year and to invest accumulated funds in any manner that public funds of the State of Georgia or any of its political subdivisions may be invested;

(18) To designate officers to sign and act for the authority generally or in any specific matter;

(19) To do any and all acts and things necessary or convenient to accomplish or to complement the purpose and powers of the authority as herein stated.

(1974 Ga. Laws (Act No. 1130), page 3093, § 5; 1976 Ga. Laws (Act No. 1327), page 3950, § 1; 1981 Ga. Laws (Act No. 730), page 4872, § 1)