Real Estate Broker Clarifies He is Not the Developer of 500 Acres on Lake Hartwell

An Atlanta commercial real estate broker says he is not the developer of some 500 acres off I-85 that could one day be the site of a mix-use development that would include a casino resort.

Rick Lackey is the owner of Atlanta-based City Commercial Real Estate.

In an interview with WLHR News, Lacky clarified that he is the broker for dozens of commercial property listings in Georgia.

Lackey emphasized he is not the developer but has the exclusive listing for the property and is marketing the site to potential developers, particularly those companies who might want to put in a casino resort.

Lackey confirmed to WLHR News Friday that he is “working with several large well-known casino operators who are genuinely interested in the location.”

However, there is no lease agreement in place, as stated in a recent Capitol Beat News article.

Lackey indicated he has multiple sites listed where a casino resort could go in, including sites in counties south of Hart and Franklin counties on I-85.

A complete listing of potential sites in Georgia that Lackey is representing can be found on his web site at: citycre.com.

But whether a casino resort goes in on the 500 acres on Lake Hartwell, or anywhere in this area for that matter, depends on a number of significant factors.

First, the passing in the General Assembly of House Resolution 30, which is currently still in the Georgia House this session.

If passed in the General Assembly, the Resolution would put a referendum before the voters in November 2022 asking them whether they wanted to create a Constitutional amendment that would allow a limited number of casino resorts in the State.

And if that passed, then a local referendum would also have to go before the voters in both Franklin and Hart counties as the property in question sits in both counties.

That would have to pass before any plans on developing the site on Lake Hartwell could move forward – that caveat was written into HR30 by State Representative Alan Powell, one of the co-sponsors of the resolution.

And after all of that, the developer, whoever that might be, would then have to go before both the Hart and Franklin County Commissions and get approval and possibly even the City of Lavonia for water and sewer infrastructure approval.

The entire process to even begin construction on any kind of development on that property could take years.

As of Friday, House Resolution30 has had a second read in the State House on January 28 but has not yet moved any further.