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Bernhard Capital Partners pitched a proposal to operate the Public Works Commission for 30 years. Former Councilwoman Tisha Waddell says the mayor should have been more transparent about those negotiations with the City Council.

Untangling the twists behind a proposal to leverage the PWC for 30 years

Fayetteville Councilwoman Tisha Waddell resigned abruptly in November, alleging that Mayor Mitch Colvin withheld information from the council in an attempt to bring in a private equity firm to operate the PWC.

Resigned from the City Council in November, leaving a five-page letter containing allegations against Mayor Mitch Colvin and others.

Mayor Mitch Colvin

Tisha Waddell accuses him of withholding information about the Bernhard Capital proposal to operate the PWC from her and the Fayetteville City Council. Colvin calls her allegations baseless.

Steve Benjamin

The former South Carolina mayor was working with Bernhard Capital Partners and joined Jonathan Charleston's law firm.

Jonathan Charleston

The city bond attorney who held a fundraiser for Mayor Mitch Colvin at his home. The guests included representatives from Bernhard Capital Partners. Charleston tried to garner support for the Bernhard deal.

Randy Gregory

The Fayetteville lawyer says former Sen. Tony Rand told him on his deathbed to promise him that he would see the Bernhard deal through.

The resignation letter

In mid-November of 2021, Tisha Waddell had become so frustrated with what she calls a lack of transparency and a failure to follow policies and protocol that she resigned abruptly from the Fayetteville City Council. In her wake, she left a five-page resignation letter containing broad and unspecific allegations, many pertaining to Mayor Mitch Colvin and the proposed deal with Bernhard Capital Partners.

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Note to the mayor

At the end of a heavily redacted document dated May 15, 2020, from Jeffrey Jenkins to Mayor Mitch Colvin titled “City of Fayetteville - Proposal for a Concession Agreement,” Jenkins wrote by hand: “Mayor Colvin, 11 copies of this proposal are within the envelopes. Let’s get to work.” (Page 7)

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How much the proposed deal was worth

Bernhard’s proposed agreement with the city and the PWC would provide upfront money and benefits totaling more than $750 million to have Bernhard operate and maintain the PWC for 30 years and to pay off PWC's debt. The money would be used to repair the city’s ailing infrastructure. (Page 13)

View this set of documents

Part 2

Waddell says she’ll apologize if her allegations prove unfounded

Former Councilwoman Tisha Waddell alleges that Mayor Mitch Colvin and city bond attorney Jonathan Charleston privately pushed for a concession agreement with Bernhard Capital Partners. She says the council should have been more involved.