One long-running lawsuit against Brookhaven has come to a close.
According to a release from Brookhaven, the Georgia Supreme Court has chosen not to review an appeal filed by the Ardent Companies, LLC, and residents Jon and Courtney Wheeler regarding a controversial land deal.
Ardent accused the city of obstructing the rezoning and putting a $3 million price tag on the land despite never having it appraised. The real estate company claimed Brookhaven tried to get three acres out of the deal for its public safety building. The city later chose a different parcel for the public safety building.
Ardent failed to build a mixed-use development in 2018, claiming the city of Brookhaven tried to make them “pay to play” for land.
On March 7, 2022, a jury found the city purposefully obstructed the progress of the redevelopment project, ordering Brookhaven to pay an estimated $6.7 million to Ardent and the Wheelers. Former Brookhaven Mayor John Ernst and City Manager Christian Sigman were also ordered to pay $200,000 each in punitive damages.
However, in 2023, the Georgia Court of Appeals decided the Ardent Companies and the Wheelers failed to prove essential elements of their claims against the city.
Finally, on Jan. 5 of this year, the Georgia Supreme Court denied Ardent’s petition for certiorari, allowing the Georgia Court of Appeals’ decision to stand.
“That ruling affirmed that the City of Brookhaven, former Mayor John Ernst Jr., and City Manager Christian Sigman were legally protected under Georgia law and committed no actionable wrongdoing,” the city’s release said. “With the Supreme Court declining further review, all remaining claims are now conclusively resolved.”
Former Brookhaven Mayor John Ernst, who was named individually in the lawsuit, welcomed the court’s decision.
“The Supreme Court of Georgia validated what I, and the rest of the city council, knew all along,” Ernst said, according to the release. “We acted solely in the best interests of the citizens of Brookhaven, followed the law, and committed no wrongdoing. I am grateful this matter is finally and definitively closed,” Ernst said.
