Plaintiff April Wyatt filed a verified petition for quo warranto and declaratory judgment, naming the city, mayor and city councilmen as defendants. The petition alleged that Wyatt was duly appointed to the board of the College Park Business and Industrial Development Authority “CPBIDA” in 2005; that the only qualification for serving on the CPBIDA is that the member reside within the city limits of College Park for at least six months prior to appointment; that Wyatt met that requirement and that she continues to reside in College Park; that on August 7, 2006, the mayor and city council voted to remove Wyatt from the CPBIDA because she did not reside in Ward 2; that members of the CPBIDA are not required to live in any particular ward; and that the mayor and city council removed Wyatt without just cause and in violation of her right to notice, hearing, and due process. In addition to a writ of quo warranto, Wyatt sought a declaration that the mayor and city council exceeded their authority in removing her and that she should be reinstated as a member of the CPBIDA. Copies of the amendment authorizing creation of the CPBIDA Ga. L. 1980, p. 2071 et seq., the CPBIDA’s bylaws, and the minutes of the meeting at which the city council voted to remove Wyatt were attached to and incorporated in the petition. Defendants answered, denying the material allegations of the petition. They also asserted several affirmative defenses, including failure to join indispensable parties, to wit: the CPBIDA and Valerie Dixon, Wyatt’s successor. Thereafter, Wyatt moved to add the CPBIDA and Dixon as defendants and the motion was granted. In the meantime, the court scheduled a hearing upon Wyatt’s petition for quo warranto. At the conclusion of that hearing, the court entered an order finding that the city did not have cause to remove Wyatt, and that, in any event, it did not give her notice and an opportunity to be heard. The court declared the acts of the mayor and the city council null and void and ordered that Wyatt be restored to her position as a member of the CPBIDA. The court further directed the CPBIDA to enact regulations providing for the removal of its members. This appeal followed. 1. Ga. L. 1980, p. 2071 et seq., sets forth the procedure to appoint members of the CPBIDA and provides that members are to be appointed for a four-year term. It requires members to be residents of the City of College Park for six months prior to their appointment, but does not require them to be residents of a particular ward. In fact, it imposes no additional requirements upon members. The CPBIDA’s bylaws are in sync with that amendment.
Neither the amendment nor the bylaws provide for removal of the CPBIDA’s members without cause. Here, it is undisputed that the only reason given for the removal of Wyatt is that she is not a resident of Ward 2. Thus, it is clear that the City removed Wyatt without cause and that it lacked the power to do so. Hernandez v. Downtown Dev. Auth. , 256 Ga. 356 349 SE2d 449 1986. Simply put, Wyatt was appointed to serve a four year-term; she did not serve at the pleasure of the city and could not be removed at will. Id. at 357.
