Raphael Warnock and his church accused of evicting low-income tenants

ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) - Maceo Fletcher lives in the building next to the Columbia Tower near downtown Atlanta.

“The conditions are pretty well kept,” he said.

He was there when Republican candidate for U.S. Senate Herschel Walker spoke to the media Tuesday, claiming Sen. Raphael Warnock played a role in sending out eviction notices to several people for non-payment. Fletcher said the supporters and community members standing behind Walker did not look familiar.

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“That’s the first time they ever been in this neighborhood their whole life,” he said.

“Ebenezer Baptist Church owns this property and his name is in the filing,” said Walker.

Walker claims he offered to help tenants come up with back rent.

“You see this weather right now and you have a senator who wants to put people out. Where in Matthew 25 does it say that you can evict people who are struggling?” asked Walker.

Sen. Warnock’s team sent the following statement:

“Once again, Herschel Walker and his allies are deliberately misleading Georgians about Reverend Warnock and now going so far as to attack his church, the spiritual home of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Independent reporting has affirmed that there have been no evictions at the property and that Reverend Warnock has nothing to do with its day-to-day operations.”

Warnock’s team said although evictions may have been filed, they were not carried out.

“I haven’t seen anyone evicted at all physically,” said Fletcher.

Fletcher said he does not support Walker and believes this building and its people, are being used.

“The residents, the backdrop, the neighborhood, the whole thing, making people think he’s for something he’s not for,” said Fletcher.

Atlanta News First spoke with a representative from Columbia Residential who said the company has not evicted anyone since 2020. Of the 12 notices/filings referenced, only two resulted in full evictions. Those were due to the tenants passing away. Columbia Residential also sent a statement:

“For years, Columbia Tower at MLK Village has sought to provide affordable, stable housing for persons coming out of homelessness and Georgians with disabilities and mental illness, so they can live independently and contribute to the Atlanta community. We are proud to continue to do that work to support residents at Columbia Tower and ensure Georgians can remain in the communities they call home.”

At Tuesday’s press conference, Walker also admitted to writing a $700 check to a former partner in 2009 but has denied he knew it was for an abortion.

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