Category Archives: Agriculture

Help fix land revaluation: come to Farm Bureau –Board of Equalization

Come to the Farm Bureau in two weeks to hear Tax Assessor staff present their updates and provide your input Contents for changes to the rural land revaluation, this time taking into account rivers, aquifer recharge zones, and uniformity. Maybe the Tax Assessors actually don’t want more flooding in Valdosta; both the City of Valdosta and GA-EDP have already shown interest in attending about that point.

At an appeal on my property valuation, the Board of Equalization stopped short of actually ordering the Tax Assessors to redo last year’s rural land revaluation, because staff volunteered Continue reading →

Comprehensive Plan Update Workshop @ SGRC 2016-03-07

As promised, there is an updated Work Book online, dated February 29, 2016. Title page As Ariel Godwin also promised, the SGRC website says:

The next workshop will be Monday, March 7, 2016, 5:00-7:00 p.m. at the SGRC office, 327 W. Savannah Ave., Valdosta, GA.

It will be interesting to see if this version of the Work Book for the 2016 Greater Lowndes County Comprehensive Plan Update contains any changes about the issues Greg Odom raised last month (22 February 2016) about road paving, trees, and reducing expense to the county. And LAKE will be at the meeting with the video camera.

-jsq

Canopy roads, agriculture, materials? –Greg Odom about Comprehensive Plan Update @ SGRC 2016-02-22

So well attended there weren’t enough handouts, as remarked on by Greg Odom, who later also said the proposed Comprehensive Plan Update didn’t have any plans for canopy roads, or roads on existing rights of way like in Virginia: “For the past 25 years there has not been a healthy attitude about people who want to maintain dirt roads. There has been an attitude of let’s pave everything, and let’s pave it in an outrageous way….”

Last night’s meeting was billed Continue reading →

Videos: Chancy R6M, Stallings Road Cemetery, 4 County cases, one to E-A @ GLPC 2016-01-25

The Lowndes County cases are the ones the County Commission is reviewing this morning in their Work Session. GLPC recommended approval for all of them, with conditions on one, REZ-2016-03 Jacob Eckwahl on US 41 South.

See also the GLPC agenda and the LAKE videos of the 19 Jan 2016 GLPC Work Session. Below are the LAKE videos of the 25 Jan 2016 GLPC Regular Session, followed by a video playlist. Continue reading →

Videos: Chancy R6M, Stallings Road Cemetery, 4 County cases, one to E-A @ GLPC 2016-01-19

Not on the agenda, they started with a public hearing on the Comprehensive Plan. Expecting from the email announcement about the Comprehensive Plan that this would be a typical SGRC tables-and-easels mill-about meeting, I didn’t show up on the dot and was quite surprised to find the Planning Commission and staff in their usual spots. See separate post.

Here are the LAKE videos with some notes, followed by a video playlist. Continue reading →

Chancy R6M, Stallings Road Cemetery, 4 County cases, one to E-A @ GLPC 2016-01-25

The owner of a parcel on US 41 South wants to rezone from R-10 back to Estate Agriculture. That Lowndes County case is the opposite of the Hahira case that wants rezoning from single-family to multi-family, and there are many other cases in between, plus another cemetery case!

Here’s the agenda for Monday’s Regular Session, and also for last Monday’s Work Session, even though it doesn’t say that.

Greater Lowndes Planning Commission
Lowndes County City of Valdosta City of Dasher City of Hahira City of Lake Park
REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING
AGENDA
Lowndes County South Health District Administrative Office
325 West Savannah Avenue
Tuesday, January 25, 2016 * 5:30 P.M. * Public Hearing

Continue reading →

Videos: Heavy Manufacturing politics @ GLPC Special 2016-01-05

Even the Planning Commissioners weren’t told what company “Project Max” is, because the Development Authority is still bidding the location as one of two being considered by the company. See also the agenda the previous update. Planning Commissioners did have quite a few questions about expansion, appropriate zoning, any potential pollution or contamination, etc. Naturally, the Planning Commission recommended approval, so the actual decision will be before the County Commission next Tuesday evening. Meanwhile, here are links to the LAKE videos of the Planning Commission, with a few notes, followed by a video playlist. Continue reading →

Update: Heavy Manufacturing site provided by Langdale @ GLPC Special 2016-01-05

We still don’t know what company might locate on Rocky Ford Road, but we’re told it’s clean, Site location needs water to cool its boiler which will be fired by natural gas, that it rejected Bassford Business Park because of air quality (too near Sterling Chemical?), and we have the location of the new site, which turns out to be on land owned by Langdale Capital Assets, Inc.

Speaking for the rezoning from the Development Authority were Executive Director Andrea Schruijer, Industry Coordinator Stan Crance, and Chairman Tom Call. Every Lowndes County Commissioner was present. When asked how an agenda the same day was enough notice, Lowndes County Planner Jason Davenport said the Special Called Meeting was actually announced in the Valdosta Daily Times last week. Also that the rezoning will only take effect if the Development Authority buys the land first. Gretchen asked a few questions about parking: if the business is going to expand, will there be enough? Someone told Gretchen that the company would have solar power.

We shall see. And you will be able to see this meeting by tomorrow in the LAKE videos Gretchen took. Continue reading →

Heavy Manufacturing rezoning on special called Planning Commission agenda @ GLPC Special 2016-01-05

Update 7:30 PM 5 Jan 2016: The land is owned by Langdale, and why not Bassford Business Park.

Henry Manufacturing (the one in Oregon? Decatur, GA?) on the agenda for a Special Called Meeting of the Planning Commission, just announced today, for 5:30 PM today. Apparently the Development Authority thinks it’s landed a big fish and wants a rezoning for it. Which 134 acres on Rocky Ford Road is not clear: there’s no such size tract according to the Tax Assessors’ map.

Map of properties on Rocky Ford Road

All the large tracts are owned either by Langdale Company or a Langdale investment corporation. Or it could be out of the 219.99 acre tract owned by the Paine Clarence M. Family Trust or the 187.76 acre tract owned by Griffin LLC. As usual, we the taxpayers are left guessing. Tonight at 5:30 PM maybe we’ll find out. -jsq Continue reading →

First Miller Bus. Park occupant: Nature Nate

An organic food company is the first thing it finally lands, after trying for years to lure traditional “industrial” businesses to Miller Business Park, and after the Industrial Authority renamed itself the Development Authority. Well, go real food! And congratulations Development Authority! For more local agriculture, come to South Georgia Growing Local Saturday 26 February 2016 at Pine Grove Middle School.

VALDOSTA AND LOWNDES COUNTY WELCOMES NATURE NATE’S!: NATURE NATE’S CHOOSES VALDOSTA GA FOR NEW HONEY OPERATIONS FACILITY,

Valdosta, Georgia — December 15, 2015—The Valdosta-Lowndes Development Authority (VLCDA) and Nature Nate’s announce the expansion of Nature Nate’s honey processing operations to Valdosta, GA. The project represents a $1.75 million investment, will create 10 jobs immediately and at least 15 jobs after 36 months.

“We welcome Nature Nate’s as our first tenant within Miller Business Park and Continue reading →