Category Archives: Lowndes County Commission

Packet: Raise waste collection rates, appointments to 3 boards, crop sprayer for wastewater hayfield @ LCC 2023-04-10

It’s back: the
Howell Road halfway house rezoning,
after being tabled last time,
waiting for a full Commission.
The Lowndes County Commission will vote on it tomorrow evening at 5:30 PM.

All the same opposition letters and petition signatures are included in the board packet.
Staff still recommends approval, although the Planning Commission recommended denial by 7:3.


[Collage, LCC Packet 2023-04-10]

Collage, LCC Packet 2023-04-10

The Letter of Intent from Redeemed Living includes this:
“Redeemed Residents are required to maintain full time
employment, attend weekly recovery meetings, and become an active member at a
Church of their choosing.”
Is that establishment of religion? Continue reading →

Videos: James Road rezoning and three water projects @ LCC 2023-03-14

The contentious James Road rezoning passed by 3:2, on March 14, 2023.
After speakers for and against, and questions from Lowndes County Commissioners,
Commissioner Clay Griner made the motion, and Commissioner Mark Wisenbaker seconded.
They and Commissioner Scottie Orenstein voted in favor.
Commissioners Joyce Evans and Demarcus Marshall voted against.


[Collage @ LCC 14 March 2023]

Collage @ LCC 14 March 2023

Everything else passed unanimously, including the $1.2 million for three water projects,
two for subdivisions with golf clubs,
and the most expensive one to run a watermain up Val Del Road,
enticing more subdivisions up that way.

Cost What
$980,051.00 Val-Del Water Main Extension
$225,910.30 Francis Lake Sewer Rehab
$26,585.50 Kinderlou Offsite Well Emergency Repair
$1,232,546.80 Total

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item,
with a few notes by Gretchen Quarterman,
followed by a LAKE video playlist.

See also Continue reading →

Packet: James Road rezoning and three water projects @ LCC 2023-03-13

Update 2023-04-04:
Videos: James Road rezoning and three water projects @ LCC 2023-03-14.

The board packet for the March 13 and 14, 2023, sessions of the Lowndes County Commission is
on the LAKE website,
received in response to a LAKE open records request.


[Collage, Board Packet, LCC 2023-03-13]

Collage, Board Packet, LCC 2023-03-13

It is still mysterious why the county does not put its board packets on its own website.
Under Agenda Center
for each County Commission agenda there is even a pulldown slot for “Packet”.
That currently has only the agenda and the one-page agenda sheets.
There is no reason it could not instead have the PDF of the entire board packet.

See also the
LAKE videos of the Regular Session,
the
LAKE videos of the Work Session,
the
agenda,
the minutes,
and the preceding Planning Commission meeting.

-jsq

Investigative reporting costs money, for open records requests, copying, web hosting, gasoline, and cameras, and with sufficient funds we can pay students to do further research. You can donate to LAKE today!


http://www.l-a-k-e.org/blog/donate

Videos: Howell Road Halfway House tabled @ LCC Regular 2023-03-28

Update 2023-04-10: Packet: Raise waste collection rates, appointments to 3 boards, crop sprayer for wastewater hayfield @ LCC 2023-04-10.

As suggested by Commissioner Mark Wisenbaker yesterday,
the rezoning was tabled until the next Lowndes County Commission meeting:

6.a. REZ-2022-10 The Campus Transitional Care Facility, 2193 Howell Road.
It was tabled before the Public Hearing,
so I would guess that means they have to send out notice again for a Public Hearing.
The motion to table was by Commissioner Wisenbaker, second by Commissioner Scottie Orenstein,
and it passed unanimously by the four voting Commissioners present.
Commissioner Clay Griner was not there, which was the purpose of tabling:
wait until all five Commissioners are there.

Interestingly, most of the people who came for the Howell Road public hearing stayed to the end. They didn’t leave when the item was tabled. This was very unusual.


[Collage @ LCC 28 March 2023]

Collage @ LCC 28 March 2023

The

Land Bank Authority appointment
was also tabled until the first meeting in April, due to lack of nominations.

Everything else passed unanimously.

On the waste collection franchises by Continue reading →

Packet: Howell Road rezoning, Trash colleciton centers, Windstream Broadband map @ LCC 2023-03-27

Update 2023-03-30:
Videos: Howell Road Halfway House tabled @ LCC Regular 2023-03-28.

The Lowndes County Commission board packet for this week’s meetings
contains no letters supporting the Howell Road halfway house rezoning.
It does contain eleven opposition letters plus 31 pages of opposition petition signatures,
which at about a dozen a page comes to somewhere around 372 signatures.
Commissioners will decide tomorrow evening at 5:30 PM,
after a Public Hearing.


[Howell Road rezoning, Trash colleciton centers, Windstream Broadband map @ LCC Packet 2023-03-27]

Howell Road rezoning, Trash colleciton centers, Windstream Broadband map @ LCC Packet 2023-03-27

The packet, received in response to a LAKE open records request,
is
on the LAKE website.

See also

the agenda
and
the LAKE videos of this morning’s Work Session.

-jsq

Investigative reporting costs money, for open records requests, copying, web hosting, gasoline, and cameras, and with sufficient funds we can pay students to do further research. You can donate to LAKE today!


http://www.l-a-k-e.org/blog/donate

Videos: Howell Road Halfway House @ LCC Work 2023-03-27

Update 2023-03-27:
Packet: Howell Road rezoning, Trash colleciton centers, Windstream Broadband map @ LCC 2023-03-27.

Commissioner Wisenbaker asked this morning whether they could table

6.a. REZ-2022-10 Campus Transitional Care Facility 2193 Howell Road, E-A to P-D.
He was concerned that Commissioner Clay Griner will not be present,
so once again the Chairman may have to break a tie,
as happened last year in the vote that they later had to rescind
because they did not give proper notice of the Public Hearing.

Answer from Chairman Bill Slaughter and the Attorney:
yes, Commissioners can move and vote to table.

Does this mean they’ve all already made up their minds before
they even listen to the Public Hearing tomorrow evening?


[Collage @ LCC 27 March 2023]

Collage @ LCC 27 March 2023

Both DSS and

ADS asked for a trash pickup fee increase from $20 to $25/month,
and deposit center hours changed from 7AM to 7PM to 8AM to 6PM.
According to the Chairman, those things will not change yet,
rather they will be addressed in the retreat.
Also,
Deep South Sanitation has 6,900 customers and Advanced Disposal Services has 9,000.

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item,
with a few notes by Gretchen Quarterman,
followed by a LAKE video playlist.

See also

the agenda and agenda sheets. Continue reading →

Agenda: Howell Road Halfway House @ LCC 2023-03-27

Update 2023-03-27:
Packet: Howell Road rezoning, Trash colleciton centers, Windstream Broadband map @ LCC 2023-03-27.

Update 2023-03-27:
Videos: Howell Road Halfway House @ LCC Work 2023-03-27.

The controversial halfway house on Howell Road
is back for its final Public Hearing Tuesday evening, with review this morning at 8:30 AM.


[Agenda, The Campus @ LCC 2023-03-27]

Agenda, The Campus @ LCC 2023-03-27

$22 million is a lot of money, but almost all of it is incoming grant funds.

Cost What
$21,853,779.00 A New Headquarters for Second Harvest of South Georgia
$116,286.00 PowerPhone Emergency Medical Dispatch with CAD Integration
$86,266.00 Acceptance of the FY2023 VAWA Continuation Grant Award
$500.00 Lowndes County DUI Court Technology Supplemental Grant Award
$250.00 Adult Accountability Court Technology Supplemental Grant Award
$22,057,081.00 Total

Here is

the agenda.
The agenda sheets from the county’s website are also

on the LAKE website.

We do not have the board packet because I didn’t send the GORA request until this morning.
LAKE will publish it after we get it.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

PROPOSED AGENDA

WORK SESSION, MONDAY, MARCH 27, 2023, 8:30 a.m.

REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, MARCH 28, 2023, 5:30 p.m.

327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

Continue reading →

Videos: Contentious James Road rezoning @ LCC Work 2023-03-13

This wasn’t even the Public Hearing, which is tomorrow evening.
The Lowndes County Commissioners themselves were trying to make sense
of

the James Road rezoning.
Commissioner Demarcus Marshall wanted to know how many floors the current zoning allows,
and whether Smith Road would be improved.
Two floors and the county has no plans to modify Smith Road at this time.


[Collage @ LCC 13 March 2023]

Collage @ LCC 13 March 2023

Commissioner Mark Wisenbaker wanted to know when James Road got widened.
The County Planner said, “prior to 2008, for sure.”
The County Manager said, “about fifteen years ago.”
Actually, that widening started on February 16, 2009, which is 14 years ago.
The County Manager later did produce the date of 2009;
apparently the County Attorney looked that up.

The widening happened because of the proposed-in-2007 but-never-built Continue reading →

Videos: One rezoning each, Valdosta and Lowndes County @ GLPC 2023-02-27

It took the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC)
about an hour to consider the Valdosta and Lowndes County rezonings.
Each case had quite a few citizen speakers and much Commissioner discussion.

The

one Lowndes County case got a 6:2 recommendation to deny.
It will be decided by the Lowndes County Commission tomorrow evening, March 14, 2023.

The

one Valdosta case got a unanimous recommendation to approve.
It was decided by

the Valdosta Mayor and Council on March 9th.


[Collage @ LCC 27 February 2023]

Collage @ LCC 27 February 2023

Below are LAKE videos of each agenda item,
followed by a LAKE video playlist.

See also the

agenda and the board packet materials for the Valdosta item.
And the
board packet materials for the Lowndes County rezoning
that the county got around to sending the day after the GLPC meeting are

linked into the agenda post for the deciding Lowndes County Commission meeting.

Here’s

a LAKE video playlist:



Videos: One rezoning each, Valdosta and Lwondes County @ GLPC 2023-02-27

Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC), Regular Session, February 27, 2023, Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, .

Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE).

-jsq

Investigative reporting costs money, for open records requests, copying, web hosting, gasoline, and cameras, and with sufficient funds we can pay students to do further research. You can donate to LAKE today!


http://www.l-a-k-e.org/blog/donate

Firefighters grant, Madison Highway rezoning, Webster Street purchase, Wild Adventures expansion, Peterson Road Sewer Main Open Cut @ LCC Regular 2023-02-14

Nobody spoke for or against the one rezoning,

6.a. REZ-2023-02 Thomas Property, Madison Hwy, R-1 to R-A, ~10 acres,
which passed unanimously.
Everything else also passed unanimously.


[Collage @ LCC 14 February 2023]

Collage @ LCC 14 February 2023

There was one

Citizen Wishing To Be Heard,
but it never became clear what
Karen Carlisle was talking about, nor who “we” was on behalf of which she was asking.

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item,
with a few notes by Gretchen Quarterman,
followed by a LAKE video playlist.

See also Continue reading →