Category Archives: Transportation

Solar Panels at Daytona International Speedway

Even FPL is doing solar power now, as evidenced by these pictures John Horton sent back from Daytona yesterday. Front gate So, FPL, how about cancel Sabal Trail and help the sun rise faster on the Sunshine State?

Kelly Pickerel, Solar Power World, 19 February 2016, Three solar canopies complete at Daytona International Speedway, Continue reading

Videos: Health appointment, 7 rezonings, abandonment, Soil Erosion, Wastewater, and alcohol @ LCC 2016-12-12

Bill Branham’s Copeland Road development got six minutes of discussion, the longest in yesterday morning’s Work Session, with others of the seven rezonings also getting discussion, plus, surprisingly, the proposed VOCA grant, because the outgoing DA spoke. They vote tonight at 5:30 PM. I would like to compliment the Commissioners on asking questions and having discussion in the Work Session. Even ever-silent Joyce Evans spoke up about the MIDS on-call bus system grant re-application.

They’re going to reappoint Dr. Randy Smith to the Board of Health. Chairman Bill Slaughter said: “Inside your packets you have a letter from Dr. Grove supporting Dr. Smith.”

But we the citizens, taxpayers, and recipients of health care didn’t get to see that letter. The Chairman went on to recommend Dr. Smith, and I thank him for making that recommendation in public where we could all see and hear it. Dr. Smith is probably a fine board member: that’s not the point. The point is if the public could see these things they might have useful input, not to mention it’s the public’s business the Commission is doing. Similarly Commissioners had a quarterly financial report “before you”, but the public couldn’t see it. If tiny Effingham County can publish its County Commission packets, mighty Lowndes County could to it, too.

Below are links to each of the LAKE videos, with Continue reading

Health appointment, 7 rezonings, abandonment, Soil Erosion, Wastewater, and alcohol @ LCC 2016-12-12

Longest agenda in recent memory, for this morning’s Work Session and tomorrow evening’s Regular Session of the Lowndes County Commission.

For the rezonings, see also the LAKE videos of the preceding Planning Commission meeting. For the abandonment of unopened right of way on Avenue I, see the LAKE videos of last month’s Lowndes County 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!

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2016, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2016, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

Continue reading

Parking and PELUC @ ZBOA 2016-11-01

5847 De Osta Drive, Lake Park, GA 2:30 PM today: parking on a triangular lot in Lake Park and a variance to re-establish a mobile home in Valdosta make a light agenda for the decision-making Zoning Board of Appeals.

Valdosta – Lowndes County Zoning Board of Appeals

Matt Martin, Valdosta Planning and Zoning Administrator
300 North Lee Street, Valdosta, Georgia
(229) 259-3563

Carmella Braswell, Lowndes County Zoning Administrator
327 North Ashley Street, Valdosta, Georgia
(229) 671-2430

AGENDA
November 1, 2016
2:30 p.m.

Continue reading

Wild Tourism Arts @ LCC 2016-10-24

Requested at the work session two weeks ago, and now on the agenda for Monday morning, a resolution for an arts district. That and reappoint Wild Adventures GM Molly Deese to the Tourism Authority, a public hearing on the 2016 updates to the Greater Lowndes Comprehensive Plan (even though they tabled it last time), and the usual Bid, surplus, and subdivision infrastructure sorts of items.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, OCTOBER 24, 2016, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, OCTOBER 25, 2016,  5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

Continue reading

Videos: Water, VSU bonds, 3 road abandonments, 1 widening, MIDS bus, Comprehensive Plan @ LCC 2016-10-11

Two weeks ago, County Manager Joe Pritchard announced that Commissioner Joyce Evans is now serving as Vice Chairman, yes, the resolution to approve the VSU bonds was requested by the South Regional Joint Development Authority (SRJDA), and John Stevens is the new VDT reporter. Citizen Shirley Moore said she’d like a connection to county water and sewer. They tabled the Comprehensive Plan update, apparently because the Commissioners wanted to “dig into it deeper”.

The rest was mostly approving what they already discussed the previous morning. They meet again Monday morning.

Below are links to each LAKE video with a few notes, followed by a video playlist.

Continue reading

Videos: Art, hurricane, engineering reports, VSU bonds, 3 road abandonments, 1 widening, MIDS bus, Comprehensive Plan @ LCC 2016-10-10

The Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline and others already in the county came up in the Comprehensive Plan approval discussion, as you can see in these LAKE Videos from Monday morning; they vote tonight 5:30 PM.

Stephen Spradley and Georgia Forestry were still helping after Hurricane Matthew, but Ashley Tye reported on evacuees, Chad McLeod reported on engineering projects including the Naylor Boat Ramp at the Alapaha River, and Angela Crance reported on an art district; actually Buddy Boswell did that.

They also heard about a self storage rezoning, three road abandonments, a road widening, the annual MIDS bus service renewal, and a county resolution about bonds for another private LLC by the South Regional Joint Development Authority (SRJDA), different from the one with the public hearing October 21st at a private law firm. What does the resolution say? It’s not in the documents with the agenda.

Below are links to each LAKE video with a few notes, followed by a video playlist. Continue reading

VSU bond resolution, 3 road abandonments, 1 widening, MIDS bus, Comprehensive Plan @ LCC 2016-10-10

Monday morning 8:30 AM, a self storage rezoning, (final?) Comprehensive Plan approval, three road abandonments, a road widening, the annual MIDS bus service renewal, an art district presentation by Angela Crance, a Georgia Forestry presentation by Stephen Spradley, and a county resolution about bonds for another private LLC by the South Regional Joint Development Authority (SRJDA), different from the one with the public hearing October 21st at a private law firm. What does the resolution say? It’s not in the documents with the agenda.


U.S. Air Force Col. Billy Thompson, 23d Wing commander, expresses his gratitude to Continue reading

Wal-mart sign variance on Bemiss Road, and water and storage in Lowndes @ ZBOA 2016-10-04

2:30 PM today: Wal-mart wants a sign variance on Bemiss Road at Guest Road (see previous LAKE blog post), water and sewage on Bemiss Knights Academy Road, and a self-storage facility on Old US Highway 41 North, make a relatively light agenda for the decision-making Zoning Board of Appeals.

Valdosta – Lowndes County Zoning Board of Appeals

Matt Martin, Valdosta Planning and Zoning Administrator
300 North Lee Street, Valdosta, Georgia
(229) 259-3563

Carmella Braswell, Lowndes County Zoning Administrator
327 North Ashley Street, Valdosta, Georgia
(229) 671-2430

AGENDA
October 4, 2016
2:30 p.m.

Continue reading

Videos: HEAT on Sheriff finances @ LCC 2016-09-13

Half the meeting (11 1/2 minutes) Tuesday was Commissioners grilling Sheriff Chief Deputy Joe Crow about the cost of High Enforcement of Aggressive Traffic (Heat): how less funding is provided the more successful the program is, and federal funding may go away, leaving the county to foot the bill. Chairman asked for monthly statistical updates. Commissioner Demarcus Marshall moved to approve continuation of the grant, plus a statement in favor of the grant including a disclaimer that the county would “work to preserve” as much of the grant as possible if state funding goes away.

They approved finally fixing the railroad bridge over Old Quitman Highway. and similar but less complicated (no railroad) for the Jumping Gulley Road bridge. Nobody mentioned that the Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline proposes to cross Jumping Gulley Road half a mile west of that bridge, and then to open cut through Jumping Gulley Creek just south of the state line.

Snake Nation Road is getting an emergency $168,928 box culvert repair, which isn’t fast enough for former Commissioner Richard Lee, who Continue reading