Category Archives: Valdosta City Council

5 Valdosta rezonings, 1 Hahira ordinance amendment, 4 Lowndes County rezonings with without packets @ GLPC 2022-05-23

Update 2022-06-03: 4 long Lowndes County cases + 2 long Valdosta cases @ GLPC 2022-05-23, including the board packet materials for the county cases and the minutes for the previous meeting.

Everything from a pair of personal care homes to a fraternity to a church to the Salvation Army wants rezoning or variances at this evening’s Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC) meeting.

The board packet materials for the Hahira and Valdosta items are on the LAKE website, thanks to City Planner Matt Martin.

[Maps]
Maps

LAKE has no materials for the Lowndes County items, and no copy of the draft minutes from the previous meeting, because Lowndes County has not yet sent them in response to a LAKE open records request.

Here is the agenda:

Greater Lowndes Planning Commission
~ Lowndes County ~ City of Valdosta ~ City of Dasher ~
~ City of Hahira ~ City of Lake Park ~ City of Remerton ~

Monday, May 16, 2022 5:30 P.M. Work Session
Monday, May 23, 2022 5:30 P.M. Regular Session
Lowndes County South Health District Administrative Office
325 West Savannah Avenue, Valdosta, Georgia

Continue reading →

$1.6 million road resurfacing, 2 appointments, subdivision streets, Walkers Crossing Roundabout, Valdosta extraterritorial water and sewer @ LCC 2022-05-23

Update 2022-06-02: Videos: Two Valdosta items, Walkers Crossing Roundabout, Reports @ LCC 2022-05-23.

Update 2022-05-23: 9:00 AM Budget Work Session.

They propose to approve $1.6 million for resurfacing some roads, it’s not clear which ones, at the Lowndes County Commission Work Session Monday morning and voting Regular Session Tuesday evening.

[Quarterman Estates, Walkers Crossing Roundabout]
Quarterman Estates, Walkers Crossing Roundabout

They will also pretend that this will not cost the county money down the road for street maintenance: Continue reading →

Videos: Mayor announces first trash trap, committees for ARPA funds @ VCC 2022-05-19

Update 2022-06-23: Videos: Process for non-profit applications for ARPA funds 2022-05-27.

Update 2022-06-21: Valdosta Watergoat installed in Sugar Creek 2022-06-21.

Council Sonny Vickers was welcomed back warmly after abscence due to illness (I welcomed him before the meeting). Later, he thanked staff and council for their assistance.

[Collage]
Collage

Mayor Scott James added two council members each as observers to each of the ARPA fund disbursment committees, for non-profits and for for-profit businesses.

After Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman asked for action about trash, Council Andy Gibbs and Mayor James vied for who would get to announce what the city had already done. Mayor James in Council Comments announced the city had ordered Continue reading →

Audit, Crime Lab Hydrogen Generator, 2 ARPA Grant Selection Committees @ VCC 2022-05-19

Update 2022-05-20: Videos: Mayor announces first trash trap, committees for ARPA funds @ VCC 2022-05-19.

In a very light agenda for tomorrow evening’s meeting, the Valdosta City Council nonetheless will contemplate $1,978,502.40 in spending. They will also hear an audit report.

AmountWhat
$33,502.40 Consideration of a request to purchase a Hydrogen Generator for the Valdosta-Lowndes Regional Crime Laboratory.
$945,000.00 Consideration of appointments for the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Non-Profit Grant Selection Committee.
$1,000,000.00 Consideration of appointments for the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) Small Business Grant Selection Committee.
$1,978,502.40 Total

The Hydrogen Generator for the Crime Lab will come out of $36,000 from the General Fund. “This is the equipment that is used for drug identification and blood alcohol testing.”

The two Grant Selection Committees will dispense funds from the $16,254,692 allocated to Valdosta by the federal government in an American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant, of which $8,127,346 has been received to date. The City Council previously allocated $945,000 for nonprofits and $1,000,000 for small businesses. These Committees will decide which organizations get the funds. You probably recognize many of the names on the committee candidate lists.

[Selection Committees]
Selection Committees

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

AGENDA
REGULAR MEETING OF THE VALDOSTA CITY COUNCIL
5:30 PM Thursday, May 19, 2022
CITY HALL, COUNCIL CHAMBERS

Continue reading →

Videos: Remerton and Hahira cases @ GLPC 2022-04-25

Remerton at almost 28 minutes was far the longest item at the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission Monday. Second was for Hahira, at 12 minutes. Everything else breezed through.

[Remerton and Hahira Cases @ GLPC 2022-04-25]
Remerton and Hahira Cases @ GLPC 2022-04-25

The sound is not so good because the county has still not fixed the audio in the room.

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 Lake Park packet item, which Loretta Hylton of the Southern Georgia Regional Commission sent, saying she heard I was looking for it. It’s now on the LAKE website (PDF). Also, she said “The attorney pulled the Dasher item before submitting it to the Planning Commission.”

We still don’t have the Remerton item. The Valdosta and Hahira items were already on the LAKE website, previously sent by City Planner Matt Martin. We still don’t have the Remerton items. There were no Lowndes County packet items. Continue reading →

Big Hahira rezoning, 4 small Valdosta @ GLPC 2022-04-25

Update 2022-04-25: Hahira subdivision proposed near Big Branch of Franks Creek @ GLPC 2022-04-25.

The one big rezoning on the agenda for this evening’s meeting of the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission is HA-2022-06, Sweet Bay Properties, 7440 Union Road, 0024 024, 72 acres, R-15 to R-6, on the site of Guthrie Lumber Company.

Staff recommendation is “Find R-10 zoning consistent with the Comprehensive Plan and the Standards for the Exercise of Zoning Power (SFEZP), and recommend approval of R-10 zoning (instead) to the City Council.”

[Rezonings]
Rezonings

Here is the agenda. The Hahira and Valdosta items, sent by City Planner Matt Martin, are on the LAKE website. The Dasher, Lake Park, and Remerton items are not; LAKE will send Lowndes County an open records request. The minutes of the previous GLPC meeting are not on the county’s website yet, so they are also not included on the LAKE website yet. Continue reading →

Hahira withdrawn, 4 Valdosta, 3 Lowndes @ GLPC 2022-03-28

The Hahira rezoning was withdrawn by the applicant, but all the other rezonings were heard by the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission last month, including the contentious REZ-2022-07 Hayden Park, Camelot Crossing and Val Del Road, which has already come before the Lowndes County Commission once and is back again today.

[Example rezonings]
Example rezonings

Here is the agenda. The board packet is on the LAKE website, The Valdosta rezoning items were sent by City Planner Matt Martin. The Lowndes County rezoning items were received in response to a LAKE open records request. The county did not send the agenda nor the minutes of the previous meeting, both of which LAKE got off the county website. The county also did not send the Valdosta items, in apparent violation of the Georgia Open Records Act (GORA).

Greater Lowndes Planning Commission
~ Lowndes County ~ City of Valdosta ~ City of Dasher ~
~ City of Hahira ~ City of Lake Park ~ City of Remerton ~
Monday, March 21, 2022 5:30 P.M. Work Session
Monday, March 28, 2022 5:30 P.M. Regular Session
Lowndes County South Health District Administrative Office
325 West Savannah Avenue, Valdosta, Georgia

Continue reading →

Packet: Rezonings and Backup Lift Station Generators @ VCC 2022-03-10

In a milestone for Valdosta’s ongoing upgrades to its sewer system, tonight the Mayor and Council will approve the last two of 37 emergency standby generators for lift stations.

[Rezonings and Generators]
Rezonings and Generators

Plus three small rezonings, recommended by staff and the Planning Commission, some with conditions. Another rezoning and annexation were withdrawn by applicant because his sale fell through.

About Item 5.a. Consideration of bids for the purchase of two emergency standby Generators for Lift Stations located at Dillard’s and the Second Harvest Food Bank.

[Photograph]
Photograph

BUDGET IMPACT/FUNDING SOURCE: User Fees

HISTORY: To ensure continued sewage lift station operations during power outages and to satisfy the Georgia Environmental Protection Division requirements, the Utilities Department developed a scope of work to purchase two emergency standby generators. These generators are needed to prevent lift station failures due to power outages from storms or other unexpected causes. Several years ago, the City initiated a program to purchase standby generators or emergency standby diesel pumps for all of its existing sewage lift stations. These are the final two generators needed to complete the Program. Once they are installed, all 37 of our lift stations will have some form of dedicated emergency backup capability from generators and/or backup diesel pumps. Additionally, this will complete Condition 18 of the EPD Consent Order which requires the installation of fixed generators and/or backup pumps at all lift stations by September, 2023. Moving forward, all new City lift stations will include a dedicated emergency backup capability as part of their construction.

See below for the agenda, which does not appear to be on the City of Valdosta’s website. The board packet, received in response to a LAKE open records request, is on the LAKE website.
http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/valdosta/2022-03-10–vcc-packet

See also the LAKE videos of the preceding Planning Commission meeting, at which the same rezonings were considered.

AGENDA OF THE VALDOSTA CITY COUNCIL
5:30 PM Thursday, March 10, 2022
CITY HALL, COUNCIL CHAMBERS

Continue reading →

Hahira, Valdosta, Lowndes County rezonings @ GLPC 2022-02-28

At the February 28, 2022, Regular Session of the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission, the Valdosta annexation and rezoning requests, 10. VA-2022-02 11. VA-2022-02 Murray Staten Farms, LLC, were both withdrawn by applicant.

All the other requests were unanimously recommended for approval, some with conditions. The various elected bodies will decide.

[Radney]
Radney

In the longest time at nineteen minutes, Four citizens spoke against 5. REZ-2022-04 Radney, 5761 Long Pond Road. Donna Weldon, the President of the Long Pond Property Owners Association, agreed that with the revised conditions accepted by the applicant, the rezoning would be acceptable. Glenn Gregory, the last speaker, emphasized that still more duplexes could be built in that heavy traffic hazardous area. GLPC modified the conditions to retain the conditions prohibiting mobile homes and duplexes, and to add a minimum heated size. Unanimous recommendation for approval with conditions.

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also the agenda. LAKE will publish the board packet as soon as we get the Hahira and Valdosta items from Matt Martin. It is now well over the statutory three days since LAKE sent the GORA request.

Two Hahira variances, two Lowndes County rezonings, four Valdosta rezonings and an annexation @ GLPC 2022-02-28

Update 2022-03-07: LAKE videos.

Two small lot variances in Hahira, two small lot rezonings in Lowndes County, three small rezonings in Valdosta, and one big annexation and rezoning by Valdosta, 35 acres for Murray Staten Farms, LLC, 3550 Lake Laurie Drive, all on the agenda this evening for the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC). GLPC recommends, and the elected bodies decide. For an annexation, the Lowndes County Commission will have to state whether it objects before the Valdosta Mayor and Council decide.

[Agenda, Lake Laurie Drive annexation]
Agenda, Lake Laurie Drive annexation

There’s no parcel listed for 3550 Lake Laurie Drive by the Lowndes County Tax Assessors. Why the agenda can’t just tell us which parcels is mysterious.

However, this parcel is where google maps finds that address: Continue reading →