Category Archives: Water

Where you at, onevaldostalowndes.com?

Well, they spelled that wrong, as “Where are we now?” Maybe for the video narrator from California who showed a picture of lily pads when he said “River”.

Rivers, Video

Vision, Website But to be fair, this website and the video from the Development Authority organized by VisionFirst whom Lowndes County paid $25,000, presumably matching Valdosta, also adopted by SGRC, does work hard to show a positive vision of the local area. Oops, I forgot the hospital and the Chamber, and, most importantly, Georgia Power, listed in the FAQ:

Who is the leading the effort? Continue reading

Opioid addiction lawsuit, 2 water trail resolutions, 1 of 2 rezonings withdrawn @ VCC 2018-04-05

The Valdosta City Council plans to sue big pharma over opioid addiction. The Thursday agenda also includes two rezonings (one withdrawn), and two water trail resolutions: one for the Alapaha River and one for the Withlacoochee and Little Rivers. For the rezonings, see the LAKE videos of the preceding Planning Commission meeting.

CUP-2018-02

AGENDA
REGULAR MEETING OF THE VALDOSTA CITY COUNCIL
5:30 PM Thursday, April 5, 2018
COUNCIL CHAMBERS, CITY HALL

Continue reading

Videos: Litigation Executive Session, Lighting Ordinance, Drainage, Well, Trash, Software, Trucks @ LCC 2018-03-26

An Executive Session for pending or potential litigation: are they going to sue Deep South Sanitation again? Some of them sure seem to want to find any excuse not to re-approve DSS’s franchise, which was the longest item at three minutes.

Second longest was two minutes for the Bid for Mini Excavator for the Utilities Department. Slow morning at the County Commission.

Below are links to each LAKE video with a very few notes, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also agenda. They vote this evening at 5:30 PM. Continue reading

Lighting Ordinance, Drainage, Well, Trash, Software, Trucks @ LCC 2018-02-26

The Street Lighting Ordinance on the agenda for this morning and tomorrow evening is not among those on the County Ordinances web page. How are we to “Know the Laws”, as the link from the county’s front page says, when unknown ordinances keep popping up? Ah, it’s currently a resolution and they want to make it an ordinance.

Lighting-ordinance-agenda-sheet-0001,

The agenda sheet says “For reference, copies of maps Continue reading

Videos: Branham subdivision, Trash, RR crossing @ LCC 2018-03-13

Most of the meeting (13 and a half minutes) was about Bill Branham’s subdivision, which passed, with the Chairman breaking the tie because one Commissioner recused himself. Opponents took up almost another minute leaving the room.

On a split vote the Commission declined to modify the solid waste ordinance to give the County Manager more power.

Second longest at more than 6 minutes was Michael J. Killeen’s R-A to M-1 rezoning. Virdie Mae Lyons got her well and septic rezoning in a minute and a half.

Two water items: not clear how much Continue reading

Videos: Conference Center, Branham subdivision, Trash, RR crossing @ LCC 2018-03-12

Lengthiest at more than three and a half minutes was the Bill Branham subdivision rezoning, plus a tie for second at 2 minutes 13 seconds between the new Conference Center CEO and the Virdie Mae Lyons Old Clyattvile Road well and septic rezoning, at yesterday morning’s Work Session. Gretchen is off with the LAKE video camera to the voting Regular Session tonight.

The County Manager wants more power through an ordinance that would further favor Advanced Disposal Services (ADS) over Deep South Sanitation (DSS).

Two water items: Continue reading

Conference Center, Branham subdivision, Trash, RR crossing @ LCC 2018-03-12

On the agenda for Monday’s Work Session, the agenda a word from the new-as-of-January CEO (not Executive Director) of the Valdosta-Lowndes County Conference Center and Tourism Authority. On the agenda for both Monday and Tuesday evening’s Regular Session, Bill Branham’s Copeland Road subdivision, back for at least the third time in four calendar years, plus an ordinance that would further favor Advanced Disposal Services (ADS) over Deep South Sanitation (DSS). Better news: bids for a Portable 65 KW Generator to keep lift stations from leaking.

Chris Hamilton
Photo: Chris Hamilton via Valdosta Daily Times.

See also the LAKE videos of the most recent Planning Commission meeting for all three rezoning cases, and that post also has links to videos of most of the previous appearances of the Branham Project.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, MARCH 12, 2018, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, MARCH 13, 2018, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

  1. Call to Order
  2. Invocation
  3. Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag
  4. Chris Hamilton- CEO, Valdosta- Lowndes County Conference Center and Tourism Authority (Work Session)
  5. Minutes for Approval
    1. Work Session- February 26, 2018
    2. Regular Session- February 27, 2018
  6. Public Hearing
    1. REZ-2018-04 Lyons, 1350 Old Clyattville Rd, R-A to C-H, Well and Septic, 8.05 acres
      GLPC Recommendation: Approval
      TRC Recommendation: Various

      Documents:Rezoning Case REZ-2018-04.pdf

    2. REZ-2018-05 Killeen, 1228 S Main St, R-A to M-1, 27.5 acres

      GLPC Recommendation: Approval with 1 Condition (Paving)
      TRC Recommendation: Various


      Documents:Rezoning Case REZ-2018-05.pdf

    3. REZ-2018-07 Branham Project, 2480 Copeland Rd, R-1 to R-10 Water/Sewer, 18.04 acres

      GLPC Recommendation: Approval with 4 Conditions
      TRC Recommendation: Various   


      Documents:Rezoning Case REZ-2018-07.pdf

  7. For Consideration
    1. Transportation Safety Improvements Agreement
      Execute Agreement

      Documents:Transportation Safety Improvements Agreement.pdf

    2. Ordinance Amending 2015 Solid Waste Disposal Ordinance
      Approval of ordinance

      Documents:Ordinance Amending 2015 Solid Waste Disposal Ordinance.pdf

    3. Water Meter and Register Replacement
      Approval of water meter and register replacement

      Documents:Water Meter and Register Replacement.pdf

    4. Beer License- Marilyn Lewis of Palak Corporation DBA Bigfoot #908 – 1255 Lakes Blvd., Lake Park, GA
      Approval of Beer License

      Documents:Beer License- Marilyn Lewis of Palak Corporation DBA Bigfoot 908 Lakes Blvd, Lake Park, GA.pdf

  8. Bid
    1. Portable 65 KW Generator
      Bids solicited for a 65 KW portable generator to service smaller lift stations that do not have backup generators. Staff recommends awarding bid to Cowart Electric for $49,750.00

      Documents:Portable 65 KW Generator.pdf

  9. Reports – County Manager
  10. Citizens Wishing to be Heard-Please State Your Name and Address
  11. Adjournment

-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!

Videos: Day 2, Planning, Lowndes County Commission @ LCC 2018-02-20

These videos are for those of you who have jobs, or responsibilities, which prevent you from taking random days or hours off at a time. Commissioner Marshall was absent from the second day of the retreat because he has a job which does not allow him the flexibility of daytime hours off. (The first day of the retreat was on Presidents Day.)

The topics of discussion ranged from the ever popular litter and trash collection, to special tax districts, fire and emergency response, animal control and the animal shelter, and one of my favorites, electronic records. Most presentations were made either by the county manager or clerk but the current Deep South Solid Waste Authority Chairman Kevin Beals was first up to talk trash.

Below are links to each LAKE video of Day 2, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also the LAKE videos of Day 1 and Continue reading

Videos: Day 1, Planning, Lowndes County Commission @ LCC 2018-02-19

The 2018 Lowndes County Commission Retreat was just about the exact opposite of a commission meeting, except that same group of people are present (almost). There was discussion, disagreement, laughing, sighing, interrupting, listening, inside jokes, outside jokes, and general exchange of views. Those things don’t happen in a commission meeting. This year’s retreat was particularly different because there was no time frame attached to any agenda item and they didn’t discuss topics in exact order, and some topics got covered repeatedly. Commissioner Evans said to me during a break that the previous format of having departments just give a report can “get boring” and she had suggested that they have a different format with more discussion about communications.

The agenda was available on-line but was hard to find and the link I followed to find it is gone now. I did manage to download it before it went away. Find it here: 2018 LCC Annual Planning Meeting Agenda (plus searchable text). There were paper copies available at the meeting after the first break.

I sometimes think that the commissioners may be getting used to me but then, no, don’t be silly.

At the lunch hour, the Commissioners stepped outside to take a group picture and as County Clerk Page Dukes suggested that they get closer and not have so much “space” between them, Commissioners Orenstein and Griner (I live in their districts) huddled together.

Commissioners Gather Group Photo Close Group Photo
  Commissioners Orenstein and Griner

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

Videos: Rocky Ford Road, Sharp Family, C-G Bemiss Rd @ LCC 2018-02-13

Again like in the previous morning’s Work Session the lengthiest regular item was the rezoning on Rocky Ford Road for the church-proposed Camp Rock, mostly with attorney Jack Langdale speaking for, including that a “wilderness camp” for unfortunate children doesn’t need a buffer, and any future buyers of neighboring property beware.

The Sharp family said for seven years they have been trying to get somebody to do something about stray dogs, only to discover Animal Control doesn’t work weekends anymore, and the Sheriff’s office won’t do anything, even though one of their family had been killed by the dogs and another bitten, and the dogs are now into their second and third generations running loose.

Third longest was Continue reading