Tag Archives: Community

Gaines Lane into county road system? Little chance for ordinary citizens @ LCC 2013-09-10

Citizen Anita L. Armstrong wants help with Gaines Lane, but it’s a private road, and it would have to be paved to state highway standards to get accepted into the county’s road system. She spoke at the Lowndes County Commission Regular Session 10 September 2013.

I come before you again asking to see if we can get some help with our road. It is so bad and we don’t have the money. If we could get just a little help, maybe we could get it kind of straightened out so we could get in and out. The last bad weather that we had, we had to be pulled out of the road for at least five times. And each time that we pulled out, we have to pay someone to do it…. And we are asking your help.

Her problem is that Gaines Lane is a private road, not county maintained. To get it into the county road system, right of way would have to be donated to the county, because some years ago the county made a policy (try to find it in writing) that it would no longer pay for rights of way. Some of the landowners on Gaines Road have not agreed to donate. And even if they do, the county also has a policy (try to find that one in writing, while you’re at it) that it only accepts roads that are up to county standards, which means already paved to state highway standards. So basically unless you’re a developer, you’re not going to get a road into the county road system.

Ms. Armstrong spoke in the previous session, 13 August 2013, about garbage trucks damaging her road.

A Bess Armstrong 11 May 2010 according to the minutes:

Bess Armstrong, Gaines Lane, thanked the Commission for their help in assisting with road improvements made on Gaines Lane. Mr. Armstrong added that he needed some guidance on how to maintain the road in the future. Chairman Paulk stated that the credit should be given to Reames Construction, since the county was unable to work on the private road.

There was extensive discussion in the 23 February 2010 meeting, according to the minutes: Continue reading →

Visible Option 3 for sewer for middle school @ LCC 2013-09-10

In a surprise move, Commissioner Crawford Powell insisted on showing the audience what the Commission was voting on regarding extending sewer service for the Lowndes County Board of Education, at the Lowndes County Commission Regular Session 10 September 2013.

8.b. Sewer Service Requested for Lowndes County Board of Education

Utilities Manager Mike Allen said LCBOE wants sewer service for Lake Park Elementary to help out their failing septic tank; he recommended Option 3.

Commissioner Crawford Powell asked for Option 3 to be displayed or read. IT Director Aaron Kostyu noted that if there was a copy it could be projected. Allen moseyed over to the table by the podium with a copy, pictured here, with transcript below.

Option 3) Direct county attorney to draft two documents: Continue reading →

Videos: SPLOST VII Resolution and mystery proclamation and appointment @ LCC 2013-09-09

Charlie Clark The big surprise in the eleven-minute meeting was they called up former County Engineer Charlie Clark to explain the Utility Director’s comment about making a profit on wastewater to Lake Park Elementary School. Yes, the SPLOST VII Resolution is to put it on the ballot in November, “to reimpose the tax”. So much for those town halls that never happened. Yep, it’s Mac McCall for reappointment to ZBOA. No Proclamation this morning, so it could still be for South Georgia Pride like Valdosta Mayor John Gayle refused to proclaim last year. And they vote tomorrow night at 5:30 PM.

Here’s the agenda, with links to the videos and a few notes.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2013, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2013, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
Continue reading →

SPLOST VII Resolution and mystery proclamation and appointment @ LCC 2013-09-09

Presumably the SPLOST VII Resolution is to put it on the ballot in November. So much for those town halls that never happened. I’m guessing the ZBOA appointment is for the finally-expired term of Dave Kirk; they appointed John “Mac” McCall last December to the unexpired part of Kirk’s term, so McCall would be the odds-on reappointment. Maybe the Proclamation is for South Georgia Pride like Valdosta Mayor John Gayle refused to proclaim last year. Why do we have to guess what all those items are for, anyway? Why don’t they just make the agenda items descriptive, or, even better, link the board packet items in with the agenda? The two For Consideration items are more intelligible, but would still make more sense with those board packet materials.

Here’s the agenda.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2013, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2013, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
Continue reading →

Minimum wage law increased to livable wage? @ VLCoC 2013-09-04

Rep. Scott doesn’t want any federal laws about employment.

Alvin Payton (Valdosta Mayor Pro Tem and City Council District 4) asked:

What is your view or your stance on this current minimum wage law being increased to livable wages?
This was at the Chamber Federal Legislative Lunch with Rep. Austin Scott (R GA-08) yesterday.

Minimum wage law being increased to livable wages? --Alvin Payton (D Valdosta Mayor Pro Tem)

Answer from Rep. Scott: Continue reading →

County setting parks legacy –April Huntley

LTE in the VDT today. -jsq

I would like to inform the community that the Lowndes County Board of Commissioners has announced their “Consideration of Proposed List” for Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax VII on July 22-23, 2013. It can be viewed on LowndesCounty.com.

The part of the budget that is most impressive to me is the allocation to Parks & Recreation. Its allocation is 3.5 million dollars. We need good recreation for our families in Lowndes County and to me this number sounds like our county commissioners take it serious.

I would also like to send out a big thank you to the commissioners for putting a Community Center in Naylor and a boat ramp on the Alapaha River as part of the purpose for the Parks and Recreation allocation.

Lowndes County needs public access to the beautiful Alapaha River as residents have enjoyed the river for generations. I hope the community will come together over this project and create a legacy for generations to come. Please send thank yous, ideas and comments to the commission about the Naylor project:

Continue reading →

2013 Southern Hospitality Workcamp was a huge success –Tim Carroll

Received today. -jsq

All,

I want to share some good news from our recent Mayor Council public hearing —

The 2013 Southern Hospitality Workcamp was a huge success. This program, now in its’ 8th year brought 212 young “campers” from around the country into our community.

They made badly needed repairs to 18 owner occupied homes. This brings the total number of homes repaired to 275. Lowes RDC once again stepped up and provided all the materials for which we are truly grateful.

The value of the labor and materials now is in excess of $1.5M. I also want to say thank you to the Valdosta City School system for once again opening up Valdosta Middle to house the campers during their stay.

The joy I witnessed in these home owners faces was especially touching. The hard work of Continue reading →

China ends a nuclear treatment plant after demonstrations

“In order to respect the popular will, the government of” the city of Heshan refused to proceed with a $9 billion uranium processing plant. That happened after this, yesterday:

The cancellation, unusually fast, demonstrates the increasingly important attention given by the authorities to environmental concerns that are often expressed at the local level. Several projects of petrochemical plants and metal processing have recently been postponed or relocated.

Yes, I know the plant may just be relocated somewhere else. But with enough such demonstrations it won’t be built. How about some of this respect for the popular will about, for example, the natural gas pipeline through Georgia from Alabama to Florida, or the new nukes at Plant Vogtle?

Le Monde, today, Continue reading →

CALL TO ARMS –James Wright @ VCC 2013-07-11

Received a few minutes ago. -jsq

A call to arms, I wanted to share with you a e-mail I received from Nolan Cox. I find his message offensive and seem as if he has a real issue with low income residents. It would mean a lot if you can make it to the Council meeting (5:30 p.m.) as I plan to address this during Council Comments and hope that we can get input from the community regarding this statement below. Your presence will help us get the point across that our community mean something.

I have also included my response to Mr. Cox

Nolan Cox- Tea Party/Republican Party President

“As I listened to your discussion at the City Council work session about the “need” to give away $800,000 of taxpayer’s money through the Federal Home Loan Bank Program grant, I was thinking that only about half of Americans pay federal income taxes, and 43% of every federal dollar spent is borrowed, with the interest on the nation’s $17 trillion debt soon to be larger than the nation’s defense budget. Defense spending is a legitimate constitutional function of the federal government, but repairing houses, like most welfare giveaway programs, is not a legitimate Continue reading →

Four SPLOST town hall meetings –Joyce Evans @ LCDP 2013-07-02

“Hopefully” there will be four town hall meetings before the final SPLOST lists are settled, said Lowndes County Commissioner Joyce Evans (District 1) at last night’s Lowndes County Democratic Party Annual 4th of July Barbecue.

We’re beginning to put things together for the SPLOST.

Joyce Evans, District 1, Lowndes County Commission Hopefully we’ll be able to do several…. I know the mayor has stated that they were going to do two town hall meetings and the county’s going to do a couple of town hall meetings and then we’re going to come together with the information that we’ve received from the community and go and put together an overall SPLOST for the city and the county.

So please, take time, think about it, and be involved.

We shall see. At least it’s a small change in the old boy backroom behavior so popular among elected officials around here that the famously reclusive commissioner said this in front of a video camera.

Here’s the video:


Four SPLOST town hall meetings –Joyce Evans
July 4th BBQ, Lowndes County Democratic Party (LCDP),
Gretchen Quarterman (Chair), Dennis Marks (Vice-Chair / Elections), Amanda Hall (Vice-Chair / Membership), Richard Saeger (Vice-Chair / Qualifying), Jerrell Anderson (Secretary), James J. Parker (Treasurer),
Video by John S. Quarterman for Lowndes County Democratic Party (LCDP),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 2 July 2013.

-jsq