The County Manager said it’s “in the hands of the clerk, if you’d like to look at it” for at least two documents, so not only did
the agenda on the web lack even the one-sheet agenda item writeups,
Commissioners weren’t provided copies of contracts they were being asked to approve.
They vote this same evening, and the
Planning Commission also meets 5:30 PM Tuesday.
The GEFA Loan Modification turns out to be about Continue reading
They vote tonight at 5:30 PM on what you can see them discussing yesterday morning in these videos.
They got a Deep South Sanitation, LLC Application for Franchise for trash collection, including use of the county’s collection facility at 345 Gil Harbin Industrial Blvd. Commissioner Demarcus Marshall asked what about recycling; Chairman Bill Slaughter said there would be recycling at the collection centers. Which means yes ADS’ price went up and service reduced since no curbside recycling collection anymore.
County Manager Joe Pritchard asked County Engineer Mike Fletcher to report and to be added to the Regular Session emergency Nankin Road Repair due to a water-eroded box culvert. And it’s a single-source no-bid, this time for Rountree Construction.
Commissioner Mark Wisenbaker had a few remarks about the letter to support plans to “renovate Arbor Trace II Apartments in Lake Park” by Investment Management Company of Valdosta, Inc.
The body armor request from two weeks before got Continue reading
Finally on the agenda for the meeting right now this morning: Deep South Sanitation, LLC Application for Franchise. That’s some improvement in the ongoing county trash situation previous versions of the County Commission caused.
If the Commission can
sign a letter to support plans to
“renovate Arbor Trace II Apartments in Lake Park” by Investment Management Company of Valdosta, Inc.,
maybe it can sign a letter of support for expanded
public transportation in Lowndes County.
Arbor Trace is low income housing.
Bus systems typically include many low-income riders.
Even the agenda item PDF doesn’t say, but FY 2016 HEAT Grant for the Sheriff’s Department is about Highway Enforcement of Aggressive Traffic “to combat impaired and aggressive drivers,” with the purpose of reducing traffic fatalities. And the Juvenile Court wants to continue with its 2015 Request for Proposal (RFP) Juvenile Justice Incentive Grant Program.
Also on the agenda is saving money with an AT&T telephone discount and a Wine and Liquor License – VHS Corporation – 2418 Rocky Ford Road liquor license.
LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
Continue reading
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, APRIL 27,2015, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, APRIL 28, 2015, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
See the
LAKE video below,
the WALB story by Colter Anstaett
including interviews with Cary Scarborough of Deep South Sanitation
and Steve Edwards of Advanced Disposal Services.
The county
actually posted
the resulting
Solid Waste Ordinance on their
County Ordinances web page (although I don’t see the updated franchise agreement anywhere),
and they even posted the results of that meeting.
Neither the county’s results summary nor WALB mentioned Commissioner Marshall’s
question about recycling glass nor Chairman Slaughter’s response that glass
can be disposed of as ordinary trash, which means they’re not going to recycle it.
Here’s the paper agenda from the meeting and the county’s results summary: Continue reading
On their
calendar,
but no
agenda,
it’s another
Special Called Meeting-Solid Waste Management.
Will they talk about
illegal trash dumping?
Why can’t they wait until their regular meetings next week?
Equally mysterious is why
it took almost two months to get back to this after the
two meetings
in
January.
Here’s their announcement of the meeting this afternoon: Continue reading
Videos of the 9:15 AM 26 January 2015
Special Called Meeting on Solid Waste Management
by the Lowndes County Commission.
There’s another such meeting
today 2-4 PM.
Both ADS and Deep South Sanitation spoke Monday morning, which is a welcome change from the county suing the one on behalf of the other. Rather than give ADS the raise it wants, let’s not forget there is a termination clause in that exclusive franchise. Continue reading
Yay open government symposium!
But why in Macon, why not in Valdosta,
if it’s organized by the new VDT editor?
Sure, Macon is the geographic center of the state, but it’s only
about an hour from Atlanta, and one thing most people in Atlanta don’t
understand is how big Georgia is, so asking them to drive four hours
to Valdosta would be educational for them.
And if the VDT is so interested in government transparency,
why doesn’t it investigate the county’s lawsuit against local business Deep South Sanitation
at the expense of the local taxpayers that benefits nobody but
“exclusive franchise” ADS and its investors in New York City?
Why is the VDT’s front page story that gave a platform for
Spectra’s Andrea Grover no longer online, especially now that
the Sabal Trail deadline she announced has been busted?
Let’s see the VDT lead the way.
Here’s a first test:
Gretchen is going to Macon with the LAKE video camera.
Will the VDT let her video?
Unsigned article, VDT, 11 October 2014, VDT leading way in open government, Continue reading
Lowndes County suing a local business with our tax dollars
has produced a preliminary Georgia Supreme
Court ruling overturning the appeals court and favoring
the county’s “exclusive franchise” with ADS, a company owned
by New York City investors.
Local company Deep South Sanitation vows to keep going.
Do you think this lawsuit is a good use of your tax dollars? What will you think if ADS’ rates go up from Veolia’s bid of $13.05/month ($156.60/year) just before ADS bought Veolia, to ADS’s bid of $13.39/month ($220.68/year)? Continue reading
Could there be any problem with selecting a county attorney without
any open process?
CNHI in VDT today, Officials violate Iowa’s open meeting law,
CENTERVILLE, Iowa. — The Appanoose County Board of Supervisors and County Auditor Linda Demry violated the state open meeting law three times in less than three weeks recently when they interviewed candidates for the vacant county attorney’s position, a state agency has determined.
Well, apparently we don’t have that problem here Continue reading
Personal recollection from Valdosta City Council Tim Carroll received today on ADS fails to recycle, appeals DSS ruling anyway, adding detail that wasn’t in the VDT article.
The main problem the City was having with ADS was they included household trash in their recycled items. Used diapers and other household products mixed in with recycle materials is not allowed. The City advised ADS back to this past October of the issue and no improvements were made. Eventually the city had no choice but to cut them off. The City is a regional hub for recycle material and proud to offer the service.
OK, so is that a violation of the county’s
“exclusive franchise”
with ADS?
-jsq