Tag Archives: Georgia

VLMPO Public Open House on 2040 Transportation Vision Plan 2015-07-22

Anytime all day, 10AM to 6PM, Wednesday July 22nd, you can advise SGRC on transportation for the region, at the VLMPO office at 327 W Savannah Ave, Valdosta, Georgia 31601. Here’s VLMPO’s facebook event.

According to SGRC’s Transportation Planning web page:

2040 Transportation Vision Plan… Public Comment Period July 7-August 7, 2015

Federal regulations require Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) to develop a new Long Range Transportation Plan at least every five years. In the summer of 2013, the VLMPO kicked-off the latest effort to plan for a multi-modal transportation system through the region for the year 2040. The plan will address:

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Navy beats Army with 42 MW solar farm at Kings Bay

Is this sub base solar farm bigger than the 30 MW ones Georgia Power is building at three Army bases in Georgia? Actually that’s 42 MW DC in and 30 MW AC out, so the same as the Army bases.

Navy Chief of Information Office, 13 July 2015, Navy and Georgia Power Ink Deal to Build 42 MW Solar Farm at SUBASE Kings Bay,

WASHINGTON, D.C. (NNS) — The Department of the Navy (DON) announced today a signed real estate outgrant with Georgia Power, a subsidiary of Southern Company, to develop a large-scale, solar generation farm at Naval Submarine Base (SUBASE) Kings Bay.

The 42 megawatt (MW) direct current (DC) facility will be constructed on Continue reading →

Airport Authority Budget Request discussed and approved @ LCC 2015-07-14

Not on the agenda, discussed for fifteen minutes, then suddenly approved: more funding for the Airport Authority, at the 14 July 2015 Regular Session of the Lowndes County Commission. Which was similar to the previous morning’s transportation study discussion, except the Commission didn’t vote that time on any possibility of funding that one.

TSA has reduced the amount of money it gives to small airports like Valdosta and in order to have Continue reading →

Videos: Airport, appointments, well and septic, road naming, and evidence @ LCC 2015-07-14

Tuesday’s surprise report was on airport funding, followed by an unscheduled vote for funding.

They also reappointed Dr. Martha Giddens to the Lowndes County Division of Family and Children Services Board, approved two well and septic rezonings, passed Lowndes County Road Naming Resolution and Procedure that they haven’t published even though it’s because a Commissioner said citizens requested it, and the latest in the long-running Juvenile Justice Court diversionary program grant contract.

See also Continue reading →

Transportation explained to Lowndes County Commission @ LCC 2015-07-13

The county asked SGRC a bunch of questions about the $15,957 public transit and trucking studies at yesterday morning’s Work Session that they didn’t ask about the $16,915 they spent two weeks ago to upgrade a water main to subsize a developer. Commissioners seemed to think VLMPO hadn’t involved them in planning the study proposals, when in fact their own Chairman and County Manager and Engineer had been involved all along, plus five county-appointed citizens.

300x225 Corey Hull, in Public Transportation and Trucking Studies Explained, by Gretchen Quarterman, 13 July 2015 County Manager Joe Pritchard said Commissioner Joyce Evans and Chairman Bill Slaughter had asked him to get the Southern Georgia Regional Commission (SGRC) to explain its proposed transportation studies. He also introduced Lisa Crib, whom he said was the new SGRC Executive Director.

Corey Hull spoke for SGRC, saying he first wanted to know their questions. Chairman Bill Slaughter asked: Continue reading →

Videos: Transportation, appointments, well and septic, road naming, and evidence @ LCC 2015-07-13

A surprise report on public transportation trucking by VLMPO Corey Hull yesterday morning at 8:30 AM. They vote today at 5:30 PM on this agenda for reappointing Dr. Martha Giddens to the Lowndes County Division of Family and Children Services Board, two well and septic rezonings, Lowndes County Road Naming Resolution and Procedure that they haven’t published even though it’s because a Commissioner said citizens requested it, and the latest in the long-running Juvenile Justice Court diversionary program grant contract. Continue reading →

100% renewable energy for U.S. by 2050

Here’s how to convert everything from air conditioners to trucks 300x170 End-Use U.S. Power Change over Time, in 100% clean and renewable wind, water, and sunlight (WWS) all-sector energy roadmaps for the 50 United States, by Mark Z. Jacobson et al., 27 May 2015 from fossil fuels to 100% renewable sun, wind, and water power by 2050, generating more jobs than would be lost from dirty energy, stopping tens of thousands of premature deaths from pollution, saving about 4% of U.S. GDP, plus saving $3.3 trillion worldwide climate change costs.

That’s 100% as in no coal, oil, natural gas, nuclear, or biomass, just clean solar, wind, and water power: 90% by 2035, 80% by 2030, and 25% by 2025. No new technology required: just existing solar, wind, and water power production with batteries and hydrogen fuel cells for transportation, plus huge efficiency savings both from using electricity directly and through other well-known techniques.

A cleaner, healthier world is within our reach. And when even the country’s most corrupt legislature can unanimously pass and the Georgia governor who took campaign funds from six pipeline companies can sign a solar financing law, while Georgia has already become the fastest-growing solar market in the country, renewable energy is producing the political will to get this done.

Stanford Report, 8 June 2015, Continue reading →

Videos: Moody MAZ, Agriculture, Church @ GLPC 2015-06-29

At a very well attended June 29th meeting, the notorious TXT-2015-01 Moody Activity Zoning Districts (MAZ) ULDC text amendments got tabled again by the Planning Commission, but the Lowndes County Commission could take them up anyway at their meeting a month later. The Valdosta-Lowndes Chamber of Commerce did oppose these changes in person (both their President and Chairman) after voting a resolution of opposition. Meanwhile, LAKE has laid out the board packet item from last time so you can get an idea of what’s going on and why, including links to the LAKE videos of the previous GLPC and Lowndes County Commission meetings where these MAZ changes were discussed.

REZ-2015-12 Martha Russ wants to Continue reading →

Appointments, well and septic rezonings, road naming, and evidence @ LCC 2015-07-13

This morning at 8:30 AM, with voting Tuesday at 5:30 PM, on this agenda, for reappointing Dr. Martha Giddens to the Lowndes County Division of Family and Children Services Board, two well and septic rezonings, Lowndes County Road Naming Resolution and Procedure that they haven’t published even though it’s because a Commissioner said citizens requested it, and the latest in the long-running Juvenile Justice Court diversionary program grant contract.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, JULY 13, 2015 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, JULY 14, 2015 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

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County and landowners still paying for failed 2007 James Road mega-mall boondoggle @ LCC 2015-06-22

Back again: the James Road subsidy for a failed mega-mall that we just keep on paying, eight years later!

Five companies showed up at the May 27th pre-bid meeting, but only one bid for $71,192 was received from Rountree Construction for the Commercial Driveway for Raceway on James Road, said County Engineer Mike Fletcher at the 22 June 2015 Lowndes County Work Session. The Commission at their 23 June 2015 Regular Session approved that yet another fix-up payment caused by the county’s 2009 widening of James Road “from a two-lane local road with ditches to a five-lane road with curb and gutter” for the never-happened Market Street mall and subdivision project. And local elected officials say bus systems need subsidies? Every road and bridge is a subsidy for private developers. And James Road is a subsidy we just keep on paying year after year.

The county spent SPLOST VI funds and $587,000 in GDOT funds on this subsidy for private developers, some of them from Tampa, while requiring local James Road property owners to Continue reading →