Tag Archives: Georgia

Not on calendar and no agenda @ LCC Budget 2017-05-22

Not on their calendar until this morning, no agenda, and only popped up online also this morning, the same day of this Budget Work Session. And even though that says it would start at 8:45, they actually announced in the main Work Session that it would start at 9AM.

Immediately after the Work Session?

If Gretchen hadn’t been there with the LAKE camera, Continue reading

Reappointment to Airport Authority, raise convenience fees, Moody AFB swimming pool @ LCC 2017-05-22

It probably won’t take them 15 minutes after 8 AM to breeze through this light agenda, including reappoinging Jeff Sikes to the Airport Authority, increasing “convenience fees for online and telephone payments to $2.50 per transaction”, some I-75 exit work, and a swimming pool at Moody Air Force Base. Plus a beer and wine license due to the usual change of ownership, and an HVAC maintenance contract.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, MAY 22, 2017, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, MAY 23, 2017, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

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Videos: Public Works GA-EPD request, Regional T-SPLOST, 2 ZBOA appointments, 2 rezonings, surplus, quit claim, lift station pump, and Naylor Community Center bids @ LCC 2017-05-08

Not on the agenda this morning: Public Works is applying to GA-EPD for a grant for tire disposal amnesty. 11 of 18 counties have voted to hold a Regional T-SPLOST referendum, and Lowndes County now needs to decide whether to support or oppose that: they vote Tuesday at 5:30 PM.

County Manager Joe Pritchard asked why all the lift station pump repairs. Utilities Director Steve Stalvey said the county has 114 lift station pumps, all either duplex or triplex, with the duplication very important to maintain service. They typically last about 15-20 years, there were periods when money was short and maintenance was slack, and quite a few of them are coming to end of life, most recently this one at US 84.

They spent the longest time, 3 3/4 minutes, on the Continue reading

Regional T-SPLOST, 2 ZBOA appointments, 2 rezonings, surplus, quit claim, and lift station pump, and Naylor Community Center bids @ LCC 2017-05-08 @ LCC 2017-05-08

They list the three applicants for ZBOA, Victoria Copeland, Michael Cooper, Mike Elkins, but they do not supply the actual applications. These are for two slots, currently held by Dr. Willie Houseal, who does not wish to be reappointed, and ZBOA Vice Chairman Gretchen Quarterman, who does.

Both the rezoning cases have different applicant names than the Planning Commission listed two weeks ago, this time as REZ-2017-05 Jay Carter rezoning from R-A to R-1 for subdividing for independent sale and REZ-2017-04 Rieffel rezoning to CON and E-A for animals. REZ-2017-04 is located at 3621 SE Johnson Road, which is just north of Mud Swamp Creek, which downstream joins with Grand Bay Creek to form the Alapahoochee River, which flows into the Alapaha, into the Suwannee, into the Gulf.

Parcel 0188 167H
Lowndes County Tax Assessors Parcel 0188 167H

After the regional T-Splost roundtable meeting 1PM Monday, April 17, 2017, in Pearson, the Lowndes County Commission this week votes to Take action to support or oppose Regional T-SPLOST. If I understand correctly, 10 of the 18 counties in the region voted Continue reading

Videos: Inner Perimeter Overlay Zone, Personal Care, and Estate Agriculture @ GLPC 2017-04-24

The Planning Commission welcomed a new member, Mrs. Vicki Rountree representing Hahira, but neither Valdosta’s nor Lowndes County’s websites have her listed; they both still list Ted Raker for Hahira.

They unanimously recommended a split rezoning to conservation and E-A for REZ-2017-04 Jeffrey Taibl, and they unanimously recommended REZ-2017-05 Cody Califf’s rezoning of agricultural to residential development. Nobody spoke for or against either Lowndes County case, both of which are on the Lowndes County Commission agenda for this Monday and Tuesday.

The front yard was the main concern on the Valdosta case about the CU-2017-02 Personal Care Home on Hollywood Street, which they recommended unanimously after adding a condition to keep staff from parking on the street. The other two Valdosta cases involved the Inner Perimeter Road Corridor Overlay District of Valdosta’s Land Development Regulations. CU-2017-03 Flint Equipment wants to be an additional John Deere dealer, and Planning Commissioners unanimously approved their request, which had already been slightly reduced by city staff. VA-2017-07 Sapelo Sound Investments wants “signage ability like their commercial neighbors” and Planning Commissioners unanimously recommended that.

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

Videos: Conditions on Valdosta Country Club, unanimous county access ariance @ ZBOA 2017-04-04

Last month the Zoning Board of Appeals unanimously approved Don Brotherton’s road access variance and by an unusual 3-2-1 vote approved the Valdosta Country Club’s city variance for its clubhouse golf cart barn, with the conditions including planting native plants between the barn and Country Club Road.

This 4 April 2017 meeting had a very light agenda for the decision-making Zoning Board of Appeals. Courtesy of ZBOA member Gretchen Quarterman, the entire board packet is on the LAKE website. Below, from the Valdosta city website, is ZBOA’s Meeting Results Summary. Continue reading

Videos: Juvenile Court, County Extension, Aiport, Tax Appraiser, Budget Requests (3 of 3 days) @ LCC 2017-03-29

The Tax Appraiser finally showed up, and got the longest discussion at half an hour, with County Extension clocking in at 22 minutes, Juvenile Court at 15, and the Airport Authority at almost 13 minutes, in the last of three days of budget requests to the Lowndes County Commission.

Here are links to each of the LAKE videos of this day 3 of 3 budget meeting, followed by a video playlist. Continue reading

Four County Cases in ZBOA Packet 2017-05-02

All four are county cases for tomorrow 2:30 PM at the decision-making [Zoning Location Map] Zoning Board of Appeals, one each lot width and family ties and two about setbacks. The agenda and board packet are on the LAKE website courtesy of ZBOA board member Gretchen Quarterman.

Valdosta – Lowndes County Zoning Board of Appeals

Matt Martin,
Valdosta Planning and Zoning Administrator
300 North Lee Street, Valdosta, Georgia
(229) 259-3563

Carmella Braswell,
Lowndes County Zoning Administrator
327 North Ashley Street, Valdosta, Georgia
(229) 671-2430

AGENDA
May 2, 2017
2:30 p.m.

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Videos: 911, T-SPLOST details, delinguent subdivision, Juvenile Justice Incentive, GDOT Exits @ LCC 2017-04-11

The Lowndes County Commission did not meet this week (no reason given: the meetings merely marked Canceled on the county’s online calendar), but it did two weeks ago.

On April 11, 2017 we discovered the T-SPLOST meeting would be at the regular SGRC location in Pearson, 1PM Monday April 17, 2017. Michelle Williams of Hahira noted a phenomenon of people not checking for ownership of lost and found pets. The week of 10 April 2017 was Telecommunications Week and the Chairman thanked 911 Center personnel.

The GDOT Mowing Contract includes all the exits in Lowndes County. They unanimously approved that and everything else, The longest item at almost eight minutes was the Tuscan Palms subvision asking to be forgiven paving money the county gave it that never was used. Continue reading

Duke Energy solar: NC, SC, and now Florida

Duke’s new solar farms in Florida echo what Duke was already doing three and a half years ago when an independent study concluded more solar power in North Carolina would save utility ratepayers tens of millions of dollars annually.


Duke solar power farm in Perry, Florida, courtesy Duke Energy

John Downey, Charlotte Business Journal, 23 October 2013, Study: Solar benefits outweigh costs in NC, Continue reading