Tag Archives: Gretchen Quarterman

3 small rezonings: Dasher, Lowndes, Valdosta @ GLPC 2015-08-31

Parcel 0120A 082 An automobile repair shop in Dasher, a agricultural rezoning in Lowndes County, and an office rezoning in Valdosta, in the GLPC agenda that appeared on the county’s website after Gretchen called to inquire.

Greater Lowndes Planning Commission
Lowndes County City of Valdosta City of Dasher City of Hahira City of Lake Park
REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING
AGENDA
Lowndes County South Health District Administrative Office
325 West Savannah Avenue
Monday, August 31, 2015 * 5:30 P.M. * Public Hearing

Continue reading →

Videos: Nuisance ordinance, numerous emergencies, small rezoning, and alcohol @ LCC 2015-08-11

They meet again Monday morning; here are videos from when they voted two weeks ago. There was a brief update on the Shiloh Road sinkhole, adding to the previous morning’s report; see also news reports. The rest of the meeting was rather predictable Continue reading →

Agriculture, Internet access, and Transportation driving Development @ LCC 2015-08-24

New County Extension Agent Jenna Kicklighter will introduce herself at Monday morning’s Work Session,, they’ll consider a a Beer and Wine License for Dollar General, a new secondary Internet Bandwidth Contract with Mediacom, and the US 41 N widening has already spawned further road paving to promote development:

Lowndes County Engineering has received a proposal Continue reading →

World Trade Center Savannah and Gold Honey Bean @ VLCIA 2015-08-18

The Development Authority begins tonight with a presentation by Leigh Ryan, Director of Trade Services and Foreign Trade Zone 104, World Trade Center Savannah. According to WTC Savannah,

A foreign trade zone is a federally approved location within the United States, which is considered outside of US Customs territory where domestic and foreign merchandise may be placed without formal customs entry and without payment of duties and taxes. Subzones are special-purpose facilities for companies unable to operate effectively at public zone sites. Foreign trade zones are usually located in or near Customs ports of entry, at industrial parks or terminal warehouse facilities. Their purpose is to attract and promote international trade and commerce.

WTC has more on that page, but never actually says where FTZ 104 is.

Mary Carr Mayle, SavannaNow, 31 May 2015, World Trade Center Savannah expands FTZ 104, Continue reading →

$9.40 for a mound of paper @ LCC 2015-08-10

Gretchen made an Open Records request Monday morning and it was available Tuesday 4:37 PM: mostly on paper and less than an hour before the Commission voted.

The rezoning material from the Planning office was sent by electronic mail. The rest cost $9.40 to retrieve on paper. Nevermind in the email earlier Tuesday of the old ordinance from 1992 the county staff demonstrated they can put a paper document on their copier and produce a PDF. They could have done that with the rest of the board packet. Why didn’t they?

The Work Session was Monday morning at 8:30 AM 10 Aug 2015. Gretchen was notified by telephone about 4:30 PM Tuesday 11 Aug 2015. The County Palace closes at 5PM. The Commission met at 5:30 PM Tuesday to vote. So none Continue reading →

Videos: Unknown ordinance, numerous emergencies, small rezoning, and alcohol @ LCC 2015-08-10

Here are videos of yesterday morning’s Work Session. This morning, the same day as tonight’s voting Regular Session, we got a few answers to some of yesterday’s questions about the Nuisance Abatement Ordinance:

What 1992 ordinance? Which state law? Where’s the new draft?

Here’s the old ordinance and the new draft. And the memo wrapping the new draft refers to O.C.G.A. §§41-2-7 through 41-2-17. The memo doesn’t seem to say when that Georgia law was updated.

Here’s the agenda. See also the Continue reading →

Minutes from 2006, Lowndes County Commission

Minutes aren’t on Lowndes County’s new website back more than a few years. 300x388 DecemberX12,X2006-015, in Loco minutes, by John S. Quarterman, 11 August 2015 Even on their previous website, three sets of minutes were not there. More than four years after Gretchen asked, she asked again, and today we finally got those three. Look who signed those minutes as County Clerk: K. Paige Dukes, the same County Clerk who took four years to return them in response to an Open Records request. Here’s the message, and I’ve linked in those minutes.

-jsq

From: Amanda Smith <asmith@lowndescounty.com>
Date: Tue, 11 Aug 2015 16:43:18 +0000
To: “‘land@quarterman.org'” <land@quarterman.org>
Subject: Meeting Minutes

As per your request, I have attached the meeting minutes from 8/8/06, 12/12/06, and 12/20/06. Continue reading →

Got one Lowndes County ordinance (nuisance abatement) after five years asking @ LCC 2015-08-10

Back in 2011 the County Clerk didn’t say which May she would provide that list of ordinances…. 300x388 Attest: Inez M. Pendleton, in Noise Abatement Ordinance, by John S. Quarterman, 11 August 2015 Her response of today is below. The old ordinance is so old it’s signed by Inez Pendleton. It’s still in force, though, so shouldn’t it be on the county’s website, along with all the other ordinances in force that also aren’t there? See below for list; also notice the dates I’ve boldfaced. The proposed new ordinance is not readily translatable to plain text; looks like she scanned a paper copy. Both are relevant to today’s Lowndes County Commission meeting. For the minutes she mentioned, see separate post.

-jsq

From: Paige Dukes <pdukes@lowndescounty.com>
Date: Tue, 11 Aug 2015 15:42:29 +0000
To: John and Gretchen Quarterman <land@quarterman.org>
Subject: RE: Open Records Request for Ordinances

Good Afternoon Gretchen,

As per your request, please find the attached Continue reading →

Unknown ordinance, numerous emergencies, small rezoning, and alcohol @ LCC 2015-08-10

How can we “Know the Laws” as the county’s front page says, if a county ordinance being revised isn’t there and isn’t distributed when the county is about to vote on it Tuesday evening after the Work Session this morning at 8:30 AM?

For the Nuisance Abatement Ordinance the packet agenda sheet says only: Continue reading →

Moody Family Housing doesn’t want to replace trees it cut down on Val-Del @ ZBOA 2015-08-04

2:30 PM today, should developers not have to follow code and put back trees on the unnecessary and environmentally hazardous Moody Family Housing on Val-Del Road? You wouldn’t know who this was by a pretty name like Azalea Commons, or an acronym like ACC Group III Housing, and only the board packet mentions Balfour Beatty, but it’s the same Moody Family Housing in an aquifer recharge zone that already had a sinkhole as admitted by a K Street lawyer to the Lowndes County Commission and told to them and to the Air Force by VSU professors that the Air Force proceeded to ignore in its environmental assessment and the Lowndes County Commission rezoned anyway. Staff recommend 20% “relief” from planting trees. How about the county get some relief from unnecessary sprawl?

They did provide a table of the trees they want to cut down.

Here’s the agenda, which is not on the City of Valdosta website, appearing here courtesy of Continue reading →