Tag Archives: industry

CCA for Lowndes County in GeorgiaTrend

Ed Lightsey writes in GeorgiaTrend for March 2011, Valdosta/Lowndes County: Taking Off about many good developments in Lowndes County. But among them is this:
About two years ago, Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) began looking for sites on which to build a prison, and after an 18-month search chose Lowndes County, a decision that promises 400 to 600 new jobs. “It’s a $150-million investment,” Lofton says. “That’s the second largest investment in the history of the county. And of those promised jobs, about 120 will require post secondary education; they are nurses, physician assistants, dieticians and vocational rehab folks.”

CCA is the fifth largest penal system in the country, behind Florida, Califor-nia, Texas and the Federal Bureau of Prisons, according to Lofton. “They have about 20,000 employees across the country,” he says.

So why do we need them here? Continue reading →

Decatur County thinks it’s getting the CCA private prison

Jeff Findley wrote in the Post-Searchlight on 25 January 2011 about Economic activity picking up:
Engineers with Corrections Corporation of America, the private prison company that signed a memorandum of understanding almost a year ago with the Authority to construct and operate a prison in the industrial park, will be in Bainbridge on Feb. 18 to begin site work preparation.

Officials from Decatur County and the Development Authority with meet with CCA officials and tour the site where the prison will be located.

“They’re anxious to get it going, but very guarded on making any kind of projections about when things might start, but all indications are it would be sooner rather than later,” said McCaskill.

Initial projections have the capital investment by CCA in the neighborhood of $150 million and, when fully staffed, the facility would employ up to 600 people.

Findley wrote that Rick McCaskill is the “executive director of the Development Authority of Bainbridge and Decatur County.”

So in Decatur County CCA has gone from an announcement last July to a site visit six months later this January. According to Col. Ricketts at the 15 March 2011 VLCIA board meeting, CCA was coming to do a site visit in Lowndes County two months later on 16 March 2011. And according to Brad Lofton at that same meeting, Lowndes County is CCA’s primary site. What’s going on here (and there)?

The story continues in later posts.

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South Georgia already in drought: parameters for industry?

Droughts and floods: maybe we need to manage water better, including managing industrial use of water.

According to the AP, Ga. foresters brace for busy wildfire season:

A cold, wet winter has left northern parts of the state in decent shape, but in southern Georgia river flows and soil moisture are both at some of the lowest points that would be expected in a century, said David Stooksbury, Georgia’s state climatologist at the University of Georgia.
The nearterm effects:
“We have a good fuel load with plenty of dry vegetation, the soil is dry and there’s a low relative humidity and there’s wind,” Stooksbury said. “That is the simple recipe for a trash fire to get out of control very quickly and become a wildfire.”
Yes, Sunday Georgia Forestry cut off burn permits in Lowndes County because some fires had gotten out of control.

The long term problem? Continue reading →

CCA private prison in Decatur County?

Brad Lofton mentioned (at the 15 March 2011 VLCIA board meeting) that the competition for VLCIA’s Project Excel, the CCA private prison, is Decatur County. Bainbridge and Decatur County seem to think they’ve been selected.

The Post-Searchlight editorialized on 16 July 2010 that the prison would be A good fit. The next day, BainbridgeGa.com posted on 17 July 2010:

Corrections Corporation of America has finally announced their intention to build a prison in Decatur County.

The not so secret secret was announced when the Bainbridge-Decatur County Development Authority agreed to a memorandum of understanding with CCA on Thursday.

The plans are to build what is thought to be in the range of a $100 million facility on 110 acres located in the Decatur County Industrial Park on Highway 27 north. The site is in the back of the Industrial Park, well back from the entrance on Highway 27 north.

It is hoped the facility will provide 400-500 jobs for our area in the next couple of years.

So how come VLCIA thinks it’s getting a private prison from CCA?

The story continues in later posts.

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Competition for CCA’s private prison? –Roy Copeland

Roy Copeland had a question about Project Excel, the private prison that Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) wants to build in Lowndes County, at the 15 March 2011 VLCIA board meeting.

Q: He wanted to know if there are other communities competing for the project, and whether they had also paid a second extension.

A: Col. Ricketts answered that there is another community competing, but he did not know whether they had made that payment: Continue reading →

CCA has made second payment towards private prison –Col. Ricketts

Regarding the private prison that Corrections Corporation of America (CCA) wants to build in Lowndes County, at the 15 March 2011 VLCIA board meeting, Col. Ricketts gave an update, saying CCA had made a second payment as stipulated in the purchase and development agreement:


Regular monthly meeting, Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority, VLCIA,
Norman Bennett, Roy Copeland, Tom Call, Mary Gooding, Jerry Jennett chairman,
J. Stephen Gupton attorney, Brad Lofton Executive Director, Allan Ricketts Program Manager,
15 March 2011
Videos by John S. Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

The story continues in later posts.

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Private prison “a major impact on the community” –Brad Lofton

Previously we asked if public objections caused VLCIA to change its tune about letting CCA build a private prison in Lowndes County, Georgia. OK, that was a rhetorical question: of course not!

Speaking at the Lake Park Chamber of Commerce annual dinner, 28 January 2011, Brad Lofton praised the private prison project:

“…we hope will be under construction in the next 18 months. It will be about $150 million dollar project; anywhere from 4 to 600 new jobs. A lot of communities in Georgia are built around state prisons. A hundred of those 400 will be post-secondary, nutritionalists, physicians, nurses, vocational rehab, so we’re proud of that project. You’ll start to hear a little bit more about that. There will be about 300 construction jobs over about a 24 month period, which will have a major impact on the community.”


Brad Lofton, Executive Director,
Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority (VLCIA),
speaking at the Lake Park Chamber of Commerce annual dinner,
Lake Park, Lowndes County, Georgia, 28 January 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

That was part of Lofton’s famous “jobs, jobs, jobs” speech. Lofton is gone now, but apparently VLCIA still plans the prison.

The story continues in later posts.

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CCA private prison in Lowndes County?

What’s Project Excel? A private prison for Lowndes County, proposed by Corrections Corporation of America (CCA).

Back in August 2010 when the VDT first brought this story to light, I pointed out that CCA is the same company that lobbied heavily for Arizona’s new immigration law so CCA could get more customers. And I wondered what VLCIA thought about this? Silly question: of course they’re all for it! It’s “jobs, jobs, jobs” with them.

As of 21 December 2010, apparently things were still pretty tentative when Brad Lofton gave an update to the VLCIA board, claiming the CCA private prison would bring 600 jobs to Lowndes County, Georgia:


Regular monthly meeting, Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority, VLCIA,
Norman Bennett, Roy Copeland, Gary Minchew, Mary Gooding, Jerry Jennett chairman,
J. Stephen Gupton attorney, Brad Lofton Executive Director, Allan Ricketts Program Manager,
21 December 2010
Videos by John S. Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

Some public objection had surfaced by 20 January 2010, when Dr. Mark George remarked to the Valdosta City Council:

“I think we can do better than a generator that burns human waste. I think we can do better than a private prison and those are two things that we seem to be excited about as a community.”
Next, we’ll see if objections had any effect on the Industrial Authority.

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Goodbye –Brad Lofton @ VLCIA 15 Mar 2011

And now the moment that’s been discussed since Thursday, Brad Lofton’s goodbye:
Like Mr. Minchew I’m not good at goodbyes either. I wanted to say I’ll be brief… I’m not articulate enough to begin to thank y’all for the unbelievable privilege I’ve had for the last five years. …unbelievable board of directors, the most talented staff I’ve ever worked with. … My wife was going to be here but she would have been too emotional. Thank you all for your trust and confidence in me. It really has been the best five years of my life. I just want you to know your leadership…. Wish you the best of luck. That’s all Mr. Chairman. Thank you.


Brad Lofton saying goodbye at the
regular monthly meeting, Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority (VLCIA)
Norman Bennett, Roy Copeland, Tom Call, Mary Gooding, Jerry Jennett chairman,
J. Stephen Gupton attorney, Brad Lofton Executive Director, Allan Ricketts Program Manager,
15 March 2011.
Video by John S. Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

He didn’t mention the community.

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Beliefs are good, but facts are better –John S. Quarterman @ VLCIA, 15 March 2011

First I praised the completion of the Wiregrass Solar LLC plant in Valdosta. Then I complimented Brad Lofton on finding his new job and hoped he’d be happy in Myrtle Beach. Then I praised the VDT for its editorial recommending using this opportunity to consult the councils of the various municipalities and the County Commission, and in particular that one way to produce unity in the community as G. Norman Bennett had previously advocated, would be to find out what the community wants VLCIA to do.
I understand the point about beliefs. But it’s not all about just the beliefs of just the people on the board. It’s also about things like is there enough water, and do we want businesses that soak up a lot of water, like Ben Copeland said at the Lake Park Chamber of Commerce. Beliefs are good, but facts are better. Thank you.


John S. Quarterman at the
regular monthly meeting, Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority (VLCIA)
Norman Bennett, Roy Copeland, Tom Call, Mary Gooding, Jerry Jennett chairman,
J. Stephen Gupton attorney, Brad Lofton Executive Director, Allan Ricketts Program Manager,
15 March 2011.
Video by David Rodock for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

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