Tag Archives: rezoning

Survey, petition, letters, speak against conmmercial development on GA 122 at Skipper Bridge Road

Update 2023-01-21: Packet: Dollar General rezoning again, VLDA appointment, 2 subdivision infrastructure, special assessment rate, DA VOCA, server blades @ LCC 2023-01-23.

If you do not think “commercial and shopping options in Lowndes County” should include a development foothold in an agricultural and forestry area, here are ways you can oppose it: a survey, a petition, letters, call your Commissioner, and speak in the Public Hearing.

[Trash bags across GA 122 from the rezoning notice sign]
Trash bags across GA 122 from the rezoning notice sign

Somebody identified only as “Joe w/ WG Research” is sending text messages with a survey that includes this question:

4. Would you be in favor of a new and architecturally enhanced Dollar General in North Lowndes County located on GA Hwy 122?

No doubt they want to hear from everybody. So please answer the survey and get friends and relatives who oppose that rezoning to answer it.
https://survey.alchemer.com/s3/7170646/Lowndes-County?x=2DCD7BDE9 Continue reading →

Miller Bridge Road subdivision withdrawn, Rocky Ford denied, Tourism reappointed @ LCC 2021-12-14

Update 2022-01-22: Miller Bridge Rezoning back as R-A @ GLPC 2022-01-31.

Update 2022-01-09: Cancelled: Lowndes County Commission Meetings 2022-01-10, so expect the contentious Miller Bridge Road subdivision that was withdrawn last time to be back with larger lot sizes at the January 24 and 25 Commission meetings.

The contentious Miller Bridge Road Rezoning was withdrawn from the December Lowndes County Commission meeting, but the withdrawal letter said it would be back, possibly in January.

The Rocky Ford rezoning from industrial to residential did not pass; although Commissioner Clay Griner voted against and Scottie Orenstein abstained, the other three voted to deny.

They reappointed the incumbent, Rick Williams, to the Valdosta-Lowndes County Conference Center and Tourism Authority, even though Commissioners Demarcus Marshall and Joyce Evans voted for Nick Harden (who did attend the meeting).

Most everything else sailed through. The meeting was very long anyway, because there was only one December Commission meeting, so everything got lumped into one.

[Two rezonings that did not pass]
Two rezonings that did not pass

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See the LAKE videos of the preceding morning’s Work Session and the agenda and board packet, received in response to a LAKE open records request. Two of them, actually, the second request was to get the petition from hundreds of opposing landowners.

See also the preceding Planning Commission agenda, the LAKE videos, and the meeting materials, received in response to LAKE open records requests.

Update 2022-01-03: Withdrawn but will return: subdivision in aquifer recharge zone near Little River, Lowndes County, GA @ LCC 2021-12-14.

Videos: Six rezonings, Tourism Authority appointment, LMIG, Calendar, ULDC, VOCA, VAWA, Opioid, Land Bank Authority, Fire Dept. @ LCC 2021-12-13

Update 2022-01-01: Miller Bridge Road subdivision withdrawn, Rocky Ford denied, Tourism reappointed @ LCC 2021-12-14

Turns out there was a petition that the County Planner “just took … out of this packet for now”, for REZ-2021-28 Windy Hill S/D, 7532 Miller Bridge Road, ~34 acres, E-A to R-1, Community Well & Septic. (WITHDRAWN).

We know this because Commissioner Demarcus Marshall asked. (See 6m:15s). That petition was not returned for the LAKE open records request for the board packet for this County Commission meeting.

County Planner JD Dillard said the petition had been presented to the Planning Commission. The petition also was not returned in response to the LAKE open records request for the Planning Commission packet, even though that response arrived several days after the Planning Commission meeting.

County Chairman Bill Slaughter said they could get that information to the Commissioners before their next meeting. I’m not sure that’s what the Georgia Open Records Act says.

Update 2021-12-27: Here is the petition, received in response to another LAKE open records request. Looks like the county redacted the email addresses.

Lowndes County Planner JD Dillard
County Planner JD Dillard

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, followed by a LAKE video playlist. Apologies for the very long first video; turns out the county sound feed was not working, so Gretchen had to go back and patch in county sound from another source. See also Continue reading →

Packet: Four big + 2 small county rezonings, four Valdosta rezonings, 3 of them CUP @ GLPC 2021-11-29

2023-12-14: Videos: Six rezonings, Tourism Authority appointment, LMIG, Calendar, ULDC, VOCA, VAWA, Opioid, Land Bank Authority, Fire Dept. @ LCC 2021-12-13

The entire board packet for the November 2021 Greater Lowndes Planning Commission meeting is on the LAKE website now, received in response to a LAKE open records request.

[Rezonings with LAKE logo]
Rezonings with LAKE logo

For the six county rezonings, there is more in the board packet for the Lowndes County Commission December meetings.

See also Continue reading →

Six rezonings, Tourism Authority appointment, LMIG, Calendar, ULDC, VOCA, VAWA, Opioid, Land Bank Authority, Fire Dept. @ LCC 2021-12-13

Withdrawn as R-1 (1-acre lots) from tomorrow’s Lowndes County Commission agenda, but to be resubmitted as R-A (2.5-acre lots):
REZ-2021-28 Windy Hill S/D, 7532 Miller Bridge Road, ~34 acres, E-A to R-1, Community Well & Septic (WITHDRAWN).

At the Planning Commission meeting end of November, staff said it did not match the Comprehensive Plan, and the Planning Commission unanimously recommended denial.

[Rezonings]
Rezonings

However, Planning Commissioner Franklin Bailey said, as he made the motion to disapprove, that he would be comfortable with 2.5-acre lots instead of 1-acre lots. The developer took him up on that idea with a written letter to the County Planner saying they would be back in January to ask for R-A rezoning, which will permit 2.5-acre lots.

Plus staff has dug up a 1999 rezoning nearby for 3-acre lots which could serve as a precedent. Yet almost none of those 3-acre lots have sold in the past two decades, so why is there any need for any more such lots “very deep in the Rural Service Area”?

That withdrawal letter says: Continue reading →

An inappropriate rezoning unanimously opposed, but beware return with different acreage @ GLPC 2021-11-29

Update 2021-12-12: Packet: Four big + 2 small county rezonings, four Valdosta rezonings, 3 of them CUP @ GLPC 2021-11-29.

The Greater Lowndes Planning Commission unanimously recommended denial of rezoning for a rezoning on Miller Bridge Road, outside any appropriate character area, but one of them frequently suggested trying 2.5-acre lots instead of 1-acre lots.

Another subdivision, on Rocky Ford Road, which was opposed by the Development Authority, got a split recommendation for denial, with that same Commissioner abstaining.

All the other items got unanimous approval.

One of the rezonings was actually to agricultural so the owner can farm it.

[Two rezonings recommended against]
Two rezonings recommended against

The owners spoke for REZ-2021-28 on Miller Bridge Road, with the usual insistence that everybody wants to live in the north part of the county and you just can’t stop growth and sprawl. Continue reading →

Four big + 2 small county rezonings, four Valdosta rezonings, 3 of them CUP @ GLPC 2021-11-29

Update 2021-12-01: Videos: An inappropriate rezoning unanimously opposed, but beware return with different acreage @ GLPC 2021-11-29

There’s been alarm in the northwest part of Lowndes County for a month about the 34-acre Miller Bridge Road rezoning. And there are three more big rezonings on the agenda tonight for the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission, on Rocky Ford Road, Val Tech Road, and Seminole Drive.

Those are Lowndes County cases, plus two more small rezonings.

The four Valdosta cases include one “CUP for very high density MultiFamily residential in C-C zoning” on West Hill Avenue, which sounds like a better idea than more sprawl out into the county.

[Four big rezonings]
Four big rezonings

Below is the agenda plus some maps from the Lowndes County Tax Assessors.

Greater Lowndes Planning Commission
~ Lowndes County ~ City of Valdosta ~ City of Dasher ~
~ City of Hahira ~ City of Lake Park ~ City of Remerton ~
Monday, November 22, 2021 5:30 P.M. Work Session
Monday, November 29, 2021 5:30 P.M. Regular Session
Lowndes County South Health District Administrative Office
325 West Savannah Avenue, Valdosta, Georgia

Continue reading →

Videos: Deannexation + 2 Valdosta cases, 2 Lowndes County cases @ GLPC 2021-07-26

Here are LAKE videos of each agenda item of the Monday, July 26, 2021, Regular Session of the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC), followed by a LAKE video playlist. The big item was 5. VA-2021-16 (pt 1) Uvalde Land Co. Deannex 310 acres from the City of Valdosta.

Greater Lowndes Planning Commission 2021-07-26

See also the agenda and Deannexation east of Withlacoochee River linked to subdivision west @ GLPC 2021-07-26. LAKE videos of the following Lowndes County Commission and Valdosta City Council meetings will also be up soon.

Videos: Building Valdosta Subdivision and The Landings on Val Del Road, Moody AFB water & wastewater, Reports @ LCC Work 2021-07-12

Update 2022-09-12: O’Neal rezoning back after a year: Packet: redo 2 rezonings, 3 extraterritorial water & sewer, $438,537 RR crossing, $2,542,586 Griner Park @ LCC 2022-09-12.

Two weeks ago at the Lowndes County Commission Work Session, by far the longest item at almost seven minutes was 6.b. REZ-2021-09 Building Valdosta Subdivision (0070 018), R-A to R-21. It fronts on Val Del Road, but has no county water and sewer. Commissioner Scottie Orenstein wanted to know about the two creeks that run through it: see the notes below on the item.

6.d. REZ-2021-11 The Landings (PD Amendment), Val Del Road (0071 056) got two and a half minutes.

The County Manager Reports was almost as long.

The whole meeting still only took 23 minutes.

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item with a few notes, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also the agenda, the board packet on the LAKE website due to a LAKE open records request, and the Minutes.


[Rezonings, Juvenile Justice, Moody AFB water & wastewater]
Rezonings, Juvenile Justice, Moody AFB water & wastewater

Deannexation east of Withlacoochee River linked to subdivision west @ GLPC 2021-07-26

What does a big parcel of flood plain property on the east (left) bank of the Withlacoochee River have to do with a subdivision to the west, both on the agenda for this Monday’s Greater Lowndes Planning Commission?

Well, both seem to have been requested by the same person, who is also somehow involved with the owner of the land in between.

What do the various LLCs and people involved want to do with hundreds of acres of floodplain next to the Withlacoochee River? They probably can’t build subdivisions on it, but they could log it, dig sand mines, put a shooting range there, or many other possibilities that might not be good for the river or nearby homeowners.

I have filed an open records request with Lowndes County so we can find out more.

Let’s start with the Valdosta deannexation case:

City of Valdosta Cases:

  1. VA-2021-16 Uvalde Land Co. (Cherry Creek — Withlacoochee River) Deannex 310 acres from the City of Valdosta

[Map: Uvalde Land Company, LLC:]
Map: Uvalde Land Company, LLC:

The Lowndes County Tax Assessor says: Continue reading →