Tag Archives: Valdosta City Council

Big Hahira rezoning, 4 small Valdosta @ GLPC 2022-04-25

Update 2022-04-25: Hahira subdivision proposed near Big Branch of Franks Creek @ GLPC 2022-04-25.

The one big rezoning on the agenda for this evening’s meeting of the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission is HA-2022-06, Sweet Bay Properties, 7440 Union Road, 0024 024, 72 acres, R-15 to R-6, on the site of Guthrie Lumber Company.

Staff recommendation is “Find R-10 zoning consistent with the Comprehensive Plan and the Standards for the Exercise of Zoning Power (SFEZP), and recommend approval of R-10 zoning (instead) to the City Council.”

[Rezonings]
Rezonings

Here is the agenda. The Hahira and Valdosta items, sent by City Planner Matt Martin, are on the LAKE website. The Dasher, Lake Park, and Remerton items are not; LAKE will send Lowndes County an open records request. The minutes of the previous GLPC meeting are not on the county’s website yet, so they are also not included on the LAKE website yet. Continue reading →

Hahira withdrawn, 4 Valdosta, 3 Lowndes @ GLPC 2022-03-28

The Hahira rezoning was withdrawn by the applicant, but all the other rezonings were heard by the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission last month, including the contentious REZ-2022-07 Hayden Park, Camelot Crossing and Val Del Road, which has already come before the Lowndes County Commission once and is back again today.

[Example rezonings]
Example rezonings

Here is the agenda. The board packet is on the LAKE website, The Valdosta rezoning items were sent by City Planner Matt Martin. The Lowndes County rezoning items were received in response to a LAKE open records request. The county did not send the agenda nor the minutes of the previous meeting, both of which LAKE got off the county website. The county also did not send the Valdosta items, in apparent violation of the Georgia Open Records Act (GORA).

Greater Lowndes Planning Commission
~ Lowndes County ~ City of Valdosta ~ City of Dasher ~
~ City of Hahira ~ City of Lake Park ~ City of Remerton ~
Monday, March 21, 2022 5:30 P.M. Work Session
Monday, March 28, 2022 5:30 P.M. Regular Session
Lowndes County South Health District Administrative Office
325 West Savannah Avenue, Valdosta, Georgia

Continue reading →

Packet: Rezonings and Backup Lift Station Generators @ VCC 2022-03-10

In a milestone for Valdosta’s ongoing upgrades to its sewer system, tonight the Mayor and Council will approve the last two of 37 emergency standby generators for lift stations.

[Rezonings and Generators]
Rezonings and Generators

Plus three small rezonings, recommended by staff and the Planning Commission, some with conditions. Another rezoning and annexation were withdrawn by applicant because his sale fell through.

About Item 5.a. Consideration of bids for the purchase of two emergency standby Generators for Lift Stations located at Dillard’s and the Second Harvest Food Bank.

[Photograph]
Photograph

BUDGET IMPACT/FUNDING SOURCE: User Fees

HISTORY: To ensure continued sewage lift station operations during power outages and to satisfy the Georgia Environmental Protection Division requirements, the Utilities Department developed a scope of work to purchase two emergency standby generators. These generators are needed to prevent lift station failures due to power outages from storms or other unexpected causes. Several years ago, the City initiated a program to purchase standby generators or emergency standby diesel pumps for all of its existing sewage lift stations. These are the final two generators needed to complete the Program. Once they are installed, all 37 of our lift stations will have some form of dedicated emergency backup capability from generators and/or backup diesel pumps. Additionally, this will complete Condition 18 of the EPD Consent Order which requires the installation of fixed generators and/or backup pumps at all lift stations by September, 2023. Moving forward, all new City lift stations will include a dedicated emergency backup capability as part of their construction.

See below for the agenda, which does not appear to be on the City of Valdosta’s website. The board packet, received in response to a LAKE open records request, is on the LAKE website.
http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/valdosta/2022-03-10–vcc-packet

See also the LAKE videos of the preceding Planning Commission meeting, at which the same rezonings were considered.

AGENDA OF THE VALDOSTA CITY COUNCIL
5:30 PM Thursday, March 10, 2022
CITY HALL, COUNCIL CHAMBERS

Continue reading →

Hahira, Valdosta, Lowndes County rezonings @ GLPC 2022-02-28

At the February 28, 2022, Regular Session of the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission, the Valdosta annexation and rezoning requests, 10. VA-2022-02 11. VA-2022-02 Murray Staten Farms, LLC, were both withdrawn by applicant.

All the other requests were unanimously recommended for approval, some with conditions. The various elected bodies will decide.

[Radney]
Radney

In the longest time at nineteen minutes, Four citizens spoke against 5. REZ-2022-04 Radney, 5761 Long Pond Road. Donna Weldon, the President of the Long Pond Property Owners Association, agreed that with the revised conditions accepted by the applicant, the rezoning would be acceptable. Glenn Gregory, the last speaker, emphasized that still more duplexes could be built in that heavy traffic hazardous area. GLPC modified the conditions to retain the conditions prohibiting mobile homes and duplexes, and to add a minimum heated size. Unanimous recommendation for approval with conditions.

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also the agenda. LAKE will publish the board packet as soon as we get the Hahira and Valdosta items from Matt Martin. It is now well over the statutory three days since LAKE sent the GORA request.

Two Hahira variances, two Lowndes County rezonings, four Valdosta rezonings and an annexation @ GLPC 2022-02-28

Update 2022-03-07: LAKE videos.

Two small lot variances in Hahira, two small lot rezonings in Lowndes County, three small rezonings in Valdosta, and one big annexation and rezoning by Valdosta, 35 acres for Murray Staten Farms, LLC, 3550 Lake Laurie Drive, all on the agenda this evening for the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC). GLPC recommends, and the elected bodies decide. For an annexation, the Lowndes County Commission will have to state whether it objects before the Valdosta Mayor and Council decide.

[Agenda, Lake Laurie Drive annexation]
Agenda, Lake Laurie Drive annexation

There’s no parcel listed for 3550 Lake Laurie Drive by the Lowndes County Tax Assessors. Why the agenda can’t just tell us which parcels is mysterious.

However, this parcel is where google maps finds that address: 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 →

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: Comprehensive Plan Update Public Hearing 2 @ LCC 2021-10-26

Only one citizen showed up to speak: David Houtz, who asked Commissioners not to change the Character Area Maps, and said he had not seen the latest plan. SGRC’s Elizabeth Backe handed him a copy; she also presented a summary of the process at the beginning of the meeting, and clarified process later.

[Citizen David Houtz, Elizabeth Backe of SGRC, Houtz receives plan, Sparse audience, City Planner Matt Martin, Commissioners Orenstein and Marshall, Commissioners and VDT reporter]
Citizen David Houtz, Elizabeth Backe of SGRC, Houtz receives plan, Sparse audience, City Planner Matt Martin, Commissioners Orenstein and Marshall, Commissioners and VDT reporter

You can see in this LAKE video a discussion between Valdosta and Hahira City Planner Matt Martin and Lowndes County Commissioner Scottie Orenstein about changes to the Hahira Character Area map is not recorded in the minutes, as well as the rest of the 17-minute meeting.

Commissioners discussed the Comprehensive Plan Update again this morning in their Work Session, and they will approve it tomorrow afternoon at 5:30 PM in their Regular Session. Continue reading →

No agenda for tomorrow’s Planning Commission meeting @ GLPC 2021-10-25

Update 2021-10-25: Agenda and Hahira case.

According to its schedule on the City of Valdosta website, the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC) meets as usual tomorrow, the last Monday of the month.

When: 5:30pm to 6:30pm, Monday, October 25, 2021

Where: South Health District Administrative Office
325 West Savannah Avenue, Valdosta, GA 31601

[GLPC Schedule]
GLPC Schedule

That’s at the exact same time as the Lowndes County Commission Regular Session, which normally would be Tuesday at 5:30 PM, but that time slot is taken by the Public Hearing to Review and Transmit the 2021 Comprehensive Plan Update.

Lowndes County’s website has nothing in its calendar for this meeting, and no agenda is posted.

I have sent a request for agenda and board packet to the city and county Clerks and Planners. While the other four cities in Lowndes County may also have items on the agenda, Valdosta and Lowndes County traditionally handle the agenda.

If I get anything in time before the meeting tomorrow evening, I will post it.

-jsq

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