Tag Archives: Valdosta

Golf club lift station on agenda @ LCC 2014-02-24

Lowndes County’s sewer lift station at a subdivision with a private golf club apparently needs replacement. This is the subdivision for which the Nelson Hill Wells were drilled as possible replacements. And an abandonment of some unspecified unopened right of way off of US 41 South. Plus a presentation by Industrial Authority Executive Director Andrea Schruijer.

Here’s the agenda:

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2014, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2014, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street — 2nd Floor
Continue reading →

Gilchrist County, FL pop. 16,815; Lowndes County, GA pop. 114,552

Apparently it doesn’t take size for elected commissioners to represent the people, or to choose not to. There’s still time for local governments to choose to do at least those things FERC and NTSB say they should do about pipelines, especially the proposed Sabal Trail Transmission methane pipeline.


Google Population Chart

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Local government pipeline responsibilities

Make pipeline companies answer questions, motivate implementation of safety standards, announce FERC Scoping meetings, and enforce reasonable local zoning restrictions: these are things local governments can do, and NTSB and FERC say they should do most of them. Gilchrist County Commission in Trenton, Florida has done most of them, and plans to continue doing more. The Lowndes County Commission and the Valdosta City Council still can, too, plus all the other county and city governments along the proposed pipeline path, and their statewide county and city government associations. Will our local elected officials represent we the people?

Make pipeline companies answer questions

There were Real questions at the Gilchrist County Commission meeting in Trenton, Florida Monday. Two hours of first questions from a citizens committee with Spectra’s reps expected to answer right there in front of everybody, then questions from locals and people from many counties around, including attorneys representing landowners and other county commissions cross-examining Spectra on the spot. The Chairman of the Gilchrist County Commission said there was a general opinion among the populace that they were asking specific questions and getting only general answers. Congratulations, Chairman, Commission, staff, Committee, and everyone who asked questions for showing the world how it’s done, and for exposing Spectra’s evasions to public scrutiny.

This is in sharp contrast to Continue reading →

CJB * 3 + Georgia Trend * 2 @ VLCIA 2014-02-18

CJB Industries is on the agenda twice, and in an article on VLCIA’s website and in an article in Georgia Trend that is the subject of one of those agenda items.

Here’s the agenda:

Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority
Tuesday, February 18, 2014 5:30 p.m.
Industrial Authority Conference Room
2110 N. Patterson Street
Agenda
Continue reading →

Revenue Bond for health care projects @ VLCIA 2014-01-28

It’s good they posted the detailed agenda item, but since when do tax-funded authorities hold public hearings in a private attorney’s office?

The Industrial Authority posted a meeting notice for their own special called meeting on their facebook page (a day in advance) and their website (at some unknown time). And the agenda does say what it was for:

For the consideration of the adoption of a bond resolution of the Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority authorizing and providing for (a) the extension of the maturity date of its Economic Development Revenue Bond (Langdale Hospice House Project), Series 2006, in the original principal amount of $2,800,000, the proceeds of which were used to finance or reimburse, in whole or in part, the cost of the acquisition, construction and equipping of a hospice house and related facilities located in Lowndes County, Georgia, and operated by South Georgia Health Alliance, Inc., a Georgia nonprofit corporation, and (b) the execution of certain documents for such purpose.

That bond was previously discussed at the Lowndes County Commission Work Session of 23 October 2006: Continue reading →

Transparency in government is essential to the public trust –VDT

VDT editorial yesterday, Violating public trust,

Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens successfully fought for and implemented changes to the state’s Open Records law, believing that transparency in government is essential to the public trust. The law passed in 2012 states, “The General Assembly finds and declares that the strong public policy of this state is in favor of open government; that open government is essential to a free, open, and democratic society; and that public access to public records should be encouraged to foster confidence in government and so that the public can evaluate the expenditure of public funds and the efficient and proper functioning of its institutions.”

The VDT asked for records from the Lowndes County school system and didn’t get them. Their experience sounds quite similar to many LAKE has had with the county government in particular, with records not being provided in the statutory three days, and sometimes not even an excuse or a list of what might eventually be available.

That plus failure to make even agendas for the Planning Commission available in a timely fashion so citizens can see whether they need to attend (somebody explain to me the expense of agendas; clearly I don’t understand this Internet suff), and even in response to open records requests returning paper when the documents are obviously composed in electronic formats, agendas for County Commission meetings that are just plain incorrect, resulting in people taking time off from work to show up unnecessarily for a Sabal Trail pipeline item that didn’t happen, a public hearing that wasn’t listed as such on the agenda, a secretive retreat “work session”, and not even being clear about what tax dollars for SPLOST would go for. That’s not even all; just a sample of county government lack of transparency.

And it’s not just the County Commission. Look at Continue reading →

Earthquake busts Augusta water tower: what about Plant Vogtle?

Less than two years after Southern Company CEO Tom Fanning assured us

It is not in a seismic-sensitive area.

Fanning also claimed the technology was safe, before SO failed to get a reactor vessel from Savannah to the site, and before a renewed scandal revealed Korea’s document-forging Doosan supplies that “safe” nuclear technology. How safe will Plant Vogtle be in a bigger earthquake? How safe is it even without an earthquake? Not safe for the ratepayers or the taxpayers of Georgia or the U.S.

Mark Sandritter wrote for SBNation yesterday, Augusta National water tower leaking after Georgia earthquake, per report, Continue reading →

Humans are the cause, and it’s time for people to become the solution –Danielle Jordan for SAVE

LTE in the VSU newspaper, The Spectator, today. -jsq

To the Editor,

Climate change is the defining issue of our time. Ninety-seven percent of scientists agree that humans are the cause. S.A.V.E. believes that it’s time for people to become the solution. Globally, we are feeling the impacts of record-setting temperatures, most notably in the extreme weather patterns and rising sea levels. Recent chemical (W.VA) and coal ash spills (N.C.) add to the urgency of moving beyond fossil fuel. Yet here on our campus there’s a remarkable disconnect between the classroom and the board room. Shockingly, the VSU Board of Trustees includes science deniers, oblivious to the threat of climate change—and to the academic integrity of this institution of higher learning.

Recently, the Board dismissed S.A.V.E.’s request that VSU rid its portfolio of fossil fuel holdings. Board Chairman, Wayne Edwards, a financial analyst, cast doubt on the study that accompanied our request. But we ask you, who knows more about climate, a team of 2,000 scientists from 154 countries who have compiled data from more than 9,000 studies, or a stock broker? Our point is that serious decisions at this institution are being taken by people who lack the proper credentials.

Chairman Edwards dismissed socially responsible investing as Continue reading →

Bird Supper rescheduled due to Atlanta weather to 5 March 2014

The City of Valdosta press release was carried by WCTV and VDT, and WALB interviewed Mayor John Gayle again. Lowndes County at least managed to update its front page. Last year crossover day was March 7th, when bills cross from one chamber to another. I don’t know when it will be this year, with all the holidays and weather closings, but probably not long after the rescheduled Bird Supper, if not before.

On lowndescounty.com:

LOWNDES COUNTY BIRD SUPPER—Tickets on sale now!

BIRD SUPPER RESCHEDULED – March 5

Continue reading →

Videos: Dollar General, Elections, and Human Resources @ LCC 2014-02-10

Fourteen (14) minutes. The most time was spent on the Wheeler rezoning, on yet another Dollar General, Elections Supervisor Deb Cox personally made her Board of Elections personnel request, which is to change five part-time positions for one full-time, and several Commissioners asked questions about the Human Resources service contract, which might result in educational requirements for positions, and is supposed to survey everybody paid by the county: but does that include employees of boards with their own millage, namely the Industrial Authority and Parks and Rec?

They vote tomorrow, Tuesday 11 Feb 2014 at 5:30 PM. Here’s the agenda.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2014, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2014, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street — 2nd Floor
Continue reading →