Tag Archives: VAWA

Videos: Tax Assessor and Land Bank appointments, Assessment rate, VAWA, alcohol @ LCC Regular 2024-01-28

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Update 2025-02-11: Lowndes County Considers Opting Out of House Bill 581 @ LCC Public Hearing 2025-02-10.

Commissioner Joyce Evans will rotate back into the Vice Chair position. On January 28, 2025, the Lowndes County Commission also reappointed to the Valdosta-Lowndes County Land Bank Authority.

[Collage @ LCC 28 January 2025]
Collage @ LCC 28 January 2025

In a break with tradition, the incumbent was not reappointed as a Tax Assessor. Gretchen Quarterman, the incumbent (although technically not, since the County Commission did not do reappointments before her term expired at the end of 2024) got a nomination and two votes. James Michael (Mike) Tanner also got a nommination and two votes. Commissioner Scottie Orenstein was not present for that item, since he came in late. That left Chairman Bill Slaughter to break the tie, and he voted for Tanner.

The previous morning, Commissioner Demarcus Marshall said he wanted to ask questions of the applicants for 6.a. Appointment to the Board of Tax Assessors. Chairman Bill Slaughter said they weren’t doing that in the Work Session because both applications were not there, but they can do it in the Regular Session Tuesday.

Mike Tanner did not attend the Regular Session. Gretchen Quarterman was there as usual, videoing the meeting.

The voted on the added agenda item, 8.d. Publish the intent to opt out of HB 581, to do that. That item and all the others were approved unanimously, except as noted above.

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, with a few comments by Gretchen Quarterman, followed by a LAKE video playlist.

See also Continue reading →

Packet: Tax Assessor and Land Bank appointments, Assessment rate, VAWA, alcohol @ LCC 2025-01-27

Update 2025-02-10: Videos: Tax Assessor and Land Bank appointments, Assessment rate, VAWA, alcohol @ LCC Regular 2025-01-28.

Finally received on February 6, 2025, the board packet materials are on the LAKE website for the January 27 and 28, 2025, Lowndes County Commission meetings.

[Packet: Collage @ LCC 2025-01-27]
Packet: Collage @ LCC 2025-01-27

See also the agenda and the LAKE videos of the Work Session; Regular Session up soon.

Lowndes County included this note with the board materials:

The January 27-28, 2025 meeting packet is attached. We did not receive the email on January 25th. Thank you for resending it.

As I mentioned in response: Continue reading →

Videos: Tax Assessor and Land Bank appointments, Assessment rate, VAWA, alcohol @ LCC Work

Update 2025-02-10: Videos: Tax Assessor and Land Bank appointments, Assessment rate, VAWA, alcohol @ LCC Regular 2025-01-28.

Update 2025-01-28: Added back the inadvertently omitted video of the 8.c. Approval of the Solicitor General’s FY2025 VAWA Grant Application.

At this morning’s Lowndes County Commission Work Session, Commissioner Demarcus Marshall said he wants to ask questions of the applications for 6.a. Appointment to the Board of Tax Assessors. Chairman Bill Slaughter said they weren’t doing that in the Work Session because both applications were not there, but they can do it in the Regular Session Tuesday evening.

[Collage @ LCC 27 January 2025]
Collage @ LCC 27 January 2025

The Chairman asked to add an agenda item: Consideration for discussion of opting out of new homestead exemption law. Deadline to decide and paperwork to Department of Revenue is March 1, 2025. He noted he voted for this law, but he isn’t sure he completely understood it. For the county consider opting out, they first need to announce that possibility and ask the public for input. They discussed this for almost eight minutes.

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, with a few comments by Gretchen Quarterman, followed by a LAKE video playlist.

See also the agenda. Continue reading →

Agenda: Tax Assessor and Land Bank appointments, Assessment rate, VAWA, alcohol @ LCC 2025-01-27

Update 2025-01-27: Videos: Tax Assessor and Land Bank appointments, Assessment rate, VAWA, alcohol @ LCC Work 2025-01-27.

For discussion Monday morning and for voting Tuesday evening, the Lowndes County Commission will consider appointments to two boards: Tax Assessors (reappoint Gretchen Quarterman or appoint James Michael Tanner) and Land Bank Authority (reappoint Commissioner Joyce Evans).

[Tax Assessor appointment, Land Bank Appointment, Special assessment rate, VAWA, alcohol @ LCC 2025-01-27]
Tax Assessor appointment, Land Bank Appointment, Special assessment rate, VAWA, alcohol @ LCC 2025-01-27

They will also hear a change-of-ownership beer, wine, and liquor license application, set the special assessment rate to 9.5%, and probably approve purchasing cards for Tax Commission Clay Guess and Probate Judge H. Burke Sherwood.

Plus they will consider $26,371.00 in cash match while the Solicitor-General’s Office applies for $79,112.00 in federal funding related to the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA).

Here is the agenda.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, JANUARY 27, 2025, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, JANUARY 28, 2025, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

Continue reading →

Videos: Appointment to Land Bank Authority, Mutual Aid Agreement, SetterPointe Subdivision, grants, offsite alcohol, data center switches, and failed land sale @ LCC Regular 2024-04-23

With no discussion, the Lowndes County Commission unanimously appointed James Miller to the Land Bank Authority. Gretchen note, “I’m guessing that this was pre-discussed because there was no discussion at either the work session, nor at this meeting. How do they decide? It’s a mystery.”

At that same Regular Session of April 23, 2024, they also approved everything else unanimously.

There was some discussion of how many single-parent families would be affected by the 6.a. FY 2025 Juvenile Justice Incentive Grant.

Commissioner Clay Griner asked where are the 6.g. North Lowndes Data Center Switches. Answer from Aaron Kostyu: “I would be happy to discuss that with you offline, but it’s probably not best for us to discuss data center locations in a public meeting.”

Jeff Hardy asked in Citizens Wishing to be heard about the timeline for replacement of the Frank’s Creek Bridge on Shiloh Road and about emergency services. The Chairman said he would speak to him after the meeting. Seems to me more citizens would like to know the answers.

No rezonings were on the agenda.

[Collage @ LCC 23 April 2024]
Collage @ LCC 23 April 2024

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, with a few notes by Gretchen Quarterman, followed by a LAKE video playlist.

See also the LAKE videos of the previous morning’s Work Session, and the agenda and board packet. Continue reading →

Videos: Appointment to Land Bank Authority, Mutual Aid Agreement, SetterPointe Subdivision, grants, offsite alcohol, data center switches, and failed land sale @ LCC Work 2024-04-22

Update 2024-05-10: Videos: Appointment to Land Bank Authority, Mutual Aid Agreement, SetterPointe Subdivision, grants, offsite alcohol, data center switches, and failed land sale @ LCC Regular 2024-04-23.

At their Work Session Monday morning, April 22, 2024, the Lowndes County Commission did not reveal which of three applicants they favor to appoint to the Land Bank Authority.

They breezed through everything else, with few questions, mostly wanting to know if there would be any surprises, to which the answer was always no.

This one was not anticipated in the original agreement: 5.d. TIA Supplemental Agreement for Hightower Road/Cooper Road NE.

No rezonings were on the agenda.

They voted the next evening.

[Collage @ LCC 22 April 2024]
Collage @ LCC 22 April 2024

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, with a few notes by Gretchen Quarterman, followed by a LAKE video playlist.

See also the agenda and board packet. Continue reading →

Packet: 3 applicants for Land Bank Authority, Mutual Aid Agreement, SetterPointe Subdivision, grants, offsite alcohol, data center switches, and failed land sale @ LCC 2024-04-22

Update 2024-05-10: Videos: Appointment to Land Bank Authority, Mutual Aid Agreement, SetterPointe Subdivision, grants, offsite alcohol, data center switches, and failed land sale @ LCC Work 2024-04-22.

At their Work Session Monday morning and voting Regular Session Tuesday evening, the Lowndes County Commission this week will mostly consider the three applicants to the Valdosta-Lowndes County Land Bank Authority and a variety of grants, plus renewing a Statewide Mutual Aid Agreement Between Lowndes County and the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency, as well as with all the other Georgia counties.

[Collage, Lowndes County Commission Board Packet, April 22,23, 2024]
Collage, Lowndes County Commission Board Packet, April 22,23, 2024

No rezonings are on the agenda.

The one subdivision infrastructure acceptance is as usual listed as Continue reading →

Videos: Howell Road Halfway House tabled @ LCC Regular 2023-03-28

Update 2023-04-10: Packet: Raise waste collection rates, appointments to 3 boards, crop sprayer for wastewater hayfield @ LCC 2023-04-10.

As suggested by Commissioner Mark Wisenbaker yesterday, the rezoning was tabled until the next Lowndes County Commission meeting: 6.a. REZ-2022-10 The Campus Transitional Care Facility, 2193 Howell Road. It was tabled before the Public Hearing, so I would guess that means they have to send out notice again for a Public Hearing. The motion to table was by Commissioner Wisenbaker, second by Commissioner Scottie Orenstein, and it passed unanimously by the four voting Commissioners present. Commissioner Clay Griner was not there, which was the purpose of tabling: wait until all five Commissioners are there.

Interestingly, most of the people who came for the Howell Road public hearing stayed to the end. They didn’t leave when the item was tabled. This was very unusual.

[Collage @ LCC 28 March 2023]
Collage @ LCC 28 March 2023

The Land Bank Authority appointment was also tabled until the first meeting in April, due to lack of nominations.

Everything else passed unanimously.

On the waste collection franchises by Continue reading →

Packet: Howell Road rezoning, Trash colleciton centers, Windstream Broadband map @ LCC 2023-03-27

Update 2023-03-30: Videos: Howell Road Halfway House tabled @ LCC Regular 2023-03-28.

The Lowndes County Commission board packet for this week’s meetings contains no letters supporting the Howell Road halfway house rezoning. It does contain eleven opposition letters plus 31 pages of opposition petition signatures, which at about a dozen a page comes to somewhere around 372 signatures. Commissioners will decide tomorrow evening at 5:30 PM, after a Public Hearing.

[Howell Road rezoning, Trash colleciton centers, Windstream Broadband map @ LCC Packet 2023-03-27]
Howell Road rezoning, Trash colleciton centers, Windstream Broadband map @ LCC Packet 2023-03-27

The packet, received in response to a LAKE open records request, is on the LAKE website.

See also the agenda and the LAKE videos of this morning’s Work Session.

-jsq

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Videos: Howell Road Halfway House @ LCC Work 2023-03-27

Update 2023-03-27: Packet: Howell Road rezoning, Trash colleciton centers, Windstream Broadband map @ LCC 2023-03-27.

Commissioner Wisenbaker asked this morning whether they could table 6.a. REZ-2022-10 Campus Transitional Care Facility 2193 Howell Road, E-A to P-D. He was concerned that Commissioner Clay Griner will not be present, so once again the Chairman may have to break a tie, as happened last year in the vote that they later had to rescind because they did not give proper notice of the Public Hearing.

Answer from Chairman Bill Slaughter and the Attorney: yes, Commissioners can move and vote to table.

Does this mean they’ve all already made up their minds before they even listen to the Public Hearing tomorrow evening?

[Collage @ LCC 27 March 2023]
Collage @ LCC 27 March 2023

Both DSS and ADS asked for a trash pickup fee increase from $20 to $25/month, and deposit center hours changed from 7AM to 7PM to 8AM to 6PM. According to the Chairman, those things will not change yet, rather they will be addressed in the retreat. Also, Deep South Sanitation has 6,900 customers and Advanced Disposal Services has 9,000.

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, with a few notes by Gretchen Quarterman, followed by a LAKE video playlist.

See also the agenda and agenda sheets. Continue reading →