Tag Archives: VBOE

Valdosta Chamber Candidate Forum 2019-10-08

Meet the Candidates 2019, organized by the Valdosta Lowndes Chamber of Commerce: no questions from the audience, but Gretchen Quarterman videoed for LAKE the few minutes each candidate for Valdosta Mayor, City Council, or Valdosta Board of Education held forth. Plus seven minutes about SPLOST, the Special Local Option Sales Tax, the only thing voters in the unincorporated parts of Lowndes County get to vote on this election season.

Mike Gudley talks about the SPLOST referendum

Below are links to each LAKE video Gretchen took, followed by a LAKE video playlist.

Continue reading →

Lowndes County rolled back millage @ LCC 2018-08-17

As Lowndes County Finance Director Stephanie Black always reminds everybody, of the total 8.814 county millage, 1 mil goes to the Development Authority, and 1.25 mils to Valdosta-Lowndes Parks and Recreational Authority. Here is a table from the PDF of her presentation slides.

Property Tax Example
City of Valdosta ResidentUnincorporated Resident
Property Value$200,000$200,000
Assessed Value (40%)$80,000$80,000
Homestead Exemption$(6,000)$(6,000)
Net Taxable Base$74,000$74,000
Tax Calculation:
Lowndes County — 8.814 PY 8.974$652$652
Development Authority — 1.00$74$74
Parks
& Recreation Authority — 1.25$93$93
Lowndes County Schools — 16.541 PY 16.839$1,224
City of Valdosta — 8.001 PY 8.001$592
Valdosta City Schools — 16.980 PY 16.980$1,257
Total Estimated Taxes$2,668$2,043

Since she made that table, Valdosta actually lowered its millage to 7.916, which in the above example would mean $50.32 less per year, for an example of how little difference these minor millage rollbacks or increases actually mean to taxpayers. The Valdosta Board of Education wants to increase its tax rate (but not its millage).

Last year the Lowndes County Commission voted on the millage during a Regular Session, Tuesday, August 22, 2017.

This year Continue reading →

Solar Valdosta Schools 2018-02-13

Yesterday the Valdosta Board of Education voted for the sun.

No byline, WCTV, 14 Feb 2018, Valdosta City Schools votes to lease land to solar company,

The school system will begin leasing some of its extra property to the solar energy company Radiance Solar.

Solar Site Map by Radiance Solar, Maps

Radiance Solar will reportedly pay Continue reading →

Videos: Candidate Forum, AAUW 2017-09-21

Valdosta State University gave the American Association of University Women Powell Hall for this candidate forum last Thursday, September 21, 2017. Why they held it in a dark room with bad acoustics, I don’t know, but at least you can see the candidates and other speakers.

Here are links to each LAKE video, followed by a LAKE video playlist. Yes, you may use one of these videos or clips in your political ad, provided you cite the source: Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE). See also the announcement in the VDT.

Video.

Continue reading →

Videos: Candidate Forum @ SCLC 2015-09-20

Here are videos of the candidate forum at Serenity Church last Sunday. Anyone can use these videos provided they attribute Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange. There’s another candidate forum tonight at VSU.

And if you haven’t heard John Robinson sing, you really ought to listen to this. Plus Roy Taylor says he didn’t do it.

Candidates Qualified for City Elections in Lowndes County, GA

Every Valdosta City Council seat up for election is contested, a couple of Valdosta School Board seats, one Hahira City Council seat, and five people are running for four Lake Park City Council seats.

Although this is a nonpartisan election, all candidates are invited to speak tonight at the Lowndes County Democratic Party (LCDP) monthly meeting, 6PM Monday 14 September 2015, at Mama June’s Home Cookin’, 3286 Inner Perimeter Rd., Valdosta, GA. Around 20 of them will speak, so here’s your first opportunity to hear directly from most of the candidates.

Here’s the list of candidates who qualified for this election, according to the Lowndes County Board of Elections, formatted the way they sent it. Continue reading →

Hospitals most likely to deploy microgrids: SGMC next to VSU?

According to a thesis at Georgia Southern, hospitals are the most likely 300x143 States, in A Technical and Economic Feasibility Study of Implementing a Microgrid at Georgia Southern University, by Matthew S. Purser, 1 March 2014 industry to form microgrids, and it’s not just New York State doing microgrids; even Alabama has one. South Georgia Medical Center plus VSU seems like a good microgrid opportunity. Put solar panels on the roofs, buy some Tesla Powerwalls for backup, experiment with some wind…. Maybe the Valdosta-Lowndes Development Authority could help. And use the electricity bill money saved to fund public transportation!

Matthew S. Purser, Georgia Southern, Spring 2014, A Technical and Economic Feasibility Study of Implementing a Microgrid at Georgia Southern University. Continue reading →

ESPLOST yes way ahead

ESPLOST will win by 4 to 1. Going not very far out on a limb, with only 3 of 9 precincts reporting, but with 79+ yes to 20% no at 8:30 PM, I predict ESPLOST will win. Oops, make that 7 of 9 precincts; changed while I was writing this.

600x137 Bar graph: 79+% yes 20% no, in ESPLOST wins, by John S. Quarterman, 17 March 2015

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Videos: ESPLOST V kickoff meeting @ ESPLOST 2015-02-24

Co-Chair Jerome Tucker emphasized that ESPLOST helping public schools also helps economic development. See below for who we now know are the committee members for the Educational Special Local Option Sales Tax (ESPLOST). It’s mysterious why that information wasn’t in the PR before the meeting, but now we know, since Gretchen went and took the videos and collected the flyers you’ll find below.

Early voting already started that same day and continues through March 13th, with the final Election Day 17 March 2015.

600x450 Crowd picture, in ESPLOST Kickoff and Press Conference, by Gretchen Quarterman, 24 February 2015

Lowndes/Valdosta Citizens for Excellence in Education
Education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax
For Lowndes County Schools and Valdosta City Schools Continue reading →

ESPLOST V kickoff meeting today @ ESPLOST 2015-02-24

A committee of unknown members is holding a kickoff meeting today for the Educational Special Local Option Sales Tax. Various local news media carry the announcement below, but none of them seem to have the names of the committee members beyond one co-chair. I guess we’ll find out from the videos Gretchen is going there now to take.

In the City of Valdosta’s In The City This Week, Feb. 23-28,

Feb. 24: ESPLOST V Campaign. The ESPLOST joint committee will host a campaign kickoff on Tuesday, Feb. 24, at 5 p.m., in the Valdosta City Hall Annex Multi-Purpose Room. At the meeting, committee members will share proposed projects for Lowndes County and Valdosta City Schools with citizens. Early voting runs Feb. 23 through March 13. The final opportunity to vote will be on the official Election Day, March 17. For more information, email Co-Chair John Eunice at jleunice@yahoo.com.

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