Update 2021-11-08: Videos: Comprehensive Plan Update Public Hearing 2 @ LCC 2021-10-26.

The County Manager said the Character Area Maps were not changing in the Comprehensive Plan Update, so she expected the Public Hearing Tuesday to be brief, but a quorum would be required. At the end, I thanked the Commissioners for not changing the character area maps and asked them to follow them in future rezonings.

County Manager, PIO, Valwood Valiants, Character Area Maps

The river gauge funding and the beer and wine license sailed through unanimously. The longest items were the two part Proclamation Presentation to Valwood Valiants Volleyball Team and the County Manager’s Report.

Here are links to each LAKE video of each agenda (and non-agenda) item, with a few notes, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also the LAKE videos of the same morning’s Work Session, the agenda, and the board packet which we received in response to a LAKE open records request and put on the LAKE website. Some day the county will put its own board packets on its own website.

Commissioner Joyce Evans

Commissioner Scott Orenstein

Commissioner Mark Wisenbaker

Commissioner Clay Griner

Planning Director JD Dillard (not present)

IT Director Aaron Kostyu

• 1. Order 2. Invocation 3. Pledge
  

  Video.

• Leadership Lowndes
  

  Video.

• 4. Valwood Valiants Volleyball (1 of 2)
  

  Video.

  County Manager Paige Dukes noted the coach was stuck in traffic, so Chairman Bill Slaughter defered the proclamation until later in the meeting. Not much later: he remarked that the rest of the meeting would “just take a minute or two.”

• 5. Minutes for Approval
  

  Video.

• 6.a. River Gauges: FY2022 Joint Funding Agreement with USGS
  

  Video. EMA Director Ashley Tye presented.

  Commissioner Mark Wisenbaker wanted to know why the increase in price.

  A: USGS did not say.

• 6.b. Beer and Wine License – Nehaben Patel of Shree 4946, LLC
  

  Video.

  Finance Director Stephanie Black presented.

  Commissioners had no questions.

• 7. Reports – County Manager
  

  Video.

  County Manager Paige Dukes said staff were “very program and project oriented through the end of the year.”

  She thanked those Commissioners who went to the Clyattville Fire Station ribbon cutting that same morning.

  She said Chad [McLeod] had made sure there would be lighting and electricity on the outside of the historic Lowndes County Courthouse during demolition, and said they had discovered some “fantastic character” that they did not expect to be there.

  Joint recycling, 8-12 November 12, 2021.

  Chamber and county Farm of the Year Breakfast, 7:30 AM, December 9, 2021, Civic Center.

  Budget packages are being prepared, and other announcements.

  Comprehensive Plan Public Hearing scheduled for tomorrow (Tuesday evening) and a quorum would be required. She did not expect it to take long, since the major citizen concern had been met by not changing the Character Area Maps.

  Commissioner Mark Wisenbaker wanted to know if the Farmer of the Year was limited to Lowndes County. A: Lowndes and Echols Counties.

  She complimented Lowndes County PIO Meghan Barwick for making things easier.

  
  Meghan Barwick, Public Information Officer

• 4. Proclamation Presentation to Valwood Valiants Volleyball Team
  

  Video.

  Chairman Bill Slaughter called on Clay Griner to read the proclamation.

  
  Photo-op Valwood Valiant Volleyball Team

  
  Proclamation Valwood Valiant Volleyball

• 8. CWTBH: Thanks for keeping character area maps –John S. Quarterman
  

  Video.

  I thanked them for not changing the Character Area Maps in the 2021 Comprehensive Plan Update.

  
  2016 and 2021 Lowndes County Character Area Maps

  And I asked them to follow those maps in future rezonings.

  I did not have to spell out that I was alluding to their decision two weeks ago to ignore the Character Area Maps and the recommendations to deny of their own staff and of the Planning Commission when they rezoned for a subdivision far north on Val Del Road. Before the meeting, I thanked Commissioners Joyce Evans and Mark Wisenbaker for voting against that rezoning.

Here’s a LAKE video playlist:

Videos: Valwood award, river gauges, Comprehensive Plan, Alcohol @ LCC Regular 2021-10-25
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia.
Videos by John S. Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE),

-jsq

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