Retreating again this week, but not very far this time:
next door to the Commission chamber, tomorrow (Thursday) and Friday.
In addition to SPLOST (now that they’ve got it, they
have to determine how to spend it),
what’s this about website on
the agenda?
LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERSContinue reading
2014 Commission Retreat Agenda
Lowndes County Judicial Complex, Administrative Wing
2nd Floor, Overflow Room next to the Commission Chambers
327 North Ashley Street, Valdosta, GA 31601
A
special called voting meeting
about Industrial Authority bonds.
followed the Work Session.
In the Work Session,
the last item was
the presentation
by Industrial Authority Executive Director Andrea Schruijer,
preceded by a
severe weather report
For Nine minutes they discussed a deficit for
special tax lighting districts throughout the county:
apparently they didn’t take into account that power rates or
lighting times might vary.
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.
The abandonment
of some unspecified unopened right of way off of US 41 South
is apparently resolved now after two years.
LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERSContinue reading
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
Mostly single-family rezonings this time, plus one 15 acre
planned development request.
Here’s the agenda, supplied by an informant. This one came as a real PDF, permitted extracting the text, so that’s an improvement over last month. Too bad about that “the expense” for the county to put it on the web in the first place.
Greater Lowndes Planning CommissionContinue readingLowndes County City of Valdosta City of Dasher City of Hahira City of Lake Park
REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING
AGENDA
Lowndes County South Health District Administrative Office
325 West Savannah AvenueMonday, February 24, 2014* 5:30 P.M. * Public Hearing
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 COMMISSIONERSContinue reading
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
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.
-jsq
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?
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
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
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
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.
LOWNDES COUNTY BIRD SUPPER—Tickets on sale now!
BIRD SUPPER RESCHEDULED – March 5
Continue reading
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 COMMISSIONERSContinue reading
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