Category Archives: Planning

Packet: Board of Health appointment, two rezonings, 4 water, mosquitoes @ LCC 2023-09-11

Update 2023-09-11: Videos: Seven minutes on REZ-2023-04 Quarterman Road @ LCC Work 2023-09-11.

In a busy agenda, the Lowndes County Commission will discuss Monday morning at 8:30 AM and vote on Tuesday evening at 5:30 PM appointing Dr. Anthony Johnson to the Board of Health, four water and sewer items, mosquitoes, and two rezonings.

[Collage, LCC Packet 2023-09-11]
Collage, LCC Packet 2023-09-11

In their preceding meeting, the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC) by a 7:1 vote recommended denial for REZ-2023-04 Chase, 6119 Quarterman Rd, ~18 acres, E-A to R-A, Well & Septic, and GLPC unanimously recommended approval for REZ-2023-10 Copeland, 3728 Mt. Zion Church Rd., ~4ac, E-A to R-21.

Cost What
$287,786.39LAS Expansion Clearing & Grubbing
$105,000.00Meter Backflow Device Purchase
$68,889.40Bevel Creek Lift Station Pump
$55,194.30Annual Contract Renewal with VSU for Mosquito Identification and Testing
$516,870.09Total

Of the half a million dollars in expenditures the Commission they will probably approve Tuesday, more than half is for expansion of the Land Application Site (LAS). Two of the others are also water or sewer projects. They do not list a cost for the other water and sewer project: Hamilton Green Acceptance of Water & Sewer Infrastructure.

Here is the agenda.

The board packet materials, received by LAKE in response to a LAKE open records request, are on the LAKE website. Several requested items are missing. We will ask again.

For the preceding GLPC meeting, see also Continue reading →

Please reject REZ-2023-04 2.5-acre rezoning on Quarterman Road –Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE 2023-08-28

Update 2023-09-06: Please keep Quarterman Road in agriculture and forestry –WWALS to Greater Lowndes Planning Commission 2023-08-28.

Here is the letter Gretchen Quarterman sent on behalf of Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE) to the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC) before their meeting of Monday, August 28, 2023.

[LAKE letter and map]
LAKE letter and map

As you can see in the LAKE videos of that meeting, GLPC recommended denial by 7:1 of REZ-2023-04 on Quarterman Road.

Thanks to everyone who signed the petition: a table of signatories and images of the petition sheets are included. Thanks to everyone who spoke at the GLPC meeting.

The final decision will be at the Lowndes County Commission Regular Session of Tuesday, September 12, 2023. More petition signatures would help, and more calls and letters to Lowndes County Commissioners, and more speakers in the Public Hearing on September 12th.

The LAKE Letter

In PDF and below in web format. Continue reading →

Videos: Quarterman Road rezoning recommended against, Mt. Zion Church Road for @ GLPC 2023-08-28

Update 2023-09-05: Please reject REZ-2023-04 2.5-acre rezoning on Quarterman Road –Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE 2023-08-28.

The Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC) voted 7:1 to recommend denial of the proposed E-A 2.5-acre-lot rezoning on Quarterman Road, in an agricultural and forestry area.

[Collage @ LCC 28 August 2023]
Collage @ LCC 28 August 2023

They unanimously voted to recommend approval of the R-21 half-acre-lot rezoning on Mt. Zion Church Road that is among numerous existing small lots.

In the first rezoning item, REZ-2023-04 on Quarterman Road, the County Planner mentioned that county staff had been unable to find any record of the previous (1980s) rezoning of the existing subdivision on Emily Lane west of Quarterman Road. Continue reading →

Packet: Two county rezonings, one plainly inappropriate @ GLPC 2023-08-28

Update 2023-08-29: Videos: Quarterman Road rezoning recommended against, Mt. Zion Church Road for @ GLPC 2023-08-28.

The Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC) has only two cases for Monday, both Lowndes County Cases.

[Two Lowndes County cases @ GLPC 2023-08-28]
Two Lowndes County cases @ GLPC 2023-08-28

County staff recommend approval of both rezonings, one in the middle of subdivisions on Mt. Zion Church Road, and the other in the middle of agriculture and forestry land on Quarterman Road.

For REZ-2023-04 on Quarterman Road, county staff strain really hard to dilute agriculture and forestry by including a nearby subdivision in their first calculation. Quarterman Road is almost all Continue reading →

Draft Proposed Lowndes County Land Development Code changes 2023-06-13

Here are the draft changes to the Unified Land Development Code (ULDC) that Jason Davenport presented to the Lowndes County Commission in its Work Session of Monday, June 12, 2023.

[Ten amendments, timeline, and primary staff]
Ten amendments, timeline, and primary staff

The new rebuttal part of the Public Hearings, Continue reading →

Agenda: Lowndes County Commissioners Planning Meeting 2023-04-12

In Lowndes County’s annual Planning Retreat, these items seem especially interesting, for today and Friday:

Wednesday- 2:00 p.m. Unified Land Development Code Ordinance Update

Friday- 8:30 a.m. Ordinance Update Discussion

It’s hard to tell what will be discussed in the other agenda items, since they have labels like “Finance” or “Departmental Updates”.

[Agenda]
Agenda
PDF

Not sure when this was posted, but it is under Lowndes County News: 2023 ANNUAL PLANNING MEETING AGENDA. Continue reading →

Code Enforcement Appreciation and new Tourism Authority Director @ LCC Regular Session 2021-09-14

At the recent Lowndes County Commission Regular Session, County Manager Paige Dukes in her Reports mentioned many then-upcoming events, two of which are still coming, and may be of public interest:

  • 2021-09-21, 4:30 PM, at Georgia Beer Co.: Meet and greet for new Executive Director, David DiSalvo, of Valdosta-Lowndes Conference Center and Tourism Authority. https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-j-disalvo-9048b24
  • 2021-09-28, 6PM, in Commission Chambers: Comp Plan stakeholder meeting just after next LCC meeting, Most recent draft of Comprehensive Plan was on Commissioners’ desks; is available electronically (where?).

None of these events are on the lowndescounty.com online calendar.

[Code Enforcement, RV Sales, Reports, End time]
Code Enforcement, RV Sales, Reports, End time

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item with a few notes, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also Continue reading →

Videos: Oak St. Pregnancy Clinic, Val Del Wetherington, Baytree Nijem @ GLPC 2020-02-24

The longest time, almost 16 minutes, was for Pregnancy Support Clinic of Valdosta at 2203 N. Oak St., followed at 14 minutes by REZ-2020-03 Wetherington Property, Val Del Road RA to PD, with 12 minutes for the Jon Nijem rezoning and Planned Development at 406 & 410 Baytree Road, in a relatively short February meeting of the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission.

VA-2020-05 Pregnancy Support Clinic

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, with a few notes. See also Continue reading →

Videos: Hamm Estates roads, Deannexation, Rezonings, Right of Way, Software, Health Insurance, Repairs, KLVB @ LCC 2020-02-25

The longest regular item at 4 minutes on this voting Regular Session agenda was 6.b. Accept Hamm Estates Dr. into the County Road Inventory. Longer were two Citizens who spoke at the end about Keep Lowndes-Valdosta Beautiful (KLVB).

Hamm Estates

Here again are the costs found in the agenda sheets for the items, from most expensive down, with links back into the agenda.

CostWhat
$290,000.00 2020 Administrative Services Agreement with Allied Benefit Systems, Inc.
$50,433.00 Bid for Repairs to Knights Academy Road; emergency repairs for Culvert Aprons
$43,245.50 Approval of Clyattstone Rd.-Simpson Ln. ROW Purchases
$24,613.44 Microsoft Server 2019 Data Center License
$11,535.00 Approval of Clyattstone Rd.-Simpson Ln. ROW Acquisition
$419,826.94Total

The actual cost for the Clyattstone Road-Simpson Lane project is larger; more like $77,696.50 so far, before grading, base, and paving; see the LAKE notes on the preceding morning’s Work Session.

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, with a few notes. See also Continue reading →

Videos: Deannexation, Rezonings, Right of Way, Software, Health Insurance, Road Repairs @ LCC 2020-02-24

The longest item of those I videoed (yes, I was late to this Work Session) was 6.f. Deannexation of Ganas Property by Lake Park, which apparently doesn’t cost the county anything. Directly, at least. Maybe even net positive, due to property taxes.

Deannexation

Here are the costs found in the agenda sheets for the items, from most expensive down, with links back into the agenda.

CostWhat
$290,000.00 2020 Administrative Services Agreement with Allied Benefit Systems, Inc.
$50,433.00 Bid for Repairs to Knights Academy Road; emergency repairs for Culvert Aprons
$43,245.50 Approval of Clyattstone Rd.-Simpson Ln. ROW Purchases
$24,613.44 Microsoft Server 2019 Data Center License
$11,535.00 Approval of Clyattstone Rd.-Simpson Ln. ROW Acquisition
$419,826.94Total

The actual cost for one item is larger; see below for Clyattstone Road and Simpson Lane ROW Purchases.

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, with a few notes. See also Continue reading →