One month ago, the entire Lowndes County Commission Regular Work Session took eight and a half minutes.
Plus an
Executive Session for Real Estate.
Below are LAKE videos for each agenda item, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also the agenda. The board packet is on the LAKE website.
The two rezonings on the Lowndes County Commission agenda for this week seem to cancel each other out, since one wants to go “back” to Estate Agriculture (E-A), while the other wants to rezone from E-A to R-A, both on about ten acres.
Because by an open records request we got the agenda packet, we know how much the agenda items costs, even though dollar amounts are not listed in the agenda.
The Request to Accept Hamm Estates Dr. into the County Road Inventory for Maintenance is listed as “BUDGET IMPACT: N/A”. What if those subdivision roads need repairs, like Knights Academy Road?
The unusual Deannexation of Ganas Property by Lake Park apparently costs the county nothing. Not even legal fees?
The high-dollar item is $290,000.00 for health insurance administration. Employees pay their Continue reading
For unknown reasons, the Lowndes County Commission votes tonight at 5:30 PM.
By far the longest at this morning’s Work Session was 5.d. Lake Park Annexation and Rezoning of Register Property, running 14 and a half minutes.
Second at almost three minutes was the $99,700 jail software change order.
The 2020 Public Defender Contracts got a minute and a half, even though they are unchanged from last year.
The $789,567.21 Arglass Road Paving item didn’t even get a minute.
County Chairman Bill Slaughter took about a minute thanking the Commissioners for the recent Retreat; LAKE video to come of that.
Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item for this morning’s Work Session. See also the Continue reading
Postponed from last Thursday due to weather, the Valdosta City Council meets tonight, to consider some rather contentious cases from the Planning Commission, and to make a bunch of appointments, plus some bids for equipment.
Photo: Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE,
CU-2020-02 Natalie Bailey, 4019 Forrest Run Circle – Halfway House @ GLPC 2020-01-27.
This Valdosta City Council bid item is interesting:
4.d) Consideration of bids for a Trailer-Mounted Mobile Televising Unit for the Utilities Department (Bid No. 27-19-20 A).
Maybe with that Valdosta Utilities can see what’s happening with equipment they leave in a park overnight, for example maybe in McKey Park after today’s 200-gallon sewage spill.
Here is the agenda. It says February 6, but the Valdosta calendar entry for today says “RESCHEDULED – Valdosta City Council Meeting, Monday, February 10, 2020 – 5:30pm” See also Continue reading
The Lowndes County Regular Session is also Monday (tomorrow), at 5:30 PM after the 8:30 AM Work Session.
The agenda is only a page long, but the agenda packet is 109 pages. Most of that is 66 pages for a $99,700 jail software change order, of which about half the pages are duplicated. Makes you wonder if anybody reads this stuff. Continue reading
Maybe it was “custom fit” that caused Commissioner Clay Griner to ask for postponement of approval of purchase of firefighting equipment until after the county’s retreat. All five Commissioners voted for tabling. More detail below in the notes on that item.
Bob Dewar has discovered the county wants an 80-foot right of way to pave Clyattstone Road, “What we do not want is a highway. It’s a quaint county road.” Well, that’s not why the county paves roads. More in the item notes below.
Everything else was passed with little or no discussion.
Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also the Continue reading
Development Authority, Mutual Aid, and a road quit claim: that’s all, on the lightest agenda in recent memory for the Lowndes County Commission Monday morning at 8:30 AM and voting Tuesday evening at 5:30 PM. You can speak Tuesday in Citizens Wishing to be Heard.
Georgia Power Region Vice President Terri Lupo wants to be reappointed to the Valdosta-Lowndes Development Authority, where she is currently Chairman. She was first appointed July 8, 2014.
The Mutual Aid Agreement the county made in 2016 with Continue reading
Not on the agenda, Chairman Bill Slaughter at the end of the meeting said Utilities Director Steve Stalvey had been testing water quality on the Withlacoochee River. On December 31, bacterial counts were acceptable. But on January 6, 2020, counts were quite high, so the county made and posted some warning signs at Knights Ferry, Nankin, and State Line (GA 31) Boat Ramps.
Here is one of the county’s signs, at Knights Ferry Boat Ramp, with a sign by WWALS Watershed Coalition (Suwannee Riverkeeper) at the bottom of the other pole with Continue reading
A million dollars for Paving – Quail Hollow Acres Subdivision and $0.4 million for Bid for a 3,000 Gallon Tanker for the Fire Department. Another million for 2020 Stop Loss Insurance Coverage through Symetra Life Ins. Company. A quarter million to relocate utilities at I-75 Exit 2 will be paid by GDOT. And a million in income for a Lease Agreement with the State Properties Commission for the Division of Family & Children Services (DFACS).
Molly Deese wants to be reappointed to the Valdosta Lowndes County Conference Center and Tourism Authority. Incumbents almost always get reappointed if they say they want to, and the chances of them not reappointing the Vice President and General Manager of Wild Adventures is pretty slim. Ditto Dr. Frances Brown on the Lowndes County Board of Health.
They’re setting the Special Assessment interest rate “for all paving and utilityassessments that are not paid off within the initial 90-day phase. Unpaid assessments revert to installment agreements which are to be paid over a period of up to ten years.” New rate: 6.75% for 2020, down from 7.50% for 2019.
They’re setting qualifying fees to run for office, primary or general election: Continue reading
Other than the three Awards and Presentations, the longest agenda item was 5.a. Alcohol Ordinance Revision (Brunch Bill), which had already been approved by a referendum of the voters. On implementing it, all voted aye except one.
Almost as long was 7.b. Request for letter of support by WWALS for the Troupville River Camp project. Valdosta City Manager Mark Barber described the project and the situation. In Citizens To Be Heard (CBTH), WWALS Executive Director Gretchen Quarterman thanked Council for approving the letter.
The first speaker in CTBH asked for the city to rebuild streets in the Highland subdivision. He said there had been insufficient engineering and lack of maintenance of streets, including for water flow.
Unfortunately, can’t really make out what the pair of second speakers were asking for.
Below are LAKE videos of each item, followed by Continue reading
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