Category Archives: Transportation

Thoroughfare Plan, RR bridge, resurfacing four roads, opioids @ LCC 2018-04-09

You can’t see the Special Presentation by Attorney Haynes Studstill on Opioid Litigation (Work Session) because Gretchen was not there with the LAKE video camera yesterday morning, and the agenda says it’s only in the Work Session. Lowndes County does video its own County Commission meetings, but they haven’t posted the video of that yet. Meanwhile, the City of Valdosta did decide to join a lawsuit against big pharma about opioid addiction. Another county legal item for tonight is FY2019 Juvenile Justice Incentive Grant Program Request for Proposals (RFP).

They’re doing an Update to the Lowndes County Thoroughfare Plan, which is for:

Road Map, Maps
Road Map, 2009 Lowndes County Thoroughfare Plan.

HISTORY, FACTS AND ISSUES: The Lowndes County Board of Commissioners first adopted the Thoroughfare Plan in 1983. Since then, the Thoroughfare Plan has been revised numerous times Continue reading →

Videos: North Oak Street, Lakeland Highway, Rocky Ford Road @ GLPC 2018-03-26

The Planning Commission had a large crowd, including County Commissioner Joyce Evans and Chairman Bill Slaughter visible lower left, and that may be Commissioner Mark Wisenbaker in front of them.

lower left: Joyce Evans, Bill Slaughter, Lowndes County Commission, Crowd

Most of them left after the North Oak Street planned development, excuse me, rezoning, took almost an hour. See the notes on that item below for a spoiler for what happened to it later.

Second longest at almost fourteen minutes was the Lakeland Highway rezoning, in which the current owners apparently were trying to fix a problem left them by previous owners.

Third at almost seven minutes was a tie between the CR Ventures (Camp Rock again) rezoning on Rocky Ford Road and the Kaylyn Gill Tucker rezoning on Enoch Lake Road, carving out a plot for a single house from a planned development.

Below are Continue reading →

Rocky Ford Road again @ GLPC 2018-03-26

This CR Ventures rezoning on the agenda for tonight is two doors down on Rocky Ford Road from the recent Camp Rock rezoning, again for a Watkins, and again represented by Jack Langdale. Coincidence, or related?

Parcel 0062 025, 20.94 acres, 4394 ROCKY FORD ROAD, VALDOSTA GA 31601, Map

Greater Lowndes Planning Commission
Lowndes County City of Valdosta City of Dasher City of Hahira City of Lake Park
REGULAR MONTHLY MEETING
AGENDA
Monday, March 26, 2018 * 5:30 P.M. * Public Hearing
Lowndes County South Health District Administrative Office
325 West Savannah Avenue

Continue reading →

Videos: Branham subdivision, Trash, RR crossing @ LCC 2018-03-13

Most of the meeting (13 and a half minutes) was about Bill Branham’s subdivision, which passed, with the Chairman breaking the tie because one Commissioner recused himself. Opponents took up almost another minute leaving the room.

On a split vote the Commission declined to modify the solid waste ordinance to give the County Manager more power.

Second longest at more than 6 minutes was Michael J. Killeen’s R-A to M-1 rezoning. Virdie Mae Lyons got her well and septic rezoning in a minute and a half.

Two water items: not clear how much Continue reading →

Videos: Conference Center, Branham subdivision, Trash, RR crossing @ LCC 2018-03-12

Lengthiest at more than three and a half minutes was the Bill Branham subdivision rezoning, plus a tie for second at 2 minutes 13 seconds between the new Conference Center CEO and the Virdie Mae Lyons Old Clyattvile Road well and septic rezoning, at yesterday morning’s Work Session. Gretchen is off with the LAKE video camera to the voting Regular Session tonight.

The County Manager wants more power through an ordinance that would further favor Advanced Disposal Services (ADS) over Deep South Sanitation (DSS).

Two water items: Continue reading →

Conference Center, Branham subdivision, Trash, RR crossing @ LCC 2018-03-12

On the agenda for Monday’s Work Session, the agenda a word from the new-as-of-January CEO (not Executive Director) of the Valdosta-Lowndes County Conference Center and Tourism Authority. On the agenda for both Monday and Tuesday evening’s Regular Session, Bill Branham’s Copeland Road subdivision, back for at least the third time in four calendar years, plus an ordinance that would further favor Advanced Disposal Services (ADS) over Deep South Sanitation (DSS). Better news: bids for a Portable 65 KW Generator to keep lift stations from leaking.

Chris Hamilton
Photo: Chris Hamilton via Valdosta Daily Times.

See also the LAKE videos of the most recent Planning Commission meeting for all three rezoning cases, and that post also has links to videos of most of the previous appearances of the Branham Project.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, MARCH 12, 2018, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, MARCH 13, 2018, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

  1. Call to Order
  2. Invocation
  3. Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag
  4. Chris Hamilton- CEO, Valdosta- Lowndes County Conference Center and Tourism Authority (Work Session)
  5. Minutes for Approval
    1. Work Session- February 26, 2018
    2. Regular Session- February 27, 2018
  6. Public Hearing
    1. REZ-2018-04 Lyons, 1350 Old Clyattville Rd, R-A to C-H, Well and Septic, 8.05 acres
      GLPC Recommendation: Approval
      TRC Recommendation: Various

      Documents:Rezoning Case REZ-2018-04.pdf

    2. REZ-2018-05 Killeen, 1228 S Main St, R-A to M-1, 27.5 acres

      GLPC Recommendation: Approval with 1 Condition (Paving)
      TRC Recommendation: Various


      Documents:Rezoning Case REZ-2018-05.pdf

    3. REZ-2018-07 Branham Project, 2480 Copeland Rd, R-1 to R-10 Water/Sewer, 18.04 acres

      GLPC Recommendation: Approval with 4 Conditions
      TRC Recommendation: Various   


      Documents:Rezoning Case REZ-2018-07.pdf

  7. For Consideration
    1. Transportation Safety Improvements Agreement
      Execute Agreement

      Documents:Transportation Safety Improvements Agreement.pdf

    2. Ordinance Amending 2015 Solid Waste Disposal Ordinance
      Approval of ordinance

      Documents:Ordinance Amending 2015 Solid Waste Disposal Ordinance.pdf

    3. Water Meter and Register Replacement
      Approval of water meter and register replacement

      Documents:Water Meter and Register Replacement.pdf

    4. Beer License- Marilyn Lewis of Palak Corporation DBA Bigfoot #908 – 1255 Lakes Blvd., Lake Park, GA
      Approval of Beer License

      Documents:Beer License- Marilyn Lewis of Palak Corporation DBA Bigfoot 908 Lakes Blvd, Lake Park, GA.pdf

  8. Bid
    1. Portable 65 KW Generator
      Bids solicited for a 65 KW portable generator to service smaller lift stations that do not have backup generators. Staff recommends awarding bid to Cowart Electric for $49,750.00

      Documents:Portable 65 KW Generator.pdf

  9. Reports – County Manager
  10. Citizens Wishing to be Heard-Please State Your Name and Address
  11. Adjournment

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Videos: Day 1, Planning, Lowndes County Commission @ LCC 2018-02-19

The 2018 Lowndes County Commission Retreat was just about the exact opposite of a commission meeting, except that same group of people are present (almost). There was discussion, disagreement, laughing, sighing, interrupting, listening, inside jokes, outside jokes, and general exchange of views. Those things don’t happen in a commission meeting. This year’s retreat was particularly different because there was no time frame attached to any agenda item and they didn’t discuss topics in exact order, and some topics got covered repeatedly. Commissioner Evans said to me during a break that the previous format of having departments just give a report can “get boring” and she had suggested that they have a different format with more discussion about communications.

The agenda was available on-line but was hard to find and the link I followed to find it is gone now. I did manage to download it before it went away. Find it here: 2018 LCC Annual Planning Meeting Agenda (plus searchable text). There were paper copies available at the meeting after the first break.

I sometimes think that the commissioners may be getting used to me but then, no, don’t be silly.

At the lunch hour, the Commissioners stepped outside to take a group picture and as County Clerk Page Dukes suggested that they get closer and not have so much “space” between them, Commissioners Orenstein and Griner (I live in their districts) huddled together.

Commissioners Gather Group Photo Close Group Photo
  Commissioners Orenstein and Griner

Below are links to each LAKE video, with a few notes followed by a LAKE video playlist. Continue reading →

Videos: Rocky Ford Road, Sharp Family, C-G Bemiss Rd @ LCC 2018-02-13

Again like in the previous morning’s Work Session the lengthiest regular item was the rezoning on Rocky Ford Road for the church-proposed Camp Rock, mostly with attorney Jack Langdale speaking for, including that a “wilderness camp” for unfortunate children doesn’t need a buffer, and any future buyers of neighboring property beware.

The Sharp family said for seven years they have been trying to get somebody to do something about stray dogs, only to discover Animal Control doesn’t work weekends anymore, and the Sheriff’s office won’t do anything, even though one of their family had been killed by the dogs and another bitten, and the dogs are now into their second and third generations running loose.

Third longest was Continue reading →

Videos: Turner Center presentation, VAWA, Rocky Ford Road @ LCC 2018-02-12

It was Art (12 minutes of 4. State of the Arts by Cheryl Oliver, Director, Turner Center of the Arts) Law (10:46 of 7.c. Solicitor-General’s Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Grant Application and 1:31 of Introduction of new Probation Officer, which was not on the agenda), and Development ( 6.b. REZ-2018-02, E-A and C-C to E-A and PD-R, 4391 Rocky Ford Rd, ~72 acres) this morning at the Lowndes County Commission Work Session. Actually, all of those items were about law enforcement one way or another. The Commissioners vote Tuesday evening at 5:30 PM.

Below are Continue reading →

Videos: Leadership Lowndes, VLCIA appointment, Rivers Radio @ LCC 2017-12-12

In an outbreak of transparency and due diligence in the last Lowndes County Commission of 2017, they took ten minutes replacing Mary Goodman on the Industrial Authority, hearing from three nominees, and appointing Brad Folsom. They took three and a half minutes to choose among three nominees to the Tourism Authority to appoint Robert Jefferson. None of those nominees spoke, but the vote was so split they actually had a runoff, which ended in a 3:2 final vote. They also reappointed Joyce Evans by silent “acclamation”.

Leadership Lowndes spoke for 12 minutes (as long as three citizens get), citizen Willie Mae Jones wanted to know what next to get her Black Road paved, and County Engineer Mike Fletcher said the signatures were verified as 84% of the property owners on the road, so it would go on the paving list with the 74 projects already on there. Chairman Bill Slaughter actually asked for Commissioner comments, and each of them said a few words, mostly thanks to the staff and Merry Christmas. Chairman Bill Slaughter even thanked citizens for coming to the meetings. Merry Christmas, Commissioners!

The longest rezoning public hearing was REZ-2017-13 Quattlebaum-Meadors, N Valdosta RD, R-21 to C-H.

Below are Continue reading →