Nydia Tisdale wins First Amendment Award for her Citizen Journalism, Fighting for the Right to Record

Update 2015-08-07: corrections by Nydia, including a timeline.

Only a bit more than three years since the pictured incident, Nydia Tisdale gets some of the recognition she deserves.

Georgia Woman Wins First Amendment Award for her Citizen Journalism, Fighting for the Right to Record,

Georgia citizen journalist Nydia Tisdale is in the news again but this time, the story doesn’t involve her getting thrown out of a public meeting or arrested in a pumpkin patch.

Tisdale is being honored by Georgia’s First Amendment Foundation for her work in making public meetings available to the citizens of her community and for her dedication to keeping government open for everyone’s participation.

After getting thrown out of the Cumming City Council for videoing in April 2012, Nydia got Continue reading →

Who is on the Lowndes County Board of Equalization?

The lowndescounty.com list of the Board of Equalization (BoE) also is not correct, like their incorrect list of Tax Assessors. 300x388 LGS GCP Board Of Equalization Schedule-001, in Georgia Certification Program Board of Equalization Schedule, by Georgia Department of Revenue, 30 July 2015 but there seems to be no other public website list of BoE members.

Members

  • Jimmy Griffis, Chairman
  • Gelana Goddard
  • John Avera

Alternates

  • Wayne Ricks
  • Lanelle Rogers
  • Joe Clark

A new BOE member was appointed in late 2014.

I called Beth C. Greene, Clerk of Superior Court, and asked her for the real list, which is: Continue reading →

Who are the Lowndes County Tax Assessors?

This should be an easy question, but it isn’t. Why not?

300x353 W.G. Walker, in Rural land re-evaluation, by Tax Assessors, 14 July 2015 300x336 Mike Hill, in Rural land re-evaluation, by Tax Assessors, 14 July 2015

And the answer is a saw sales owner who previously promoted development in an agricultural region of Lowndes County, a realtor whose job is to promote development, and a preacher who previously chaired a board that wanted to take tax money from the county without rural citizens being able to vote on it. None of them appear to have any experience in agriculture. These are the people who oversaw the recent revaluation of rural (and commercial) properties that would drive development into parts of Lowndes County that the Comprehensive Plan says should be agricultural. Now I know all three of them, and they’re fine people. But perhaps some rural people need to ask them some questions.

The list on lowndescounty.com of Lowndes County’s elected Tax Assessors is not remotely correct: Doyle Kelly is no longer serving due to illness, yet he’s still on that list, along with Mike Hill and W.G. Walker.

Mike Hill runs Continue reading →

Videos: MAZ tabled, Naylor Boat Ramp and Sabal Trail CWTBH @ LCC 2015-07-28

The proposed MAZ changes were tabled for 90 days, they approved everything else, and welcomed new Utilities Director Steve Stalvey again, at the 5:30 PM Tuesday 28 July 2015 Regular Session of the Lowndes County Commission. Valdosta City Council Sandra Tooley didn’t fill out a form and so didn’t get to speak, but another citizen asked about the Naylor Boat Ramp (answer after the meeting: on schedule for this fall) and about Sabal Trail (answer: none).

See also Continue reading →

Videos: MAZ tabled + 2 small rezonings @ GLPC 2015-07-27

Once County Planner Jason Davenport admitted the MAZ ULDC text amendments weren’t ready (as he had indicated might happen at the same morning’s County Commission Work Session), and the Planning Commission recommended tabling it 4:1, the meeting was very brief, even with the SGRC Transportation presentation (which they weirdly heard after adjourning the meeting, even though it was on the agenda). The David Brown Melody Lane rezoning and the Ron Borders Bemiss Road rezoning flew through to 5:0 unanimous recommendations, with three Planning Commissioners absent.

The county rezoning isn’t on the County Commission agenda yet, and they will probably table the ULDC MAZ item at its meeting 5:30 PM tonight.

See the Continue reading →

Videos: MAZ again, Lake Alapaha, Emergencies, but no Sabal Trail @ LCC 2015-07-27

300x297 Parcel 0181 001, in Davidson Road, by John S. Quarterman, 27 July 2015 The proposed MAZ changes have “absolutely nothing to do with” the 23 acres on Davidson Road that were proposed to be rezoned R-21 back in 2010, after the county paved Davidson Road, said County Chairman Bill Slaughter at yesterday morning’s Lowndes County Commission Work Session. County Planner Jason Davenport said he had hoped to get “on the same page with Moody” before that same evening’s Planning Commission meeting for the MAZ ULDC Text Amendments, but as yet he had nothing to report, and tabling was an option. I don’t think that word “ultimately” means what he thinks it does. See more below about Davidson Road.

Not on the agenda were three, no four, reports:

Like the MAZ changes, also requiring a public hearing Tuesday evening is Continue reading →

MAZ again + 2 small rezonings @ GLPC 2015-07-27

Planning Commission agenda is finally on county’s website after this morning’s Lowndes County Commission Work Session, which included an item saying “The current public hearing/meeting timeline is as follows: July 27th GLPC and July 28th LCBOC.” Is it a public meeting if there’s no public agenda until a few hours before?

Yes, the notorious TXT-2015-01 Moody Activity Zoning Districts (MAZ) ULDC text amendments are back on the GLPC agenda, along with two small rezonings. Plus an SGRC Transportation presentation.

Greater Lowndes Planning Commission
Lowndes 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 Avenue
Monday, July 27, 2015 * 5:30 P.M. * Public Hearing

Continue reading →

MAZ again, Lake Alapaha, Emergency Management and Liability, but no Sabal Trail @ LCC 2015-07-27

While Dougherty County, Albany, and their state and federal reps plan a joint opposition meeting to the Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline invader, there’s nothing about that pipeline on Monday’s 8:30 AM agenda of the Lowndes County Commission. Three items on emergency response, emergency planning, and 911 operations, plus one on liability, but nothing about the invading pipeline soft target.

The highly controversial Moody Activity Zoning Districts (MAZ) are back, despite massive opposition. The Planning Commission will hear MAZ again Monday evening, and because there’s only one day from then until the County Commission can vote on MAZ Tuesday, the County Planner says: Continue reading →

Rural tax revaluation: Bill Gates and subdivisions more important than agriculture and public transportation?

Does this rural land revaluation map resemble the Comprehensive Plan Future Development map? Tax Assessors: Rural Land Accessibility Codes Why not? And why were rivers and public transportation not considered either by the Lowndes County Tax Assessors while tracts with road frontage were considered the “highest market area” and land purchases by Bill Gates were considered “benchmark sales” instrumental in pricing large tracts?

This rural land revaluation is yet another vehicle to drive development straight north into the agricultural areas of the county, not even stopping at the Withlacoochee River.

That way lies sprawl, which as Dr. Jeffrey H. Dorfman of UGA has said, “is a certain ticket to fiscal ruin* * Or at least big tax increases.”

The City of Valdosta better watch out! Much of this Continue reading →

Hayden Barnes wins $900,000 settlement for being expelled from VSU for free speech

Update 2015-07-24: Hayden adds detail in comments on this article: Andy Thomas, The Chronicle of Higher Education, 23 July 2015, Valdosta State U. Will Pay $900,000 to Settle Student’s Free-Speech Lawsuit.

Finally! Expelled for protesting a parking garage, after VSU then-president Zaccari claimed a facebook collage was “threatening”. If the powers that be around here want to be a metropolitan area, maybe VSU should act like an institution of higher learning. Then it wouldn’t have to pay settlements like this.

Katie Barrows, FIRE, 23 July 2015, Eight Years After Student’s Unjust Expulsion from Valdosta State U., $900K Settlement Ends ‘Barnes v. Zaccari’ Continue reading →