Tag Archives: 22 January 2013

KLVB Alapaha River cleanup at Old State Road in 2007

So if Old State Road to the Alapaha River has, according to

the criteria recited by County Engineer Mike Fletcher,
“ceased to be used by the public to the extent that
no substantial public purpose is served by it”,
why did Keep Lowndes/Valdosta Beautiful (KLVB) do a cleanup there in 2007?
Is the removal of that section of road
“from the county road system… in the public’s best interest”?

Jessica Pope wrote for the VDT 30 September 2007,

River cleanup,

Saturday’s Alapaha River cleanup will be held in cooperation with
Rivers Alive, a statewide annual volunteer waterway cleanup that
targets Georgia’s 70,150 miles of streams and rivers each October,
and Hands On Georgia Week 2007, which will culminate on Saturday
with Hands on Atlanta Day, the largest volunteer service day in the
country. A number of volunteers will spend the day cleaning
Georgia’s waterways, building wheelchair ramps, collecting cans of
food for Georgia’s food banks and as picking up trash along
Georgia’s highways.


Anyone interested in participating in the Alapaha River cleanup
Saturday should head on U.S. 84 East past Naylor, turn left on Good
Hope Road then turn right on Old State Road. Small boats and canoes
are welcome. Registration will begin at 8:30 a.m., and participation
waivers must be signed.

Continue reading →

Videos: Taxing alcohol on the road to the jail @ LCC 2013-01-22



One citizen actually got a response out of a Commissioner in Citizens Wishing
to Be Heard!
Unfortunately,
only half a dozen citizens where there to hear that,
or to see the Lowndes County Commission
vote on matters that affect everyone,
from abandoning a road leading to a river to an alcohol license.

Here's

the agenda,
with links to the videos and a few notes.
See also

the Work Session the morning of that same day.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

PROPOSED AGENDA

WORK SESSION, TUESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2013, 8:30 a.m.

REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2013, 5:30 p.m.

327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

Continue reading →

Blurt it out about the ankle monitoring system —Gretchen Quarterman @ LCC 2013-01-22



A citizen actually got an answer from a Lowndes County Commissioner at

the Regular Session of 22 January 2013.
Oh, and the set

the clock
correctly to five minutes.


Gretchen Quarterman
noted

Commissioner Marshall had looked up some old minutes,
and she appreciated that

old minutes are on the county’s website,
but the last minutes there were for 9 October 2012.
Then she asked them to blurt about the

ankle monitoring program:

This morning, you had a
really great report about the
jail ankle monitoring system.
And I would really like to encourage the county to do marketing.
To call a press conference, to get some graduates from that program,
to get the sheriff,
to get the gentleman that spoke this morning,
to stand out on the courthouse steps and talk about how great it was.
People would have a really great feeling if they knew.
This morning I was the only citizen here; now we’ve got three more.
People aren’t finding out..
So if they didn’t come to this chamber, they wouldn’t know.
So I encourage you, really, do a press release, do a press conference
about that.
It’s a gigantic huge important thing. Thank you.

The Chairman started to move on, but Commissioner Evans asked if she
could answer the citizen’s question.

Continue reading →

Vote for a hearing to abandoning a road leading to the Alapaha River @ LCC 2013-01-22



Update 2013-01-25 9:48 AM: fixed an error and added some further detail. -jsq

Citing unspecified sources of information about water rights,
the Lowndes County Commission voted to move to a hearing to
abandon a road to a river they didn’t name, but which
happens to be: the Alapaha River (it was named this time).
This was at the

Regular Session of 22 January 2013.
See also the

Work Session the morning of the same day.



7.b. Abandonment of a portion of Old State Road (CR 16)

County Engineer Mike Fletcher describe the case like this:

Georgia Statute says that for an initial determination
that the section of county road has for any reason
ceased to be used by the public to the extent that
no substantial public purpose is served by it,
or that its removal from the county road system
is in
the public’s best interest.
And just to remind you, as we spoke yesterday,
the bridge that goes across the Alapaha River has been washed out;
it has not been replaced,
so there is no access across the river to Lanier County.

Commissioner Demarcus Marshall remarked that this same
item had been voted down 26 October 2010(?).
Chairman Bill Slaughter asserted that the applicant had previously gotten
permission to close the road and was merely asking to extend the length;
he was corrected by staff (I think by County Manager Joe Pritchard) saying
no, it wasn’t approved.
Why doesn’t staff brief the Commission and the public on the history of a case
like this when it comes up again?

Commissioner Joyce Evans said



It was not approved because of different circumstances.
I think during that time, Mr. Fletcher,
you researched it all and you got the information
that we needed.
And that was the reason it was not approved;
we didn’t have the information that we needed
about the water rights.
Since then we have received that.

County Engineer Mike Fletcher added:

This is not considered a navigable waterway,
so therefore Mr. Connell owns the bottom of the riverbed,
so his property actually goes into the river, and not to the
high water mark.

Marshall said he’d heard from a constituent

Continue reading →

Videos: Airport, alcohol, taxes, road, jail @ LCC 2013-01-22



Commissioners discussed several items much more than last year’s Commission
at this morning’s Work Session; they vote 5:30 PM tonight at their Regular Session.
However, you’d think with an

ankle monitoring program Commissioners praised so highly,
they’d want the public to know the details.
Nope, still none of the documents related to that nor any of the other
items they were discussing were revealed to the tax-paying public.
They don’t have a press release about that,
nor about the
Parade of Champions
the Chairman talked about
(twice)
even though it wasn’t on the agenda.
He was silent, however, on who the

candidates for the Airport Authority
are, and none of them were present.

That’s four reports that were not on the agenda:

Parade of Champions,

ankle monitoring,
the county’s wellness program
and
the upcoming Bird Supper.

Here’s

the agenda,
with links to the videos and a few notes, followed by the video playlist.

Continue reading →

Abandoning a road leading to the Alapaha River @ LCC 2013-01-22

A landowner asked Lowndes County to abandon a road leading to the Alapaha
River,
in this morning’s
Lowndes County Commission Work Session.



Abandonment of a portion of Old State Road (CR 16)

Phillip Connell requests that Old State Road that goes through his
property and dead ends at the river be closed.

They’re holding an initial hearing followed by a public hearing “I guess it will be in three weeks at the next regular meeting”


because state law requires it, according to County Engineer Mike Fletcher.
He also said the bridge had washed away, and there was no access into
Lanier County.
And the river (it’s the Alapaha River, although I don’t think anybody ever
said the name)

…is not classified as a navigable waterway; therefore Mr. Connell
owns to the center of the river.
You can navigate down the river by boat,
but if you step out,
if you get out of the boat and step on the land,
you’re considered to be trespassing.

Engineer did not cite any statutes for his assertions.

Chairman said he and Commissioners Marshall and Evans
had been down

Continue reading →

Ankle monitoring working and saving money @ LCC 2013-01-22



An unscheduled report and testimonials by Commissioners
said the county’s ankle monitoring program is going well and saving money,
in this morning’s
Lowndes County Commission Work Session.



Ankle Monitoring:
In another item not on the agenda,


the Chairman asked “Mr. Steven Harmon” to give a report
(I’m guessing I got the right Steven Harmon in the picture here).
Lowndes County apparently saves over one million dollars each year
by using an ankle monitoring program, rather than keeping non-violent
offenders in the county jail.
That program
was

initially approved by the Commission 13 December 2011,
required

a budget adjustment 10 January 2012,
was

funded by the Commission 19 June 2012,
and was

in the budget approved 26 June 2012.

We the public still don’t really know what’s in this program, because

Continue reading →

Airport, alcohol, taxes, road, jail @ LCC 2013-01-22

It's curious how the Lowndes County Commission can hold a public hearing


for a single beer, wine, and liquor license, but not for

doing away with the solid waste collection sites
that affect

5,000 county residents.
And what's this "Special Assessment Rate for 2013"?
At today's early morning work session maybe they'll say,
or perhaps at tonight's regular session, both on the same day
because of yesterday's holiday.

Here's

the agenda.

-jsq

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS

PROPOSED AGENDA

WORK SESSION, TUESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2013, 8:30 a.m.

REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, JANUARY 22, 2013, 5:30 p.m.

327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

  1. Call to Order
  2. Invocation
  3. Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag
  4. Minutes for Approval

    1. Work Session — January 7, 2013
    2. Regular Session — January 8, 2013
  5. Appointment — Valdosta/Lowndes County Airport Authority
  6. Public Hearing — Beer Wine & Liquor License — Rascal's — 4875 Hwy 41
  7. For Consideration

    1. Special Assessment Rate for 2013
    2. Abandonment of a portion of Old State Road (CR 16)
    3. Replacement of the Jail Fire Alarm System in Buildings 001 & 002
  8. Reports-County Manager
  9. Citizens Wishing to be Heard Please State Name And Address