Tag Archives: budget

Video: Special Called Meeting about SPLOST IX Agreement @ LCC 2025-08-04

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Update 2025-08-05: Rome-Floyd SPLOST Committee 2024-12-31.

Here is the one LAKE video of the two-minute Special Called Meeting in which the Lowndes County Commissioners unanimously agreed to forward a SPLOST IX Agreement to the cities within the county.

[Collage @ LCC 4 August 2025]
Collage @ LCC 4 August 2025

The tax-paying citizens have not seen this Agreement nor the list of projects on which the county projects $17 million to be spent in Fiscal Year 2026.

According to County Manager Paige Dukes, the County Commission will have to vote again after the cities approve it.

Citizens get to vote on SPLOST IX in the General Election on November 4, 2025.

Today, they unanimously approved sending to the cities, on a motion by Commissioner Scottie Orenstien and a second by Commissioner Michael Smith. Continue reading →

Vote on SPLOST IX? @ LCC 2025-08-04

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Update 2025-08-04: Agenda: Special Called Meeting about SPLOST IX Agreement @ LCC 2025-08-04.

There’s nothing about this on lowndescounty.com, not in the calendar, not in agendas, not in news.

Yet according to the slides for the June Budget Hearings, the Lowndes County Commission and staff expect to derive $17 million from SPLOST IX in FY 2026.

What projects will this penny sales tax fund? Where is the list for Special Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) IX? What is this Agreement mentioned in the VDT article?

[Vote on SPLOST IX?, Special Called Meeting 2025-08-04, Lowndes County Commission, Where is the Project List?]
Vote on SPLOST IX?, Special Called Meeting 2025-08-04, Lowndes County Commission, Where is the Project List?

By Staff reports, Valdosta Daily Times, Published 3:23 pm Friday, August 1, 2025, County to meet for SPLOST discussions,

VALDOSTA — The Lowndes County Board of Commissioners will hold a called meeting at 4 p.m. Monday in the Commission Chambers, 327 N. Ashley St., second floor, for the purpose of considering the SPLOST IX Agreement.

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Agenda: Special Called Meeting about SPLOST IX Agreement @ LCC 2025-08-04

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Update 2025-08-04: Video: Special Called Meeting about SPLOST IX Agreement @ LCC 2025-08-04.

Since LAKE posted the VDT notice of the SPLOST IX Special Called Meeting for this afternoon, an agenda and agenda sheet have popped up on LowndesCounty.com.

They’ve been working on this SPLOST IX Agreement since April, yet they couldn’t discuss it during a regularly-scheduled meeting, nor tell the tax-paying public what’s on the project list?

[Agenda and Sheet @ LCC 2025-08-04, 4 PM, Special Called Meeting, SPLOST IX Agreement]
Agenda and Sheet @ LCC 2025-08-04, 4 PM, Special Called Meeting, SPLOST IX Agreement

Here is the agenda:

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
SPECIAL CALLED MEETING
PROPOSED AGENDA
MONDAY, AUGUST 4, 2025, 4:00 P.M.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

Continue reading →

Videos: Adoption of Budget, Appointments to DFACS, VLPRA, Construction Board, Courts, Prison Details @ LCC Regular 2023-06-27

They approved everything unanimously, the Lowndes County Commission two weeks ago, with another surprise presentation in County Manager Reports.

[Collage @ LCC 27 June 2023]
Collage @ LCC 27 June 2023

They approved the Hotel-Motel Budget Plan and the FY 2024 Operating Budget.

They reappointed Elsie Napier to DFACS, Suzan Garnett to VLPRA, and Tripp Howell to the Construction Board.

They passed a stopgap resolution to delay approving changes to the Unified Land Development Code (ULDC). So there’s no need to approve any changes at the July 11th County Commission meeting.

Remember, the public has hardly seen any of the proposed ULDC changes, while the County Manager announced two weeks ago that “tomorrow we have the stakeholder meetings at 12:30 and 2 PM that I mentioned to you yesterday, with permits and inspections, and that is all going fantastically well, and I’m interesting in getting the feedback from our development community so we can make any changes that they may need prior to going live July 1.” Curious how the county government is not so solicitous of feedback from the general public as it is of feedback from “our development community”.

In response to a question by Commissioner Demarcus Marshall, Public Works Director Robin Cumbus clarified that the county since COVID has only been paying for one prisoon detail even though the contract says they can use up to three.

About Reports: County Manager, Gretchen Quarterman remarks: Continue reading →

Videos: Surprise One Valdosta-Lowndes presentation, and executive session to discuss personnel @ LCC Work 2023-06-26

Update 2023-07-10: Videos: Adoption of Budget, Appointments to DFACS, VLPRA, Construction Board, Courts, Prison Details @ LCC Regular 2023-06-27.

Update 2023-06-29: Slides: One Valdosta-Lowndes @ LCC Work 2023-06-26.

People might have come to see if they knew One Valdosta-Lowndes was going to present at Monday morning’s Lowndes County Commission Work Session. Instead, County Manager Paige Dukes announced it during her County Manager Report, and then OVL Executive Director Mary Beth Brownlee presented. Thanks to Mary Beth for sending LAKE her presentation slides.

[Collage @ LCC 26 June 2023]
Collage @ LCC 26 June 2023

At the end of the meeting, the Commissioners held an executive session to discuss personnel. There is only one personnel directly managed by the Commissioners: the County Manager.

The second longest item at 4 minutes was 5. Fire Officer of the Year – Fire Fighter of the Year Recognition.

Next longest at two and a third minutes was 7.a. Lowndes County Accountability Court Grant Approval and Cash Match.

Everything passed unanimously, including the adoption of the FY 2024 Operating Budget and the reappointments to three boards.

Once the county finishes taking over its own permitting, the 6.c. Valdosta Lowndes County Construction Board of Adjustments and Appeals won’t exist, and Lowndes County will have to appoint its own. The new one could have the same county members.

Were you invited to the stakeholder meetings the County Manager announced for “the development community”? Maybe taxpayers and citizens are not stakeholders.

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, with a few notes by Gretchen Quarterman, followed by a LAKE video playlist.

See also

Continue reading →

Packet: Adoption of Budget, Appointments to DFACS, VLPRA, Construction Board, Courts, Prison Details @ LCC 2023-06-26

Update 2023-06-29: Videos: Suprise One Valdosta-Lowndes presentation, and executive session to discuss personnel @ LCC Work 2023-06-26.

The board packet to go with the agenda for this week’s Lowndes County Commission meetings is on the LAKE website, received in response to a LAKE open records request.

[Collage, Board PacketT @ LCC 2023-06-26]
Collage, Board PacketT @ LCC 2023-06-26

LAKE videos of the meetings will follow.

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Investigative reporting costs money, for open records requests, copying, web hosting, gasoline, and cameras, and with sufficient funds we can pay students to do further research. You can donate to LAKE today!
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Agenda: Adoption of Budget, Appointments to DFACS, VLPRA, Construction Board, Courts, Prisoners @ LCC 2023-06-26

Update 2023-06-27: Packet: Adoption of Budget, Appointments to DFACS, VLPRA, Construction Board, Courts, Prison Details @ LCC 2023-06-26.

Monday morning at 8:30 AM the Lowndes County Commission will review at its Work Session items that it will vote on in its Regular Session Tuesday at 5:30 PM.

[Collage @ LCC Agenda 2023-06-26]
Collage @ LCC Agenda 2023-06-26

Items include the Adoption of Fiscal Year 2024 Operating Budget, and a Budget Plan for Hotel Motel Proceeds for Fiscal Year 2024.

A stopgap resolution is proposed until the changes to the Unified Land Development Code (ULDC) are ready.

Also on the agenda are re-appointments to three boards,

Plus two items that the agenda says cost money:

Cost What
$147,954.007.b. Annual Contract Renewal with the State of Georgia Department of Corrections
$25,139.007.a. Lowndes County Accountability Court Grant Approval and Cash Match
$173,093.00Total

Here is the agenda.

LAKE has sent an open records request for the board packet. However, when Lowndes County someday puts its board packets on its own website, as many counties larger and smaller, in Georgia and Florida, have been doing for years, nobody will have to play this silly open records game just to get board packets.

Meanwhile, for the ULDC changes, see the Planning Commission board packet.

For the budget, see the LAKE videos from the Budget Work Session, the slides from that meeting, and Videos: Not a Public Hearing, even though advertised as one, Presentation @ LCC Budget 2023-06-20.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, JUNE 26, 2023, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, JUNE 27, 2023, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

Continue reading →

Three Citizens, budget, DUI, water, sewer, paving, cyber security, tractor @ LCC 2022-06-28

Forty minutes was a long meeting for the Lowndes County Commission, at its Regular Session two weeks ago, Tuesday, June 28, 2022.

[Three citizens make a long meeting]
Three citizens make a long meeting

Three Citizens Wishing To Be Heard spoke for about 13.5 minutes. 4. Animal Control Officers Recognition took six minutes. So the scheduled items took about twenty minutes, which is usual.

Chairman Bill Slaughter was absent, so the meeting was presided over by Vice-Chair Scottie Orenstein. They approved everything unanimously.

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

Packet: Construction Board Appointment, Budget, DUI Court, Water, Sewer, Paving, Cyber Security @ LCC 2022-06-27

The packet for the June 26 and 27, 2022, Lowndes County Commission meetings is on the LAKE website.

[Hotel/Motel Taxes]
Hotel/Motel Taxes

Follow this link:
Packet: Construction Board Appointment, Budget, DUI Court, Water, Sewer, Paving, Cyber Security @ LCC 2022-06-27

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Investigative reporting costs money, for open records requests, copying, web hosting, gasoline, and cameras, and with sufficient funds we can pay students to do further research. You can donate to LAKE today!

Videos: DUI Court, Cyber Security, Road Paving, Water and Sewer, and Budget @ LCC 2022-06-27

Update 2022-06-28: Three Citizens, budget, DUI, water, sewer, paving, cyber security, tractor @ LCC 2022-06-28.

Yesterday morning at their 11-minute Work Session the Lowndes County Commission and staff ran through everything as fast as the items could be read off.

Vice-Chair Scottie Orenstein presided in the absence of Chairman Bill Slaughter.

[Items]
Items

They vote tonight at 5:30 PM.

Below are Continue reading →