Tag Archives: Economy

Videos: ESPLOST V kickoff meeting @ ESPLOST 2015-02-24

Co-Chair Jerome Tucker emphasized that ESPLOST helping public schools also helps economic development. See below for who we now know are the committee members for the Educational Special Local Option Sales Tax (ESPLOST). It’s mysterious why that information wasn’t in the PR before the meeting, but now we know, since Gretchen went and took the videos and collected the flyers you’ll find below.

Early voting already started that same day and continues through March 13th, with the final Election Day 17 March 2015.

600x450 Crowd picture, in ESPLOST Kickoff and Press Conference, by Gretchen Quarterman, 24 February 2015

Lowndes/Valdosta Citizens for Excellence in Education
Education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax
For Lowndes County Schools and Valdosta City Schools Continue reading →

Videos: 1 commercial, 1 subdivision @ GLPC 2015-02-23

In the briefest Planning Commission meeting I can recall, Stovall got her rezoning of 5.84 acres to General Commercial on Oak Street Extension recommended unanimously Monday 23 February 2015. Ivy Gate subdivision’s second phase to rezone 10.33 acres to R-10 on Cat Creek Road at 4088 Cat Creek Road was also recommended unanimously. Nobody spoke for or against either rezoning, and there was no discussion from Commissioners, other than a recommendation by Commissioner Wildes that all lots face interior roads for Ivy Gate.

After the rezonings, Commissioners joked that with a meeting so brief they might catch up with the County Commission. County Chairman Bill Slaughter responded, “Actually, we just showed up to show you how to run a quick meeting.” The difference is GLPC actually does discuss when there’s something to discuss. These cases will show up on the County Commission agenda for March 10th, so we’ll see who takes longer on them then.

Here’s the agenda, and below are links to the videos, followed by a video playlist. Continue reading →

1 commercial, 1 subdivision @ GLPC 2015-02-23

Stovall wants to rezone 5.84 acres to General Commercial on Oak Street Extension and Ivy Gate subdivision wants a second phase to rezone 10.33 acres to R-10 on Cat Creek Road. The existing Ivy Gate Subdivision is on Bowen Way. The only nearby property on Cat Creek Road is 4088 Cat Creek Road, across the road, owned by James Arthur Kutzli.

Thanks to Lowndes County for starting to post Planning Commission agendas including this one.

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, February 23, 2015 * 5:30 P.M. * Public Hearing

Continue reading →

What does conversion of the Land Bank Authority mean? @ ESPLOST VLCLBA 2015-02-25

What does “conversion of the Land Bank Authority” mean? What are they converting this Authority to? Or do they mean the Authority is voting on converting some real estate from non-taxable to taxable?

Valdosta News, City of Valdosta, 23 February 2015, In The City This Week, Feb. 23-28,

Feb. 25: Land Bank Authority Meets. Members of the Valdosta-Lowndes County Land Bank Authority will hold a meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 25, at 9 a.m., in the Neighborhood Development Conference Room (Room 202, Valdosta City Hall Annex). This meeting is being held to vote on the conversion of the Land Bank Authority. The Land Bank Authority exists to foster the public purpose of returning property which is in a non-revenue generating, non-tax producing status to effective utilization status in order to provide housing, new industry and jobs for citizens. For information, call (229) 671-3617.

Even the state doesn’t have up to date information about this board. According to the Continue reading →

ESPLOST V kickoff meeting today @ ESPLOST 2015-02-24

A committee of unknown members is holding a kickoff meeting today for the Educational Special Local Option Sales Tax. Various local news media carry the announcement below, but none of them seem to have the names of the committee members beyond one co-chair. I guess we’ll find out from the videos Gretchen is going there now to take.

In the City of Valdosta’s In The City This Week, Feb. 23-28,

Feb. 24: ESPLOST V Campaign. The ESPLOST joint committee will host a campaign kickoff on Tuesday, Feb. 24, at 5 p.m., in the Valdosta City Hall Annex Multi-Purpose Room. At the meeting, committee members will share proposed projects for Lowndes County and Valdosta City Schools with citizens. Early voting runs Feb. 23 through March 13. The final opportunity to vote will be on the official Election Day, March 17. For more information, email Co-Chair John Eunice at jleunice@yahoo.com.

-jsq

Minnesota follows Austin with Value of Solar Tariff: better than net metering, or not?

Yes, it’s better than the unequal “net metering” Georgia has now, where your one-and-only utility pays you a rate they determine, typically their “avoided” rate of not generating energy by some other means, which is usually a lot less than what you pay your utility. Is it better than real one-to-one net metering? That’s a harder question, because even if it pays more now, it’s less predictable. In any case VOST has spread from Austin to Minnesota.

Herman K. Trabish, GreenTechMedia, 10 April 2014, A Rising Tension: ‘Value-of-Solar’ Tariff Versus Net Metering,


Source: Institute for Local Self Reliance

The Alliance for Solar Choice, a group made up of Continue reading →

Georgia Power buys 99MW in two Georgia solar projects

Decatur County scores two big solar projects. When will Lowndes County get a move on in solar? How about some projects like this at your empty industrial parks, Valdosta-Lowndes Development Authority? Now that even Southern Company CEO Tom Fanning is bragging about renewable energy, maybe the solar sun is shining enough for other local governments to see it.

Southern Company PR, PRnewsWire, 20 February 2015, Southern Company subsidiary acquires two Georgia solar projects totaling 99 megawatts,

Southern Company subsidiary Southern Power today announced the acquisition of two photovoltaic (PV) solar projects totaling 99 megawatts (MW) in Georgia — the 80-MW Decatur Parkway Solar Project and the 19-MW Decatur County Solar Project — from Tradewind Energy, Inc.

The projects were proposed by Continue reading →

Tesla opening market for home solar batteries

Elon Musk’s recent reminder that Tesla is working on a house-sized battery has caused quite a stir, but not enough. Tesla alone isn’t the significant part: Tesla opening a market for inexpensive home solar storage methods is. And not all those methods will be batteries: also coming are capacitors, organic vats, compressed air, and water pumped up towers, for storage to car- and house- size to municipal- and utility-scale, all of which will drive solar and wind deployment even faster.

John McDuling, QZ, 30 July 2014, How solar energy storage could make Tesla much more than an automaker,

How lucrative could the solar energy storage business be for Tesla? Almost as lucrative as selling cars.

That’s according to Morgan Stanley, which this week Continue reading →

Quail Hunt @ VLCIA 2015-02-17

Cold Weld Greensleeve Tire Bakeries: be there or wonder what is this stuff in their agenda.

Valdosta-Lowndes Development Authority
Tuesday, February 17, 2015 5:30 p.m.
Development Authority Conference Room
103 Roosevelt Drive
Monthly Meeting Agenda
Continue reading →

Duke Energy expands solar stake from NC to SC

Duke Energy, purported big customer of FPL and Spectra’s Sabal Trail fracked methane pipeline boondoggle, is expanding into solar financing for commercial projects, and from North Carolina into South Carolina. After even FPL’s parent bought a Hawaii utility to get into the solar game, why would anybody want to waste time, money, eminent domain land takings, trees cut down, or the hazards of sinkholes, leaks, and explosions near schools and businesses when we can all go straight to faster, cheaper, and far safer and cleaner solar power?

First this: Jennifer Runyon, Renewable Energy World, 9 February 2015, Duke Energy Takes Equity Stake in REC Solar, Embraces Distributed Generation: The move gives REC Solar a cash injection, $225 million in funds available to finance commercial projects, and a streamlined process to deliver solar projects more quickly.,

The largest utility in the U.S. is doubling down on distributed solar by taking an equity stake in commercial solar developer, REC Solar. The companies announced today that Duke will now own a majority stake of REC Solar and that together they will make it easier for commercial customers to go solar. In 2013, Duke Energy invested in Continue reading →