Tag Archives: Government

Owners want out of uranium enrichment company

Maybe Southern Company and Georgia Power should listen to Urenco’s owners: the nuclear industry is flatlining after Fukushima.

Stanley Reed wrote for Dealbook.Nytimes.com 27 May 2013, Powerhouse of the Uranium Enrichment Industry Seeks an Exit,

The company that operates this uranium enrichment center, Urenco, is the world leader in the field. It is also plumply profitable. So why are its owners eager to sell it?

The answer, as with many things involving nuclear power, is a combination of economics, geopolitics and the Promethean prospect of an energy source that is as potentially green and abundant as deadly dangerous….

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Who is the Construction Board of Adjustment and Appeals? @ LCC 2013-05-28

Who will be appointed tomorrow to the Valdosta-Lowndes County Construction Board of Adjustments and Appeals (VLCCBAA), who’s on it, and what do they do? Randall Crews, Crews Engineering Let’s look back a few years. Continue reading

Construction Board of Adjustments and Appeals appointment @ LCC 2013-05-28

GEMA, juvenile justice, mowing, and an appointment to the Valdosta-Lowndes County Construction Board of Adjustments and Appeals at Tuesday morning’s Work Session, with voting at 5:30PM that same evening (tomorrow) in the Regular Session. Who might they appoint? Who knows? They don’t tell the public until they meet. But I’ll guess they’ll reappoint Randy Crews; see other post for why.

Here’s the agenda.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, TUESDAY, MAY 28, 2013, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, MAY 28, 2013, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
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Content in today’s Industrial Authority agenda! @ VLCIA 2013-05-21

Names of projects! Lists of PR and marketing items! Is this a new trend from our Industrial Authority? Or will it be like the last time I complimented them on an agenda with content and was told later that one was an accident.

Here’s the agenda. Sure, the project names are codewords, but that’s how they talk to prospective companies without revealing all their cards to the competition. And this one has a name:

Maybe we’ll hear more about those two megawatts of solar power. Maybe even more are scheduled for Lowndes County.

Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority
Agenda, Tuesday, May 21, 2013 5:30 p.m.
Industrial Authority Conference Room
2110 N. Patterson Street
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Library Board this afternoon @ SGLB 2013-05-21

1PM-3PM today, according to the VDT calendar. Who’s running it now that Kay Harris isn’t chair? And will whoever it is welcome video cameras?

The South Georgia Regional Library Board of Trustees will be meeting Tuesday, March 19 at 1PM in the Folsom Room of the Valdosta-Lowndes County Public Library to conduct regular business.The meeting is open to the public and all are welcome to attend. For more information call 333.0086.

Yes, that says March, but the calendar entry says May 21, today. And it says “open to the public and all are welcome to attend”. But are all welcome to record? Or do all have to stay inside an 8×4 foot blue rectangle next to a loud air cleaner? Was that just Kay Harris’ policy and will it change now that she has resigned as chair and from the board?

If there’s anything about this meeting on the library’s website, I can’t find it.

-jsq

Videos: paving and suing @ LCC 2013-05-14

See how the Commission does “the people’s business” one of the Christian minister Commissioners mentioned in his invocation before another Baptist minister Commissioner expressed concerns about a different religion’s choice of location. No explanation for why county citizens can’t choose their trash service or why the county is suing a local business on behalf of New York City investors, and half a million dollars for paving without any competitive bid named while one man says the county took his property for road right of way. One more potential board appointee showed up, for 2 out of 3.

County Staff Chairman Slaughter, Frenchy, and Joyce Evans Gretchen videoing

Here’s the agenda with links to the videos and a few notes. See also the videos of the previous morning’s Work Session.

Richard Raines and John Page LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, MAY 13, 2013, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, MAY 14, 2013, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
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Fiscal responsibility and legal actions –John S. Quarterman @ LCC 2013-05-14

Chairman Bill Slaughter said “At this time we can’t discuss that issue” of why the Commission thinks its a good use of taxpayer funds to sue a local business with a valid business permit, after the Commission apparently recently didn’t want to defend against a potential lawsuit against itself.

In the Lowndes County Commission Regular Session Tuesday 13 May 2013, I spoke in Citizens Wishing to Be Heard, noting a trust indenture is a legal contract, and since as building a well often leads to development, as someone (Commissioner Page a few minutes before) pointed out, why don’t trust indenture decisions lead to public hearings? This might be a legal question for the state (although I would guess the County Commission could hold a public hearing on whatever it likes, even if the state doesn’t require it).

But a lot of commissions actually let the public speak on any item. For example, the Tallahassee Council lets anyone sign up at the beginning and say I want to speak on X. It’s a thought.

But during that particular item I found it particularly refreshing to hear Commissioner Page say that he was concerned about what the majority of the neighbors and property owners think about the use or potential use of the property, and nearby property owners and the majority of people who live in that area.

Now it’s curious how we did not hear much concern about that on an item a few meetings back about Old State Road. The majority of the people who live in that area did not want that road closed. The majority of the property owners, as near as I can tell from the names on the petition, did not, but no one seemed concerned about that. It is a nice concern to have.

Now at that time I heard through various people that the main reason, and correct me if I’m wrong here,

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Religious freedom and the neighbors @ LCC 2013-05-14

Apparently concern about a different religion is what it takes to get a Lowndes County Commissioner to speak up for the majority of the neighbors.

Mike Allen, Utilities Director After Utilities Director Mike Allen outlined the case again at the Lowndes County Commission Regular Session 14 May 2013 Commissioner John Page elaborated on his question of the previous morning:

Subdivision? --John Page But the trust deed that we have in our notebook says it’s for the Valdosta Islamic Center Corporation, so this is a, uh, I know they’re calling it the Mercy Community Center, but isn’t this going to be a Muslim worship center instead of a subdivision?

County Planner Jason Davenport responded:

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Kevin McCraney for Airport Authority: Nope @ LCC 2013-05-14

The applications are in their Commissioner packets, and you don’t get to see them.

The other of two applicants showed up to speak at the Lowndes County Commission Regular Session 14 May 2013. Chairman Bill Slaughter said:

Commissioners in your packets you should see applications from two potential appointees. You’ve had a chance to review those.

The public, as usual, did not see those applications. Nor do I recall seeing a list from the county of available appointments. At least we sometimes get to see the applicants speak, which, if I recall correctly, was Joyce Evans’ idea.

I believe we had an opportunity to hear from Mr. Sykes yesterday; is that correct. The other applicant is Mr. Kevin McCraney. I think at this time I’d like to call on Mr. McCraney if he’d like to come forward and make a statement.

Here is video of Jeff Sykes the previous morning. At the Tuesday Regular Session, Kevin McCraney said Continue reading

Give back what I’ve had for 37 years –Lamar Clements @ LCC 2013-05-14

A Lowndes County resident asked for school bus safety and his land back that the county took; this was in the Lowndes County Commission Regular Session Tuesday:

I was asked to do this for the benefit of our community. Lamar Clements is my name, and my wife Winona. We live at 5138 Coppage Road, out in Hahira. So you’d know, we’re not new residents out there. We’ve lived there 37 years. We’ve seen a lot of change.

Coppage and Griffin Roads My concern is the corner of Coppage Road and Griffin Road. I know Mike Fletcher has been recently, visited that location. I want to report that I have seen personally as a resident; I’ve seen two county school buses that could have been a fatal accident because of the structure around it. My concern, it needs to be eliminated; that will, bottom line save lives.

Secondly, I live on the corner, and the county has progressively moved the road over to the west, which is literally taking my some of my yard. All I ask is: give back what I’ve had for 37 years. And for goodness sake, when I saw those two school buses that makes a chill go down your spine when you’ve got that many children in danger.

So it’s in good hands. You guys know what to do. Go for it. Continue reading