Tag Archives: Gretchen Quarterman

Follow the law and be aware what the citizens want –Judge Ellerbee @ Lake Park 2014-04-28

Apartments are expensive to local governments, developers don’t sue unless there is actual discrimination (which there isn’t in this case), water use is a big issue, and the primary responsibility of elected officials is to the citizens who elect them: Judge Wayne Ellerbee made these and other points relevant to many rezoning requests as he spoke for some of the opponents at the Lake Park Brookhaven rezoning.

He pointing out that the question before the Lake Park City Council was the rezoning, but the developers needed to take into account the effects on the entire city of Lake Park. He mentioned studies from the University of Georgia saying that the most expensive zoning Continue reading →

Citizens, lawyers, and developers @ Lake Park 2014-04-28

“A molehill to cover up an eyesore” pretty much summed up the neighbors’ opinions. Some of the usual local lawyers seemed surprised at the number and sophistication of the rezoning opponents, as you can see in these videos of the public hearing for the Brookhaven apartment building proposed rezoning. The Lake Park City Council took its duties to its citizens seriously, holding a separate zoning meeting just for this one subject.

Here’s a video playlist:


Citizens, lawyers, and developers
Rezoning Public Hearing, Lake Park City Council (Lake Park),
Video by Gretchen Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE),
Lake Park, Lowndes County, Georgia, 28 April 2014.

Attorney Tom Kurrie’s apparent suggestion that the neighbors wanted to discriminate against the elderly and children Continue reading →

One ULDC variance @ ZBOA 2014-05-06

One Lowndes County ULDC variance, for lot access and road frontage. The could be interesting, since, according to the Lowndes County Tax Assessors’ maps, 3041 Touchton Road doesn’t actually touch Touchton Road, or any other road, for that matter.

Here’s the agenda. The City of Valdosta puts ZBOA agendas and minutes online in real PDFs. Continue reading →

Videos: church parking withdrawn @ ZBOA 2014-04-01

North Valdosta Church of God came to a decision. Plus a house variance in Lowndes County was approved unanimously, and a gas station variance got its building variance approved, but its other variance requests denided, all on a split vote. in Valdosta. See the Meeting Results Summary, which also lists all of ZBOA members as present.

Here’s the agenda, with links to the videos and a few notes. The City of Valdosta puts ZBOA agendas and minutes online in real PDFs. Continue reading →

Valdosta Farm Days starts today

9AM to 1PM Valdosta Farm Days at the old Lowndes County Courthouse, first and third Saturdays, starting today.

City of Valdosta Pr 24 April 2014, Downtown Valdosta Welcomes Back Farm Days,

On market Saturdays, vendors offer a variety of goods for sale such as locally-grown, locally-raised, locally-produced fruits and vegetables, plants, herbs, meats, farm-fresh eggs and dairy products, organic produce, baked and prepared foods, snacks and coffee. Patrons will also find a variety of artisan and natural products including products made from recycled goods, birdhouses, handmade soaps and body products, candles, and honey products. Those who arrive early to shop have the advantage of beating the heat and getting the best picks of the season.

The market also serves as a venue to educate the community on healthy local options. Cooking demonstrations and Continue reading →

Opaque Planning Commission agenda from Lowndes County @ GLPC 2014-04-28

Just in case it might work, I sent an Open Records Request to the Lowndes County Clerk before Monday’s Planning Commission meeting. The result just arrived, two days later, 47 hours after the meeting started. It is in electronic form, as I requested, but it’s a PDF of a scanned image, so turning it into HTML would require OCRing it or transcribing it, unlike the real PDF I got by another means before the meeting and posted Monday. If the agendas and minutes for the Planning Commission were posted on the web like the Lowndes County Commissions own agendas and minutes already are, this problem wouldn’t arise, and there would also be less work for county staff.

-jsq

Gretchen Quarterman on Chris Beckham radio show 2014-04-29

“People would have a lot more confidence in the government if they understood it and they could see it happen,” said Gretchen Quarterman this morning on drive-time radio. She used last night’s Brookhaven apartment building rezoning public hearing in Lake Park to illustrate: local landowners have property rights and there was a lack of communication between the developers of a proposed apartment building, the Lake Park city government, and the neighbors.

She also talked about jobs, including in local agriculture. For example, she ran the 2014 South Georgia Growing Local Conference. Money spent on local agriculture supports the local economy, not companies far away.

She talked about stewardship of resources, including preserving local property and environment from the Sabal Trail natural gas pipeline. She advocated Continue reading →

Videos: Golf, aviation, and by-laws @ VLCIA 2014-04-15

A scheduled guest didn’t show up and an unscheduled guest did, about broadband. Perhaps 250 jobs from a prospective logistics distribution Project Royal and a potential agriculture-related Project Orange. Express Scripts brought 135 jobs last year and now are adding 175 jobs. Executive Director Andrea Schruijer emphasized the importance of existing industries in generating jobs and capital investment. She’s also discovered agriculture is 13% of Georgia GDP and 10% of that is grown in our region.

Next VLCIA meeting will be noon Thursday May 20th because of a trip to Atlanta later that same day. They may be in their “new digs” by then, and Building-Committee-UpdateChairman Mary Gooding promised an open house once they were moved in.

Here’s the agenda, with links to the videos, and a few notes.

Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority
Thursday, April 15, 2014 5:30 p.m.
Industrial Authority Conference Room
2110 N. Patterson Street
Continue reading →

One Hahira rezoning and annexation and Two Valdosta Conditional Use Permits @ GLPC 2014-04-28

It seems unlikely the Hahira rezoning and annexation will go anywhere tonight, due to the Lowndes County Commission letter of objection of 22 April 2014, even though that may be based on a misunderstanding. Hm, somebody wants to establish a recycling center. And Langdale Ford wants to establish a minor automotive repair facility.

Here’s the agenda, which arrived as a PDF actually convertable to text!

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, April 28, 2014* 5:30 P.M. * Public Hearing

Continue reading →

Candidate Forum at Hahira Historical Society 6PM tonight

Tonight is the first open candidates forum of the election season, for all candidates running for offices voted on by residents of Hahira, at the Hahira Historical Society, 116 E. Lawson Street, in the old Smith Hospital Doctors Building in Hahira, 6PM April 26th 2014.

That includes:

Georgia General Assembly

  • State Senate District 8: Ellis Black (R switched from House 174), John Page (R switched from County Commission District 5), Bikram Mohanty (D ran last time and placed well), and Richard Raines (R not running again for County Commission District 2). Continue reading →