Tag Archives: LCC

Millage Hearing 5PM 24 July 2012 @ LCC 2012-07-23

At the Monday morning Work Session, County Manager Joe Pritchard reiterated that there would be a Public Hearing on Millage 5PM 24 July 2012. He added that the millage is “less than calculated rollback”, Two weeks before, at the previous Work Sessioni and Regular Session, he already said staff did not anticipate any increases in millage.

This time he added these details:

MillageRecipient
7.31 Lowndes County
1.00 Industrial Authority (VLCIA)
1.25 Parks and Recreation (VLPRA)
9.56 Total

Commissioner Richard Raines wanted to know whether the school board was only the unincorporated area. He got two answers: “yes”, and “it’s not the city of Valdosta.” Those are not the same answer, since people from some of the cities, such as Hahira, Lake Park, and I think Dasher, go to county schools and are taxed for that. I don’t know about Remerton. Valdosta has its own school system and its own school tax. All the school taxes are separate (and greater than) the county taxes in the table above.

Here’s the video:

Announcement of Millage Hearing 5PM 24 July 2012
Work Session, Lowndes County Commission (LCC),
Video by Gretchen Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE), Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 23 July 2012.

-jsq

Library Board selects out-of-state architect for local library @ LCC 2012-07-24

The Library Board says no local architect was as qualified as the one they picked in Tallahassee to design a new local library here. The same Lowndes County Commission that just a month ago reappointed three members of the Library Board votes tomorrow evening on this bid selection.

Brittany D. McClure wrote for the VDT today, Library board selects architects: New main branch to be located at Five Points development

Clemons Rutherford & Associates (CRA) was chosen by the library


View Larger Map

board as the firm that will lead the design team for the new main library branch that will be moving next to the new municipal auditorium at Five Points.

Lowndes County Commissioners will vote Tuesday on the selection.

“The selection committee felt that the firm that was selected was the most qualified for the project as well as had the lowest estimate,” said Chad McLeod, Lowndes County project manager.

Though the selection process for agencies was directed by Lowndes County, the library board had input in the selection.

“The process to build the library began nearly three years ago at the county’s urging,” said Kay Harris, Library Board chairman.

Requests For Proposals (RFP’s) were advertised for 30 days, with 35 RFP’s requested by various agencies and architectural firms. Ten completed RFP’s were submitted to the county.

And when do we the taxpayers get to see these ten completed RFPs? Not unless somebody files an open records request and somebody else makes them available: it’s the county way!

OK, so why was CRA selected?

Continue reading →

SPLOST VII, Millage, Library, and two road repairs @ LCC 2012-07-23

Two kinds of taxes: Lowndes County Commission Work Session Monday 8:30 AM and Regular Session Tuesday 5:30 PM, with a property tax millage hearing 5PM before the Regular Session. Apparently the cities and the county have come to some agreement about Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) VII. Road repairs are being contemplated for Cat Creek Road and Cameron Lane. And there’s something about an RFP for an architect for the library.

Update: SPLOST, not LOST. -jsq

Here’s the agenda.

-jsq

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, JULY 23, 2012, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, JULY 24, 2012, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street — 2nd Floor
Continue reading →

Governor Announces CDBG Award Recipients @ LCC 2012-07-10

Received 11 July 2012, about that mysterious block grant. -jsq

Here is the original announcement of the Haven getting that CDBG grant. They have had some issues with the land that have kept it from being built before now.

-Jane Osborn

Text of announcement:

Governor Announces CDBG Award Recipients

Tuesday, September 7, 2010 Contact: Office of Communications 404-651-7774

ATLANTA— Governor Sonny Perdue announced that Georgia has been awarded over $43 million in federal grants from the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the state’s Community Development Block Grant Program.

“The Community Development Block Grant program provides an essential financial resource to Georgia’s smaller communities in their efforts to fund projects that will assist low- and moderate-income citizens,” said Governor Perdue. “As communities large and small are making tough spending choices, today’s grant announcement represents an important funding source for various local quality of life, economic development and job creation programs.”

Nearly $35.7 million is now being allocated for CDBG awards that will be used to support projects in 75 Georgia communities. Projects include water and sewer improvements, senior citizen facilities, health facilities, domestic violence centers, street and drainage improvements and replacement or rehabilitation of sub-standard and dilapidated housing. A complete list of projects and award amounts is included at the end of the news release. Remaining grant funds will be made available on an ongoing basis as opportunities arise for funding job creation and redevelopment projects in various parts of the state.

The CDBG program is administered by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA), which uses funds allocated through HUD to support local initiatives that focus on improving living conditions and economic opportunities.

“We are pleased that these funds will be used to fund critical community development projects,” added DCA Commissioner Mike Beatty. “Each year, the annual CDBG funding announcement demonstrates how federal, state, regional, and local partners are working together to support local communities and build a brighter future for all Georgians.”

The following is a complete listing of CDBG awards. Communities are listed in alphabetical order.

The line item from the governor’s table:

RecipientProject DescriptionAmount
Lowndes County Domestic Violence Shelter $500,000.00

-jsq

Started on Time! Lowndes County Commission finally set its clock @ LCC 2012-07-10

Somebody finally set the invisible clock in front of the Lowndes County Commission Chairman: Even the old dog was surprised! for the first time in recent memory, they started on time, instead of four or five minutes before the announced start time. Even the old dog on the phone was surprised.

The whole meeting took about seven minutes long. Note the Millage Hearing announced for just before the next Regular Session.

Here are videos of the previous morning’s work session. Here’s the agenda.

Here’s a video playlist of this Regular Session:

Continue reading →

VLCHA Appointment and a chatty audience: Video Playlist @ LCC 2012-07-09

Yet another start before the publicly advertised time, followed by a Hospital Authority reappointee and another person answering from the audience. Funding for computers, planning and preparedness, Code Red, and a block grant applicant, mostly with information in board packets that we the citizens paying for them don’t get to see. We did learn that nearly half the county uses Code Red, and at least 11,000 people are already signed up for weather alerts. I know I get them. They meet again to vote 5:30 PM this evening.

Continue reading →

Hospital board, awards, contracts, and a bid @ LCC 2012-07-09

The Lowndes County Commission meets 8:30 AM tomorrow morning (Work Session) and 5:30 PM Tuesday evening (Regular Session). Here’s the agenda.

-jsq

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, JULY 9, 2012, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, JULY 10, 2012, 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. Budget Public Hearing — June 19, 2012
    2. Work Session — June 25, 2012
    3. Budget Public Hearing — June 26, 2012
    4. Regular Session — June 26, 2012
  5. Appointments – Hospital Authority of Valdosta and Lowndes County
  6. For Consideration
    1. FY2012 EMPG Response and Recovery Award Application
    2. FY2012 Planning and Preparedness Award Application
    3. Code Red Service Agreement
    4. Cisco Unified Computing System
    5. FY 2010 CDBG Deed, Lease, & Promissory Note
  7. Bid – FY 2010 CDBG Construction Contract
  8. Reports-County Manager
  9. Citizens Wishing to be Heard Please State Name And Address

Budget, boards, and abandonment @ LCC 2012-06-26

The Lowndes County Commission appointed people to four boards, approved a budget for next fiscal year, made some unspecified changes to this year’s budget, and demonstrated they could both stop speeding traffic on a rural road and put a cap on a construction contract! All this in one meeting, their Regular Session of 26 June 2012.

Here’s the agenda. Here are videos of the previous morning’s Work Session. And here are videos of the 5PM (actually 4:57PM) budget hearing.

Here’s a video playlist:

Budget, boards, and abandonment
Regular Session, Lowndes County Commission (LCC),
Video by Gretchen Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE), Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 26 June 2012.

-jsq

County puts a cap on a construction contract! @ LCC 2012-06-26

The county can put a cap on a construction contract! That's welcome news.

At their 26 June 2012 Regular Session the Lowndes County Commission approved an item listed on the agenda as "9. FY 2010 Community Development Block Grant". They added three qualifications:

  1. That the grant applicant delivers the deed to the Board of Commissioners that is acceptable to the Board of Commissioners.
  2. That the construction contract not exceed 700,000.
  3. That the grant applicant is in agreement with the Board of Commissioners to pay the difference between the grant funds and project costs.

That's all admirable, and quite a difference from the approach the Commission took to another grant-funded project: the no-bid contract with Scruggs Co. for the new Moody AFB gate. Did we the taxpayers ever find out how much the final contract was for and how much the final cost overrun was?

Of course, in this new case, we never learned who the construction contractor was, or whether there were bids, of anything else about the contract. Why doesn't the Commission want us to know such things?

-jsq

 

Closing one end of Brinson Drive to stop speeders @ LCC 2012-06-26

Closing one end of a dirt road to stop speeders: it turns out the county can do that, after all! And it’s a popular thing to do.

One spoke against, but changed to be for. Three others spoke for. The agenda item at the 26 June 2012 Regular Session of the Lowndes County Commission was

7. Public Hearing: Abandonment of a Portion of Brinson Drive
  • John L. Lewis who lives in Lanier County but owns property at 4718 Brinson Road spoke against closing Brinson Drive. County Engineer Mike Fletcher clarified that they weren’t closing the whole road; they were abandoning a portion of it near Pikes Pond Road, making Brinson a dead end to stop speeding through traffic. Lewis seemed mollified.
  • Richard Rigby spoke for the closing of Brinson Road, saying it was the greatest thing the Commission had done in the last ten years, other than keeping Haunted House Road open.
  • Amanda Parker spoke for closing Brinson Drive; she lives on Oak Hill Drive at the end of Brinson and almost got run over that morning.
  • Loretta Steed spoke for closing Brinson Drive; she lives on Pikes Pond Road near one end of Brinson. She said she had been against the closing until she learned from Rigby that the county was keeping Haunted House Road open. Instead she wanted to know how it would be closed so as to stop the speeders from getting on it. Chairman Paulk said a culvert would be removed.
  • Commissioners voted unanimously to close one end of Brinson Drive.

Three years ago in a similar situation, the county insisted on paving Quarterman Road instead. Quarterman Road, which, unlike Brinson Drive, doesn’t even go anywhere. Paving resulted in speeders and drag racers through a residential neighborhood. As resident Carolyn Selby put it:

You designed a mile and a half straight-away, and they have come. Welcome to the Quarterman Road Drag Strip!

The county continues to insist speed humps are out of the question. It’s good to hear Commissioners have become concerned about safety somewhere in the county.

-jsq