Tag Archives: Tim Carroll

Georgia Power plans to change all streetlights to LEDs

Terri Lupo. South Region Vice President at Georgia Power, has provided further information on Valdosta converting to LED streetlights.

She said on the telephone yesterday that Georgia Power met with Valdosta City Manager Larry Hanson last week. Georgia Power plans over next four years to change out all the streetlights in Georgia, from high pressure sodium (or whatever they’re currently using) to LED lighting. She says that will be more efficient, and will provide more light, with a better pattern of coverage. Valdosta had already expressed interest, so they were one of the first to join this LED streetlight program.

She said it’s not surprising Tim Carroll was a little vague on the details, since Georgia Power is Continue reading →

Valdosta converting to LED streetlights

Council Tim Carroll says that City Manager Larry Hanson announced at the City Council meeting Tuesday that Valdosta will be converting all its streetlights to LEDs. This conversion is at least partly funded through a pilot program with Georgia Power. Apparently Georgia Power keeps the savings until they recoup the expenses. Valdosta was one of only four or five cities in the state selected for this program.

More detail when the approved minutes are available in two weeks.

-jsq

Valdosta Budget Hearings @ VCC 2014-06-11

He also called to be sure LAKE got this, and the Public Hearings Tuesday and Wednesday at 5:30 PM are in the City of Valdosta’s online calendar, plus there’s a much briefer story in the VDT today, and see the millage table from last year’s budget hearings. -jsq

From: Tim Carroll <tcarroll@valdostacity.com>
Date: Wed, 4 Jun 2014 14:33:35 +0000
Subject: FY 2015 Budget

Hey everyone,

It is that time of year when your city government prepares its’ budget for the upcoming fiscal year. As we have experienced over the past four years, this year’s budget presents many challenges. Revenues continue to decline while expenses keep going up. Fuel alone for the city now runs around $1.7M per year and the power bill to run the city for a year is now at $3.4M. Like you have seen in your homes and businesses, these and other costs continue to rise. Major revenue sources such as the LOST tax (our largest revenue source for the General Fund) continue to decline. And the list goes on. The city has now tapped over the past several years all the reserve funds in or der to balance the budget. Those reserve funds are now gone.

I say all this to illuminate the difficult choices that are present in this year’s proposed budget. While Continue reading →

Study before Levee –Tim Carroll @ VCC 2014-05-06

Comment on facebook 10 May 2014 and he told me the same by telephone.

It is clear a full watershed wide study must be completed before any decisions can be made. As established in this first study—The City of Valdosta is the recipient-not the origin- of the flood waters. While it confirms what we already knew, my job is to try and keep the ball rolling forward. Engage congressional leaders, secure funding and find long term, sustainable solutions that benefit all communities within the watershed basin. A levee by itself is not the answer.
–Tim Carroll

This was a comment on Continue reading →

Valdosta City Council member Tim Carroll files with FERC

Tim Carroll, District 5, has filed a request based on property rights and water issues for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to deny the Sabal Trail Transmission methane pipeline that Spectra Energy wants to run through Lowndes County. Here’s the letter: Property rights and water: please deny the Sabal Trail methane pipeline –Tim Carroll, Valdosta City Council, 5th District

Valdosta is the county seat of Lowndes County, Georgia, and at least one landowner with land in the path of that proposed pipeline lives in the City of Valdosta in Council Carroll’s district.

-jsq

ADS included household trash in their recyclded items –Tim Carroll

Personal recollection from Valdosta City Council Tim Carroll received today on ADS fails to recycle, appeals DSS ruling anyway, adding detail that wasn’t in the VDT article.

The main problem the City was having with ADS was they included household trash in their recycled items. Used diapers and other household products mixed in with recycle materials is not allowed. The City advised ADS back to this past October of the issue and no improvements were made. Eventually the city had no choice but to cut them off. The City is a regional hub for recycle material and proud to offer the service.

OK, so is that a violation of the county’s “exclusive franchise” with ADS?

-jsq

SpectraBusters Informational Meeting 2013-11-16

Standing room only while Ellis Black (GA Dist. 174), Bill Slaughter (Lowndes County Chairman), and Tim Carroll (Valdosta City Council) spoke after Gretchen Quarterman gave an introduction at the first SpectraBusters Informational Meeting last Saturday. A second meeting is scheduled for this Saturday morning at 10AM at the Valdosta City Hall Annex.

Video. Gretchen asked if there were any representatives from the pipeline company present. Nobody spoke up. Several affected landowners did speak: Beth Gordon from Levy County, Florida and Larry Rodgers and Carol Singletary from Lowndes County, Georgia.

Video. Elected officials spoke. Bill Slaughter (Lowndes County Chairman) said Continue reading →

The SPLOST Debate –Tim Carroll

Received 27 October 2013. -jsq

I have had a number of folks contact me about the upcoming SPLOST VII referendum and inquiring about a MOST. Trying to talk about all of this in as few a words as I can is not easy. But to give you some perspective—the city’s general fund budget is $32M. $5.9M of the revenue for this fund comes from property taxes. Based on the city tax digest a mill is worth $1.5M. The experts say 50.2% of the sales tax is paid by out of towners. In the opinion of some folks, it is closer to 30%. Pick the experts or local guesses ….it still is a significant amount. It clearly is very beneficial to the citizens of Valdosta and Lowndes County.

By now many have heard about a MOST or Municipal Option Sales Tax.

In the first part of this year—the city of Valdosta was faced with Continue reading →

OK LOST status quo –Valdosta City Council @ VCC 2013-10-17

Yes we’ll take the 2002 percentages offered by Lowndes County, voted the the Valdosta City Council this morning at a Special Called Meeting.

The vote result is from Council Tim Carroll, who says they will revisit the percentages after the Georgia legislature does whatever it’s going to do about LOST in January. Here’s the notice of the meeting on Valdosta’s website:

Notice of a Special Called City Council Meeting
Posted Date: 10/16/2013

The Valdosta City Council has scheduled a Special Called City Council Meeting for Thursday, October 17, 2013 at 8:00 a.m. at City Hall, 216 East Central Avenue, Council Chambers. The purpose of this Special Called Council Meeting is to discuss the Local Option Sales Tax (LOST).

For more information, please contact Teresa S. Bolden, City Clerk, at 259-3503 or tbolden@valdostacity.com.

-jsq

Spectra met Lowndes and Valdosta @ Pipeline 2013-10-16

Spectra Energy subsidiary Sabal Trail Transmission held a landowner one-on-one at Wiregrass Tech last night. Matthew Woody of the VDT was there, as was one Valdosta City Council member, one Lowndes County Commissioner, and at least two county staff, plus some landowners (“might as well get something out of this”, several said at the food bar), one of whom was a match for Andrea Grover.

Matthew Woody, VDT:

Continue reading →