More road building TIA projects to promote more sprawl,
a redot to
let a developer off the hook for not doing drainage as required,
a subdivision special tax lighting district,
several water projects in already-developed areas,
a grant to prevent juvenile delinquency,
and the annual renewal of permits for both waste collection companies,
all on
the agenda
for this morning’s Lowndes County Work Session, for voting Tuesday evening.
Funny how they never count the later cost of box culverts and water main extensions when they approve rezonings for subdivisions,
but here some of those are later.
That
former detention pond site is actually parcel 0144 205A now,
and it’s at
4115 Little Viking Road.
They also don’t tell we the taxpayers and voters where the new detention area is.
HISTORY, FACTS AND ISSUES: Map 0144 Parcel 205 owned by Rubber Tire,
LLC was originally designed for the entire lot to be one of the
detention areas for Roswell Place Subdivision and has been the
detention area since the subdivision was built. Rubber Tire, LLC had
the detention area redesigned, approved, and constructed so the lot
could become a buildable lot. Lowndes County will need to Quit Claim
the existing detention area back to Rubber Tire, LLC and accept a
drainage easement for the new detention area from Rubber Tire, LLC.
The agenda is below.
The board packet will follow when LAKE gets it.
My fault this time: I didn’t send the open records request.
Although it is still mysterious why Lowndes County doesn’t put the board packet
on its own website like many counties larger and smaller have been doing for years in Georgia and Florida.
The rudimentary expanded agenda with one-sheet agenda items is on the LAKE website.
LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, MARCH 21, 2022, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, MARCH 22, 2022, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
The Commissioners unanimously denied the rezoning for the
subdivision on Miller Bridge Road.
Applicants spoke a minute over their time, yet did not present the slides
they said the previous morning they were going to present;
we include scans of those slides here for historical reference,
for when the next subdivision like this comes up, next week or next year.
Commissioners unanimously approved the other two rezonings.
Commissioner Mark Wisenbaker wanted to know if this was for private wells.
County Planner JD Dillard said the application was for a community well,
and while the lots were big enough for private wells, the soils had
not been tested for that.
Don Powell spoke for the applicant.
Jesse Bush also spoke for, listing many things they were not there to talk about,
including aquifer recharge or community wells.
He said the only question was six homes (which the landowner can do by right anyway) or twelve homes.
Chairman Bill Slaughter cut them off saying he’d given them an extra minute,
and he’d give the other side an extra minute.
Brad Folsom spoke against on behalf of a room full and a 360-signer petition of opponents.
He reminded the Commissioners that the subject property was in an Agricultural and Forestry Character Area.
While R-A was permissible in such an Area, it was not appropriate.
He discussed nearby zonings and lots that had been brought up by staff previously.
Among the many other points he brought up was flooding would be exacerbated by tree cutting and paving for a subdivision.
He reminded the Commissioners that they had told him they did not want any more community well systems.
Somebody else (unnamed, but see below) speaking against said it would be spot zoning.
He said he owned 320 acres and had been there for more than a hundred years.
This rezoning would change the character of the community and would be
a precedent for other rezonings.
He said he owed this community a debt and he would like to repay it.
Elton D. Redding, 7649 Webb Road, representing the Redding property,
John L. Redding his brother.
Demarcus Marshall moved to deny, Mark Wisenbaker seconded, unanimous vote to deny.
Unanimously voted down: Miller Bridge Road subdivision @ LCC 2022-02-08
Lowndes County Commission Regular Session, Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange (LAKE),
Lowndes County adheres to Local and State standards when in the Groundwater Recharge Area
Notable Developments in Recharge Area in Lowndes County)
Landfill
Kinderlou Forest and Foxborough Subdivisions
Valdosta Regional Airport
Moody Airforce Base
City of Dasher
City of Lake Park and surrounding area
Lake Park Industrial Park
While probably all these points are true (I haven’t checked each location),
most of them precede current concerns about groundwater recharge,
and there is no need to make the problem worse.
Investigative reporting costs money, for open records requests, copying, web hosting, gasoline, and cameras, and with sufficient funds we can pay students to do further research. You can donate to LAKE today!
A twelve-foot alligator surfaced twice at the briefest Valdosta City Council meeting of recent memory, in
Special Recognitions
and
Citizens to Be Heard, related to the Mayor and Chairman’s Paddle organized by WWALS,
with Suwannee Riverkeeper John S. Quarterman as a speaker.
Four from Leadership Lowndes where there,
and there’s a New Neighborhood Development and Community Protections Manager, Anetra Riley.
The Mayor recognized WWALS, which is a first.
Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, followed by a LAKE video playlist.
See also Continue reading →
Two small lot variances in Hahira, two small lot rezonings in Lowndes County,
three small rezonings in Valdosta,
and one big annexation and rezoning by Valdosta,
35 acres for Murray Staten Farms, LLC, 3550 Lake Laurie Drive,
all on the agenda this evening for the Greater Lowndes Planning Commission (GLPC).
GLPC recommends, and the elected bodies decide.
For an annexation, the Lowndes County Commission will have to state whether it objects
before the Valdosta Mayor and Council decide.
There’s no parcel listed for 3550 Lake Laurie Drive by the Lowndes County Tax Assessors.
Why the agenda can’t just tell us which parcels is mysterious.
However, this parcel is where google maps finds that address: Continue reading →
The developer of the proposed
5.c. REZ-2022-03 Windy Hill Subdivision, 7532 Miller Bridge Rd.
plans to make a presentation this evening at the voting Regular Session,
we heard at yesterday morning’s February 7, 2022, Work Session of the Lowndes County Commission.
Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, with a few notes by Gretchen, who was there, followed by a LAKE playlist.
See also the agenda and board packet,
and that post has links to the previous relevant meetings and materials.
On the agenda for tomorrow morning’s Lowndes County Commission Work Session,
county staff included the petition against
REZ-2022-03 Windy Hill Subdivision, 7532 Miller Bridge Rd..
County staff note “RECOMMENDED ACTION: Board’s Pleasure or Deny”,
unlike the other two options, where the second option is “Approve”.
Those who do not want that rezoning to pass would do well to contact their Commissioners before the meetings, and then show up at the meetings,
or at least the Tuesday 5:30 PM voting Regular Session.
As usual, county staff say rezonings do not cost the county anything.
Nevermind that subdivisions far from county services will never pay enough
in property taxes to fund sending school buses, fire trucks, and Sheriff vehicles,
so all the taxpayers subsidize those costs.
It’s almost enough to make you wonder why the Lowndes County Commission does not want the public to know what it is doing?
A state-funded road restriping with the list of roads
not revealed to the public for three months, and no minutes for the relevant meetings on the Lowndes County website (but LAKE kept a copy from their old website).
County Commission staff do take videos of the Commission meetings,
but they only post videos of the Regular Session (not the Work Session),
and not even those between October 2020 and October 2021.
This is despite spending more than $100,000 for new audio visual equipment for the Commission Chambers, while the Valdosta City Council has livestreamed through the pandemic using an employee’s iPhone.
I could go on about
the stealth reapportionment of Commission Districts
and the half million dollar bailout of a developer,
both at the same January 25, 2022, Lowndes County Commission meeting,
both not revealed to the taxpaying public before the voting Regular Session.
But just items related to the Miller Bridge Road rezoning requests
are enough to raise questions about the secrecy of Lowndes County Commission and staff.
Why don’t they want the public and the taxpayers to know?
Everything else sailed through, but the Miller Bridge Road rezoning took half an hour.
Nick Clark from Quitman spoke for the rezoning.
As Brad Folsom remarked on behalf of the opponents,
the only significant difference between this and the previous request is the lot size, with the newly requested R-A zoning for
6. REZ-2022-03 Windy Hill Subdivision 7532 Miller Bridge Rd., E-A to R-A.
Some new arguments were heard against.
Gretchen Quarterman said the taxpayers don’t need any more community wells
that the county has to assume and pay for if there are problems with it.
Chase Gregory
said the current zoning is working well. People do buy larger size parcels (4-80 acres); he gave several examples.
Tommy Kenny,
spoke against as immediate neighbor to north and active local farmer.
The Planning Commissioners voted to recommend denial, 8 for, and
3 against.
The Lowndes County Commission decides next Tuesday at 5:30 PM.
Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item,
with some notes, followed by a LAKE video playlist.
See also the
agenda,
the
Lowndes County board packet items,
returned late by Lowndes County in response to a LAKE open records request,
the
Dasher packet item,
returned in less than ten minutes by SGRC.
![[WINDY HILL SUBDIVISION, Lowndes County Rezoning Application, REZ-2022-03]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-02-08--lcc-videos/REZ-2022-03-applicant-slides-0001.jpg)
![[Requested Zoning Change]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-02-08--lcc-videos/small/REZ-2022-03-applicant-slides-0002.jpg)
![[WINDY HILL SUBDIVISION CHARACTERISTICS]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-02-08--lcc-videos/small/REZ-2022-03-applicant-slides-0003.jpg)
![[Location of Property]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-02-08--lcc-videos/small/REZ-2022-03-applicant-slides-0004.jpg)
![[Justification for Zoning Request]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-02-08--lcc-videos/small/REZ-2022-03-applicant-slides-0005.jpg)
![[Zoning map]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-02-08--lcc-videos/small/REZ-2022-03-applicant-slides-0006.jpg)
![[OPPOSITION POINTS ADDRESSED (1 of 3)]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-02-08--lcc-videos/small/REZ-2022-03-applicant-slides-0007.jpg)
![[OPPOSITION POINTS ADDRESSED (2 of 3)]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-02-08--lcc-videos/small/REZ-2022-03-applicant-slides-0008.jpg)
![[OPPOSITION POINTS ADDRESSED (3 of 3)]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-02-08--lcc-videos/small/REZ-2022-03-applicant-slides-0009.jpg)
![[Rezonings, Public Defender, Public Works]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-03-07--lcc-videos/many.jpg)
![[Rezonings]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-03-07--lcc-packet/many.jpg)
![[Valdosta City Council, Staff, and Citizens]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/valdosta/2022-02-24--vcc-videos/many.jpg)
![[Agenda, Lake Laurie Drive annexation]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/glpc/2022-02-28--glpc-agenda/many.jpg)
![[Chairman and Miller Bridge Road rezoning]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-02-07--lcc-videos/many.jpg)
![[Miller Bridge Road rezoning: Petition, Opposition parcels; Bemiss Road rezoning]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-02-07--lcc-packet/many.jpg)
![[Lowndes County Agenda Center for 2013]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/loco/2022-02-02--lcc-secrecy/2022-02-02--lcc-agenda-center.jpg)
![[6. REZ-2022-03 Windy Hill Subdivision, 7532 Miller Bridge Rd., 0010 022, ~34 ac., E-A to R-A.]](http://www.l-a-k-e.org/govt/glpc/2022-01-31--glpc-videos/many.jpg)