Tag Archives: Valdosta City Council

Truth really needs no defense! —George Rhynes @ VCC 10 November 2011

George Rhynes stood up at Thursday’s Valdosta City Council meeting to respond to Ken Klanicki’s concern about Sam Allen’s speech on the City Hall steps the previous day.
I want the record to show and I hope the Valdosta Daily Tims will print it, that former Superintendent Sam Allen, all he did was to act as a professional, which he is.
George also commended the bicyclers and said he had videoed the bicycles he found out front.

Here’s the video:


Truth really needs no defense! —George Rhynes @ VCC 10 November 2011
bicycle, path, health care, health, sidewalk, grant,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (VCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 10 November 2011.
Videos by George Boston Rhynes for K.V.C.I., the bostongbr on YouTube.

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We have just had a very divisive issue —Ken Klanicki @ VCC 10 November 2011

Ken Klanicki expressed concerns about Sam Allen’s speech the previous day on the steps of City Hall. He had only read about it in the VDT, which of course has space limits. You can see and hear Sam Allen’s speech for yourself, thanks to George Rhynes. Ken Klanicki also wanted to know who approved the use of City Hall for that speech. Ken probably didn’t know from the VDT that Mayor Sonny Vickers was standing beside Sam Allen at the time, but you can see that for yourself.

Here’s the video of Ken Klanicki:


We have just had a very divisive issue —Ken Klanicki @ VCC 10 November 2011
bicycle, path, health care, health, sidewalk, grant,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (VCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 10 November 2011.
Videos by George Boston Rhynes for K.V.C.I., the bostongbr on YouTube.

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Health and safety through bicycles —Roy Taylor @ VCC 10 Nov 2011

Roy Taylor spoke first in Citizens to Be Heard at Thursday’s Valdosta City Council meeting:
We need bicycle paths in this community, very very badly. I travel to Europe… and they have bicycle paths all over, and it helps our children as they are growing up. It helps us as adults…. It helps all of us…. It is good for our children, our community.

I want you to think about the health care cost that those bicycles can save. In the health care we have to pay, the hospitalization, the medical costs, if we keep our bodies in good shape.

You have a grant in here now of about $75,000 to $100,000 … school money. I can think of no finer way for those children than to walk the sidewalk and to ride a bicycle.

That’s right: Roy Taylor spoke in favor of a grant, and for bicycles. Bicyclers listened from the back before some of them spoke: Continue reading →

Four board appointments @ Valdosta City Council 10 November 2011

A rezoning, three ordinances, two bids, and four appointments to boards. Here’s the agenda. -jsq
AGENDA
REGULAR MEETING OF THE VALDOSTA CITY COUNCIL
5:30 PM Thursday, November 10, 2011
COUNCIL CHAMBERS, CITY HALL
Continue reading →

Valdosta City Council voted to oppose school consolidation

Mayor Sonny Vickers said he thought it was important for children and grandchildren and proper for the City Council to take a stand against school consolidation, and City Manager Larry Hanson read the statement (transcript appended).

For:
City Council District 1 - James Wright
James Wright
District 1

City Council District 3 - Hoke Hampton
Hoke Hampton
District 3

City Council District 4 - Alvin Payton Jr.
Alvin Payton
District 4

City Council At Large - Ben Norton
Ben Norton
At Large

Didn’t Have
to Vote:
Valdosta Mayor - Sonny Vickers
Sonny Vickers
Mayor
Against:
City Council District 6 - Robert Yost
Robert Yost
District 6

City Council District 5 - Tim Carroll
Tim Carroll
District 5

Missing:
City Council District 2 - Deidra A. White
Deidra White
District 2
After very brief discussion, the vote was 4 for (James Wright of District 1, Hoke Hampton of District 3, Alvin Payton of District 4, and Ben Norton At Large) and 2 against (Robert Yost of District 6 and Tim Carroll of District 5).

That means Ben Norton changed his vote since since their last non-binding vote related to school consolidation. (Nonbinding because they didn’t have any authority to decide whether the referendum went on the ballot or not.) Council Deidra White of District 2 was absent throughout the meeting, which I find rather odd since she seemed quite aware when I spoke to her the previous day that this vote was going to occur. Back in August she voted against putting the referendum on the ballot. Yes, I know the motion was not exactly the same, so the votes are not exactly comparable. In any case, this time there was no tie and thus no need for the (new) mayor to break a tie.

Here’s the video:


Valdosta City Council voted to oppose school consolidationo
education, consolidation, resolution,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (VCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 6 October 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

Here’s the statement transcribed as accurately as I could from the video: Continue reading →

School Consolidation Statement tonight at Valdosta City Council

There are a bunch of changes to the Comprehensive Plan and the Land Development Regulations (LDR) that people ought to pay attention to, scheduled for tonight’s Valdosta City Council (VCC) meeting. But the one many people are going to see is this one:
6.a) Consideration of a Position Statement on School Consolidation.
Some people are confused, because VCC has no formal authority over any school system. They didn’t have any formal authority to decide whether to put the school referendum on the ballot, either. According to the Lowndes County Board of Elections, once Continue reading →

5.a. Vote to put school consolidation referendum on ballot —Tim Carroll @ VCC 25 August 2011

Council Carroll made a motion to put the referendum on the ballot and Council White seconded. Yost, White, Norton, and Carroll voted for. Wright and Vickers voted against.

The mayor then pointed out voters will have had to be registered for six months to vote on this referendum in November, so if someone registered tomorrow, they couldn’t vote in November. (It’s not clear that this is actually true, but it is what he said.)

They all had more to say later in Council Comments.

Here’s the video:


5.a. Vote to put school consolidation referendum on ballot —Tim Carroll @ VCC 25 August 2011
petition, education, referendum,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (LCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 25 August 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

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5.a. This seems forced —Mayor John Fretti @ VCC 25 August 2011

First they voted on stopping debate on the motion on the floor (to deny putting the referendum for school consolidation on the ballot). White and Norton voted against stopping debate.

Then they voted on the motion to deny. Council White agonized over whether they were doing anything illegal. They split evenly 3 to 3: Wright, White, and Vickers for denying, and Yost, Norton, and Carroll against.

Since it was a tie, the Mayor got to vote. First he made a statement, which included:

It started out in the least inclusive manner.
…
This seems forced to people who don’t want the city school system and to a city school system which doesn’t want to cope with these people right now. And that’s unfair.
He suggested the legislature should handle it.

After all that, he voted against the motion to deny, so the motion failed.

Here’s the video:


5.a. This seems forced —Mayor John Fretti @ VCC 25 August 2011
petition, education, referendum,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (LCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 25 August 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

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5.a. There is no plan … we just don’t know —Sonny Vickers @ VCC 25 August 2011

Council Vickers said there was no plan for how to do school consolidation, and so he was against the referendum, and he called for a vote on his motion to deny the referendum.

He said that if we were going to consolidate school systems, the two school boards should sit down and make a plan.

But in this case, there is no plan.
…
We just don’t know.
…
Too much is unknown.
He called for a vote on his motion to deny the referendum.

Here’s the video:


5.a. There is no plan … we just don’t know –Sonny Vickers @ VCC 25 August 2011
petition, education, referendum,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (LCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 25 August 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

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5.a. Legal issues —Attorney Talley and others @ VCC 25 August 2011

Council Carroll noted that council was merely voting on putting a referendum on the ballot.

Attorney Talley said he hadn’t looked at soem of the legal possibilities, and talked about several specific pairs of counties consolidating schools.

Council White asked for further clarification.

Manager Hanson used an analogy of annexation (for which he said there were at least four legal methods) to indicate that proponents could pick whichever one they liked. He said someone could choose to challenge it in court. I believe he also said council could vote against holding the referendum.

Here’s the video:


5.a. Legal issues –Attorney Talley and others @ VCC 25 August 2011
petition, education, referendum,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (LCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 25 August 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

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