5.b. Consideration of a request to approve the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Fiscal Year 2012 Annual Action Plan.Plus of course, Citizens to be Heard.
They heard some citizens Tuesday, as Drive Away CCA honked at City Hall.
Here’s the agenda.
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Continue readingAGENDA REGULAR MEETING OF THE VALDOSTA CITY COUNCIL
5:30 PM Thursday, March 8, 2012
COUNCIL CHAMBERS, CITY HALL
Yes, we drove about that slow the whole way: that was in the plan.
We honked at Valdosta City Hall: the City Council could hear us inside.
They have Citizens to be Heard at their regular meeting tonight.
Here’s the video:
Heading out Drive Away CCA 2012 03 06
No private prison in Lowndes County,
Motorcade against Corrections Corporation of America, Drive Away CCA,
CCA, VLCIA, Corrections Corporation of America, Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority,
Valdosta City Council, Lowndes County Commission, incarceration, prison, private prison,
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 6 March 2012.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.
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Winn Roberson told us how he had the idea for the
motorcade against CCA,
from the private prison site past Valdosta City Hall to the Industrial Authority.
Here’s Part 1 of 2:
Starting up Drive Away CCA —Winn Roberson 2012 03 06 Part 1 of 2:
No private prison in Lowndes County,
Motorcade against Corrections Corporation of America, Drive Away CCA,
CCA, VLCIA, Corrections Corporation of America, Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority,
Valdosta City Council, Lowndes County Commission, incarceration, prison, private prison,
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 6 March 2012.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.
And how he wasn’t opposed to it just because it was down the street from him;
also because:
“Every step so far has dollar signs behind it.”A private prison would give everybody from justices to jailers incentive to keep more people in prison instead of rehabilitating anybody.
Here’s Part 2 of 2: Continue reading
Valdosta City Council and Mayor, who may not have been following the private prison issue,
now know about it and are aware that they are all implicated in the private prison
decision, due to events at the Industrial Authority board meeting
and the Valdosta City Council meeting, both Thursday 23 February 2012.
After remarking that I’d rather be talking about the additional solar panels recently installed on my farm workshop up here in the north end of the county, I recapped the case against a private prison and referred the Valdosta City Council to my LTE in the VDT of that morning (Thursday 23 February 2012). I remarked that I was disappointed the Industrial Authority hadn’t done anything to stop the prison at its meeting earlier that same day. Since they might be wondering what all this had to do with them, I pointed out that, if I could use the word, they were all implicated as mayor and council in the private prison decision because Jay Hollis, CCA’s Manager of Site Acquisition, in his Valdosta-Lowndes County, GA / CCA Partnership: Prepared Remarks of August 2010, lavishly praised the Lowndes County Commission and Chairman and the Valdosta City Council and mayor. Although the mayor was different now, and maybe some of the council, nonetheless it was the same offices of council and mayor, still implicated. I asked for their opinions on that subject. Per their custom, they did not offer any at that time. So, maybe we’ll hear from them later. Or maybe the Industrial Authority board will hear from them….
Here’s the video:
Valdosta Mayor and Council are implicated in the private prison —John S. Quarterman @ VCC 2012 02 23
VSEB, employment,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (VCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 23 February 2012.
Videos by George Boston Rhynes for K.V.C.I., the bostongbr on YouTube.
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John Robinson told the Valdosta City Council that he thought the
application for the
Valdosta Small Emerging Business (VSEB) Program
was too long and complicated compared to the one-page
application to do major construction work.
Here’s the video:
VSEB application is too long — John Robinson @ VCC 2012 02 23
VSEB, employment,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (VCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 23 February 2012.
Videos by George Boston Rhynes for K.V.C.I., the bostongbr on YouTube.
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Jay Hollis, CCA’s Manager of Site Acquisition, in his Valdosta-Lowndes County, GA / CCA Partnership: Prepared Remarks of August 2010, wrote:
So who is this local leadership?Our Valdosta/Lowndes County site quickly became our primary due to its local and regional workforce, collaboration of local leadership, site characteristics, proximity to necessary services and infrastructure, and accessibility to name a few.
We look forward to working closely with Valdosta/Lowndes leadership as we move forward in the months to come.Continue readingFinally, I’d like to take a moment to recognize a few folks that have been essential to the project:
George Rhynes’ video of the last two citizens speaking at the
7 November 2011 County Commission meeting has
interesting closeups on the county staff while
the Chairman was answering Matt Portwood.
Then at 1:35 Tony Daniels answered the request for “any other business”
by walking up to the podium and talking.
He cited life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness from the Declaration of Independence:
How can we pursue happiness when we don’t even have a job? I believe the city and county and Industrial Authority and the Chamber of Commerce need to work more together to create an atmosphere of trying to bring more industry inside the city. We have highways coming through Valdosta. I hope to see in the near future that the county and the city and the Industrial Authority and the Chamber of Commerce work like brothers and sisters. Because you know and I know that you are elected by the people of the people and for the people, and I’d like to see that…. Because we need more entrepeneurs, we need to see all governments in this area promote that….I suspect the Chairman was asking the Commissioners whether they had any other business, but he wasn’t clear about that. I think what Tony Daniels had to say was important, and citizens should be able to say they have other business. However, since he had not signed up to speak before the meeting started, he was in violation of Rule #1 from the Commission’s hastilly adopted Policies and Procedures for Citizens Wishing to Be Heard:: Continue reading
Courtesy of the camera of George Rhynes, here are the
Citizens to Be Heard at
Thursday’s Valdosta City Council meeting.
Most of them are frequent cyclists, with a surprise ally speaking first.
Health and safety through bicycles —Roy Taylor
We have just had a very divisive issue —Ken Klanicki
Truth really needs no defense! —George Rhynes
Bikes, Students and Public Meetings —George Rhynes
Community’s need for public transportation, bike lanes, and walking —Heather Evans
How about some bike racks? —Matt Portwood
I’m a bicyclist —Jim Jones
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He mentioned Valdosta was lagging behind Portland.
Here’s the video:
I’m a bicyclist —Jim Jones @ 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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Matt Portwood told
Thursday’s Valdosta City Council meeting
that since his last address to the Council was so well received
this time he brought friends (such as
Heather Evans, who had just spoken)
and an ally in the front row (
Roy Taylor, who spoke first)
This time he asked for bike racks.
If City Hall had one outside, their bicycles wouldn’t have been
locked to the front step railing.
Here’s the video:
—Matt Portwood @ 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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