I was approached after the meeting and informed that the
Industrial Authority intends to invite communal leaders like
myself to brain storming sessions in the future, although I
do not know yet the design for such a forum, nor have I
received any invitations as of today. Still, if there is one
thing that has again become clear in the context of the
consolidation issue, our community desperately needs
structures that a) allow for more transparency and b) forums
in which we can take advantage of the creative energy that
exist in our community, INSTEAD of trying to shut people
out, to hide information from them, or to push through
divisive agendas.
It is my hope that the leaders of the Industrial Authority,
as well as the City Council, the Lowndes County Commission,
and the Chamber of Commerce for that matter, understand the
opportunity we have: to turn a weakness (as exposed by the
way we handled biomass, and are currently handling the
consolidation issue) into a strength … via communication
and cooperation … as is appropriate for a true community.
Perusing the
Community Assessment for Lowndes County
sponsored by Georgia Power and prepared by Janus Economics
for the Industrial Authority, I noticed on page 28 under Recommendations:
There is a plan for a public transportation system
in Valdosta-Lowndes
County but it currently lacks funding for implementation. Under current
budget constraints it will be difficult to implement such a project,
but businesses in the industrial parks and outlying areas may want to
implement a limited transportation system if they discover that employee
attendance is an issue.
Update 3:45 PM 3 November 2011: Better transcript and pictures. See also what happened after the meeting.
Dr. Michael Noll, longtime opponent of the Industrial Authority’s formerly
proposed biomass plant, asked that same board at their most recent meeting:
What can we do as a community to better cooperate, to better communicate?
What can we do as a community to better cooperate? –Dr. Noll
Regular Meeting, Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority (VLCIA),
Norman Bennett, Tom Call, Roy Copeland chairman, Mary Gooding, Jerry Jennett,
Andrea Schruijer Executive Director, J. Stephen Gupton attorney, Allan Ricketts Project Manager,
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 18 October 2011.
Videos by John S. Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.
Dr. Noll sent an edited transcript removing some of the repetition
to clarify what he was trying to say:
Continue reading →
State Sen. Bill Montford, right, congratulates Gadsden County Chamber of
Commerce Executive Director David Gardner on the National Solar Power’s
massive solar farm project.
With the excitement of a massive solar-energy farm coming to the community
still fresh on their minds, Gadsden County businesses are looking ahead
to the potential such a project could have on the local economy.
Monday’s announcement by National Solar Power was a discussion topic
Wednesday at the “Go Gadsden” breakfast of the Gadsden County Chamber of
Commerce. The invited speaker, state Sen. Bill Montford, D-Tallahassee,
told the gathering the project’s impact will extend well beyond the
county.
“This is good for Gadsden County, but it’s good for all of North Florida,”
Montford said during the breakfast at the Florida Public Safety Institute
in Midway. “We believe it’s just the beginning.”
Well, shiver me timbers and bless their little hearts!
Their new executive director, Andrew Schruijer, remarked at
Tuesday’s board meeting that the agenda for that meeting
had indeed been posted since Friday.
In Citizens to be Heard I readily admitted I didn’t look too hard for it,
and expressed astonishment and pleasure at this positive development.
Linked from their front page, there’s now an
agenda page:
Agenda
Agendas will be posted one day prior to the Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority regular scheduled monthly meeting.
It has links to agendas for June, July, and August, each with an agenda in PDF.
That seems a bit odd for some of those months, when there were several meetings.
But, hey, it’s a start!
Apparently VLCIA has few or no tracts of 200 acres or up
out of their 577 acres.
New Executive Director Andrea Schruijer said:
We’re looking at having prospects in,
or existing industries are looking to come here,
we don’t actually look like we have a 577 acre tract that we can market.
It’s actually a lot smaller than that.
So when a company comes in and wants 200 acres
that’s something we have a gap in.
She’s following up on former chairman Jerry Jennett’s request.
Jennett remarked at this meeting
Continue reading →
We’re here to protest the building of the biomass plant.
We think it’s ill-conceived to contaminate our air.
Our children, retirees, all sorts of folks….
Ill-conceived to contaminate our air –Barry Z. Hyatt @ VLCIA 19 April 2011
Biomass protesters,
Regular Meeting, Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority (VLCIA),
Norman Bennett, Tom Call, Roy Copeland, Mary Gooding, Jerry Jennett chairman,
Brad Lofton Executive Director, J. Stephen Gupton attorney, Allan Ricketts Project Manager,
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 19 April 2011.
Videos by John S. Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.
Workforce development meeting at Wiregrass Tech —G. Norman Bennett @ VLCIA 19 July 2011
Regular Meeting, Valdosta-Lowndes County Industrial Authority (VLCIA),
Norman Bennett, Tom Call, Roy Copeland chairman, Mary Gooding, Jerry Jennett,
Andrea Schruijer Executive Director, J. Stephen Gupton attorney, Allan Ricketts Project Manager,
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 19 July 2011.
Videos by John S. Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.
I already posted another view of this,
by George Rhynes.
But that one was at the end of a video of me talking, and I think
what Norman Bennett had to say is important and deserves its own post.
have never heard of it,
and many of them want to know where they can find out more.
Linked from
the front page of the LAKE website
is
the letter to the Industrial Authority people are signing,
which in turn has links to
an online petition
and
a large amount of background material.
