Tag Archives: Valdosta

Valdosta’s Ultramodern Masterpiece: The Nichols House on Baytree —Alfred Willis Lecture 2014-10-01

Received yesterday in PDF. This is the historic structure where Turner Brooks wants to build a subdivision. -jsq

300x232 Talk Flyer, in Valdosta's Ultramodern Masterpiece: The Nichols House on Baytree, by Alfred Willis, 1 October 2014 7:00pm – Wednesday, October 1st, 2014
Valdosta State University
Bailey Science Center, Room 1011

This event is FREE and open to all.
Parking is also free in the Georgia Avenue Parking lots.
* For more information please contact Colleen McDonough,
229-333-5759 or cmcdonou@valdosta.edu

The Nichols house is a replete instance of the diffusion of Californian on the Nichols House & Valdosta Architecture design ideals in the postwar decade, the work that brought architect Lloyd Greer’s career to its culmination, and the starting point for the careers of several leading Valdosta architects of the next generation. Continue reading →

Hahira Honeybee Breakfast

300x225 food line, in Hahira Honeybee Breakfast, by Gretchen Quarterman, 29 September 2014 Gretchen reports it was congenial but poorly attended, presumably because there are no local political races undecided that affect Hahira: both County Commission Districts 2 and 5 are already done, and there’s no county Chairman or Sheriff race, and no Hahira city races this year. The only Hahira City Council member there was Terry Benjamin, although Police Chief Terry Davis and City Manager Jonathan Sumner were there, plus Wayne Bullard, who according to Hahira’s website is still Mayor.

Many more events upcoming in the Hahira Honeybee Festival. Continue reading →

A Win: Credit Suisse on SolarCity Buffalo deal

A big bank rave review of the Buffalo deal.

Claudia Assis wrote for MarketWatch 26 September 2014, SolarCity’s N.Y. factory deal ‘better than expected’,

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) — SolarCity Corp.’s solar-panel factory in upstate New York could allow the solar installer to reduce its costs and save about $400 million a year, analysts at Credit Suisse estimate.

SolarCity SCTY, -0.66% and New York struck a deal earlier this week, with the state announcing a $750 million package to build the solar-panel factory near Buffalo.

That deal “was significantly better than expected,” the Credit Suisse analysts said Continue reading →

SolarCity in Buffalo: 1,000 megawatts capacity, 3,000 jobs

Three times as many millios of dollars invested as expected, 3,000 jobs, and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo says “they could have gone anywhere on the planet”. They could have come here. They went to snowy Buffalo.

David Robinson wrote for Buffalo News 23 September 2014, ‘Historic day for Buffalo,’ Zemsky says of SolarCity RiverBend plans,

SolarCity’s planned factory in South Buffalo — and the 3,000 jobs that come with it — packs a powerful economic punch.

To be built on the former Republic Steel plant site in South Buffalo, the factory is expected to bring more new jobs to the region than the steel maker ever had in its heyday.

With the ability to make enough solar panels to generate more than 1,000 megawatts of electricity, the factory would be Continue reading →

Board Packet @ LCC 2014-09-22

Here is the board packet for yesterday morning’s Work Session. Notice it does not have anything about reporting on services provided or number of citizens serviced for the Leila Ellis leases, and no contracts at all for the Public Safety Radio System Upgrade. And nothing at all about the non-even-on-the-agenda Victim Witness Program renewal. Maybe those items will be added to the board packet Commissioners get before they vote tonight at 5:30 PM. Here are videos of their Work Session from yesterday morning, at which Commissioners Marshall and Powell made it clear they would like to see some additional items.

At least this packet cost a lot less ($7.80) than the last one.

-jsq

GA Supreme Court rules against Deep South Sanitation: DSS vows to keep going

Lowndes County suing a local business with our tax dollars has produced a preliminary Georgia Supreme Court ruling overturning the appeals court and favoring the county’s “exclusive franchise” with ADS, a company owned by New York City investors. Local company Deep South Sanitation vows to keep going.

Do you think this lawsuit is a good use of your tax dollars? What will you think if ADS’ rates go up from Veolia’s bid of $13.05/month ($156.60/year) just before ADS bought Veolia, to ADS’s bid of $13.39/month ($220.68/year)? Continue reading →

Videos: Alcohol, Transportation, Water, and Safety @ LCC 2014-09-22

Update: Board packet.

They took a little longer than ten minutes, because Commissioners had questions about the right of way abandonment and even more questions about rent, tenants, and services at the Leila Ellis Social Services Building, and about the Public Safety Radio System System Upgrade: Commissioners actually want to see what they’re voting in; fancy that! Plus a substantial presentation about the USGS water level gauge on the Little River and an unscheduled request for approval for a continuation of a Victims Assistance grant.

Here’s the agenda with links to the videos and a few notes, followed by a playlist.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2014, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2014, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
Continue reading →

Suwannee County Chairman denied his Sabal Trail coments after FPL talked to him

300x146 Chairman Phil Oxendine saying Suwannee County is considerihng action about the Sabal Trail pipeline, in Duke Suwannee new turbine resolution sails through Suwannee County Commission, by John S. Quarterman, 2 September 2014 Last month, Phil Oxendine volunteered that he and the county attorney were looking into passing a resoulution against the Sabal Trail pipeline like other counties were doing. Yet at this months meeting of the Suwannee County Board of County Commissioners he denied he even said that, after Florida Power and Light (FPL) showed up.

Amber Vann wrote for the Suwannee Democrat 19 September 2014, Gas pipeline concerns continue, Continue reading →

Alcohol, Transportation, Water, and Safety @ LCC 2014-09-22

Will they take ten minutes to consider all these agenda items? They’re meeting right now.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2014, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2014, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
  1. Call to Order
  2. Invocation

    Only in the Regular Session.

  3. Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag

    Only in the Regular Session.

  4. Minutes for Approval
    1. Work Session — September 8, 2014
    2. Regular Session — September 9, 2014
  5. Public Hearing
    1. Beer, Wine and Liquor License — Cowboys Fire Pit Grill, LLC — 1088 Lakes Blvd
  6. For Consideration
    1. Abandonment of Unopened Right of Way off Water Oak Drive
    2. Section 5311 Rural Transportation Program Operating Contracts
    3. Leila Ellis Social Services Building-Approval of Lease Agreements
    4. GEMA Performance Partnership Agreement (FY 2014)
    5. USGS Funding Agreement for Hwy 122 Stream Gauge
    6. Public Safety Radio System Upgrade
  7. Reports-County Manager
  8. Citizens Wishing to be Heard Please State Name And Address

    Only in the Regular Session.

-jsq

Videos: GP Investments, Hahira, Pipeline, Alapaha Water Trail @ LCC 2014-09-09

Five citizens spoke, on topics including the “horrible wretched smell” from ADS, the Sabal Trail pipeline, the proposed local charter school, and the board packet and the Alapaha River Water Trail. Chairman Bill Slaughter asserted there had been nineteen applicants for the Planning Commission appointment and seemed to think the public should be happy about that, having learned it presumably by telepathy. He didn’t divulge who those applicants were, and the only one in the board packet (charming young white guy Brad Folsom) 300x450 2014-09-09-uldc-map-001, in wndes County Zoning Map, by Lowndes County Planning and Zoning, 9 September 2014 was appointed after somebody reminded the Chairman to at least get a motion first. They also appointed Commissioner Joyce Evans to the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities. On the GP Investments water rezoning, County Planner Jason Davenport didn’t know whether there had been a dump site there or where the well would go, but they approved it anyway. They also approved the bookkeeping ULDC updates for Special Events, Zoning Map, Fees and they have since put the new zoning map online!

They approved unanimously the annual prisoner work detail contract without even mentioning the cost. And unanimously with no discussion they approved the Hahira extratorial request.

Here’s the agenda with links to the videos and some notes. See also the board packet, obtained for you by LAKE through an open records request, and the LAKE videos of the previous morning’s Work Session, which have quite a bit more information, including applicants for appointment speaking.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2014, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2014, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
Continue reading →