Tag Archives: Vince Schneider

Residential home owners of Lowndes County take notice —Vince Schneider @ LCC 14 June 2011

Vince Schneider warned county homeowners that it could happen to them, too:



To permit
the establishment of the Foxborough Avenue McDonalds, the county has
irreversibly established a most terrible precedence. You too can wake
up one morning to find a Fast food store being built in your front
yard.

Like many of us, he wondered what the county government is thinking:

I cannot comprehend how the county can possibly
benefit from allowing such an establishment to be built in a quite
county residential neighborhood. Is it because it provides unskilled
low paying jobs? Will this McDonalds look good on a resume? It was my
understanding that Valdosta and Lowndes County wanted to attract a more
skilled, professional work force. The real estate on Foxborough Avenue
the county permitted McDonalds to build on would have been, and is prime
real estate for just such a professional enterprise….

Good questions.

Here’s

the video:




Residential home owners of Lowndes County take notice —Vince Schneider @ LCC 14 June 2011

Regular Session, Lowndes County Commission (LCC),

Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 14 June 2011.

Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.



After Vince Schneider finished reading his letter,
Chairman Ashley Paulk handed him a paper, which was apparently
a communication from County Engineer Mike Fletcher.

Appended is the text of the letter Vince Schneider read to the Commission.

Continue reading →

Mr. Fletcher’s misrepresentation of the ingress and egress —Vince Schneider

Continuing the Foxborough McDonald’s story,
Vince Schneider sent the appended to Commissioner Richard Raines Thursday.
I have added some related material, including pictures of the 12 July 2010
Commission meeting to which he refers.
-jsq

From: “Schneider, Vincent H”

Date: Thu, 26 May 2011 12:15:18

To: Schneider, Vincent H,rraines@lowndescounty.com

Subject: Schneider: County Engineer: Foxborough Subdivision Streets

Commissioner Raines,

Sir,

I hope your day is going well. I’m spending half this afternoon with the
dentist getting a permanent crown installed and the other half with my
wife’s kidney doctor. Life must truck on regardless of the Foxborough
McDonalds issue.



Sir, twice I made statements to you in regards to County Engineer,
Mr. Mike Fletcher. I now wish to present my position in writing. My
first statement was during our first phone conversation on 18 May
2011. During that conversation I rather colorfully stated

Continue reading →

Foxborough McDonalds will violate ordinance 97-0704. — Vince Schneider

Vince Schneider follows up from
his previous correspondence.
I have added links and a comment at the end.
-jsq



From: “Schneider, Vincent H”

Date: Wed, 25 May 2011 16:16:07 -0400

To: rraines@lowndescounty.com

Subject: Schneider Citizens Wishing To Be Heard Meeting 24 May 2011

Commissioner Raines,

Sir,

Thank you

for suggesting that I continue to address my concerns of the
Foxborough McDonalds with the Lowndes County Board of Commissioners. I
truly hope that with the Board’s help, the neighbors and the Foxborough
McDonalds can come to some mutual agreement as to acceptable hours of
operation.

Attached is an e-copy of what

I presented to the Lowndes County Board
of Commissioners at last night’s Citizen’s Wishing To Be Heard meeting.

I’m a little frustrated that I’m unable to obtain a copy of

Lowndes
County Ordinances. I don’t fully understand why. Where are they? I
understand that ignorance of the law is not an acceptable defense in a
court of law, however when one wants to know and is making an earnest
effort to find out what the law is and the law is unavailable what is
one to do?

The Lowndes County Ordinance thus far researched that shows most
promise in helping to at least curtail the Foxborough McDonalds hours
of operation is the

ordinance on noise, Lowndes County Ordinance 97-0704.
The Foxborough McDonalds will violate ordinance 97-0704. I
believe a compromise can be reached whereby the Foxborough McDonalds
will agree to stop all food preparation and selling operations at 10:00
pm on weeknights and at 12:00 am on Friday and Saturday nights. If
McDonalds is permitted to operate 24hours a day it will establish a
precedent for the area. We need not to allow this to happen. Currently
there is no store as such in the area that operates 24hours a day. The
closest store as such is the Burger King that is on the other side of
I-75, well over a mile away. That store has no residential neighbors.
Looking forward to hearing what Chief Guyton has to say on this issue.



Next question if I may. Last night I received some information through
an open records request on the Foxborough McDonalds from Lowndes County
Clerk, Paige Dukes. I have only briefly scanned a few of the documents
and have already found some interesting and disturbing issues. I
believe I’ve stated to you that I have a copy of the Lowndes County

Unified Land Development Code (ULDC) and that I have spent considerable
time in studying it. My question is who should I address these issues
with? The paramount issue thus far concerns the road Foxborough Ave
itself. I don’t believe that unless a variance was granted that the
road Foxborough Ave is so designated to permit a commercial enterprise.
Nearly a year ago I made this argument before the Lowndes County Board


of Commissioners and Commissioner Lee directed the County Engineer, Mr.
Mike Fletcher to look into it. I never received an answer from
Commissioner Lee or Mr. Fletcher.

If not sooner Commissioner Raines, I will see you at the next Citizens
Wishing To Be Heard meeting on 14 June at 5:30pm.

Wishing you an enjoyable and restful vacation,

With Sincerest Respects,

Vince Schneider

Nine ordinances are listed

on the Lowndes County website, but hundreds have been passed.
Indeed, where are they?

-jsq

Laws relevant to Foxborough McDonald’s —Vince Schneider



He’s back from Afghanistan and has a new plan to fight McDonald’s.
Vince Schneider asked the County Commission for an ordinance about hours.

After quoting from the U.S. Tenth and Fourth Amendments
and talking about privacy rights,
he read similar passages from the Georgia Constitution,
and this one, from

Section II. Origin and Structure of Government:

All government, of right, originates with the people, is founded
upon their will only, and is instituted solely for the good of the
whole. Public officers are the trustees and servants of the people and
are at all times amenable to them.

He then read a definition of ordinance,
and noted that many ordinances deal with issues of safety, health, morals,
etc.

His recommendation: for the Commission to pass an ordinance
limiting hours of operation for such type of enterprises.

That’s the county attorney visible directly past Schneider
(under the microphone).
Of course it’s the commissioners who must propose and pass any ordinance.
That will require

Continue reading →

Videos: McDonald’s vs. Foxborough Sign Variance

The corpulent corporate giant asked for a variance, and met with
unexpected opposition, as well as unexpected results.
The formal title of the item was
VAR-2010-15 McDonald’s Corp. (4601 Foxborough Avenue),
on the agenda of
the Valdosta-Lowndes County Zoning Board of Appeals (ZBOA).
McDonald’s was
“Requesting a Variance to the maximum square footage allowed for drive-thru signage.”


Lowndes County Zoning Administrator Carmella Braswell.

introduced the case, and
Chair Allan Strickland mentioned pictures of other fast food restaurants
with signs within ordinance limits.

A McDonald’s employee and his lawyer
presented their case,
in which we learned that

McDonald’s wants two signs for a large total variance
and that

McDonald’s doesn’t want to do custom signs.

Well-known local lawyer

Gary Moser stepped up to
speak for over 200 residents of the Foxborough neighorhood
who don’t want a McDonald’s at their entrance.

Continue reading →

McDonalds Denied Sign Variance for Foxborough Store

Update: Videos are here.

Fast-food giant McDonalds applied for a sign variance so they could have signs the same size as everywhere else, so they wouldn’t have to do a custom job. The Technical Review Committee (TRC) recommended against. Attorney Gary Moser summed up the opinions of 200 Foxborough residents who don’t want the added light from the sign and headlights. He also mentioned Vince Schneider is being deployed to Afghanistan and doesn’t want the
added lights when he gets back in six months.

Surprise speaker Gary Minchew, a well-known local developer, spoke against
the variance, citing the arrogant behavior of McDonalds, which he said insisted on keeping
a variance through his property he had granted First State Bank, even though he had not
intended it to be used by a fast-food buyer of the bank property.

The Valdosta-Lowndes County Zoning Board of Appeals voted unanimously to deny the variance.
Pictures and videos to follow.

-jsq

Corporate McDonalds Please Don’t Build A Store In My Front Yard While I’m Deployed To Afghanistan

Here’s a letter Vince Schneider sent on Thursday 9 September to
Vivian Valdivia, Development Director, Atlanta Region, McDonalds,
copied to Kay Harris of the VDT, Fox News, MSNBC on the Internet, and NBC News:

Vivian Valdivia, et al.

Corporate McDonalds=2C please don’t build a store in my front yard while I’m
deployed to Afghanistan. And please continue this policy after my return.
Since 30 June 2010 when I first learned of Corporate McDonalds’ plan to
build a store in my front yard this Fall=2C I believe I’ve done everything
that I could to stop it. My local and state governments refuse to help by
simply saying that there is nothing they can do. I guess I shouldn’t have
expected anything else from an elected official. This is my last appeal to
Corporate McDonalds to not build a store in my front yard this Fall.

I am deploying next Friday to Afghanistan to help secure the rights and
liberties of the Afghan peoples. Because of this 6 month deployment I will
not be able to prosecute any more actions in the attempt to dissuade
Corporate McDonalds from building a store in my front yard. Now, because of
Corporate McDonalds’ greed, it’s only a wish that I could enjoy some of
the same rights and liberties that I am helping to secure for the Afghanis,
at my home upon my return. Rights and liberties that Corporate McDonalds is
effectively taking from me to name a few include the right to peace,
prosperity, and the pursuit of happiness.

Continue reading →

Foxborough Anti-McDonalds Banner



The VDT writes about Foxborough two days in a row:

Several dozen residents of the Foxborough subdivision came to the Lowndes County Commission meeting Tuesday to again express their dismay at the possibility of having a McDonald’s fast food restaurant located by the neighborhood’s entrance.

Resident Pete Candelaria said he has been living in Foxborough for six years and was speaking on behalf of the residents.

Candelario (I believe that’s the actual spelling of his name) provided
a list of suggestions to the Commission, which Chairman Paulk addressed,
including:

Continue reading →

VDT on Foxborough v. McDonalds



It looks like the strategy I recommended

to the Foxborough opponents to McDonalds worked:
go to the County Commission work session and you may get in the newspaper.
Kay Harris writes in the VDT about

Issues with development,
Neighborhood upset about commercial encroachment:

According to Vince Schneider, the spokesman for the residents, the majority of
the neighborhood is opposed to the possibility of a McDonald’s restaurant openin
g there. The property is currently listed with Lowndes County as owned by First
State Bank, but the county engineer, Mike Fletcher, confirmed Monday at the Lo
wndes County Board of Commissioners work session that he has received a plat fo
r the proposed development.

Schneider appeared before commissioners at the work session to request they rec
onsider the commercial zoning in the area.

Many of the residents only found out aboout the proposed McDonalds from
a cryptic mention by Kay Harris in the VDT a few weeks ago.
Naturally, the VDT ends the current story on a note of finality:

Continue reading →

Good Meeting, Foxborough vs. McDonalds



Vince Schneider of Foxborough Avenue sums up the sense of

a well-attended meeting (7PM Thursday July 8 2010)
at which residents said they don’t want a McDonalds at the entrance to the Foxborough neighborhood. Vince will be speaking at the County Commission meeting Tuesday at 5:30 PM July 13, and also at the work session Monday at 8:30AM July 12.

See you there.

-jsq