Tag Archives: VLCCCTA

Packet: Three appointments, lease, ULDC, roads, grant, insurance @ LCC 2023-01-09

Update 2023-01-22: Videos: Three appointments, lease, ULDC, roads, grant, insurance @ LCC Work 2023-01-09.

Both Work Session and Regular Session are Monday, January 9, 2023, for the Lowndes County Commission. Both will probably be brief, because it’s a short agenda of mostly routine items.

The rezoning at Skipper Bridge Road and GA 122 for a Dollar General is NOT on this agenda. However, those interested may want to show up and be seen by the Commissioners, to remind them that people care and will be there on January 24th at the Public Hearing.

[Agenda, Cattle Crossing Subdivision infrastructure @ LCC 2023-01-09]
Agenda, Cattle Crossing Subdivision infrastructure @ LCC 2023-01-09

They pretend as always that taking over more subdivision streets and water and sewer lines will not cost the county taxpayers anything.

The dollar items listed in the packet are small. Continue reading →

Budget, Bevel Creek Lift Station, Val Tech Road widening, Appointments: ZBOA, Library, VLPRA, Construction @ LCC 2020-06-22

The big item on the Lowndes County Commission agenda for Monday to vote on Tuesday evening is the Adoption of Fiscal Year 2021 Budget totaling $59,443,920, with $22,774,781 or 38% to Public safety, i.e., the Sheriff’s department, including the jail.

[A RESOLUTION ADOPTING THE FISCAL YEAR 2021 OPERATING BUDGET]
A RESOLUTION ADOPTING THE FISCAL YEAR 2021 OPERATING BUDGET
PDF

The board packet is on the LAKE website after we obtained it through an open records request.

Although I hear the hotel/motel tax is down 80% due to virus pandemic, the Hotel/Motel Tax FY 2021 County Budget Budgeted Proceeds are $400,000.00. They are budget to go to:

$171,429.00 Transfer to Lowndes County’s Special Services Fund from which the County funds (i) services the County provides primarily for the benefit of the unincorporated area and
(ii) the County’s share of funding of services the County and one or more municipalities jointly fund

$171,429.00 Transfer to Valdosta-Lowndes County Conference Center and Tourism Authority
to promote tourism, convention, and trade shows in accordance with the FY 2021 Budget Plan of said Authority for same which is made a part of this Budget Plan

$57,142.00 Transfer to Valdosta-Lowndes County Parks and Recreation Authority
for capital costs and operating expenses of parks and recreational facilities owned and operated by said Authority

A rare no-match federal grant: Acceptance of FY20 Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding brings the total expected expenditures from this Tuesday’s Regular Session down to less than a quarter million dollars:

Cost What
$148,345.58 Val Tech Road Grading, Drainage, Base and Paving
$82,000.00 Bevel Creek Manhole Emergency Repair
$57,300.00 The Modernization/Upgrade of the Elevator in the Governmental Building
($58,008)
in Federal Funding.
There is no local match requirement. 		Acceptance of FY20 Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding
$229,637.58Total

I commend Lowndes County Utilities for moving ahead to fix the recent manhole collapse at the Bevel Creek Lift Station on GA 376 near Loch Laurel Road. See also Sewer line repair between manholes, Bevel Creek Lift Station @ LCC 2020-06-22.

Photo: Terry Richards, The Valdosta Daily Times, Heavy rains cause problems in Lowndes 2020-06-08.
Photo: Terry Richards, The Valdosta Daily Times, Heavy rains cause problems in Lowndes 2020-06-08.

It’s a busy agenda for appointments, to Continue reading →

Videos: Clyattstone Road Paving, Bids, Lease, Appointments, nothing for Fire Dept. @ LCC 2020-01-14

Maybe it was “custom fit” that caused Commissioner Clay Griner to ask for postponement of approval of purchase of firefighting equipment until after the county’s retreat. All five Commissioners voted for tabling. More detail below in the notes on that item.

Bob Dewar has discovered the county wants an 80-foot right of way to pave Clyattstone Road, “What we do not want is a highway. It’s a quaint county road.” Well, that’s not why the county paves roads. More in the item notes below.

Everything else was passed with little or no discussion.

Below are links to each LAKE video of each agenda item, followed by a LAKE video playlist. See also the Continue reading →

Videos: Water quality testing, Bids, Leaase, Appointments @ LCC 2020-01-13

Not on the agenda, Chairman Bill Slaughter at the end of the meeting said Utilities Director Steve Stalvey had been testing water quality on the Withlacoochee River. On December 31, bacterial counts were acceptable. But on January 6, 2020, counts were quite high, so the county made and posted some warning signs at Knights Ferry, Nankin, and State Line (GA 31) Boat Ramps.

Here is one of the county’s signs, at Knights Ferry Boat Ramp, with a sign by WWALS Watershed Coalition (Suwannee Riverkeeper) at the bottom of the other pole with Continue reading →

Bids $1.4 million, insurance $1 million, and $0.4 million lease plus two Appointments @ LCC 2020-01-13

A million dollars for Paving – Quail Hollow Acres Subdivision and $0.4 million for Bid for a 3,000 Gallon Tanker for the Fire Department. Another million for 2020 Stop Loss Insurance Coverage through Symetra Life Ins. Company. A quarter million to relocate utilities at I-75 Exit 2 will be paid by GDOT. And a million in income for a Lease Agreement with the State Properties Commission for the Division of Family & Children Services (DFACS).

[Page 60]
Page 60

Molly Deese wants to be reappointed to the Valdosta Lowndes County Conference Center and Tourism Authority. Incumbents almost always get reappointed if they say they want to, and the chances of them not reappointing the Vice President and General Manager of Wild Adventures is pretty slim. Ditto Dr. Frances Brown on the Lowndes County Board of Health.

They’re setting the Special Assessment interest rate “for all paving and utilityassessments that are not paid off within the initial 90-day phase. Unpaid assessments revert to installment agreements which are to be paid over a period of up to ten years.” New rate: 6.75% for 2020, down from 7.50% for 2019.

They’re setting qualifying fees to run for office, primary or general election: Continue reading →

3 Appointments, Alcohol and Public Transportation @ LCC 2019-04-22

With no prior notice to the public, and no invitation for people to apply, the Lowndes County Commission will appoint members to three boards:

VDT: Creacy Sermons, Soror of the Year, 2016
Valdosta Daily Times: Sermons named Soror of the Year for 2016.

As usual, the county did not publish the applications the applicants turned in, nor any information about them. You could file an open records request for those, but three days from when the agenda is posted on Friday is after they vote on Tuesday.

You do still have time to turn in your own application if you want to be on one of these boards.

There’s also a Beer, Wine, and Liquor License for a new restaurant and Updated Section 5311 Rural Transportation Program Drug and Alcohol Testing Policy.

So the Monday morning Work Session will probably last less than ten minutes.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, APRIL 22, 2019, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, APRIL 23, 2019, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

Continue reading →

Videos: Appointment to Tourism Authority, Roads and Towers @ LCC 2018-09-24

“You have an appointee information sheet in your packet,” said County Manager Joe Pritchard, and that’s all we learned about Michael Smith, who did not appear to speak, either, at yesterday morning’s Work Session. County Chairman Bill Slaughter did encourage the Commissioners to send in information sheets on any other nominees they might come up with for the Tourism Authority before tonight’s 5:30 PM voting Regular Session. He did not encourage the public to apply. But if you want to, here is the application form.

Also apparently the Internet really is made of pipes. It’s durious how the county can help a private company with television (that was the longest item at just under 2 minutes) but can’t use its plethora of towers to help with citizen Internet access.

And the county discussed in executive session buying real estate. The whole meeting before that took just under 8 minutes.

Below are Continue reading →

Appointment to Tourism Authority, Roads and Towers @ LCC 2018-09-24

Why does the county leave us guessing and not just name who resigned, and say who Michael Smith is? Maybe they’ll say at the Lowndes County Commission Work Session this morning at 8:30 AM, or maybe when they vote tomorrow at 5:30 PM.

“Mr. Michael Smith has expressed interest in being appointed to” the Valdosta-Lowndes County Conference Center And Tourism Authority, says Continue reading →

Videos: Branham subdivision, Trash, RR crossing @ LCC 2018-03-13

Most of the meeting (13 and a half minutes) was about Bill Branham’s subdivision, which passed, with the Chairman breaking the tie because one Commissioner recused himself. Opponents took up almost another minute leaving the room.

On a split vote the Commission declined to modify the solid waste ordinance to give the County Manager more power.

Second longest at more than 6 minutes was Michael J. Killeen’s R-A to M-1 rezoning. Virdie Mae Lyons got her well and septic rezoning in a minute and a half.

Two water items: not clear how much Continue reading →

Videos: Conference Center, Branham subdivision, Trash, RR crossing @ LCC 2018-03-12

Lengthiest at more than three and a half minutes was the Bill Branham subdivision rezoning, plus a tie for second at 2 minutes 13 seconds between the new Conference Center CEO and the Virdie Mae Lyons Old Clyattvile Road well and septic rezoning, at yesterday morning’s Work Session. Gretchen is off with the LAKE video camera to the voting Regular Session tonight.

The County Manager wants more power through an ordinance that would further favor Advanced Disposal Services (ADS) over Deep South Sanitation (DSS).

Two water items: Continue reading →