{"id":274,"date":"2012-12-10T11:17:51","date_gmt":"2012-12-10T16:17:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/2012\/12\/glimmers-of-open-discussion-about-moody-afb-zoning-by-the-county-commission-lcc-2012-12-10.html"},"modified":"2012-12-10T11:17:51","modified_gmt":"2012-12-10T16:17:51","slug":"glimmers-of-open-discussion-about-moody-afb-zoning-by-the-county-commission-lcc-2012-12-10","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/2012\/12\/glimmers-of-open-discussion-about-moody-afb-zoning-by-the-county-commission-lcc-2012-12-10.html","title":{"rendered":"Glimmers of open discussion about Moody AFB zoning by the County Commission @ LCC 2012-12-10"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\n<\/a>\nLowndes County Commissioners had a small amount of open discussion about\nthe proposed changes to the zoning code related to Moody Air Force Base\nat\n\ntheir Work Session this morning.<\/a>\nHowever, most of the discussion was not about the changes currently proposed,\nwhich the County Planner once again explicitly linked to a rezoning case\non the same agenda.\nAt least they discussed tabling the zoning code changes\nuntil there could be more discussion.\nThey did not, however, say they would make drafts available to the public\nor invite the public to discuss those drafts.\n<\/p>\n

\nCounty Planner Jason Davenport introduced agenda item\n7.d. TXT-2012-02 MAZ II Residential Density:\n<\/p>\n

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\nThis text amendment is part of the response to\nsome of the questions that were raised with the additional rezoning.\nAt the end of the day what this text amendment is going to do\nis to take that very outer blue color, the lightest color,\nwhich is the MAZ-3, and recommend change the zoning to 1 acre.\nCurrently it’s 2 and a half acres.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\nHe mentioned they missed the 30 day requirement to inform Moody AFB\nby about a week, but Moody responded anyway.\nHm, that’s not what he said to the Planning Commission;\nthere he said\n\nthey had allowed 31 days.<\/a>\n<\/p>\n

\nCommissioner Richard Raines said he’d prefer to table this amendment\nuntil next year, because:\n<\/p>\n

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\nI think there are other issues that we’ve discussed related to MAZ.\nIf you have a mobile home and it becomes unlivable,\nunder the restrictions you can’t replace it….\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\nChairman Ashley Paulk responded that he didn’t have a problem with that, and:\n<\/p>\n\n\n

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\nActually, the Chamber, you know, although they did have a meeting the other day,\nnone of them had read the documents.\nYet they did a resolution to tell us how to do it.\nSo give them time to read the documents, maybe.\n<\/p>\n

\nAnd they need to go out and talk to these people in these areas, too.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\nCommissioner Joyce Evans added:\n<\/p>\n

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\nAnd then too I think it will give us time to invite them to the table\nto sit down for discussion and to look at it.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\nPaulk continued:\n<\/p>\n

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\nYeah, I’m not an enemy of Moody;\nI had a hundred people in my house last weekend from Moody.\n<\/p>\n

\nBut there are some people that are severely penalized\nby some of the things in some of these documents\nand it’s not something that affects air traffic.\nIt’s things that I feel like if somebody’s on the farm\nfor a hundred years and they give their son five acres of land\nto live in a mobile home for ten years, he can’t upgrade it\nbecause he lives near the air base.\nIn case we’re going to display that part,\nthen there’s several other things like that.\nDensity you know, I can understand issues on some of that,\ndepending on how close you are to the base.\nThe base built their own housing 600 yards down the runway.\nAs I said before, Moody does not do as they tell us to do.\nIt’s do as they say but not as they do, and that needs\nto be corrected.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\nCommissioner Evans said,\n<\/p>\n

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\nWe agree.\n<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n“We”? Did I hear that right? When did the Commissioners agree\non that in an open meeting?\n<\/p>\n

\nDear Chairman Ashley Paulk:\nHave you forgotten you said in the 28 June 2011\nbudget hearing that\n\nno unfinished drafts will be published while you are chairman?<\/a>\nThat might have something to do with why nobody has read the draft\nchanges to the ULDC.\nAlso, people from Moody meeting with you at your house is not a substitute\nfor open discussion in an open meeting of an elected Commission.\nNor is playing tit-for-tat with Moody a substitute for planning:\nif Moody is doing something they shouldn’t, let’s see about stopping them,\nnot doing the same bad thing ourselves.\nAlso, where was your concern for long-time landowners when the Commission\nwas considering spot rezoning for a subdivision\non Cat Creek Road earlier this year?\nIf we’re going to open discussion on zoning issues,\nhow about include discussion of\npreservation of agriculture and forestry and watersheds,\nas the Comprehensive Plan says we should be doing?\nWe don’t really want more floods like in 2009, do we?\n<\/p>\n

\nDear Lowndes County Commission:\nif you want people to read the documents before you vote on them,\nhow about make the documents available for the public to read?\nGlynn County links their agenda items in with their agenda on their\nweb pages so everybody can see them before their Commission meetings.\nAugusta-Richmond County does the same.\nLowndes County could do that, too.\n<\/p>\n

\nDear Commissioner Joyce Evans, and the rest of the Commission:\nI applaud the idea of inviting the Chamber to the table for discussions.\nHow about inviting the rest of us, too?\n<\/p>\n

\nMeanwhile, thanks for at least starting some open discussion in an open meeting\nof our elected Lowndes County Commission.\n<\/p>\n

\nHere’s\n\nthe video:<\/a>\n<\/p>\n

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