On the LAKE Front

5.a. Vote to put school consolidation referendum on ballot —Tim Carroll @ VCC 25 August 2011

Council Carroll made a motion to put the referendum on the ballot and Council White seconded. Yost, White, Norton, and Carroll voted for. Wright and Vickers voted against.

The mayor then pointed out voters will have had to be registered for six months to vote on this referendum in November, so if someone registered tomorrow, they couldn't vote in November. (It's not clear that this is actually true, but it is what he said.)

They all had more to say later in Council Comments.

Here's the video:

5.a. Vote to put school consolidation referendum on ballot —Tim Carroll @ VCC 25 August 2011
petition, education, referendum,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (LCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 25 August 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

-jsq

5.a. This seems forced —Mayor John Fretti @ VCC 25 August 2011

First they voted on stopping debate on the motion on the floor (to deny putting the referendum for school consolidation on the ballot). White and Norton voted against stopping debate.

Then they voted on the motion to deny. Council White agonized over whether they were doing anything illegal. They split evenly 3 to 3: Wright, White, and Vickers for denying, and Yost, Norton, and Carroll against.

Since it was a tie, the Mayor got to vote. First he made a statement, which included:

It started out in the least inclusive manner.
...
This seems forced to people who don't want the city school system and to a city school system which doesn't want to cope with these people right now. And that's unfair.

He suggested the legislature should handle it.

After all that, he voted against the motion to deny, so the motion failed.

Here's the video:

5.a. This seems forced —Mayor John Fretti @ VCC 25 August 2011
petition, education, referendum,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (LCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 25 August 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

-jsq

5.a. There is no plan ... we just don't know —Sonny Vickers @ VCC 25 August 2011

Council Vickers said there was no plan for how to do school consolidation, and so he was against the referendum, and he called for a vote on his motion to deny the referendum.

He said that if we were going to consolidate school systems, the two school boards should sit down and make a plan.

But in this case, there is no plan.
...
We just don't know.
...
Too much is unknown.

He called for a vote on his motion to deny the referendum.

Here's the video:

5.a. There is no plan ... we just don't know --Sonny Vickers @ VCC 25 August 2011
petition, education, referendum,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (LCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 25 August 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

-jsq

5.a. Legal issues —Attorney Talley and others @ VCC 25 August 2011

Council Carroll noted that council was merely voting on putting a referendum on the ballot.

Attorney Talley said he hadn't looked at soem of the legal possibilities, and talked about several specific pairs of counties consolidating schools.

Council White asked for further clarification.

Manager Hanson used an analogy of annexation (for which he said there were at least four legal methods) to indicate that proponents could pick whichever one they liked. He said someone could choose to challenge it in court. I believe he also said council could vote against holding the referendum.

Here's the video:

5.a. Legal issues --Attorney Talley and others @ VCC 25 August 2011
petition, education, referendum,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (LCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 25 August 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

-jsq

5.a. The process has not been followed. —James Wright @ VCC 25 August 2011

Council Wright again said proper legal process had not been followed.

The local school boards that are responsible for this burden should have sent a motion to the state board of education asking for it [a feasibility study on consolidation]. That has not happened.

He called the state board of education and the Valdosta Board of Education and no feasibility has been done.

The process has not been followed.
...
This is the law.
...
This is in black and white.

Here's the video:

5.a. I believe ... our Valdosta citizens can make this decision —Ben Norton @ VCC 25 August 2011

Council Ben Norton, who hardly ever speaks, noted that he was elected at-large and thus represents all of Valdosta, and said:

If this came to us with every legal T dotted and I crossed, as Council ... Carroll stated already is to put this referendum on ballot. I encourage our citizens if that is the case ... to study carefully both sides of the issue and I believe with all my heart that ... our Valdosta citizens can make the decision.

He never did say which side he was on regarding consolidation.

And of course once again it's just Valdosta citizens voting on an issue that affects the entire county.

And yes, he really did say "T dotted and I crossed" and he had to be prompted for the name of his Council colleague.

Here's the video:

5.a. questions about voting on consolidation referendum @ VCC 25 August 2011

Excerpts from various questions from Council:

Deidra White: Which ones of these legal issues have we seen together?

Robert Yost: ... this motion [to deny the referendum], if it fails ... ?

Mayor Fretti: If this motion fails, we have to turn around and ask for a motion in the affirmative.

On "the timing thing":

Manager Hanson: That question will have to be answered by the Lowndes County Board of Elections.

Attorney: There's no time that's stated; it's a negotiation.

Manager Hanson: We could just advertise to make a work session on Tuesday and a public meeting for the first [?] after that... a special session.

Here's the video:

5.a. First time I've heard some of these arguments —Deidra White @ VCC 25 August 2011

Council Deidra White wondered what would be the repercussions if council took more time to decide this issue, since this was the first time she had heard some of these arguments.

Attorney Talley said he wasn't sure what the timeline was to prepare ballots.

Um, maybe he should talk to the Board of Elections.

Manager Hanson said there are different sections of the Constitution that might apply.

Attorney Talley noted that the Home Rule Act did not apply, even though it was cited in the petition, since the school system charter is not in the City of Valdosta charter; it's a separate pact.

Manager Hanson noted qualifying for city elections is next week, so

5.a. the situation we've been placed in —Robert Yost @ VCC 25 August 2011

Council Robert Yost said he didn't like the position council was in of almost being required to vote one way to cover their rears from litigation.

So of course I'll be voting exactly how I feel it needs to be tonight, litigation or not.

He also seemed to say that he hadn't heard anybody say it was about consolidating county and city government.

It's interesting that Yost seemed to be arguing against the referendum, since he has long been on record as for school system consolidation:

“We need one school system in this city and county,” said Yost. “But sadly that isn't the case.”

That's from when he was last running for Valdosta City Council back in 2009; you can watch him say it on video. At the time he also said the city should annex the whole county, but claimed that was just a joke. Has something changed his mind about either of those things?

Here's the video from Thursday's council meeting:

5.a. We're not actually going to deny, are we? —Tim Carroll @ VCC 25 August 2011

Rather heated discussion as Tim Carroll seemed incensed that Sonny Vickers thought consolidation proponents had a hidden agenda. He mentioned Rusty Griffin, Walter Hopgood, and George Bennett.

It just bothers me when I hear "hoodwinked".

Carroll repeatedly mentioned the number of citizens who had petitioned asking to put the referendum on the ballot. He said there might be issues between CUEE and VBOE, but not with city council.

Here's the video:

5.a. We're not actually going to deny, are we? —Tim Carroll @ VCC 25 August 2011
petition, education, referendum,
Regular Session, Valdosta City Council (LCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 25 August 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

-jsq