VALDOSTA — It’s hard to argue what’s the biggest story of the year for Valdosta, especially if you drive by the huge pile of storm debris the county’s still working to dispose of on Gil Harbin Industrial Boulevard.

Hurricane Idalia hit Valdosta the morning of Aug. 30 with winds of about 70 miles an hour. By the next day, the sun was shining as residents and business owners started trying to recover. It’s a process that’s still going on.

One person died in Lowndes County when a tree fell as he was clearing other debris; three deaths elsewhere were also attributed to Idalia.

Close to 1,000 Lowndes County homes had significant damage, the county said in a press release about a week after the storm. Thousands of people lost power, and some of them were out for days.

Volunteers from across the country came to Lowndes County to remove trees, tarp over damaged roofs and help people get back on their feet.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency opened a Disaster Recovery Center at the Lowndes County Civic Center in mid-September, after a federal disaster declaration. It stayed open about six weeks, closing on Oct. 31. FEMA opened other centers in Cook, Brooks and Glynn counties too.

Other top stories

In addition to Hurricane Idalia, Lowndes County saw several other major stories in 2023. Among them:

School fuel scandal

Lowndes County School Superintendent Dr. Shawn Haralson resigned following an investigation of his use of school system fuel in his personal vehicle. The Valdosta Daily Times broke the story in March after receiving video footage through open records requests that showed him filling up his truck and an auxiliary tank in the bed of the truck at the school district’s fueling station on multiple occasions.

After the story broke, the Times learned the Lowndes County Board of Education had hired attorney Al Turner Jr. in January to investigate the superintendent’s use of the fuel station. In March, Haralson and the board agreed he would reimburse the school system $2,800 for the fuel he used.

A group of parents took their concerns to the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office, which asked the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to look into the situation in April.

Parents spoke about the case at a May Board of Education meeting.

Haralson’s resignation was announced at a called meeting June 21. Sandra Wilcher was appointed interim superintendent at that same time, and she was named to the job permanently in December.

Other leadership changes

In addition to Haralson’s resignation and Wilcher’s appointment, several local entities said goodbye to leaders and hello to new ones.

• Mark Barber announced his retirement as Valdosta city manager in early January. He had been with the City of Valdosta almost 35 years. At the time of his departure he was the sole finalist to be the city manager of Adel.{span class=”print_trim”}

• Richard Hardy, the deputy city manager for operations, was named interim city manager when Barber retired. He was sworn in to the position permanently in May, and one of his first acts after that was to promote Catherine Ammons, the deputy city manager for administration, to the newly created position of assisted city manager.

• Dr. Todd Cason retired as superintendent of Valdosta City Schools in December 2022, and Dr. Alvin Hudson served as interim until a new superintendent could be named. Dr. Craig Lockhart was named the sole finalist for that position in May, and he was approved at a called meeting June 1 with his contract to start July 1.

• In addition to the new superintendent, Valdosta High School also welcomed a new principal. Dr. Janice Richardson, who served as VHS principal for several years, was promoted to director of special projects in July, and Dr. Alex Alvarez was named her interim replacement. In September, Dr. Johnnie Marshall was named the school’s 19th principal.

• Danny Weeks retired in September after 38 years of service to Lowndes County, 17 of those as director of the county 911 center. Tonya Davis, a 23-year veteran of the 911 center, was named to replace him the following month.

• As December moved to its close, Beth Morgan, vice president of business development for the Valdosta-Lowndes Chamber of Commerce, retired after almost 15 years. Her replacement has not been officially named.

Changes at SGMC

South Georgia Medical Center rebranded itself as SGMC Health effective Nov. 1. That was the biggest of multiple announcements from the hospital over 2023.

The year kicked off with SGMC offering emergency services at its Smith Northview location, 4280 North Valdosta Road.

Later that same month, it announced upgrades at the Berrien County Emergency Room.

In June, the hospital announced expansion plans totaling $125 million. The work is expected to begin in 2024 and take multiple years to complete. A $15 million expansion of the Berrien County hospital is also under way.

Also in June, Dr. Brian Dawson, the hospital’s chief medical officer, was recognized for his contributions over the preceding 12 years. At the time of his recognition, he was preparing to leave SGMC to pursue fellowship training in neurocritical care at UF Health in Gainesville, Fla. Dr. Pankaj Agrawal was named chief medical officer in August.

SGMC was designated a Level III Trauma Center by the Georgia Department of Public Health at the end of June.

In August, the Hospital Authority of Valdosta and Lowndes County announced an agreement to buy Mathis City Auditorium from the City of Valdosta. The purchase fits into SGMC’s expansion plan.

SGMC Health also earned a number of national recognitions throughout the year.

Economic growth

2023 has featured several notable economic announcements that will benefit Valdosta and Lowndes County:

• Valdosta State University opened the J. Donald Lee Center for Entrepreneurship in March, which promises to help VSU students gain the knowledge and resources they need to turn innovative ideas into sustainable businesses.

• When Wild Adventures opened in March, it included a three-acre expansion called Oasis Outpost. Other announcements from Wild Adventures through the year include a planned RV park and a “winter wonderland” called Christmas Wild and Bright. Also, the park was named the top theme park in Georgia.

• Valdosta Regional Airport will receive more than $625,000 in federal infrastructure money.

• CJB Industries announced in July that it had invested $4 million in a 6,500-square-foot addition at its Gil Harbin formulation plant.

• The German supermarket business Aldi acquired the Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket chains. The Valdosta Aldi store is now open.

• Walmart announced plans to build a milk processing facility on Inner Perimeter Road. It’s expected to employ 400 people, but development officials are looking for even more jobs during the construction process and for outside jobs that will support the plant after it comes online.