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Serving Braselton, Hoschton, Chateau Elan, Traditions, Reunion, Deaton Creek and West Jackson $1.00 copy
Wednesday, June 21, 2023
Vol. 16 No. 28 A publication of MainStreet Newspapers, Inc. www.BraseltonNewsTODAY.com 12 pages
Braselton recognized
The Town of Braselton was awarded Main Street America
reaccreditation for the ninth-straight year
PAGE 3A
Scholarship winners
The Braselton Woman’s Club recently announced its
scholarship recipients
PAGE 7A
Hoschton
Proposed Hoschton
developments
headed to arbitration
By Ben Munro
ben@mainstreetnews. com
Decisions on two pro
posed major developments in
Hoschton remain unresolved
as both move toward arbitra
tion.
One project would bring
over 1,000 homes into the city,
while the other would add 389
if approved.
The city council cannot ap
prove either proposal without
entering into arbitration with
Jackson County, which has
fonnally objected to annexa
tions into Hoschton required
for the projects. The council
could have denied either pro
posal, but the items did not
appear on Monday’s (June 19)
voting meeting agenda. City
Manager Jennifer Kidd-Harri-
son confinned that both proj
ects will move into arbitration.
Providence Group of Geor
gia and Rocklyn Homes seek
the annexation and zoning
changes for the respective de
velopments.
PROPOSED
DEVELOPMENTS
Providence Group calls for
a gated planned unit develop
ment (PUD) of 389 residential
units with a mix of detached
single-family units and town-
homes on nearly 110 acres
fronting Pendergrass and E.G.
Barnett roads, East Jefferson
St. and West Jackson Rd.
As part of this plan, it seeks
to annex and rezone a com
bined 33 acres fronting Pend
ergrass and E.G. Barnett roads
to PUD (planned unit devel
opment). Shannon Sell owns
25.6 acres of that land, and
Paul and Brenda Cheek own
See Developments, page 12A
South Hall
Hall planners table
recommendation for
South Hall com maze again
By Ben Munro
ben@mainstreetnews. com
Hall County planners
have again tabled a recom
mendation on a proposed
com maze and pumpkin
patch on just over 17 acres
in South Hall on Lanier Is
lands Pkwy.
They’ll consider the
proposal again at the plan
ning commission’s July 24
meeting.
According to Hall
See Planners, page 12A
INSIDE
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INDEX
News ... 1A-3A, 12A
Opinion ...
4A
f "
Public safety...
5A
School..
6A
Local students
Social...
7A
recognized at
Obituaries...
8A
multiple colleges
Sports...
10A
PAGE 6A
Classifieds...
11A
Summer cheer
Emmlynn Akins, WJES student seen learning a dance during cheer camp.
Submitted photo
Braselton
Group moves forward with Braselton charter
school application following BOE denial
Photo by Ben Munro
A Braselton-area charter school has been pro
posed for the former campus of West Jackson
Primary School.
By Ben Munro
ben@mainstreetnews. com
The Jackson Coun
ty school board last week
turned down a K-8 charter
school request for the Bra
selton area, but that wasn’t
bad news for the group seek
ing to start one.
The non-profit group,
New Schools Georgia, will
continue seeking a char
ter through Georgia’s State
Charter School Commission
(SCSC). Obtaining a charter
through the state commission
required local-level denial.
New Schools Georgia
(NSG) will learn if its char
ter application will be grant
ed during the SCSC’s July
board meeting, typically
held during the last week of
the month. It will receive the
SCSC’s staff recommenda
tion two weeks before the
meeting.
“We anticipate that we will
be recommended for approv
al .... everything has been
encouraging,” NSG’s Pam
Estabrooke said. “We’ve just
got to go through the steps.”
NSG has partnered with
National Heritage Acad
emies (NHA) to run the
proposed charter school —
called Four Points Prepara
tory Academy — with NSG
overseeing its operation. The
attendance zones would be
Gwinnett, Banks, Barrow,
Jackson and Hall counties,
and Buford, Gainesville,
Commerce and Jefferson city
schools (NSG initially hoped
to apply with a state-wide
attendance zone). The group
proposes to house the school
in the former site of West
See School, page 12A
MAILING LABEL
Braselton
Daycare center, gas
station expansion
proposed in Braselton
A pair of projects could be in the works
for the Spout Springs Rd. and Thompson
Mill Rd. area.
The Braselton Planning Commission
will hear zoning requests for a daycare
center and a fuel station expansion at its
June 26 (6 p.m.) meeting.
Land Development and Engineering
lias requested a planned unit development
master plan amendment for 1.36 acres at
5331 Thompson Mill Rd. for a daycare
facility and office-retail building.
Plans call for approximately 10,000
square feet of daycare space and 4,200
square feet of office and retail space.
Meanwhile, Kroger Company has
applied for conditional use approval for
13.11 acres at 7380 Spout Springs Rd.
to expand its existing fueling center to
add four gasoline dispenser stations and
reduce congestion at the location. The fu
eling center currently lias five dispensers.
“This is a very busy fuel center, and
customers often have to wait quite a while
to get gas at peak times,” the project ar
chitect and engineering firm wrote in its
application. “Expanding the fuel center
will allow more customers to fuel up at
once, thereby reducing the wait time and
will improve the congestion around the
fuel center area.”
Following the planning commis
sion public hearings, the Braselton
Town Council will hold public hearings
over both proposals during its June 6
(4:30 p.m.) meeting.
South Hall
Flowery Branch
man charged
with additional
counts of child
pom possession
More charges have been filed
against a Flowery Branch man recent
ly taken into custody for possession
of child pornography, according to
a press release from the Hall County
Sheriff’s Office (HCSO).
Jonathan Malinguaggio, 39, was
charged on June 13 with an additional
121 counts of sexual exploitation of
children after continued forensic test
ing of Malinguaggio’s electronic de
vices uncovered more images of child
pornography. He remains in the Hall
County Jail with no bond.
See Arrest,page 12A
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