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FRIDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2018 | $1.00 | GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA | gainesvilletimes.com
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LIFE, 5B
Honestly Local
Big-ticket night in Hall
AUSTIN STEELE I The Times
Attendees stand showing their support for the rezoning of Bogus Road for the construction of Adventures in Missions
development during a Hall County commissioners’ meeting on Thursday, Oct. 25.
Unsupervised dog tethering ban passes unanimously
BY MEGAN REED
mreed@gainesvilletimes.com
Unsupervised dog tethering will soon
be illegal in Hall County, after commis
sioners unanimously passed the new
rule on Thursday and a large crowd
filled the meeting room in support of
the ban.
The ordinance will go into effect Nov.
1. Mike Ledford, the county’s animal
services director, said that during a 180-
day grace period, residents will receive
warnings rather than citations and the
county will work with community part
ners to educate about the regulation.
Jennifer Summers of Braselton
spoke in support of the tethering ban
Inside
Hall County commissioners also
approve Flourish Community for
disabled adults 8A
Thursday. She is a co-founder of Off the
Chain, a Northeast Georgia nonprofit
that advocates against tethering and
builds fences for pet owners so their
dogs have more space to roam.
Off the Chain will work on outreach
to educate the public about low-cost
fencing, crate training and other prac
tices that can help pet owners adapt to
the new ordinance, Summers said.
She said she knows that some may
view the ban as too extreme, but she
hopes animal control officers will use
discretion in enforcing the rule.
“What we are not trying to do is pun
ish responsible dog owners,” Summers
said. “To the individual who wants their
dog to sunbathe on the patio, I am cer
tain no complaints will be filed.... It is
intended to save the life of the dog next
door that is completely helpless.”
Alice Black of Flowery Branch, a
volunteer for Off the Chain, said she
has seen how dogs react when taken off
their tethers, and she hopes the ordi
nance will send the message that teth
ering is not OK.
“The demeanor change is amazing,”
■ Please see DOG, 8A
FLOWERY BRANCH
Residents vocal on downtown traffic
BY JEFF GILL
jgill@gainesvilletimes.com
Flowery Branch City Manager Bill Andrew said his
daughter recently asked him why he couldn’t take
another route besides McEver Road to avoid getting
stuck in traffic at Dawsonville Highway in Gainesville.
“I said, ‘There’s this thing called Lake Lanier to the
left. Unless I have a boat or plane, I have to go this
way,’” Andrew told a crowd gathered Thursday, Oct.
25, for a meeting about downtown Flowery Branch
traffic.
“Here (in Flowery Branch), if you’re on Lights
Ferry Road seven years from now and you’re expe
riencing delays that are unacceptable, there are sev
eral alternatives to take.”
Downtown traffic issues, highlighted by a rapidly
growing residential population and Norfolk Southern
trains moving through town, was the subject of morn
ing and night public hearings at City Hall.
A total of about 40 people, some particularly vocal,
showed up for the meetings.
■ Please see TRAFFIC, 8A
JEFF GILL I The Times
Flowery Branch City Manager Bill Andrew speaks at a meeting
Thursday, Oct. 25, in the city about downtown traffic.
SAT scores rise
with number
of test takers
across Georgia
BY JOSHUA SILAVENT
jsilavent@gainesvilletimes.com
More students in Hall, Gainesville, Buford, Forsyth
and Dawson schools took the SAT in 2018 than did
in 2017, helping Georgia best the
national average in scores, the state
Department of Education announced
on Thursday, Oct. 25.
“We are encouraged by the latest
results,” said Hall County Schools
Superintendent Will Schofield.
“Record number of test takers, and
beating the national average. With
our student population, it is yet
another testimony to the incredible
work our teachers and students do every day.”
Among Hall high school students, 1,090 took the SAT
(which measures math, and reading and writing com
prehension) this year, up from 880 in 2017. And the
average score bumped up to 1054 from 1038.
The highest SAT score that can be achieved is 1600.
Among Gainesville City high school students, 234
took the SAT, with the average score falling only
slightly to 1000 from 1014 last year.
The statewide average for public-school SAT takers
was 1054 compared with 1049 nationwide.
According to the Georgia Department of Education,
increases in participation are often accompanied by a
slight decrease in scores.
Sixty-six percent of Georgia’s public-school class of
2018 took the SAT during high school, compared to 61
percent of the class of 2017.
In Buford City Schools, for example, 238 students
took the SAT this year versus 185 in 2017, but the
■ Please see SAT, 8A
Schofield
Abrams, Riggs Amico
visiting Gainesville
Stacey Abrams and Sarah Riggs Amico, Georgia’s
Democratic candidates for governor and lieutenant
governor, will be stopping in Gaines
ville at noon Friday for a rally spon
sored by Brenau University College
Democrats.
The event is part of Abrams’ “We
are Georgia” bus tour, which is stop
ping in several cities around the
state ahead of the Nov. 6 election.
Community members can reg
ister online, but registration is not
required.
Kyle Leineweber, president of
the Brenau College Democrats, said
he received a call from the Abrams
campaign about the event earlier
this week after having reached out
to the campaign.
Leineweber said the group has
been busy coordinating with various
campus offices and raising aware
ness about the rally on campus.
Abrams and Riggs Amico will be at Brenau Uni
versity’s Pearce Auditorium from noon to 12:45 p.m.
Friday. Before coming to Gainesville, they will stop in
Cumming, then go to Athens after the rally at Brenau.
Megan Reed
Stacey Abrams rally
When: Noon to 12:45 p.m. Friday, Oct. 26
Where: Brenau University Pearce Auditorium, 202
Boulevard NE, Gainesville
Riggs Amico
0
40901 06835 8
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