Newspaper Page Text
Save up to $80
COUPONS INSIDE
Radio club
spreads the
word about ham
radio, region, ic
Chestnut
Mountain
teacher returns
after cancer
battles.
LIFE, ID
SUNDAY, JUNE 23, 2019 | $2.00 | GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA | gainesvilletimes.com
Flowery
Branch
quarterback
commits
to South
Alabama.
SPORTS, IB
Honestly Local
Hall prepares
for new tech
with wireless
ordinance
BY MEGAN REED
mreed@gainesvilletimes.com
A proposed county ordinance would serve
as guidance for tech companies as they deploy
new technology in the area, mirroring a state
wide effort to bring broadband access to more
rural areas.
The proposed rules, up for a vote from the
Hall County Board of Commissioners on Tues
day, would regulate the sizes and fees for poles
and the technology such as antennas that may
be moving in.
Srikanth Yamala, the county’s planning and
development director, said the county does not
currently have an ordinance that would address
this technology’s installation in the public right
of way.
Under the new ordinance, any new, modi
fied or replaced pole on a right of way zoned
residential cannot be more than 50 feet tall. In
areas that are not zoned residential, poles must
be 50 feet or shorter, or within 10 feet in height
of the highest pole within a 500-foot radius,
whichever is higher.
The rules would provide some direction in
what is largely uncharted territory, as residents
in more rural areas have long wanted easier
access to broadband services.
Commissioner Shelly Echols has seen the
need firsthand. Her family relies on using cel
lular hotspots for internet access at their home
in Alto. The hotspots aren’t always enough,
especially when her daughter needs to get her
homework done.
“We tried the satellite internet option, and we
were paying upwards of $200 a month for it,”
Echols said. “It wasn’t a service that we could
use, and it didn’t meet our needs at all. In some
instances, it was as slow as dial-up connection. ”
She said costs add up and residents have
fewer options when people can’t access the
internet from home.
“A lot of students here are trying to complete
homework assignments. Think about people
who may be able to telecommute to work if they
had internet access at their homes. It almost
boils down to a standard of living type thing,”
Echols said. “You have to pay more for your
television provider because you can’t do the less
expensive streaming options. .. There are a lot
of things that are more expensive because you
don’t have access to internet.”
But Echols said that while the technology is
necessary, she understands residents’ concerns
■ Please see WIRELESS, 5A
Something to build on
SCOn ROGERS I The Times
Hall County building inspector John Estelle visits a home under construction near the White County line Tuesday, June 18 for a
routine inspection.
Governments face decisions with increased construction
BY JEFF GILL
jgill@gainesvilletimes.com
Lamar Carver recalled the 2008 gov
ernment approval of a 2,736-home North
Hall development in North Hall.
“At one point, it looked like I needed
one (building inspector) there every day,”
said Hall County’s chief building offi
cial. “The economy turned (down), and
it didn’t (develop). Had we jumped out
there and hired that person, we’d either
be hunting something for that person to
do or trying to lay somebody off.”
Fast forward 10 years later. A surging
economy has meant a significant uptick
in building inspections, pressuring area
governments to ensure residents are step
ping into safe homes and businesses.
But that doesn’t mean a hiring binge is
ahead.
“You don’t get out over your skis too
far,” said Carver, who is looking to add
maybe a couple of positions over the next
couple of years.
“Basically, what you want to do is make
sure you grow (the department) slowly. If
you (hire) because you have a busy year,
then the next year things slow down, you
wind up struggling to justify them.”
He likened property development to a
poker game.
“In a poker game, there are people
who fold,” Carver said. “They go through
the whole process and they’ve got money
invested, but yet they fold because they
realize they don’t have a winning hand.
It’s better to fold than to lose.”
The $700 million Atlanta River Walk in
South Hall is an example of a huge devel
opment that couldn’t get off the ground.
And just recently, in Gainesville, Park-
side on the Square folded after an agree
ment couldn’t be reached between the
By the numbers
Here’s total numbers of building
inspections involving homes
and businesses over the years
in Hall County, not including
incorporated areas, or cities:
2018:15,171
2017:14,148
2016:12,468
2015:9,775
2014:8,541
2013:7,371
2012:5,700
2011:6,887
2010:8,056
Source: Hall County Building
Inspections
■ Please see BUILDING, 4A
Festival shines light on local affordable housing needs
BY JOSHUA SILAVENT
jsilavent@gainesvilletimes.com
Catherine Chapman, with her
granddaughter in tow collect
ing stickers and other freebies,
strolled along the footpath at Long-
wood Park in Gainesville on Sat
urday, June 22, unsure about what
kind of assistance she might find
for repairs needed to her home.
“I’m just getting some informa
tion,” she said.
Chapman came to the right
place.
Though marketed as a housing
festival, Saturday’s event was also
an opportunity for a number of
different social service providers
- including nonprofits, churches
and local government agencies -
to educate the public about how to
access local resources.
Businesses were also on hand.
Along her path, for example,
Chapman learned how she might
cut her energy costs from rep
resentatives of Georgia Power,
and spoke with employees of the
Salvation Army about the non
profit’s rent and utility assistance
programs.
Employment information, such
as workforce development and
continuing education programs,
were also available to attendees.
And the Gainesville police and
fire departments were on hand to
educate kids about safety at home.
The event was hosted by the
Gainesville-Hall County team for
the Georgia Initiative for Com
munity Housing, a statewide orga
nization focusing on housing and
revitalization. The local team
has representatives from govern
ments, organizations, citizens and
nonprofits.
■ Please see HOUSING, 4A
40901
06825
INSIDE
Advice 1E
Business 4D
Calendar 2A
Classified 6C
Comics Inside
Fun+Games 1E
Kitchen
3D
Life
1D
Lottery
2A
Opinion
6A
Our Region
1C
Sports
1B
WEATHER 2A
Lake Lanier level: 1,071.65 feet
Full pool 1,070. Down 0.01 feet in 24 hours
DEATHS 2C
Rev. William Parrish, 84
Bernice Armour, 96
Charlotte Greer, 85
Dorothy Riddle, 61
Harold Lockeby, 86
Howard Leathers, Jr., 97
James Turpin, 67
R.C. Allen, 88
Wesley Echols, 53
William Gailey, 52
now accepting fami
ily medicine patients
770-219-9445 | ngpg.org/gainesville-fm
^ Northeast Georgia
PHYSICIANS GROUP
