About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 19, 2020)
mt (times WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 19,2020 | $1.00 | GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA | gainesvilletimes.com Honestly Local Bank robbery suspect at large SCOTT ROGERS I The Times Gainesville Police are seeking a bank robbery suspect in the area of Jesse Jewell Parkway and West Academy Street. The suspect is described as a black man about 6 feet tall with a goatee and wearing a navy blue trench coat or raincoat, a tan collared shirt and a tan rain hat. BB&T on Jesse Jewell Parkway robbed Tuesday morning BY LAYNE SALIBA lsaliba@gainesvilletimes.com Gainesville Police are seeking a bank robbery suspect who fled the BB&T on foot in the area of Jesse Jewell Parkway and West Acad emy Street. The incident happened around 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 18, at the BB&T at 455 Jesse Jewell Parkway SW. The property near Wild Wing Cafe was surrounded by police tape. “It’s taped off for crime scene investigation purposes,” said Gainesville Police Cpl. Jessica Van. The bank is closed, according to a message on its voicemail. People were trickling out of the building and getting into their cars to leave around 11:30 a.m. Van said the suspect demanded money and did leave with money, although she’s not sure with how much. “I don’t know for sure, but I do believe that the employees were under the impression that he was armed,” she added. The suspect is described as a black man about 6 feet tall with a goatee and wearing a navy blue trench coat or raincoat, a tan col lared shirt and a tan rain hat. Police did not release any fur ther information Tuesday evening. The robbery is under active investigation. If you have informa- A surveillance photo released by the Gainesville Police tion, contact Gainesville Police at Department pictures a man they suspect robbed the 770-534-5251. BB&T on Jesse Jewell Parkway on Feb. 18. Budget priorities in focus Millions shuffled to preserve programs BY JEFF AMY Associated Press ATLANTA — Budget writers in Georgia’s House want to preserve money for mental health, substance abuse, public defenders, agri cultural research and diverting people away from prison. While overall spending won’t rise above the cuts proposed by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, the House Appropriations Committee voted Tuesday to shift tens of millions to protect pro grams lawmakers have been trying to build up. “Those are and have been priorities of the Gen eral Assembly, of the House and the Senate, and we feel very strongly about making sure those efforts continue,” said House Appropriations ■ Please see BUDGET, 5A Northside plan moves forward Northside Hospital is moving forward with plans to build two 100,000-square-foot medical office buildings near the Mall of Georgia. “We hope to close on the property by the end of March,” spokeswoman Katherine Watson said in a recent email. She said she didn’t have a construction sched ule yet. Northside Hospital plans to build two 100,000-square-foot medical office buildings on 20 acres at the northwest corner of Buford Drive and Rock Springs Road in unincorpo rated Gwinnett, just south of Interstate 85. According to Northside, the two four-story buildings would be built in two phases and will offer a variety of physician practices and outpa tient services. The project was approved by the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners in December. Jeff Gill Group to school board: ‘Our families are counting on you Parents make statement to city system on safety, student success BY KELSEY P0D0 kpodo@gainesvilletimes.com The members of Parents Rebuilding the Village are quickly building a presence in Gainesville City Schools. Shayla Bush, the group’s presi dent, spoke before the Gainesville Board of Education on Tuesday, Feb. 18, and shared her hopes and expectations of them. Parents Rebuilding the Vil lage is a Gainesville-Hall County grassroots organization formed in response to concerns about bullying. “We are aware that many of our students are not performing at a successful level,” Bush said to the audience. “We also are aware through media that our schools may not be a safe place for our middle school students ... To say we are concerned is an understatement.” Bush said that she hopes to build a collaborative relationship with the board, so they can work together to do what’s best for the children of Gainesville. “We want you to know that we are here to help mobilize our com munity to become bigger and bet ter,” Bush said. “We expect that you will set policies and decide on those issues that directly affect us and our children in a way that will improve the education of our children.” ■ Please see SCHOOLS, 5A Shayla Bush spoke on behalf of Parents Rebuilding the Village during the Gainesville Board of Education meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 18. KELSEY P0D0 The Times INSIDE WEATHER 2A 0 40901 06835 Business 5B Classified 8B Comics 7B Life 4B Lottery 2A g Opinion 4A Sports 1B TV/puzzles 6B i High Low 'tfFjt 54 39 Lake Lanier level: 1,076.17 feet Full pool 1,071. 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