About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (June 23, 2020)
Hall school board designates ESPLOST funds for new school, performing arts center, inside, 3 a Tuesday, June 23,20201 GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA | gainesvilletimes.com Board to vote on Sardis contract Commission approval will allow right-of-way acquisition for connector BY MEGAN REED mreed@gainesvilletimes.com The Hall County Board of Com missioners will vote Thursday on a contract with the Georgia Department of Transportation that will kickstart the right-of-way acquisition process for the Sardis Connector. Hall County is responsible for the design, engineering and right- of-way acquisition for the project, while the state will handle con struction. The county contribution is $27.5 million, with $17.5 million coming from the county’s current special purpose local option sales tax, SPLOST VII. SPLOST VIII funds will be used for the other $10 million. The state’s cost will be about $31 million. Srikanth Yamala, the county’s public works director, said 156 par cels will be acquired for the proj ect. Once commissioners approve the contract with the state, the county can begin individual con versations with property owners and begin making offers to acquire the parcels, he said. The 3.5-mile connector road will begin at the intersection of Sardis and Chestatee roads. The first part of the connector will involve a widening of the exist ing Sardis Road from two to four lanes, passing Fran-Mar Drive and Chestatee Academy. Then, at the Sardis Road roundabout, ■ Please see SARDIS, 5A The Hall County Board of Commissioners is voting Thursday on a contract with GDOT for right- of-way acquisition for the Sardis Connector that will have an impact on Fran-Mar Drive at Chestatee Academy. SCOTT ROGERS The Times Finally at peace Historic family graves moved to Alta Vista Cemetery BY JEFF GILL jgill@gainesvilletimes.com The Thompson family cemetery has a new resting place in Gainesville — its second one since being displaced from Lake Lanier more than half a century ago. Descendants are celebrating the new location in the city’s Alta Vista Cem etery off Jesse Jewell Parkway, in a move that was completed in May. “It’s a wonderful change from where they were,” said Tom Shope of Blairs- ville, visiting the Alta Vista site on Mon day, June 22. “It’ll be protected, people can have access to it and it’s no longer lost over in the woods somewhere.” The 19th century cemetery, con taining graves of one of Hall County’s founding families, was moved 6.3 miles from private property off Dun lap Drive in North Hall. The cemetery had been at that location for more than 60 years. The cemetery originally was where Lake Lanier is now, moved in 1957 by the Army Corps of Engineers to higher ground when the lake was created. The property owners, Tim and Susan Carey, building a house overlooking the lake, originally wanted to move the cemetery out of their front yard to the side of their lot. The proposal drew opposition as it went before Hall County officials, with some descendants want ing the graves to be left alone. Both sides kept talking, and an agree ment was reached to move the cem etery to Alta Vista, which has several notable graves, including Confederate Lt. Gen. James Longstreet. ■ Please see CEMETERY, 3A Photos by SCOTT ROGERS I The Times Gainesville attorney Julius Hulsey visits Alta Vista Cemetery Monday, June 22, at the new plot of the Thompson family. The Thompson family graves were previously on private property in North Hall, but have been moved to AltaVista cemetery in Gainesville. Tom Shope, right, of Blairsville, chats with Julius Hulsey as they visit the Thompson family cemetery Monday, June 22, at Alta Vista Cemetery in Gainesville. Police: Pedestrian in critical condition after hit-and-run BY NICK WATSON nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com A man is in critical condition at the hos pital after a hit-and-run Monday morning, police said. Gainesville Police are looking for infor mation on the incident that happened between 2-3:30 a.m. Monday, June 22, on Atlanta Highway near Ray Street. The man, a pedestrian, was potentially hit in the roadway and was found by a passerby, Gainesville Police said. Anyone with information is asked to call 770-534-5251. Firefighter suspended over social media post BY MEGAN REED mreed@gainesvilletimes.com A Gainesville Fire Department employee was suspended for a week without pay for a comment made from his social media account about recent protests in Gainesville, although his spouse had made the post. In a statement May 31, City Manager Bryan Lackey said the city was investigating a firefighter for an “inappropriate, distasteful and baseless remark regarding the citizenship status of some demonstrators” in Gainesville’s protests following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis. On Monday, June 22, Lackey said the investi gation had been completed. “During our investigation, both the employee and his spouse both stated that the spouse had typed and posted the remarks on Face- book. Both stated that they were not together when the post was made,” Lackey said in an email. “The employee stated he was not aware of the post until the next day when another employee contacted him about this post.” The city has not identified the employee, who Lackey said was suspended for a week without pay and “strongly advised” to no longer have joint social media accounts. “While this finding did lessen the impacts and involvement of the employee, we still pro ceeded with a disciplinary action as all employ ees are responsible for any posts or remarks made from a social media account associated with their name,” Lackey said. Many charges filed in theft investigation BY NICK WATSON nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com Dozens of charges were filed against a Union City man following an investigation into numer ous entering auto cases in South Hall, according to authorities. Quaves Jermaine Sterling, 22, was booked into the Hall County Jail Wednesday, June 17. The investigation started late Tuesday, June 16, in the Reunion residential development after numerous entering auto calls. “According to the initial examination, Sheriff’s Office detectives believe there were ■ Please see STERLING, 5A This e-edition sponsored by:
