About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 2, 2024)
LOCAL The Times, Gainesville, Georgia I gainesvilletimes.com Weekend Edition-February 2-3, 2024 3A FROM 1A Burrell “If certificate of need goes away, that allows others to come in and siphon off (NGHS') profitable business. And when that happens, then we're not able to support those needed services like trauma.” Spence Price, chair of the NGHS Board, said Burrell “is a vision ary leader who is always planning ahead to meet the community's health care needs, as evidenced by NGHS' tremendous growth during her tenure.” He added: “It's only fitting that she's giving us plenty of time to plan ahead and identify her suc cessor before she retires.” Burrell said it has been an “honor to serve NGHS and the communi ties across our region, alongside a team of health care workers who bring their best every day, and I'm not ready to say goodbye just yet. The year ahead will be extremely busy as we continue growing the greater good.” The health system has more than $1 billion in expansion projects underway, including an 11-story tower at Northeast Georgia Medi cal Center Gainesville, expansion at Northeast Georgia Medical Cen ter Braselton and a new medical office park off Thompson Bridge Road in Gainesville. Price said a search committee will soon be established to choose a national executive recruitment firm. The committee then will lead the process to evaluate candidates and ultimately choose Burrell's successor. “Carol is one of the most respected CEOs in the state, regardless of industry, and the communities NGHS serves have been blessed to have her at the helm,” he said. “While she can never be truly replaced, we are going to move prudently to find the right leader to continue pursu ing the level of excellence Carol has achieved. “Carol's mantra is ‘be better tomorrow than you are today,' and she's certainly positioned NGHS and our next CEO well for the future,” Price said. FROM 1A Tamayo Assistant District Attorney Dexter Riley detailed for the judge the two different armed robbery cases against Tamayo in December 2022. The first on Dec. 16, 2022, involved a “con cocted plan” with his co-defendants to use someone as bait for a date with the victim, Riley said. After the pair met up, a group showed up and attacked Beltran, with some being armed with handguns. A video showed the victim “on the ground being kicked, yelled at, berated and attacked,” Riley said. The suspects got in a car and left the scene, according to the prosecution. Two weeks later, Tamayo and four others would be charged in a house party robbery Dec. 31, 2022, on McConnell Drive in Gainesville. The Hall County Sher iff's Office said the suspects robbed the par- tygoers of cash, jewelry, car keys and iPhones after pulling up to the party in an SUV armed with guns. Tamayo was indicted on armed robbery, aggra vated assault and battery in the Dec. 16, 2022, case and four counts of armed robbery in the New Year's Eve case. Three of the armed robbery counts from the New Year's Eve party case were reduced to rob bery by force. Tamayo was ordered to have no contact with the victims or co-defendants in the case — with the exception of his cousin Angel Tamayo — and Tamayo must testify if called upon at trial. The cases for Tamayo's co-defendants remain open. Defense attorney Les Aiken said in court his client has a long life ahead of him and that he hoped Tamayo makes good choices from the opportunities available to him. Tamayo's defense asked that Tamayo be sentenced as a youthful offender, which could put him in a facility “more suitable for folks of his age.” Deal consented. Aiken declined to comment following the hearing. FROM 1A Election Oakwood residents also can go to any Hall County polling location for advanced voting in the city's special election. Early voting will take place weekdays from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb. 19-March 1, from 7 a.m.-7 p.m. March 4-March 8 and on Saturdays from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. at the following locations: • North Hall Community Center - 4175 Nopone Rd., Gainesville • East Hall Community Center - 3911 P. Davidson Rd., Gainesville • Mulberry Creek Community Center - 4491 J M Turk Rd., Flowery Branch • Spout Springs Library - 6488 Spout Springs Rd., Flowery Branch • Murrayville Library - 4796 Thompson Bridge Rd., Gainesville • Chicopee Woods Agricultural Center - 1855 Calvary Church Rd., Gainesville • Gainesville Civic Center - 830 Green St. NE, Gainesville Early voting for Oakwood's upcoming special election will be at Spout Springs Library, Election Day voting for Oakwood's special election will be held from 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday, March 12, at voters' designated precincts. Those precincts include: • Wilson: Pleasant Hill Baptist Church, 3650 Browns Bridge Road, Gainesville • Chicopee: Chicopee Baptist Church, 13 First Street, Gainesville • Oakwood I: Oakwood First United Methodist Church, 4315 Allen Street, Oakwood • Oakwood 2: Flat Creek Baptist Church, 5540 Flat Creek Road, Gainesville • Morgan 1: Chestnut Mountain Presbyterian Church, 4675 Winder Hwy, Flowery Branch • Morgan 2: Christ Place Church, 3428 Atlanta Hwy, Flowery Branch • Candler: Hopewell Baptist Church, 5086 Poplar Springs Road Elections Director Lori Wurtz said she “hopes these locations and hours will serve as a convenience to voters and provide more opportunity for them to vote.” “We know people like to get ahead, and we are happy to be able to provide a variety of locations and times in an effort to accommodate all Hall County citizens,” Wurtz said in a press release Tuesday. FROM 1A Deal “It's just an honor to be able to fulfill that passion of hers as we open our new school,” said Riverbend Elementary Princi pal Keri Smith, who will serve as the inau gural principal at Sandra Deal Elementary. “I've just known her family my entire life, and I was a student at North Hall Middle where she taught, and so it's just very spe cial to me that they wanted to come honor her today through literacy, which is one of my passions.” In one fourth-grade classroom, Nathan Deal read “Her Right Foot,” a children's book that focuses on “a seemingly small trait of America's most emblematic statue,” according to the publisher's website. “If the Statue of Liberty is a symbol of freedom, if the Statue of Liberty has wel comed millions of immigrants to the United States, then how can she stand still?” Nathan Deal read aloud. “Liberty and free dom from oppression are not things we get or grant by standing around the same kind of statue. No, these are things that require action, courage, an unwillingness to rest.” One of the students let out a “whoa” as Nathan Deal flipped to a page showing a real image of the Statue's lifted right foot. “It was good,” fourth grader Jazmin Martinez said afterward. “When he was reading it, he gave all the details on (the Statue's right foot).” Photos by Scott Rogers The Times Former Governor Nathan Deals reads a book to Riverbend Elementary fourth-graders Thursday, Feb. 1. Former Governor Nathan Deal arrives at Riverbend Elementary to read to students. MARCH 2 MARCH 15-16 MARCH 21 Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts APRIL 12 (.Ts^ The Drifters YEARS OF „ 1028 Georgia Rd. Franklin, NC-828.524.1598-Toll Free 866.273.4615 SmokyMountainArts.com I o Visit us for a FREE COOKIE Experience our warm, gooey, award-winning MILK CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE when you visit us in store Gainesville Crumbl 952 Dawsonville Hwy, Gainesville, GA 30501 One chocolate chip cookie per coupon. 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