*£ zj Lakeview Academy boys,
girls sweep GIAA Class 3A
basketbal state titles in
Columbus, sports.id
Midweek Edition - MARCH 6-7,20241 $2.00 I GAINESVILLE, GEORGIA I gainesvilletimes.com
Celebrate sweets at
chocolate crawl in downtown
Dahlonega. life,ib
Honestly Local
Prosecutor details woman’s death outside apt.
Jury deliberating in mans murder trial
BY NICK WATSON
nwatson@gainesvilletimes.com
In the early hours of Jan. 23,
2023, Diandre Dryden backed a car
up to his apartment in the Pointe
Lanier complex and appeared “to
grab something rather large,” Assis
tant District Attorney Dexter Riley
said.
He struggled for 20-30 minutes
to no avail to get the item in the car.
Dryden, 24, of Gainesville, is
seen later on surveillance footage
dragging the object across the lawn,
leaving it under a tree, the prosecu
tor said.
“That object had a name,” Riley
said. “That name was LaTasha
Smith.”
A Hall County jury left the court
room for deliberations around 2:45
p.m. Tuesday, March 5, in the trial
for Dryden, who is charged with
murder in the Jan. 22, 2023 stran
gling death of Smith, 34, of Buford.
Dryden was indicted on charges
of malice murder, felony murder
and aggravated assault.
Smith was found Jan. 23, 2023
See Dryden 15A
Diandre And reus
Dryden appears in
Hall County Superior
Court Monday,
March 3, for charg
es of malice murder,
felony murder and
aggravated assault
for the death of
Latasha Smith, 34.
Scott Rogers
The Times
A familiar purpose
Photos provided by Gainesville City Schools
Gainesville City Schools announced Monday, March 4, that it will purchase the Homestar Financial Corporation build
ing at 332 Washington St. for $10.6 million. The building will be used for the district’s nontraditional high school,
Horizon Academy.
City Schools buys
BY BEN ANDERSON
banderson@gainesvilletimes.com
Gainesville City Schools announced
a permanent location of its nontradi
tional high school, Horizon Academy,
at the school board meeting Monday,
March 4.
Horizon Academy, which caters to
non-native speakers and Gainesville
High School students who have fallen
behind on their credits, will be housed
in the Homestar Financial Corporation
building at 331 Washington St. The
school board unanimously approved
the purchase of the building for $10.6
million.
Homestar, a Gainesville-based
mortgage lender, announced last Octo
ber that it was going out of business.
Horizon Academy was first
launched in August 2023 and has been
See Horizon 13A
S10.6M historic building for high school
Gainesville
High names
new principal
BY BEN ANDERSON
banderson@gainesvilletimes.com
Gainesville High School named a new prin
cipal Monday, March 4, at the
school board meeting.
Roberto Rivera, who is cur
rently the head wrestling coach
and oversees , will replace
Principal Jamie Green, who
will step down at the end of the
school year to take a teaching
job in Brazil.
Rivera will take the helm
July 1.
“Mr. Rivera will continue the incredible
school culture that we are experiencing now at
Gainesville High,” Green said in a news release.
“He will bring the structure needed for a school
See Principal 13A
Rivera
Controversial
housing proposal
gets initial OK
BY JEFF GILL
jgill@gainesvilletimes.com
A 44-unit housing proposal that has stirred
emotions in a Gainesville community moved
forward Monday, March 4, with a recommen
dation of approval from the Hall County Plan
ning Commission.
The proposal, which involves relocating
residents of a mobile home park, had been
tabled from the commission's Feb. 19 meet
ing, when commissioners said they wanted
more specific rental information.
Greenleaf Investment Partners came into
that meeting with redrawn plans showing
smaller units and rents projected between
$1,000 and $1,200.
Justin Crighton of W&A Engineering,
which is designing the project, told the plan
ning board March 4 that mobile home park
residents can move into the new units at rents
of $ 1,200 per month.
Chris Braswell, planning board chairman,
See Floyd 13A
ONLINE
INSIDE
gainesvilletimes.com/newsletters: Sign up to
receive email newsletters from The Times
gainesvilletimes.com/apps: Download The
Times’ app for a user-friendly online experience
and app notifications for big stories
Calendar
2A
Life
IB
Classified
1C
Opinion
6A
Comics
4D
Region
3B
Fun+Games
3D
Sports
ID
0 40901 06835
8
Capture Your Share
of the Sun
{nS copp erat|ve JACKSON
O U I Cl I JELECTRIC MEMBERSHIP/CORPORATION-"
jacksonemc.com/renewables
