Jordan: Reporter wants to keep her feet on terra firma

As a kid, I didn't flinch when dared to climb the tallest magnolia tree in the neighborhood.

Official: Lake manual's update to be a challenge

ATLANTA - The man who has the task of updating the 50-year-old operating manuals for two river systems in Georgia said Thursday that the region has abundant water resources, they just need to be where people need them and can use them.

Fishermen find drowning victim

Fishermen on Thursday discovered the body of a man who has been missing in Lake Lanier since drowning in early May. Hall County Sheriff's Maj. Jeff Strickland said an autopsy confirmed the identity of the man as 46-year-old Broderick Bradford and that Bradford died from drowning. No foul play was suspected, Strickland said.

Local contractors may get preference from Gainesville

The Gainesville City Council may soon legally move forward with an ordinance that would allow them to prefer local contractors on city construction jobs, but it may not get them very far.

East Hall Middle meets 'AYP' for first time in 9 years

For nearly a decade, East Hall Middle School has been mired in negative labels concerning its academic progress. The skies finally began clearing Wednesday.

Corps selects YMCA of Atlanta to develop Bethel Park

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has decided to turn over management of Bethel Park, a 62-acre corps property on Lake Lanier in Forsyth County, to the YMCA of Metropolitan Atlanta. The YMCA has been trying since 2003 to develop a residential camp at the site. The corps was set to award the lease to the YMCA in 2006, but local residents around Bethel Park complained to the Forsyth County ...

Gainesville officials: Budget memo at center of schools' financial mess might not exist

Nearly two weeks after Gainesville schools Superintendent Steven Ballowe recommended a 20 percent tax hike to make up for a nearly $7 million deficit in the school system's budget, school officials have yet to produce a March 2006 letter that he claims is at the center of the school system's financial debacle.

Indictment accuses former manager of swiping $548,000 from doctor's office

A once-trusted employee who worked for a Gainesville doctor for more than 25 years stands accused of embezzling more than half a million dollars from his office.

As gas prices skyrocket, so does Red Rabbit ridership

More people rode the Red Rabbit this year than ever before, making Hall Area Transit one of the fastest-growing bus systems in the country.

Flowery Branch passes budgets after cutting $400,000 in capital spending

Flowery Branch sewer, water and solid waste customers soon could be paying a new service charge to balance the city's utilities fund budget passed Wednesday. Flowery Branch City Council approved a $2,390,310 sewer, water and solid waste budget for fiscal year 2009, effective July 1. They also passed a $3,498,691 general fund budget for the upcoming year. For the past several years, the city's enterprise fund, which includes ...

2 teens are charged in pellet gun attack

Two recently graduated Gainesville High School student-athletes were arrested Wednesday, accused of shooting a woman in the face with a pellet gun from a moving car.

Gainesville State educator a finalist for top job at Middle Georgia

W. Michael Stoy, Gainesville State College's vice president for academic affairs, has been named one of two finalists for president at Middle Georgia College.

Medical center honors nurse for years of dedication

Even before Jim Gardner, president of the Northeast Georgia Medical Center, finished announcing Linda Niles as the 2008 employee of the year, the entire room had risen to its feet in thunderous applause.

Sewage spill near Walnut Creek

Nearly 70,000 gallons of sewage spilled onto the ground and into a tributary of North Walnut Creek on Wednesday, but a Gainesville Public Utilities official says the water should be back to its normal quality in a couple of days.

40 years later: Gainesville judge recalls relationship with RFK

On the morning of June 5, 1968, Sidney O. Smith Jr., then a U.S. District Court judge for the Northern District of Georgia, was at home alone in Gainesville. His family had left for a beach trip. Shaving in front of the bathroom mirror, Smith had turned on the radio for the morning news, not expecting what he heard.

Woman not hurt after crashing van into lake

A Cleveland woman was uninjured when her van crashed Wednesday morning into Lake Lanier.

Dawson officials ask for flooding aid

Hall County housing market snapshot: Less construction, fewer foreclosures

Residential and "affordable" housing in Hall County is in short supply because of a decline in construction and strong competition for good deals, Gainesville real estate executive Frank Norton Jr. said.

Dawsonville distillery seeks lawmakers’ help

Driver killed in wreck with dump truck

A wreck killed one just after 9 Wednesday morning on Tanners Mill Road in southeast Hall County.

Storms, showers in area may not be done

Look for a couple of wet days ahead heading into the weekend.

4 plead guilty, fined in N. Hall animal hoarding case

Four people pleaded guilty Wednesday in an animal hoarding case stemming from May that led to the impoundment of 69 animals.

Woman, son dead in Jefferson; father in custody

JEFFERSON - A mother and her 13-year-old son are dead and her 47-year-old husband, the child's father, is in jail on murder charges.

Residents get peek at potential passenger rail service between Atlanta and Charlotte

SUWANEE - Miles Williams is eager to find out whether Suwanee, the North Gwinnett city where generations of his family have lived, will once again be a bustling stop for passenger rail.

Probable cause hearing set for slaying suspect

A probable cause hearing is set for later this month after a Gainesville man made his first appearance Tuesday in Hall County Magistrate Court on murder charges.

Motion denied, trial date set in 2012 boating deaths

A Hall County Superior Court judge Tuesday denied a motion to dismiss the case against Paul Bennett, who is charged with eight counts of homicide by vessel in a Lake Lanier accident that killed two Buford boys.

Gainesville City Council faces more opposition to at-large voting at meeting

Gainesville has an ugly history of discrimination and the city's at-large voting system is violating the federal Voting Rights Act, a speaker said at Tuesday's City Council meeting.

Hall County's tax digest drops

Hall County's 2013 final tax digest is down 1.51 percent from last year, according to final numbers from the Tax Commissioner's office, making the county's 2014 proposed budget short by $560,000.

Kitchen Inspections for April 12-17

April 12

Hot weather health tips

Here are some tips to help you deal with the summer heat wave.