A committee of local residents advocating for the preservation and restoration of Hall County’s only surviving gristmill, a crumbling 170-year-old landmark off Whitehall Road near Lula, asked the county Friday to close sections of the small road near Ga. 365. Abit Massey, organizer of the Healan-Head Mill Historic Preservation Trust, told a gathering of dozens at the Hall County Government Center that the request for Hall County to abandon right of way of the mill property is “the first step in guaranteeing the preservation of this historic site.” “As I understand it, this portion of (White Hall Road) is lightly traveled, and it needs to be closed to protect it from expected development and growth along the Ga. 365 corridor,” he said.