Hall County has created a new Public Safety Department housing its code enforcement, animal control and park ranger divisions to improve efficiency in those areas.

These departments enforce county rules and regulations, require similar employee qualifications and work closely with the court system, said County Administrator Charley Nix.

“I felt like all those areas shared common goals and values, not to mention that they are sort of police-oriented,” Nix said.

Now all three divisions are united under one Public Safety umbrella with E-911/Central Communications Director Marty Nix at the helm as director of Public Safety.

“I’m excited,” Marty Nix said. “I’m up to the challenge.”

Marty Nix has spent the last four years managing E-911/Central Communications. Previously, he served as the assistant warden of the Correctional Institute, three years with the District Attorney’s Office and numerous years with the Sheriff’s Office.

“I felt like he could look at this from a unique perspective, pull those functions together and make a very efficient type of an organization,” Charley Nix said.

Marty Nix will continue to direct Central Communications, which is now part of the Public Safety Department.

Mike Ledford will continue to supervise Animal Control, and Andre Niles will supervise Code Enforcement.

We’re just combining a lot of our resources together to make government more efficient and I think it’s going to make things run a lot smoother,” Marty Nix said.

Formerly, Code Enforcement was part of Development Services, which also includes Planning and Zoning, Building Inspections, Environmental Health, Business License, Geographic Information Systems and the Gainesville-Hall Metropolitan Planning Organization.

Park rangers previously reported to the Parks and Leisure Services Director. Animal Control was a separate department.

Marty Nix said employees in all three areas are learning new skills.

“We’re getting everybody cross trained so we can better serve the county.” Nix said. “We’re doing more with less.”