Poole still frustrated over South Hall land issue

GAINESVILLE - The chairman of the Hall County Parks & Leisure Board continues to express his frustration with the county commission in light of the South Hall land controversy.

Larry Poole's latest comments come following the county's filing of a land condemnation petition dealing with the Union Church Road site. The county wants the land for a park and South Hall Community Center, but Poole and his board have said they were left out of the process and, in fact, had rejected the land for a number reasons

Poole, appearing on the Martha Zoller Show on WDUN NEWS TALK 550, said he is more than willing to testify at a condemnation hearing if asked to do so.

At a meeting a couple of weeks ago, the parks board drafted a letter to the county commission expressing its concerns about use of the Union Church Road tract as the site for a park and asking the commission not to condemn it.

A hearing is planned later this month on the condemnation filing.

County officials have been reluctant to talk about the matter because it grew out of an executive session, but commission chairman Gary Gibbs has been quoted as saying he thinks once everything about the matter is known, the public will realize the commission was acting in the best interest of the county.