More funding could be on the way for a couple of Hall County agencies from the city of Gainesville, with a final vote planned this week.
Keep Hall Beautiful is asking for a budgetary bump from $15,000 to $20,000, which Kelly Norman, director, said would be a return to their funding level before the recession.
The additional funds will aid both in staffing and community outreach, Norman said. She added that the final product her organization provides is often difficult to "pitch" to potential funding sources.
"It's hard to quantify beautification efforts ... Ultimately our job is put ourselves out of business," said Norman.
Among the continued efforts for Keep Hall Beautiful are litter pick-up, and education initiatives, the latter of which will focus on educating children about litter problems.
"This is more about changing people's hearts than anything," said Councilman George Wangemann at council's work session Thursday.
The Elachee Nature Center is also asking for a larger budget, requesting a boost from $6,000 to $10,000.
"(The increase) is a return to a level of support prior to the recession," said Adrea Timpone, executive director.
The center sees 32,500 visitors on its 12 miles of hiking trails each year.
Saturday
April 20th, 2024
2:00AM
