Nearly 1,400 new homes okayed in '06 in Hall

GAINESVILLE - The number of new housing permits issued in Gainesville and Hall County last year totaled almost 1,400.

Gainesville and Hall County building officials have released their 2006 building permit numbers.

And, they show that just over 1,300 new homes were okayed in the county last year; another 142 were okayed in the city.

That's a total of $311 million in new housing construction.

And, already, this year, about 250 new homes have been okayed.