Private contractor acquires tourist site
HELEN, GA. --- The Chattahoochee National Forest has turned over management of a popular tourist site in north Georgia to a private contractor.
The visitor center at Anna Ruby Falls north of Helen reopened in April after being closed since 2005.
The Forest Service awarded a five-year contract for Anna Ruby to the Cradle of Forestry Interpretive Association. The nonprofit group is based in Brevard, N.C. The company already operates 44 gift shops and visitor centers on national forests in seven states.
Board wants to avoid development of land
ATLANTA --- The Georgia Board of Natural Resources wants to purchase more than 1,560 acres of land near Lookout Mountain to protect it from development.
Board members voted unanimously to approve the deal Wednesday. The land, located in Walker County, is sandwiched between the Zahnd Natural Area and Crockford-Pigeon Mountain Wildlife Management. The proposed $8.3 million transaction still must be approved by two state agencies.
Schools will use body of a bear in exhibit
MARIETTA, GA. --- Cobb County officials are planning to use the body of a bear killed by a car in Cobb County as part of an exhibit for school children.
The bear was killed June 3 by a motorist on Barrett Parkway in Atlanta's northern suburbs, and the body has been at Artistry in Nature Taxidermy in nearby Paulding County.
It's one of three bears killed in Cobb County since May 30. The last was hit Monday in front of Lassiter High School and later euthanized after suffering severe injuries. State officials estimate there are between 1,200 and 1,500 black bears in North Georgia.
-- Associated Press
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