Commissioner Bebe Heiskell Wants Lodge, Convention Site Built
posted June 26, 2008
The state of Georgia is purchasing 1,564 acres at the junction of Lookout and Pigeon mountains and Walker County is buying an additional 275 acres.
The state Board of Natural Resources approved the $8.3 million purchase on Wednesday.
The acquisition connects the 93-acre Zahnd Natural Area on Lookout Mountain with the 17,000-acre Crockford-Pigeon Mountain Wildlife Management Area.
Walker County Commissioner Bebe Heiskell said she would like to see a lodge and convention center built on the portion being acquired by the county.
She called the site, which is a farm once owned by Orkin president Wayne Rollins, "the prettiest spot in Georgia."
Commissioner Heiskell said, "This area has some of the most diverse plant life in the world. And it has the potential to be an economic boon for the county."
She said she would like a convention center developed similar to the state's Brasstown Valley in Young Harris. She said the state sank $30 million into that project in the hometown of former Gov. Zell Miller, and it paid for itself in just a few years.
She said many visitors come to Walker County to enjoy its natural beauty, but she said the county only has a few motels and bed and breakfast inns, so most visitors spend the night elsewhere.
She noted that the Canyon Ridge Golf Course is nearby.
Commissioner Heiskell said, "Many people have worked long and hard to make this happen."
The Pigeon Mountain area is popular with naturalists, cavers, rock climbers, hikers and mountain bikers.
The property, which includes an ante-bellum home, a store, some smaller homes and an airstrip, is being acquired from the Yancey family.
The project still must be approved by the Georgia Land Conservation Council and the Georgia State Properties Commission.
Most of the funding is to come from the Georgia Land Conservation Program.
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