Author: MJ Kneiser

Stephens County Hospital CEO Mike Hester said they are closer to coming up with a way to provide more security for patients and staff. Earlier this year, Hospital officials approached the City about the use of Toccoa Police officers to provide security after an altercation in the ER in which an unruly visitor disrupted hospital staff and had to be […]

The City of Toccoa has until Friday morning to accept or reject the County’s latest offer regarding how the next Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax revenue will be divided. In a letter issued to the City by the County late Tuesday afternoon, the County is offering a 68% – 32% split on an expected SPLOST VII revenue of $20.2 […]

The City of Toccoa is hoping for continued talks with the County on how the next Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax revenue will be divided. City Commissioners are asking for $9-million to fund a number of large projects, most notably, the renovation and upgrading of the Toccoa Water/Wastewater facility. City Commissioners are basing that figure on a 61% – […]

Visitors to Lake Hartwell this summer should continue to enjoy a lake still at full pool. According to Corps of Engineers Savannah spokesman Jeremy Buddemeier, run-off from last month’s rainfall continues to flow in all three reservoir lakes, keeping them all at either full pool or just below. As of Monday, Hartwell Lake was just over full pool at 660.19 […]

Toccoa Main Street is the recipient of a $6,000 Project Grant for 2020 from the Georgia Department of Economic Development’s Georgia Council for the Arts. Main Street is one of 135 organizations throughout the state that were collectively awarded more than $1 million in funding, and one of 73 organizations receiving a Project grant. Main Street Manager Christian Hamilton says […]

New Stephens County Hospital CEO Michael Hester is setting a new precedent. Hester attended Monday night’s City Commission meeting and afterwards told WNEG News he plans to attend all of the City Commission’s future meetings. “We’re part of the community and I need to be attending those just because I need to know what’s going on; if there’s anything I […]

Tragedy in Franklin County over the July 4th weekend when seven people were killed and others injured in a multi-vehicle crash on I-85 near Carnesville. According to Franklin County Sheriff Steve Thomas, it happened Saturday afternoon about 1:40p near exit 160. Investigators with the Hartwell Post of the Georgia State Patrol say a Ford SUV traveling north crossed the center […]

The 4th of July holiday is not over for thousands of people who are taking advantage of a long holiday weekend and many of those folks are camping out at one of the many Hartwell Lake campgrounds. Scott Kelly is a Natural Resource Manager at Hartwell Lake. Kelly said campgrounds are crowded this weekend so it’s important to be considerate […]

The Fourth of July holiday weekend continues in Toccoa with this weekend’s Ida Cox Music Series concert. Saturday night, Radford Windham & Step Back Cadillac is a band out of Dahlonega, Georgia. The group plays southern rock, folk, and acoustic cover tunes and some originals, and is composed of three teachers, a doctor, and a computer technician, but music is […]

Throughout this week, Lake Hartwell has had an influx of vacationers and visitors who are taking time off to enjoy the Independence Day holiday. Today, Hartwell Lake is expected to be overflowing with more boaters, swimmers, and people on their personal water crafts than ever before, according to DNR Law Enforcement Officer Craig Fulghum. “We’ve watched the numbers. From year […]