Judge who pushed for preservation honored by GCC

GAINESVILLE - Judge William L. Norton, James Brooks and Lynda Hawkins were three of the original members of the Gainesville Historic Preservation Commission, enacted by city ordinance in 2001 with five member appointments the following year.

At Tuesday night's regular Gainesville City Council meeting, all three were recognized for their service to the city.

Norton, according to GHPC chair Cathy Amos, was responsible for getting the Commission started.

"Without Judge Norton, this particular institution would not be here," Amos said. "It is with his encouragement and guidance when he came to Council and said we need a historic preservation commission, that this commission exists. It is with his wisdom and his courage that he guided us both legally and through his knowledge obtained through years of study."

Judge Norton served on the Commission from the beginning, June 2002 until August, 2008.

Norton, Brooks and Hawkins were instrumental in drafting the city's model design and construction guidelines for residential style local historic districts, obtaining local designation for the Green Street Historic District, and obtaining designation as a Georgia Certified Local Government. The designation makes Gainesville eligible for federal historic preservation grant funds. Between 2006 and 2010, the city received five grants to help fund multi-phase, community wide historic resources and an architectural survey.

Gainesville's Special Projects Manager Jessica Tullar works with the Commission, and said she learned a lot from Judge Norton, Hawkins and Brooks.

"We had some fun discussions," the Judge and I," Tullar said. "What a mentor,what a tremendous asset to historic preservation," Tullar said. "Together, I think we built a program that can withstand the test of time here in Gainesville that is owner friendly and owner focused."