This browser does not support the Video element.
Federal agency hands over 11 Lake Lanier parks to Hall
Hall County leaders assumed day-to-day control of nearly a dozen public spaces along Lake Lanier Monday under a new joint agreement with the federal government.
HALL COUNTY, Ga. - Hall County officials took over the day-to-day operations of nearly a dozen parks along Lake Lanier on Monday under a new partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.
What we know:
Hall County officials have entered a new partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to co-manage 11 parks along Lake Lanier starting Monday.
The deal has been a year in the making following a staffing shortage in 2025 that led the federal agency to temporarily close multiple parks just days before Memorial Day.
Under this new agreement, the county will handle grounds maintenance and custodial services.
While the Corps of Engineers will remain responsible for security at the 11 sites, any revenue generated from usage fees—such as boat ramps and day-use areas—will now go directly to the county instead of Washington.
Hall County officials expect to pay about $190,000 annually to cover services at the 11 sites.
The backstory:
Lake Lanier attracts an estimated 12 million visitors each year, making holiday weekends highly profitable for local commerce and vital for regional recreation.
"I'm just glad they're going to stay open, because they'll have a lot more business up here during Memorial weekend," boater Merrill Reinecke said.
County officials confirmed that all park entry and boat ramp fees will remain unchanged for visitors. Furthermore, any valid passes previously sold by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will continue to be fully honored at all 11 locations.
What they're saying:
"The real driving force behind this is just making sure that these parks remain open," Parks and Community Services Director Brent Holloway said. "We just want to make sure regardless of what happens that's beyond our control here in Hall County that we're in good position."
Holloway added that the county hopes to make the transition invisible to the public.
"Our hope is that nothing changes, that we make this as seamless and as frictionless as possible for the visitors," Holloway said. "Our hope with this is that by us taking some of the burden of services off of the Corps of Engineers, they're still responsible for the ranger patrols and those security services, so they'll be able to focus more on that, which is what they're good at."
The Source: The information in this story was gathered by FOX 5 reporter Rey Llerena, who interviewed Hall County boater Merrill Reinecke and Brent Holloway, the director of parks and community services for Hall County.