Archeological Survey of Proposed Improvements at Hideaway Bay Marina, Hall County, Georgia

The existing 35-acre Hideaway Bay Marina near Flowery Branch in southern Hall County proposes to make various improvements. Because the land on which the marina is located is leased from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) such an undertaking requires a permit from the USACE. One aspect of the permitting is compliance with the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, which seeks to avoid, minimize or mitigate effects to important cultural resources. Toward this goal, a cultural resources literature review was conducted in 2012 that concluded that no historic or archeological properties are recorded on the subject property, but that both types of resources occur nearby. The USACE requested that a Phase I archeological survey of the property be conducted, and Southeastern Archeological Services was selected to perform the work. The goal of the survey was to locate and evaluate all archeological sites within the marina property, so that potential effects to those resources could be evaluated in accordance with Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act. Because the survey was conducted on federal property, an Archaeological Resources Protection Act permit was obtained from the USACE prior to the fieldwork. The survey was conducted on December 4, 2014. Slightly over half of the 35-ac project area has been graded or deeply filled, leaving a mostly undisturbed northern portion of wooded ridge tops and slopes. Visual inspection and the excavation of 31 shovel tests failed to detect any evidence of archeological materials. We conclude that the 35-ac project area contains no archeological resources and recommend that the proposed undertaking, the implementation of improvements to the marina, will not affect archeological resources.