Five Georgia state parks will be soon be completely managed by private, for-profit firms.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the Florida-based Coral Hospitality manage the properties. The state will still own the parks, which are now run by the Department of Natural Resources.

Amicalola Falls State Park in Dawsonville leads the list of privatized properties. It attracts more than 500,000 visitors a year to an 829-acre forest and the highest waterfall east of the Mississippi River.

The other parks are North Georgia's Unicoi, George T. Bagby in Fort Gaines, Little Ocmulgee in Helena and Georgia Veterans in Cordele, where a state-owned resort and golf club was already privately managed.

State officials say the move is a financial necessity. The plan may involve charging for services that are now free.

Tags: state parks, Amicalola Falls State Park, privatized