Sun Neighborly news & entertainment for Hoover
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Volume 2 | Issue 11 | August 2014
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A walk about town
Run for hope
Local ministry (un) adopted is hosting a race at Veterans Park that benefits orphans worldwide. Read more inside.
See page A14
Back in the game Hoover moves forward with sidewalk and crosswalk projects By SYDNEY CROMWELL
Hoover quarterback Jack Hutcheson throws a pass during the National Select 7on7 Championships in July. Photo by Benjamin Breland.
See page B6
Residents Jane and Jerry Smith often walk through their neighborhood in The Preserve. Although there are sidewalks throughout the community, the couple said they could benefit from seeing more pedestrian connections. The city is responding to the needs of residents like the Smiths.
Construction crews for new sidewalks may begin appearing around Hoover as early as November. The city and the Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT) are currently designing four sidewalk and crosswalk projects at Ross Bridge, Preserve Parkway, Chapel Road and Bluff Park. The new walkways will link previously built sidewalks in the area, and Hoover Assistant Executive
Parisa and Paul Dudley and their son, Foster, walk through their neighborhood in Ross Bridge. Sidewalks will be coming to Ross Bridge Parkway along with several other pedestrian projects in Hoover. Photo by Sam Farmer.
Director Tim Westhoven described them as part of the “backbone” of the city’s sidewalks. “These projects were picked basically to complement the existing sidewalks that we have in those areas. They provide a connection between where certain existing sidewalks stop and other ones start,” said Westhoven at a June 7 public involvement meeting.
The Ross Bridge and Preserve Parkway projects could begin construction in November, with Bluff Park proposed to begin in June 2015 and the Chapel Road project slated for January 2016. However, Westhoven said those timelines are early estimates and are likely to
See SIDEWALKS | page A19
INSIDE City .....................A3 Business ............A4 Food ...................A7 Community .......A10
School House ....B4 Sports .................B6 Calendar .............B13
No place for bullying Hoover schools enhance intervention model
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By REBECCA WALDEN When it comes to bullying, Melody Greene is focusing her efforts where she can — on intervention. Last year, Hoover City Schools participated in a pilot program called First Response Bullying. As part of the effort, hotline numbers were displayed prominently on posters distributed throughout the school system, and students were encouraged to anonymously report incidents. By the end of the school year, First Response
Bullying efforts resulted in three phone calls. “Not to diminish the value of those calls, but districtwide, I don’t feel like that was an effective way to deal with bullying,” said Greene, adding that the district tried the system upon request from the Alabama State Department of Education. This year, Greene is working closely with administrative leaders across the district to take intervention efforts further. Later this month, the system will host two sets of community outreach
See BULLYING | page A19
Melody Greene is the assistant superintendent for Hoover City Schools. Greene, along with her intervention team, is planning schoolwide initiatives to raise awareness about bullying and other related issues. Photo by Sam Farmer.