Lagniappe: August 22 - August 28, 2018

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WEEKLY

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LAGNIAPPE

AUGUST 22, 2018 - AUGUST 28, 2018 | www.lagniappemobile.com ASHLEY TRICE Co-publisher/Editor atrice@lagniappemobile.com

ROB HOLBERT Co-publisher/Managing Editor rholbert@lagniappemobile.com GABRIEL TYNES Assistant Managing Editor gabe@lagniappemobile.com DALE LIESCH Reporter dale@lagniappemobile.com JASON JOHNSON Reporter jason@lagniappemobile.com KEVIN LEE Associate Editor/Arts Editor klee@lagniappemobile.com ANDY MACDONALD Cuisine Editor fatmansqueeze@comcast.net STEPHEN CENTANNI Music Editor scentanni@lagniappemobile.com STEPHANIE POE Copy Editor copy@lagniappemobile.com DANIEL ANDERSON Chief Photographer dan@danandersonphoto.com LAURA MATTEI Art Director www.laurarasmussen.com BROOKE O’DONNELL Advertising Sales Executive brooke@lagniappemobile.com BETH WOOLSEY Advertising Sales Executive bwilliams@lagniappemobile.com ALEEN MOMBERGER Advertising Sales Executive aleen@lagniappemobile.com DAVID GRAYSON Advertising Sales Executive david@lagniappemobile.com ROSS PRITCHARD Distribution Manager delivery@lagniappemobile.com JACKIE CRUTHIRDS Office Manager legals@lagniappemobile.com CONTRIBUTORS: J. Mark Bryant, Asia Frey, Brian Holbert, Randy Kennedy, Hannah Legg, John Mullen, Jeff Poor, Marguerite Powers, Catherine Rainey, Ken Robinson, Ron Sivak ON THE COVER: CAMMIE WAYNE BY DANIEL ANDERSON / LAGNIAPPE POSTMASTER: Send address changes to P.O. Box 3003 Mobile, AL 36652. Editorial, advertising and production offices are located at 704 Government St., Mobile, AL 36602.

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BAY BRIEFS

The Mobile City Council rejected a letter of intent for funding the University of South Alabama’s oncampus football stadium.

COMMENTARY

Scrutinizing the Mobile Police Department’s questionable public information practices.

BUSINESS

The Baldwin County Association of Realtors reports it’s not uncommon for homes in Baldwin County to get snatched up by buyers in a day or less.

CUISINE

Commanded by Chef Jeremiah Matthews, Daphne’s Southwood Kitchen lives up to the hype.

COVER

After purchasing Old Dutch ice cream shop in her early 30s, Cammie Wayne has opened a creamery and now supplies shops and retailers across the region.

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ARTS

Starting Sept. 1, Mobile Museum of Art will join a state- and nationwide effort to engage local perspectives on “freedom.”

MUSIC

Birmingham singer-songwriter Will Stewart strikes out on his own with a solo debut album, “County Seat.”

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FILM

Although delicate and emotional at times, the storytelling techniques in “Brad’s Status” make the film weak and unsatisfying.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

The Dauphin Street Beer Festival, Business Expo 2018, A.g.S Con, and the Rubber Ducky Regatta, all this and more in our Calendar of Events!

SPORTS

A preview of the upcoming soccer season for the University of South Alabama, University of Mobile and Spring Hill College.

MEDIA

Uncle Henry teams up with Biloxi’s Kelly Bennett for new morning show; Chasity Byrd leaves FOX10.

BOOZIE

Zingers thrown at Mobile Bar Association luncheon!

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GOING POSTAL What’s missing from the stadium conversation Editor: I would like to expand on Randy Kennedy’s column from the Aug. 8-14 edition (Behind the Mic, “Mobile needs a long-term plan for all of its sports venues”). My response to this article focuses on the sports venues, but I recognize sports are just a form of entertainment. All city-owned facilities need attention.

The author left off a critical athletic venue — the Copeland-Cox Tennis Center. How this facility and the numerous events it hosts each year was left off the list no longer surprises me, nor most other tennis enthusiasts in the area.

If you were onsite at the C-CTC during the USTA’s Junior National Level tournament on Tuesday, Aug. 7, during the afternoon lightning delay, you would better appreciate the need for an improved (aka larger) clubhouse to accommodate the hundreds of players, coaches and parents.

Is there a master plan for the Copeland-Cox Tennis Center? If so, has anyone seen it, let alone provided preliminary budget costs to implement it? If we do not focus on maintaining and improving our current facilities, we will slowly lose our advantages and other, newer facilities located in different cities will take over the hosting duties, which is a lose-lose proposition for all involved.

Is this not the argument the city is having as it relates to both major, recognizable sports venues — Ladd-Peebles and Hank Aaron stadiums? Where does this economically important and often overlooked venue fit into the conversation of sports venues? Where does the hotly debated soccer complex fit into the conversation? Where do baseball and softball fields fit into the conversation? What about basketball and volleyball facilities?

Where do the other 300-plus nonsports and entertainment venues the city owns fit into the conversation?

I have no problem setting up a committee to develop a plan as long as it doesn’t cost more taxpayer money. Kennedy’s list of 11 influential people that could assist in this plan MUST include a few females. (By the way, Title IX was implemented in 1972.) The potential list of committee

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members should also include a few younger persons that do not have lifetime memberships in AARP already!

Considering how long it has taken to figure out who is City Council president, the proposed members of the ad hoc “sports and entertainment master planning committee” won’t be alive to see any of the plan implemented, if a plan is even generated.

Let’s develop the plan for the physical venues and then worry about the management and operational aspects at a later date. Those aspects cannot be overlooked, but I expect they will (just like the broken sidewalks on my street).

Phillip A. DeKeyser Mobile

Bay lives matter Editor: Having been born and raised in Mobile, I have fond memories of summer days spent playing in Dauphin Island’s surf, exploring Gaillard Island and walking the boardwalks over Mobile Bay. Due to the far-seeing acts of pioneering environmental leaders and communities, these and other parts of Alabama’s coastal legacy have been protected and preserved, not just for future generations, but for the wildlife that depend on them for survival.

Recently, however, such legacies across the South have come under siege. Whether it’s the “red tide,” which has covered Florida’s Gulf Coast, or the general decline of coastal waterways, our penchant for diking, damming and otherwise polluting these resources is now coming back to haunt us.

Mobile Bay isn’t immune to these fates. Last month, the Alabama Department of Public Health prohibited shellfish harvesting and oyster growing near Portersville Bay due to concerns over bacteria levels. In prior years, it has banned those activities due to high arsenic and mercury levels. Data from state agencies and the EPA routinely rank Mobile Bay as one of the dirtiest watersheds in the country, treating it as

“impaired” under the Clean Water Act. Between industrial emissions, agricultural runoff and urban waste, the bay has borne the brunt of our collective belief that we can continue to use it without consequence.

There is good news, though.

Beginning about a decade ago, rural communities in Pennsylvania began to advance a new model for environmental protection. This model involves enacting local environmental laws that recognize ecosystems possess certain rights — like the right to exist and be healthy — which are legally enforceable by the residents of those communities.

In shaping this new model of protection, Pennsylvania communities looked to how past people’s movements confronted legal systems which regulated the use of human beings rather than protecting their rights. For instance, women were once treated as having only those rights given to them by their husbands. Enslaved African-Americans only had those rights given to them by slaveholders.

Similarly today, nature is protected only by our willingness to restrain ourselves. That restraint, as the state of Mobile Bay shows, is beginning to wear thin.

Over three dozen communities across the country have now adopted these “ecosystem rights” laws — including the city of Pittsburgh through a unanimous vote of the City Council. Closer to home, Florida communities are beginning to call for rights of the Everglades and the river systems feeding it. Some have even suggested that cities and towns relying on Mobile Bay should begin to adopt local laws that recognize rights of the bay.

Of course, the concept of ecosystems as something other than property — to be used at the whim of the property owner — has much deeper roots. Indigenous cultures, such as the Creek and Choctaw, have seen themselves as part of nature, not as its owners.

Indeed, the name “Alabama” itself is derived from an indigenous community. Perhaps it’s time we borrowed more than just the name.

Thomas Alan Linzey, Executive Director Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund Inc.

BAYBRIEF | MOBILE

Delay of game

MOBILE CITY COUNCIL VOTES DOWN USA STADIUM DEAL

BY DALE LIESCH

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fter nearly two months of debate, the Mobile City Council voted 4-3 to deny a $10 million contribution to the University of South Alabama for an on-campus stadium.

The council’s vote effectively rejected a letter of intent between the city and USA to give $500,000 in annual installments for 20 years. In return, USA would have given the city $2.5 million to use to renovate Ladd-Peebles Stadium.

USA’s football program has used Ladd Stadium as its home field since its first season in 2009. The 70-year-old facility is also home to the Senior Bowl, the Dollar General Bowl and four area high school football teams.

In a statement emailed to media shortly after the vote, Mayor Sandy Stimpson said he was disappointed in the decision. Stimpson previously stated information gathered by his office suggested maintenance costs for Ladd would rise to $33 million over the next 20 years.

“It sends a message to the NFL that the city does not support the Senior Bowl,” he said in the statement. “It leaves Ladd Stadium with zero funding to create a facility that meets the needs of the neighborhood and the four high school football teams that play there. It leaves the city with no plan to solve the $33 million maintenance issue.”

In a joint statement, USA President Tony Waldrop and Athletics Director Joel Erdmann said they were “disappointed by this setback.”

The statement also applauded stadium supporters and said in spite of the denial, USA would continue the site work for the new stadium and look for other resources.

“USA’s leadership is exploring all possible avenues of funding for the stadium, and we anticipate that we will continue to generate interest in the stadium among individuals and private organizations. We are committed to building an on-campus stadium for the Jaguars, and we will continue to keep the university community informed when we have additional news to share.”

The deal garnered support from Councilman Fred Richardson, Councilman Joel Daves and Councilwoman Gina Gregory. Councilman John Williams, Councilman C.J. Small, Council Vice President Levon Manzie and Councilwoman Bess Rich voted against the measure.

Both Rich and Small said they were originally in favor of the proposal, but changed their minds as the debate evolved. Rich said she struggled with the decision. Ultimately, she said she believes the city is big enough for both stadiums and the taxpayers’ money should be invested in Ladd.

“The stadium USA is building is for the campus; it’s not a community stadium,” she said. “In working with the Ladd board and management, I’ve learned so much about that facility. It could be so much better. Seeing it get downsized or demolished is not acceptable for a city this size.”

Rich was also concerned about the lack of an economic impact study, adding there are other ways the city can support the university as it continues to grow.

For Small, the decision came down to an “outcry” from residents in his district, but he also said the USA contribution was no different from his opposition to providing financial support for

revitalizing two shopping centers — the Shoppes at Bel Air and Westwood Plaza, each of which were approved by the council over the past year.

“My job is to listen to residents,” he said. “The decision to build a stadium rests with USA.” Small said he had assurances the Senior Bowl was not planning to leave Mobile because of the condition of Ladd, and that his constituents were concerned about losing a cultural asset to a more affluent area in West Mobile.

Stimpson said the idea that the city has been moving money and assets west is inaccurate. He argued that never in the history of the city have a council and mayor distributed funding more equitably. Stimpson applauded the council’s formation of the capital improvement plan during his first term, but said leadership from the mayor’s office was needed to implement it.

While he said it was not ultimately a condition of his vote, Williams had approached USA leadership about giving Mobile residents a 5 percent discount on tickets to games and events at the proposed stadium. He said he thought a discount would make the stadium proposal an “easier sale.”

Williams was told “no” and offered a discount ticket section instead.

“I can only imagine where that discount section might be,” he said, insinuating nosebleed seats that are already discounted.

Williams added he has “no doubt” USA will build a stadium eventually and “it will be fantastic,” but he said he made a commitment to residents of Mobile to work on infrastructure, park improvements and other issues.

Manzie, an alumnus of USA, said his opposition was backed by “a vast majority” of District 2 residents. Without assurances residents of Maysville would see an injection of redevelopment funding after Ladd was demolished, he voted against the proposal.

“I’m wishing USA well,” he said. “I’m hopeful they’ll be able to do what they need to do when they need to do it.”

Richardson, also a USA alumnus, argued the $2.5 million for Ladd would have reduced the city’s contribution to only $7.5 million.

“Prior to this [letter of intent], Ladd was off the radar,” Richardson said. “USA has placed Ladd on front street and we now have this opportunity to help USA to build a stadium and help Ladd remain viable. After this, Ladd will go back into oblivion.”

Richardson added that Stimpson had committed an additional $2 million for Ladd and was willing to talk to the County Commission and the Mobile County Board of School Commissioners about a possible $4 million more. However, as Small pointed out, there was no guarantee the mayor could gain the support of either.

Daves supported the measure to help bolster one of the city’s “biggest economic drivers” in USA. Both Daves and Gregory said they were looking for a solution to the maintenance issues plaguing Ladd.

In other business, the council approved a stormwater management fee. The fee, which will essentially tax residents $10 per year and tax commercial properties at a half cent per square foot of space up to $3,000, will be added to county property tax bills this year.

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BAYBRIEF | LAW ENFORCEMENT

Plain sight

LOCAL, FEDERAL AGENCIES OPEN ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY CENTER

BY JASON JOHNSON

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jurisdiction.”

While technology is at the heart of the GCTC, it’s also important officers know how to use it.

Mobile Public Safety Director James Barber said that’s why the Secret Service invested roughly $750,000 in equipment and training for local officers through the National Computer Forensic Institute in Hoover. The city’s only significant expenses will be leasing the space where the GCTC is currently located in Mobile.

“I can’t go over specific tactics and technologies we’re using, but I can tell you what we’re using does lead to the rapid identification and rapid apprehension of violent criminal offenders,” The Gulf Coast Technology Center is a collaborative space that will make cutting-edge crime-fighting resources more readily available to law enforcement throughout the region.

Barber said. “All of our violent crimes will flow through this center so that we technological tools are simply software that processes massive have the timely intelligence we need in order to prosecute.” amounts of data.

While details were scant, tools including “unmanned aerial “You hear the term ‘big data’ all the time referring to busivehicles,” “forward-looking infrared systems” and “cellphone ness, but they use the same technology in policing now, which tracking systems” were mentioned. Also discussed were “digital allows them to use things like facial recognition software to forensics” to glean information from various digital devices. track the whereabouts of individuals,” Hollingsworth said. “The MPD has that network of cameras, and that gives them wide Michael Hollingsworth, an instructor in the school of Politiareas of surveillance, and in theory, something like facial recogcal Science and Criminal Justice at the University of South Alabama, said most police forces — including the MPD — have nition could be used with that to identify someone.”

The MPD has also previously discussed its efforts to monitor had the ability to triangulate the approximate location of cellsocial media platforms, and Hollingsworth said federal support phones for years, though it requires a warrant in most cases. should greatly expand its capabilities in that area. What was “Like any kind of forensics, you’ll see those in high-profile or serious cases like major felonies, murders, armed robberies or once a tedious manual process of reviewing and flagging various high-level drug cases,” Hollingsworth said. “The Secret Service, profiles and posts can now be done rapidly through powerful in particular, deals with a lot of financial crimes, and there is al- software programs.

“Computers can go through thousands and thousands of ways some type of digital footprint involved in financial crime.” social media profiles and automatically detect certain things,” The ability to track activity on and around smart devices has he said. “I don’t know if they’ve been using this technology lobecome increasingly important for law enforcement. Michael cally, but I don’t see why they wouldn’t. If they see a use for it, Williams, a special agent with the Secret Service’s Birmingham they’ll be able to because most of that is provided by the federal office, said, “Today, there is no crime committed without some government.” kind of a digital footprint.”

Hollingsworth said the MPD has typically been technologiThose digital footprints are left on any number of sources, cally advanced for a department of its size, though he doesn’t including cellphones, social media and closed-circuit security know the exact technologies being used at the GCTC because camera systems. they haven’t been disclosed.

It’s also no secret MPD has recently worked to improve its “Surveillance is, of course, a touchy subject, and a lot of capabilities in these areas. Through the voluntary partnership times that’s why they don’t make all that they have available to Project Shield, MPD can remotely access real-time footage from them known to the public,” he added. “[The MPD] are pretty thousands of surveillance cameras in “businesses, schools, living well equipped and technologically advanced for the size departcommunities and establishments throughout the city.” ment they are, but you won’t see some things you might in a At first glance, GCTC doesn’t look much different from any large city like New York or Baltimore — the ones that usually other office space. It’s mostly desks, chairs and computers, but get in trouble for doing something they’re not supposed to do Hollingsworth said that’s because some of the most powerful with that technology.”

Photo | Lagniappe

ucked away in an undisclosed location in Mobile, officers and investigators from a number of local, state and federal agencies are fighting violent, cyber and financial crimes using some of the latest available technologies.

Last week, local law enforcement agencies on both sides of Mobile Bay formally announced the opening of the Gulf Coast Technology Center (GCTC), a collaborative space that will make cutting-edge crime-fighting resources more readily available to law enforcement throughout the region.

Whether using unmanned aerial vehicles, accessing surveillance systems or using software designed to examine smart devices confiscated from suspects, several local police forces will soon have access to greater technological assets as well as the know-how of several larger federal agencies.

The center was created through a partnership between the United States Secret Service and the Mobile Police Department but will be accessible to a number of other agencies, including the Mobile and Baldwin county sheriff’s offices, the FBI, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and a number of municipal police forces.

In addition to violent crime, the GCTC will focus on using technology to detect and respond to threats of school and workplace violence and to investigate various cyber and financial crimes using a “network and digital media forensics” to analyze digital devices, platforms and activity.

During an Aug. 16 opening ceremony for the GCTC, Mobile Mayor Sandy Stimpson said the new facility would “use technology like it has never been used before” to combat crime in coastal Alabama.

“The idea is to put everyone in the same room to get a force multiplier of the brain power and the technology we already have,” Stimpson said. “The technology that some [criminals] have access to is very advanced, and so it’s very important we stay ahead of what the bad guys are doing.”

Since it opened its doors in July, the GCTC has already seen some results. Baldwin County Sheriff Hoss Mack said his office had brought three cases to this center within a week’s time and was able to solve “a serious felony assault within a matter of hours that would have traditionally taken several days.”

One thing unique about the GCTC is the level of interagency cooperation behind it.

While local, state and federal agents have worked together for years, the GCTC will allow them to pool resources, manpower and information as they work side by side on each others’ cases. Brian O’Neil, the resident agent in charge, said the Secret Service is hopeful the GCTC can serve as a model for other regions.

“If the Saraland Police Department brings something to us, we’ll work on that. If Border Patrol were to bring something to us, we’d work on that. It’s an equal playing field,” O’Neil said.

“Typically, there’s some kind of bleed-over anyway. Saraland may need help with a bank fraud case, and that’s within our

BAYBRIEF | MOBILE COUNTY

At the helm

CHILD ADVOCACY CENTER NAMES NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

BY JASON JOHNSON

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he Child Advocacy Center (CAC) of Mobile has hired a new executive director, who brings to the job decades of experience working in the legal system and with children in the local community.

Phillip Andrew “Andy” Wynne served as the administrator at St. Mary’s Home for 29 years and most recently worked with Mobile County’s juvenile courts.

He will officially take the helm at the CAC on Sept. 4, 2018.

Since opening in 1988, the CAC has worked to serve victims of childhood sexual abuse and their families by providing a safe space for interviews with a trained team of professional counselors in order to assist with criminal prosecution and the healing process for victims.

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Some of those agencies include the Mobile Police Department, Mobile County Sheriff’s Office, the Mobile County District Attorney’s office, Mobile Department of Human Resources and Lifelines Counseling Services.

With the selection of Wynne, the CAC Board of Directors has officially replaced founding director Patrick Guyton, who retired in April after being placed on administrative leave after multiple public officials raised concerns about his alleged demeanor in the workplace.

In his new role, Wynne will be responsible for leading, supervising and providing oversight and direction to all operations at the CAC to help sustain its mission of being the leading advocate for children who’ve suffered sexual or severe physical abuse.

Most recently, Wynne worked with the local juvenile court, where he helped coordinate programs designed to help children caught in the criminal justice system. At St. Mary’s, where he spent the bulk of his career, Wynne was responsible for the operation of the residential treatment facility, an emergency shelter and a therapeutic foster care program “for seriously disturbed children,” according to a news release from the CAC Board of Directors.

He also served as a consultant to the National Center for State Courts of Williamsburg, Virginia, from 2016 to 2017.

BAYBRIEF | ORANGE BEACH

Case closing

BAMA BAYOU COMBATANTS AWAIT JUDGE STEWART’S RULING

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BY JOHN MULLEN

$1,250 legal bill from a spinoff case involving the idled Bama Bayou resort in Orange Beach is no longer holding up a settlement worth $20 million to $50 million. Mobile County Circuit Court Judge Sarah Stewart is expected to rule on the case soon.

“She said these were the last things she had to deal with before a final judgment,” Sam McKerall, one of the lawyers representing Bama Bayou investors, said.

About a dozen lawyers and others gathered on Aug. 16 for Stewart to rule on how much lawyers handling a conflict-of-interest motion in the case should be paid. A law firm from Orlando was hired by Southeast Property Holdings (SEPH) to file the motion in 2017, saying there was evidence of a conflict of interest involving Stewart herself.

“The Orlando lawyers were brought into the case specifically to try and convince her she had a conflict of interest,” McKerall said. “There were issues that do not involve the guarantors at all.

They involve peripheral issues, side issues. It’s a fight that really doesn’t have anything to do with us.”

It was just the latest stumbling block in a famously delayed lawsuit that has been dragging on since 2008 through an initial foreclosure, sale and side lawsuits that McKerall says will soon come to a head.

“We are exactly where we were a year ago in August, when these people from Orlando started this about a conflict of interest,” McKerall said. “I

think it’s unfortunate they’ve been able to delay the case for an entire year over something they didn’t succeed at. She has ruled that she had no conflict of interest.”

McKerall said the next and hopefully final step will be a ruling from Stewart on how much Bama Bayou investors and Marine Park owe SEPH. “I think the ruling will come out soon,” McKerall said. “I think it will say whether or not the guarantors owe anything. It will also say precisely what Bama Bayou and its subsidiary, Marine Park, owe.”

His contention, along with the other lawyers and defendants on Bama Bayou’s side, is that amount is around $20 million. SEPH contends the amount is closer to $50 million because they want the Bama Bayou investors to pay back what’s owed in the foreclosure and its attorney fees.

SEPH is the survivor of Visions Bank, the original mortgage holder.

Waiting in the wings is a Texas company, Presidium, which has expressed an interest in the site and has been examining the site. Presidium is also working on a tax incentive agreement with the city of Orange Beach should it somehow be able to buy it. But it can’t be sold until Stewart rules.

Across the Intracoastal Waterway from The Wharf, the vacant Bama Bayou buildings — including condos, an amphitheater, water features and conference rooms — was under construction in 2009 when the developers defaulted on a $21 million loan. It has been abandoned ever since.

BAYBRIEF | COASTAL ALABAMA

Fish tales

CAPTAINS DISCUSS SNAPPER SUCCESS, COBIA CONCERNS

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BY JOHN MULLEN

hen Kevin Anson addressed a gathering of charter captains in Orange Beach, he found the group pleased with the federal red snapper season ending July 22.

“Generally, they were happy and have been happy since sector separation and the federally permitted boats having their own quota,” Anson said. “It gives them more stability. Here lately they’ve been increasing their number of days and they’ve been increasing their opportunity for red snapper.”

The new rules, enacted by the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Council in 2015, placed federally licensed snapper boats and private and state-licensed boats in two sectors with different quotas for what they could catch.

“It carved out a percentage of the recreational quota and set it aside for the federally permitted charter boats,” Anson said. “They had a Gulfwide quota that they are managed to and their season is set around. They get included with the other charter boats in the other four Gulf states.”

This year the catch was up a bit from 2017 but Anson said it was not a surprising jump. He also pointed out these are preliminary numbers and the final report is yet to be compiled. Roughly 740,000 pounds were harvested in 2017 for the federally permitted vessels, and roughly 765,000 pounds were harvested this year, Anson said.

The state season regulates private anglers and state-licensed boats and was initially scheduled weekends from June 1 through Labor Day.

Fishing was allowed on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays except for the week of the Fourth of July, which was open to snapper fishing all week long.

The abundant catch this summer tracked through the Snapper Check program caused the state to close the season on July 22. Alabama received an exemption from the National Marine Fisheries Service that will allow the state to manage its red snapper season through 2019, according to Anson.

“What the exempted permit did was set aside a number of pounds for each of the Gulf states,” Anson said. “We had 984,000 pounds that were allotted to us and we were to try and stay at or below that number. Early, preliminary results that we use to monitor the season indicate that we went over.”

The captains, meeting in a new office in the Orange Beach Medical Arts Building, also expressed concerns about cobia. Anson said the Gulf of Mexico Fisheries Council will likely address the issue in an upcoming meeting.

“They have been declining in recent years and pretty much fell off the map this year for the panhandle of Florida,” Anson said. “They didn’t have a spring run. You can just about count on your hands the landings during the spring run over in Panama City and the Destin area. They usually catch a whole bunch each year.”

Anson said studies are being done and he expects some limits to be placed on how many cobia each boat can keep.

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BAYBRIEF | TRANSPORTATION

If you build it ...

TRANSPORTATION OFFICIALS DISCUSS FINANCIAL NEEDS OF INFRASTRUCTURE

BY DALE LIESCH

H

aving ballooned from initial projections of $800 million to nearly $2 billion today, the Interstate 10 bridge project over the Mobile River would be impossible for the Alabama Department of Transportation to fund on its own.

That’s why the cable-stayed suspension bridge and Bayway widening project is the state’s first publicprivate partnership, Project Manager Matt Erikson told a group participating in a freight forum hosted by the South Alabama Regional Planning Commission (SARPC) Monday, Aug. 20.

The project comes at a time when the state struggles to properly fund its roadway projects, Alabama Transportation Institute (ATI) Executive Director Shashi Nambisan, Ph.D., told forum participants.

Several factors are to blame when it comes to the state’s poor infrastructure funding, Nambisan said. For one, the gas tax, which helps pay for much infrastructure, has not increased since 1992. Meanwhile, the cost of construction has increased.

It now costs $175 to purchase the same amount of construction materials $100 would buy in 1992, Nambisan said. At the same time, vehicles are more fuel efficient. This means the average driver spends less on gas and therefore pays less tax.

“The gas tax has roughly stayed the same,” he said, noting the replacement costs of the state’s roads and bridges keep climbing. “Alabamians are paying 40 percent less in taxes.”

Over 10 years, the cost to replace the state’s infrastructure is slated at about $631 billion. In the next 20 years that increases to $1.03 trillion, Nambisan said. Further, the state only takes in about $1.6 billion in revenue

from the gas tax, which means drivers only pay one half of 1 percent of the value of the state’s roadways.

There have been discussions of raising the gas tax by 8 cents to 10 cents per gallon, but Nambisan believes it needs to be raised to three or four times that.

As the number of vehicles on the road continues to increase, so does the need for more capacity. From 1990 to 2015, the number of vehicles on the state’s roadways has increased by 46 percent, while the number of miles traveled by those vehicles has increased by 57 percent.

Meanwhile, capacity has grown just 14 percent.

traffic. This is up from nine hours in 2016.

“The cost of doing nothing is not zero,” he said. “It’s huge. We need informed decision-making by our elected officials.”

ATI, a department of The University of Alabama, recently signed a lease with the city of Mobile to move into about 2,000 square feet of space at GulfQuest National Maritime Museum of the Gulf of Mexico. Nambisan said two employees of the institute would be in Mobile permanently, while others would visit on an “as-needed” basis.

Bridges in the state are in bad shape as well. Of 15,954 bridges, 5,753 are more than 50 years old, Nambisan said. Bridges are designed to last 50 to 70 years.

“We don’t have to rebuild this overnight,” Nambisan said. “We need to rebuild them, though, and part of it is we don’t have the resources.”

ALDOT is still working through the environmental process on the proposed THE COST OF DOING NOTHING IS Mobile River bridge, Erikson told the group.

Erikson, the project manager, said the environmental impact study is the NOT ZERO. IT’S HUGE. WE NEED final hurdle before a request for proposals can be issued to the project’s three developer teams.

INFORMED DECISION-MAKING BY OUR The timeline really begins in March of next year, when ALDOT plans to ELECTED OFFICIALS.” send out a final request for proposals. From there, it’ll take three to four months for development teams to make final pitches before one is selected. After a four- to five-month period, construction is expected to begin in early 2020, Erikson said.

“You have congestion, delays and other safety conSARPC Transportation Director Kevin Harrison also presented a new freight cerns,” Nambisan said. “It’s a tremendous amount of survey at the meeting, which asks about local trucking companies’ routes to cost.” help gather data for future planning.

Leaving roadway capacity at its current level could The survey asks about “choke points” on local roadways, tolls on the proalso have a negative impact on economic development, posed river bridge and the effects of a pedestrian-friendly Water Street on the he said. trucking business.

By 2040, Nambisan said, commuter delays on the “We did a local survey in 2010 and it helped us develop freight zones,” Harstate’s roadways could cost $1.4 billion. The economic rison said. “We did get pretty good data out of it.” impact of such delays could be $2.5 billion. By 2040, the Harrison said he wants to go live with the new survey in “about a week or average commuter will spend 41 hours per year stuck in so” at mobilempo.org/freight.

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BAYBRIEF | MOBILE COUNTY

Inadequate defense

COUNTY TO PAY $800,000 TO FAMILY OF PARALYZED INMATE

BY JASON JOHNSON

T

he Mobile County Commission has approved an $800,000 settlement with the family of a former Mobile Metro Jail inmate who was left paralyzed after an altercation with corrections officers three years ago.

As Lagniappe exclusively reported, Brandon Jeffries was paralyzed after corrections officers attempted to restrain him on June 11, 2015. Officers said Jeffries was being disruptive, but his family has maintained they didn’t follow proper procedures and used excessive force.

Jeffries, originally from Cullman, had relocated to Mobile to reside in a group home for teenage boys in the Theodore area managed by AltaPointe Health Systems Inc. He was diagnosed with multiple behavioral and impulse control disorders and arrested in May 2015 after allegedly threatening other residents at the home with a knife. He spent six months in Metro Jail before he was injured during the scuffle with officers.

The lawsuit subsequently filed by Jeffries’ family suggests the 18-year-old’s neck was broken after he was beaten and tased by corrections officers, and he was placed in an isolated cell for “at least 20 hours” before finally being taken to the hospital for medical treatment.

The family claimed the county was negligent in hiring, training and supervising the jail’s employees.

While the litigation dragged on more than three years in federal court, the county reached a financial settlement less than month before the case was scheduled to go before a local jury Aug. 28.

County Attorney Jay Ross said the $800,000 settlement agreement will see the Mobile County Commission dismissed from the lawsuit, along with Sheriff Sam Cochran and 12 jail employees either directly involved in the confrontation with Jeffries or who had contact with him afterward. Jeffries’ case put the county in a particularly tricky spot because his injuries occurred during a time when it had no coverage for law enforcement related incidents as part of its general liability insurance.

A county spokeswoman recently explained the coverage wasn’t available at the time of the incident due to a policy change made by the insurer — meaning all of the $800,000 settlement will come directly out of Mobile County’s general fund.

“There was no insurance,” Ross said. “The county will pay $800,000 to get the county and the remaining defendants — the corrections officers — out of the litigation. As with any lawsuit, the decision was made because it was decided to be the best way to resolve this issue.”

Commissioners declined to comment on the settlement with Jeffries’ family, but all three met with Ross and several other involved parties during an executive session in early July. Most sources who spoke with Lagniappe about the case gave the impression a trial by jury very likely could have ended poorly for the county.

The settlement might have been higher, too, were it not for an indemnity clause in the county’s contract with NaphCare Inc., which provides medical and mental health services in

Metro Jail.

NaphCare has reached its own settlement with Jeffries’ family, according to Ross, who said he didn’t know the exact amount but assumes it’s more than $800,000. Despite concerns raised over this case at the time, commissioners renewed NaphCare’s contract in 2017.

Metro Jail Warden Trey Oliver said the Mobile County Sheriff’s Department conducted an internal affairs investigation into the actions of the 12 employees named in the lawsuit. Of those, two were disciplined for “violating rules related to adherence to duty and improper actions.”

Oliver said two of those 12 employees have since retired and one has resigned, but most are still employed at Metro Jail.

“We did not find that anyone improperly caused the injury to this inmate. That really had no bearing on the actions we took,” Oliver said. “Our concern was that the incident was not properly handled according to our protocols.”

Oliver said one disciplined employee, a shift commander, did not have any physical contact with Jeffries, but did fail to call in a code that would have enhanced the jail’s level of security and locked cameras in on the area where officers were trying to detain Jeffries that day.

Because most of the security cameras used in the jail at that time were oscillating, Oliver said that commander’s decision greatly impacted what footage of the altercation was available to internal investigators and eventually to the attorneys representing Jeffries’ family.

“We do not think, nor do we have any reason to believe, she did that because she wanted there to be a lack of video coverage. She was trying to handle the situation in a low-key manner, but that backfired grossly,” Oliver added.

“The camera in the area where this took place was scanning back and forth. So, it captured some of the incident but not the exact seconds that were needed for us to adequately defend this.”

According to Facilities Manager Tyler Martin, a subsequent $1.9 million overhaul to the jail’s security camera system is almost complete. The county also plans to put $15 million into further upgrades to the jail over the next few years to address “deficiencies” outlined in a National Institute for Jail Operations audit conducted in 2015.

While not directly related, the deficiencies noted in the audit and in a 15-year investigation into the jail by the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division were cited in the lawsuit filed by Jeffries’ family. The DOJ investigation was launched in 2003 after inmate James Carpenter died from a flesh-eating bacteria.

According to the DOJ, between 2007 and 2009, its investigation found “unconstitutional conditions at [Metro Jail] including problems with inadequate mental health care, excessive restraint, failure to protect prisoners from physical harm, and unsafe and unsanitary conditions.”

Cochran told Lagniappe last summer that most of those issues had since been addressed and that a large chunk of the $15 million upgrades scheduled in the coming months will improve and expand areas that serve the mental health and medical needs of inmates.

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COMMENTARY | DAMN THE TORPEDOES

Reporting on police shouldn’t ROB HOLBERT/MANAGING EDITOR/RHOLBERT@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

THERE’S CERTAINLY A FINE LINE TO BE WALKED BETWEEN PROVIDING NEWSWORTHY BODY CAM VIDEO AND SPENDING EVERY DAY CHURNING OUT MUNDANE ARREST CLIPS FOR THE LOCAL NEWS TO SHOW THAT NIGHT.”

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keep the public from seeing the video. Unless, of course, it proves the cops were in the right. In those cases, there never seems to be as much red tape and the videos appear almost immediately.

The city has admitted the officer involved “failed to follow procedure when using pepper spray” and was disciplined.

But MPD tried to hide behind claiming the video showed minors, as well as the standard “it’s under investigation.”

Years ago Lagniappe had to sue MPD for public documents related to expenditures for its Police Explorers program, and the Sam Jones administration tried to withhold the documents because they contained the names of kids being taken on skiing trips using federal grant money. Eventually they lost that case too.

There’s certainly a fine line to be walked between providing newsworthy body cam video and spending every day churning out mundane arrest clips for the local news to show that night. I have little doubt many media outlets across the nation would go crazy with body cam videos if they had unfettered access. But it shouldn’t be too hard for police to determine when the public has a legitimate standing in seeing a recording.

Now, because they fought so hard to keep it secret, the pepper-spray story will be front and center again two years later.

It would be nice to go back to a situation where reporters were down at MPD every day talking to the officers about reports and the department could put as much effort into providing public information as they do planning the next perp walk.

THEGADFLY

Reading through the reports gave me a newfound respect for law enforcement officers. They wade through a lot of garbage every day, and people call them for absolutely the dumbest things imaginable.

One of the most important things going through those reports each day accomplished, though, was it allowed me to develop relationships with individual officers and departments as a whole. That’s important stuff when you’re a reporter trying to tell stories accurately.

Fast-forward nearly 30 years and it’s very different. Our reporters don’t make daily trips to the police departments because there’s really no reason to. Police reports aren’t public any longer — at least not the parts that matter most. About 14 years ago, the state switched to a form that has the narrative on the back of the report, and most departments will only release a photocopied and redacted version of the front of the report.

Now we rely upon the police departments to let us know what happened the night before and trust nothing important is left out. Mobile Police Department, for instance, sends out a daily recap that has just the most basic information. There’s not much context in any of it, and it’s fairly useless.

On the flip side of the equation, though, is the cottage industry of having staged “perp walks” for local television stations to get video of folks arrested and accused of committing crimes. There doesn’t seem to be much difficulty getting MPD to participate in this bit of crime theater. MPD is one of the few agencies in Alabama that still conducts perp walks — exposing an alleged perpetrator to a gauntlet of reporters asking

leading questions in hopes of getting something that will look good on that evening’s broadcasts.

So on one hand, we can’t look at a police report, but on the other, they’ll drag someone who theoretically still has the presumption of innocence out through the parking lot for broadcast on the evening’s news. It’s kind of a head scratcher.

Back in the old days reporters had to exercise something we once called “editorial judgment” before a story might appear in print or on TV. And local TV news has now become so crime dependent that even the most mundane transgressions are winding up on the air in place of actual reporting.

So I can get why departments are a little skittish.

But it also seems like there’s a lot more effort by departments to manage the news.

Take, for instance, the incident nearly two years ago where an MPD officer peppersprayed a group of rowdy McGill students as they tried to paint the cannon at the Loop following their win against Murphy’s football team. This was a widely reported story and got a lot of attention. But MPD refused to release the body camera video from the officer at the center of the controversy.

Just last week, WALA won a lawsuit forcing the department to release the video.

It’s ridiculous it’s taken two years and a lawsuit to make that happen.

The public has been sold on the concept of buying expensive body cams for officers because it will supposedly offer hard evidence of whether a cop is acting properly or not. But in almost every case where there is controversy, departments fight to

Cartoon/Marguerite Powers

W

hen I started out in the newspaper business in the late ‘80s/early ‘90s, covering cops was one of my main beats. It’s what they did to young reporters — send you out every day to peel through the last night’s police reports and get a good look at the criminal, tragic and sometimes ridiculous things people do to one another after Miller Time kicks in.

Back in those days, the police didn’t have a lot of heartburn about nosy reporters going through a basket of reports and then asking questions. The reports came with a long narrative written by the officers about what transpired on each call. Often they were pretty hilarious, because if anything is better than reading about the insane reasons people call police, it’s those insane situations being described in “copspeak.”

“The complainant smelled of alcohol and was carrying what appeared to be a half-full whisky bottle. He was wearing only a Space Invaders T-shirt. Complainant advised his pants had been forcibly removed by his neighbor, Jimmy, who had become intoxicated during a game of cards. Jimmy’s whereabouts are unknown at the time of the call. Complainant suspects Jimmy of also removing an unopened pack of American cheese from the refrigerator. ...”

The majority of the Mobile City Council believed Mayor Sandy Stimpson burned bridges with the USA stadium deal.

COMMENTARY | THE HIDDEN AGENDA

Inside Mobile’s mind’s eye ASHLEY TRICE/EDITOR/ASHLEYTOLAND@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

M

obile came in from a morning walk in the oppressive August heat and humidity she has been doling out for the last 316 years.

“Geez, it feels like a dang ol’ sauna. I like being called hot, but this is not cute hot, this is nasty hot,” she thought to herself. “There isn’t a deodorant on the market that can protect from my kind of heat.”

Tired, she sat down on the couch to get some rest.

As she was thinking some hipster beauty product company should really come out with deodorants with cutesy names like “Stuck Pig” or “Church Whore,” the phone rang.

When she picked up her cell, she was shocked to see it was Alabama.

The state rarely called Mobile. Much like Alabama’s largest news website, everyone knew she heavily favored Birmingham. And while she appreciated the revenue Gulf Shores and Orange Beach brought in and often visited them, Mobile seemed to not be of much use to Alabama — well, except for her port. At least that’s how Mobile felt. She and her counselor had been working on this in therapy for quite some time.

But for “the beautiful” one to call her, something must be up, she thought.

“Hello,” Mobile said.

“Hello, darling,” Alabama said. “It’s your favorite state calling.”

“Yes, I know, it, um, has been a while. What’s up?” the Port City asked warily.

“Yes, I’m sorry about that. But, as you know, my dear, I am having my bicentennial celebration next year, and since, you know, you had your tricentennial celebration not too terribly long ago, I just thought I would check in and see if you had any thoughts or suggestions for the festivities,” Alabama said.

“I take it Birmingham wasn’t available,” Mobile said, unable to conceal her jealousy. “Oh wait, she’s only 147. I guess you couldn’t really talk to her.”

“Well, of course not. She’s just so young and vibrant and cool. A stuffy old celebration like this is really not her thing. That’s why I am calling you, dear! I guess you heard she got a Shake Shack?” Alabama beamed.

Mobile listened as she doodled Birmingham’s “Vulcan” being shot at by our cannon.

“Yeah, a fast-food burger chain. She must be so proud,” Mobile said sarcastically. “When — or if — you ever come back here, I’ll take you to Butch Cassidy’s or Heroes or Callaghan’s or Rosh…”

“Oh yes, of course,” she interrupted. “I’m sure they are nice but Shake Shake started in New York City and they picked our little Birmingham.

I’m just so excited for her!”

Mobile wondered if Alabama could literally feel her eyes rolling at her through the phone.

“Well, you didn’t call me to discuss greasy, overrated burgers. How can I help you on the bicentennial?”

“Well, I mean, I’m sure you’ve seen I have a whole committee and events and a website. But I was kind of thinking we should have a Mardi Gras parade too.”

Mobile perked up. And started talking at a rapid pace, as she does when she gets excited.

“Well, of course, we would love to do that for you. I mean, we love to throw a parade for anything. I’m sure all of our Mardi Gras organizations would just love to be part of this and it would give me a chance to show off my downtown ….”

“Well, yeah, the thing is, I was kind of thinking we should have it in Birmingham,” Alabama said.

There was dead silence on the phone for what seemed like an eternity.

“Let me get this straight. You want to have a Mobile Mardi Gras parade … in Birmingham?

Not in the city where Mardi Gras started in all of North America?”

“Well, yes, dear. I mean, it’s more centrally located and it would expose all of the Mountain Brook and Vestavia Hills people who are scared to come to Mobile to one of our state’s greatest traditions. You know, just not in Mobile,” Alabama explained. “So what do you say, laissez les bon temps rouler … in the Ham?” Mobile took a deep breath. This aggression would not stand. Can you say secession?

But before she could launch into the state, who is last in almost everything, she awoke on her couch, drenched in sweat.

Hmmm, “Drenched” should be another hipster deodorant fragrance, she thought. But never mind that, she was just thankful this had all been a terrible nightmare. But she wondered where such insecurity could be coming from. She wasn’t sure, but she had been a little down lately.

With the Mobile BayBears leaving, she would have a giant baseball stadium sitting there empty.

How long would it take to get another team — if ever? And if they didn’t get one, what would they do with it? And to add insult to injury, her BayBears could become Moon Possums. WTF? She was embarrassed by the whole Ladd and USA stadium debacle. It had torn her council and community apart, and for what purpose? USA is going to build a stadium no matter what. All of the bowl games are going to move to it. And like it our not, Ladd will be a 40,000-seat stadium hosting four high school games. The plan to downsize the seating in Ladd and IMPROVE it — not simply demolish it — made sense, but the whole issue got distorted and turned into something it shouldn’t have. What a mess.

Speaking of messes, she thought about the I-10 bridge. After the particularly horrendous traffic this summer, she could only imagine what people traveling through her must say. “Mobile, you must mean Slow-bile,” she imagined all those folks from Arkansas, Louisiana and Texas saying to their friends back home. Stupid tunnelhonkers, who cares what they think? But she often wondered if she would be celebrating her quadricentennial before it was finally done.

She thought, sometimes we just can’t win for losing. And the majority of this “losing” seems to be self-inflicted.

“Nope, I’m not going to do this,” Mobile said to herself, as she looked in the mirror.

“I am Mobile. I am beautiful. I am historic. I have amazing architecture and gorgeous, old oak trees. I have a bay that has a gigantic battleship sitting in it. I have a cruise ship and I assemble airplanes and warships. I am the land of blue crabs, redfish, Dew Drop dogs and scoops of Cammie’s Old Dutch. Yeah, I know, I know I talk about it too much, but I did start Mardi Gras and I have a MoonPie that drops down a building every New Year’s Eve. My people may be crazy, but they love me and they love each other. You can keep your Shake Shacks and Trader Joes, I already have everything I need.”

Mobile walked back outside, feeling good about herself. “And hell, at least I’m not Montgomery.”

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COMMENTARY | THE BELTWAY BEAT

No, Doug Jones is not George Wallace

BY JEFF POOR/COLUMNIST/JEFFREYPOOR@GMAIL.COM

A

n appropriate illustration for the words “haphazard,” “flailing,” “irrelevant” or “pathetic” for the next edition of the Merriam-Webster dictionary might be one of Nancy Worley standing behind a podium emblazoned with the words “Alabama Democratic Party.”

Despite objections from Sen. Doug Jones, the highest-ranking elected Democrat in Alabama and the only one elected to a major statewide office in over a decade, Alabama Democrats decided last week to give Worley another term as party chairman.

The decision — made at the behest of party boss Joe Reed, whose official title is head of the Alabama Democratic Caucus — drew criticism from other Democrats all over the state and the party’s allies among the pseudo-elite in Alabama’s media.

Aside from not recognizing the fragility of Alabama’s modern Democratic Party coalition, which revolves around the state’s AfricanAmerican power structure, left-wing grassroots activists and the trial lawyers, blessing Worley’s leadership was not the only ridiculous thing Reed did last week.

According to a column from AL.com’s Roy Johnson published last Thursday, Reed likened Jones to former Democratic Alabama Gov. George Wallace because Jones supported a failed effort to install new leadership in the state’s Democratic Party.

“There was a big battle,” Reed said to Johnson about a fight in 1974 over who would lead Alabama’s Democratic Party. “Governor Wallace came on the floor where the delegates were and nominated [Florence attorney and former State Senator] Bert Haltom to run against [incumbent Democratic Party chair Robert] Vance. The delegates rejected it and reaffirmed our support for chairman Robert Vance [by a 66-51 vote].”

“The same thing [happened] this weekend,” he reportedly added.

Apparently in Alabama Democratic Party politics, when a Democrat orchestrates something his colleagues find wrongheaded and misguided, he may expect those colleagues to play the race card against him.

In this case, playing the race card against the guy who prosecuted two Ku Klux Klansmen responsible for Birmingham’s 1963 16th Street Baptist Church bombing might prove difficult.

Thus, this time at least, Reed insinuated racism indirectly, via associating Jones with one of America’s most prominent racial demagogues.

Here’s the problem with Reed’s JonesWallace analogy: In 1974, Democrats controlled every lever of power in Montgomery. Alabama’s two U.S. senators, James Allen and John Sparkman, were Democrats. The remaining Republicans in Alabama’s House of Representatives were holdovers who rode the coattails of Barry Goldwater a decade earlier in the 1964 presidential election.

The bottom line: Alabama’s Democratic Party in 1974 was in much better shape than the weak and feckless apparatus that exists in 2018.

It’s curious why some in the Alabama Democratic Party want to maintain the status quo. Do

they not recognize that the youth movement in their party, deserved or not, is garnering a lot of positive press? Even though they hold nonpartisan offices, media darlings such as Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin and Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox are at least offering the perception that the Democratic Party in Alabama is showing signs of life.

Then, to go as far as humiliating your party’s highest-ranking officeholder, Doug Jones, by not only defeating Peck Fox, the candidate he backed, but likening him to George Corley Wallace?

The justification for keeping things the way they are in Alabama’s Democratic Party is beyond wrong and ill-advised. It requires an element of performance art that in this case is bordering on bad dinner theater.

No one is going to buy into the notion that an “aw, shucks” milquetoast moderate Democrat like Doug Jones is anything close to George Wallace.

Meanwhile, nationally we are told to believe there is a blue wave coming. It’s a midterm election after an election of a new president of a different party than the president before. Based on history, this should be a big election cycle for Democrats, and even more so in ruby-red Alabama because Democrats were able to elect Jones a year earlier.

Instead, 2018 is shaping up to be a disaster of epic proportions for Democrats in Alabama.

Donald Trump maintains a high approval rating in the state. With the possible exception of the contest for Alabama Supreme Court chief justice between Republican Tom Parker and Democrat Bob Vance (son of the above-mentioned Robert Vance), Democrats are set to lose by huge margins in November.

According to polling, Maddox is on track to lose by double digits in November to incumbent Republican Gov. Kay Ivey. None of the U.S. House races in November are competitive. There’s a collective “who?” chorus when you run down the list of Democratic nominees running for statewide office — that is, until you get to the Alabama Attorney General contest between Republican incumbent Steve Marshall and Democratic nominee Joe Siegelman, who is the son of disgraced former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman.

Yet, if you believe the Democratic Party cheerleaders embedded in Alabama’s political media, which includes the Montgomery Advertiser’s Brian Lyman, the mere fact that the Democratic Party was able to field candidates for these major offices is an accomplishment in and of itself.

Meanwhile, Alabama Republicans are set to have their summer meeting this weekend in Maddox’s hometown of Tuscaloosa. Even coming out of last year’s embarrassing loss in the U.S. Senate special election, they have to be laughing at the debacle that is the Alabama Democratic Party.

Perhaps ALGOP chairwoman Terry Lathan should mail a check to Joe Reed and encourage him to keep up his good work, because his shameless antics are going to ensure Alabama remains Republican for a long time.

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BUSINESS | THE REAL DEAL

Baldwin County homes now sell in a day or less

BY RON SIVAK/COLUMNIST/BUSINESS@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

A

ccording to the Baldwin County Association of Realtors (BCAR) report for July, it’s not uncommon for homes in Baldwin County, freshly earmarked for sale, to get snatched up by buyers in a day or less.

Although home sales and prices dipped slightly last month compared to the same time last year, homes are spending far less time on the market, per the BCAR study.

Residential active inventory in July 2018 totaled 3,187, with 707 properties sold — essentially the same as July 2017, when 708 residential properties were sold.

However, homes are selling far more quickly. Median days-on-market percentages dropped an eye-popping 52 percent — from 185 days last July to just 88 days this July.

Total sales volume last month decreased 7 percent, to $198,755,110 from $212,096,072 in July 2017.

The average sales prices of residential properties in Baldwin County this July decreased 6 percent from July 2017. Last year, the average sales price was $299,570; this year, the average was $281,124.

Here are residential MLS stats by area: Central Baldwin • Residential properties sold in July 2018: 170 • Average sales price: $182,535 • Average days on market: 78 • Average sales price change from July 2017: up 7.12 percent Coastal condos • Residential properties sold in July 2018: 116 • Average sales price: $347,916 • Average days on market: 74 • Average sales price change from July 2017: down 9.37 percent Coastal homes • Residential properties sold in July 2018: 80 • Average sales price: $377,951 • Average days on market: 141 • Average sales price change from July 2017: up 10.6 percent

Eastern Shore • Residential properties sold in July 2018: 229 • Average sales price: $298,042 • Average days on market: 80 • Average sales price change from July 2017: up 8.45 percent North Baldwin • Residential properties sold in July 2018: 18 • Average sales price: $155,538 • Average days on market: 72 • Average sales price change from July 2017: down 13.15 percent BCAR is a professional trade association supporting more than 2,000 real estate professionals in the Baldwin County area. BCAR supports members through professional education, peer networking and MLS services. More information about the association can be found on its website.

Commercial real estate moves

• Lafayette Land Co. reported Tim and Claire Gautreaux, the owners of Nova Espresso, have executed a lease at 306 St. Anthony St., situated on the corner of North Claiborne Street and directly behind the forthcoming St. Louis Street Innovation Center. The locally owned business will operate as a specialty organic coffee shop, with plans to open this fall.

• According to the website of New York-based commercial real estate portfolio manager Brixmor, plans are in place to develop a new 20,000-square-foot Shoe Station, an 18,298-square-foot Cost Plus World Market and a 25,656-square-foot Bed, Bath & Beyond on the north side of the Springdale Shopping Center at 3250 Airport Blvd. in Mobile. Construction timelines and opening dates were unknown as of press time.

• Stanford Academy in Semmes recently purchased a building at 2811 Schillinger Road and will be relocating by the end of the year. Paul Carter with the Paul Carter Agency represented both the buyer and seller in the transaction.

Wilkins Miller among “Best Companies to Work For”

Wilkins Miller, an accounting and advisory firm with offices in Mobile and Fairhope, was recently named one of the 2018 “Best Companies to work for in Alabama” by Business Alabama and the Best Companies Group.

The firm earned runner-up for “best companies in Alabama” and the top accounting firm in the small-to-medium company category. Wilkins Miller was formally recognized and honored in the August edition of Business Alabama magazine.

“We are thrilled to be recognized as the second-best company to work for in Alabama for our category,” Wilkins Miller managing partner Allen Carroll said.

“To be acknowledged as a best company for the fourth year in a row is an incredible accomplishment and is a product of our amazing team.”

Wilkins Miller competed with companies across the state considered by Best Companies Group for a place on the 2018 list. The judging process included a two-part survey process, which included evaluating workplace policies, systems, demographics and employee surveys to measure employee experience. Combined scores determined the top companies and the final ranking.

“There are many accomplished companies in our category, so we are very honored to receive this acknowledgement,” Wilkins Miller partner Michael Kintz said. “Our employees make this possible by maintaining an environment that attracts and retains quality people.”

Wilkins Miller specializes in the accounting areas of auditing, tax, litigation, valuation, cost segregation, outsourced accounting and information technology consulting. More information about the firm can be found on its website.

Sears Hometown Store recognized

The Sears Hometown Store at the Jubilee Shopping Center, 6845 U.S. Highway 90 in Daphne, has been named a 2018 “Sears Hometown Premier Store.”

This marks five consecutive years that the locally owned franchise has been recognized with the award.

The Daphne store is also one of only 121 locations throughout the company’s 1,300-plus unit system to receive national recognition so far this year. Approximately 10 percent of Sears Hometown Stores throughout the country receive the accolade each year.

“We strive to serve our community with the highest level of customer service, so this recognition speaks volumes to the hard work and dedication of our employees,” George Misleh, owner and operator of the Daphne store, said.

“George and his employees set a prime example for all other stores in our system to follow,” Will Powell, CEO and president of Sears Hometown and Outlet Stores Inc., said.

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CUISINE THE REVIEW

Buzz on over to Daphne’s Southwood Kitchen

BY ANDY MACDONALD/CUISINE EDITOR | FATMANSQUEEZE@COMCAST.NET

SOUTHWOOD KITCHEN 1203 HIGHWAY 98, #3 DAPHNE 36526 251-626-6676

O

Back to school, back to cafeteria

16 | L AG N I A P P E | A u g u s t 2 2 , 2 0 1 8 - A u g u s t 2 8 , 2 0 1 8

DAPHNE’S SOUTHWOOD KITCHEN, COMMANDED BY CHEF JEREMIAH MATTHEWS, FEATURES FINE DINING IN A CASUAL ATMOSPHERE WITH EVER-CHANGING INTERNATIONALLY AND SEASONALLY INSPIRED SMALL PLATES AND ENTRÉES.

Our server, Jason, could not have been more helpful, and when he fetched us boxes I told him there was no room for dessert. I relented when he told me the options. We pondered the cheesecake with créme brûlée top (?!?!) and fell for the apple cobbler ($8) with ice cream and four spoons. It was as good as I expected. I finished the meal with a glass of Courvoisier ($10) after being told there was no port. Katie had Community Coffee ($2) and it was great.

Everything we had was wonderful. Lest you think I’m overly kind, I’ll drum up some negativity.

The ambience is a little lacking. I don’t love how bright it is after sundown. And if you run out of oysters before 7 p.m. you should consider another sack.

Minor offenses aside, I think Southwood Kitchen has been around long enough to say they’ve lived up to the hype. Jason nailed it from a server aspect and the kitchen staff was stellar. I don’t feel anything was lacking. From flavor to service to expediency it was top-notch, and that has to be tough with four people ordering nine different things. I’ll be back for elk and oysters.

subject of controversy last year when a less than flattering pic popped up on Facebook, prompting MCPSS to post a recipe (and a better pic) that feeds 100. Salisbury steak is polarizing to some students but for the most part is another mark in the “win” category. A steady supply of whole-grain rolls and fresh fruit with each meal makes me feel like a failure as a parent.

But what if you still want to control your own lunch destiny? There are some new developments. Due to an alleged vodka incident last year, older students at Phillips are no longer allowed to bring water bottles. It’s OK for the elementary students (I assume to bring only water).

At Council Traditional, Graham is allowed zero nuts of any kind, but Lucas says although he can’t have nuts people bring peanut butter and jelly every day. If your school is antipeanut butter, ask if you can have alternative nut butters such as almond or macadamia nut. You’d be surprised what you can grind at Rouses.

There is also the chocolate debate. Students aren’t allowed to bring a chocolate bar to class for snacks in most scenarios but the occasional chocolate chip cookie seems OK. There could be some sort of plot for every kid to bring a cookie and remove the chips to create a giant blob of pure,

Photo | MCPSS

WORD OF MOUTH

By now you’re all back in class. It’s that moment where you commit, almost like a New Year’s resolution, to whether you’ll bring a sack lunch to the cafeteria or eat the standardissue food like a good little follower.

Truth is, the cafeteria is good, often really good. I have trouble cooking for four sometimes. Imagine what it takes to cook for hundreds, all while staying within certain health guidelines. These cafeteria workers are unsung heroes of the Mobile County Public School System (MCPSS).

Not everything is a home run, but don’t let that send you to the corner with your brown bag. Mama bends the rules when it comes to health just to make her little Johnny appreciate her more. I sat down and interviewed a former brown bagger turned full-time cafeteria eater and got the real scoop on what the kids eat and don’t eat. I spoke to Lucas MacDonald, eighth grader, Phillips Prep.

Pressed for dirt, Lucas didn’t have a lot of negative things to say. Anything with pulled pork isn’t a favorite. They do a thing with egg rolls, pork and vegetables he isn’t fond of.

The cheeseburgers are dry. Other than that, he was stuck.

On the positive side, Lucas had high praise for the potato soup, square pizza and shepherd’s pie. The latter was the

Photo | Daniel Anderson/Lagniappe

nce in a blue moon a restaurant comes along and almost immediately rises to local cuisine stardom. But an instant reputation for being great is something that warns me to proceed with caution, as I’ve been burned before, both ways.

Early on a good buzz can get you through the door, only to be disappointed, and a few months later the joint becomes stellar. Other times you get deceived by a great initial experience that loses steam and fizzles out, so take those early reviews with a grain of salt.

This month’s mark was certainly the most talked about restaurant of the year from where I’m listening. Southwood Kitchen is commanded by Chef Jeremiah Matthews, known for his menu at the acclaimed Jesse’s of Magnolia Springs. In the former Rosie’s Grill (next to the Record Bar) in Daphne, Southwood didn’t leave that piece of real estate vacant too long before making Highway 98 its home.

So, early on I was hearing good things about this place. Let me spoil it for you: It’s great. With that drama out of the way, let’s discuss why.

It was back-to-school week for Graham and Lucas. I wanted a special dinner before the third and eighth grades stole my boys from me, so after crossing the bay twice, I changed into fine dining/ casual atmosphere clothes and crossed it again with the whole family in tow. Making our 6:30 p.m. reservation early, with Katie driving, I treated myself to a Dettling ($10) bourbon of Big Escambia Spirits, Alabama’s first field-to-glass bourbon since Prohibition. It’s smooth. I need more.

I’ve been asked “What did you eat?” many times by inquisitive friends. The answer is, pretty much everything. We ate most of the menu. Round one began with deviled duck eggs ($7). Larger and creamier than their chicken counterparts, this plateful had a Japanese twist to it with duck skin furikake lending a salty flavor that was pretty powerful.

Pimiento cheese and pork rinds ($8) made in-house were a delight. I’m nowhere near sick of pimiento cheese, nor of pork rinds. The yellow pimiento cheese was smooth, a must for the brittle skins.

If you’re celebrating big, why not dive into three appetizers? Pork belly+watermelon salad ($12) was definitely my favorite, with a red wine vinaigrette and a bit of arugula. I’m kind of over the fad of pork belly, but this was fantastic next to watermelon that was perhaps lightly grilled on one side.

To sweeten the pot, diced pickled sweet peppers and feta were sprinkled atop the near-perfect dish.

Girls order first, so Katie began with Niman Ranch filet of pig ($19). Served medium, this succulent piece of meat did not go to waste, herb salt grilled with a peppercorn port demi glacé. Paired with mushroom and sweet pea risotto, it was a heck of a meal.

Graham was happy with the kids menu and the grilled cheese ($6). Alongside hand-cut fries, the little man seemed pleased. I asked how he rated it. “About a six,” he said. Don’t get your feelings hurt, Chef. He’s a pro with very high standards. He only gives a 10 to pot stickers.

I wanted the oysters so bad I considered ordering double, but to my dismay they sold out before I got a chance to order any. May as well order two more appetizers for my meal.

I started with the Diver Scallops ($16 for two). These little buggers came with goat cheese green onion orzo with arugula and pickled red onion. The lunchbox pepper gastrique gave it the caramelized sweetness it deserved.

BBQ shrimp ($10) was not that different from the New Orleans versions, with a shrimp stock butter sauce and grilled bread. I was tempted to drink the sauce, but instead allowed my family to dip the complimentary bread we’d ignored to this point.

Lucas is at that point of really testing the man side of the menu. He’s come into his own at 13 as an omnivore. I used to worry about his myopic appetite. I worry no more. He was eyeballing the bacon-wrapped elk chop (he knows elk is my favorite) but changed his tune for the bone-in ribeye ($37). Keep your strips and filets, the MacDonald boys go for ribeye every time. My little city slicker caveman smartly ordered mid-rare and explained the bloody meat to his little brother. Proud parent moment, indeed. I was prouder still when he shared his mashed potatoes with bone marrow butter. A better steak and potato meal I’ve not had in some time.

The Mobile County Public School System’s recipe for shepherd’s pie includes ground beef, potatoes, green peas, sliced carrots, cheese and gravy.

unadulterated, sugar high-inducing chocolate, but at this point the school system finds that unlikely. When I was in school we sold Caramellos and “World’s Finest Chocolate” as fundraisers, and back then they were twice the size they are now and loaded with almonds.

Be safe. Just eat the cafeteria food. You’ll learn to love it.

Recycle!

EUGENE’S MONKEY BAR ($)

5602 Old Shell Rd. • 219-7086 920 Industrial Pkwy • Saraland • 378-5314

FATHOMS LOUNGE

MONTEGO’S ($-$$)

15 N Conception St. • 378-9377

SMALL PLATES AND CREATIVE COCKTAILS 64 S. Water St. • 438-4000

FLOUR GIRLS BAKERY ($)

FRESH CARIBBEAN-STYLE FOOD & CRAFT BEER 6601 Airport Blvd. • 634-3445 225 Dauphin St. • 375-1576

FIREHOUSE SUBS ($)

809 Hillcrest Rd. • 634-2285 $10/PERSON • $$ 10-25/PERSON • $$$ OVER 25/PERSON

COMPLETELY COMFORTABLE ALL SPORTS BAR & GRILL ($) 3408 Pleasant Valley Rd. • 345-9338

AL’S HOTDOGS ($)

CLASSIC HOTDOGS, GYROS & MILKSHAKES 4701 Airport Blvd. • 342-3243

ATLANTA BREAD COMPANY ($-$$) SANDWICHES, SALADS & MORE. 3680 Dauphin St. • 380-0444

BAKE MY DAY ($)

OLD-FASHIONED SOUTHERN BAKE SHOP 156 N. McGregor Ave. • 219-7261

BOB’S DINER ($)

GOOD OLD AMERICAN COOKING 263 St. Francis St. • 405-1497

BIG WHITE WINGS ($)

405 S Wilson Ave. • Prichard• 301-7880

BRICK & SPOON ($)

3662 Airport Blvd. Suite A • 378-8378

CAFE 219 ($)

SALADS, SANDWICHES & POTATO SALAD 219 Conti St. • 438-5234

CAMELLIA CAFÉ ($-$$$)

CONTEMPORARY SOUTHERN FARE 61 Section St. • Fairhope • 928-4321

CAMMIE’S OLD DUTCH ($) MOBILE’S CLASSIC ICE CREAM SPOT 2511 Old Shell Rd. • 471-1710

HOT SUBS, COLD SALADS & CATERING 3694 Airport Blvd • 342-2352 5300-C Halls Mill Rd • 660-0995 3075 Government Blvd B105 • 461-6080 6300 Grelot Rd. • 631-3730 6890 US-90 #6 • Daphne • 625-8723 9912 Dimitrios Blvd • Daphne • 626-7827 113 S Greeno Rd • Fairhope • 990-3970

FIVE GUYS BURGERS & FRIES ($) BURGERS, MILKSHAKES & FRIES 4401 Old Shell Rd. • 447-2394 4663 Airport Blvd. • 300-8425 5319 Hwy 90 • 661-0071 1225 Satchel Page Dr.• 378-8768 6860 US-90 • Daphne • 626-4278

FOOSACKLY’S ($)

FAMOUS CHICKEN FINGERS 29181 US Hwy 98 • Daphne • 375-1104 7843 Moffett Rd. • 607-6196 1109 Shelton Beach Rd. • 287-1423 310 S. University Blvd. • 343-0047 2250 Airport Blvd. • 479-2922 7641 Airport Blvd. • 607-7667 2558 Schillinger Rd. • 219-7761 3249 Dauphin St. • 479-2000

FOY SUPERFOODS ($) 119 Dauphin St.• 307-8997

GULF COAST EXPLOREUM CAFE ($) HOMEMADE SOUPS & SANDWICHES 65 Government St. • 208-6815

HOOTERS ($)

CARPE DIEM ($)

3869 Airport Blvd. • 345-9544 5470 Inn Rd. • 661-9117 28975 US 98 • Daphne • 625-3910

CLARK’S KITCHEN ($-$$)

MIND-BLOWING ISLAND FOOD 3700 Gov’t Blvd. • 602-1973

DELI FOODS, PASTRIES & SPECIALTY DRINKS 4072 Old Shell Rd. • 304-0448 CATERING 5817 Old Shell Rd. • 622-0869

CLEAN EATZ ($)

7335 Airport Blvd. • 654-1575

CHICK-FIL-A ($)

12 N Royal St • 415-1700 107 St. Francis St. • 415-1700 3244 Dauphin St. • 476-0320 3215 Bel Air Mall • 476-8361 4707 Airport Blvd. • 461-9933 435 Schillinger Rd. • 639-1163 1682 US HWY 98 • Daphne • 621-3215 30500 AL 181 • Spanish Fort • 621-3020

CHICKEN SALAD CHICK ($)

CHICKEN SALAD, SALAD & SOUP 2370 S. Hillcrest Rd. Unit R • 660-0501 5753 Old Shell Rd. • 408-3236 1802 US Hwy 98 Suite F• 625-1092

CHI-TOWN DAWGZ ($) CHICAGO STYLE EATERY 1222 Hillcrest Rd. • 461-6599

DAUPHIN ST. CAFE ($)

HOT LUNCH, DAILY MENU (INSIDE VIA) 1717 Dauphin St. • 470-5231

D’ MICHAEL’S ($)

PHILLY CHEESE STEAKS, GYROS & MORE 7101-A Theodore Dawes Rd. • 653-2979

D NU SPOT ($)

JAMAICAN VIBE ($) JERSEY MIKE’S ($)

AUTHENTIC SUB SANDWICHES 29660 AL-181 • Daphne • 626-3161 3151 Daupin St• 525-9917 7449 Airport Blvd. • 375-1820

JIMMY JOHN’S ($)

SANDWICHES, CATERING & DELIVERY TOO 6920 Airport Blvd. • 414-5444 9 Du Rhu Dr. • 340-8694 62 S Royal St. • 432-0360

JOE CAIN CAFÉ ($)

SLAP YOUR MAMA GOOD HOME COOKING 220 Dauphin St. • 432-6262

BREAKFAST, HOT LUNCH & GREAT DESSERTS 23 Upham St. • 473-6115

MARY’S SOUTHERN COOKING ($)

CLASSIC BURGERS, HOTDOGS & SETTING 1808 Old Shell Rd. • 473-7872

DUNKIN DONUTS ($)

DONUTS, COFFEE & SANDWICHES 5701 Old Shell Rd Ste 100 • 442-4846 29160 US Hwy 98 • Daphne •621-2228

E WING HOUSE ($)

1956 S University Blvd. Suite H • 662-1829

OVEN-BAKED SANDWICHES & MORE 1335 Satchel Page Dr. Suite C. • 287-7356 7440 Airport Blvd. • 633-0096 Eastern Shore Center • Spanish Fort • 625-6544

GREAT SANDWICHES, COFFEE & MORE 1087 Downtowner Blvd. • 643-1611 3011 Springhill Ave. • 476-2232

MICHELI’S CAFE ($)

6358 Cottage Hill Rd. • 725-6917

MCSHARRY’S ($-$$)

AUTHENTIC IRISH PUB 101 N. Bancroft St.• 990-5100

MOMMA GOLDBERG’S DELI ($) SANDWICHES & MOMMA’S LOVE 3696 Airport Blvd. • 344-9500

THE SUNFLOWER CAFE ($)

HIGH QUALITY FOOD & DRINKS 251 Government St • 432-8000

THYME BY THE BAY ($-$$)

HIGH QUALITY FOOD WITH A VIEW 107 St. Francis St/RSA Building • 444-0200

O’DALYS HOLE IN THE WALL ($) 562 Dauphin St.• 725-6429

PANINI PETE’S ($)

ORIGINAL SANDWICH AND BAKE SHOP 42 ½ Section St. • Fairhope • 929-0122 102 Dauphin St. • 405-0031

PAT’S DOWNTOWN GRILL ($) BAR FOOD 271 Dauphin St • 438-9585

POLLMAN’S BAKERY ($)

BAKERY, SANDWICHES & MORE 750 S. Broad St. • 438-1511 4464 Old Shell Rd. • 342-8546 107 St. Francis St. Suite 102 • 438-2261

PUNTA CLARA KITCHEN ($)

MEDITERRANEAN SANDWICH COMPANY ($)

TROPICAL SMOOTHIE ($)

LAUNCH ($-$$)

DUMBWAITER ($$-$$$) 9 Du Rhu Dr. Suite 201 167 Dauphin St. • 445-3802

GREAT FOOD AND COCKTAILS 609 Dauphin St. • 308-3105

LIGHT LUNCH WITH SOUTHERN FLAIR. 226 Dauphin St. • 433-1689

CONTEMPORARY AMERICAN FOOD 351A George & Savannah St. • 436-8890

GREAT SMOOTHIES, WRAPS & SANDWICHES. 9 Du Rhu Dr. • 378-5648 7450 Airport Blvd. A • 634-3454 570 Schillinger Rd. • 634-3454 29740 Urgent Care Dr.• 626-1160

HIGH QUALITY FOOD & DRINKS 251 Government St. • 432-8000

WAREHOUSE BAKERY & DONUTS ($) COFFEE AND DONUTS 759 Nichols Avenue, Fairhope • 928-7223

WILD WING STATION ($)

1500 Government St. • 287-1526

THE WINDMILL MARKET ($)

85 N. Bancroft St. • Fairhope • 990.8883

YAK THE KATHMANDU KITCHEN ($-$$)

334 Fairhope Ave • Fairhope • 928-2399

‘CUE

SANDWICHES, SUBS & SOUPS 2056 Gov’t St. • 476-2777

MOBILE’S OLDEST MIDDLE EASTERN CUISINE 4715 Airport Blvd/Regency Square • 304-1155

GREAT MEDITERRANEAN FOOD. 5951 Old Shell Rd. • 460-9191

FUDGE, PRALINES & MORE 17111 Scenic Hwy 98 • Fairhope • 928-8477

REGINA’S KITCHEN ($-$$)

JERUSALEM CAFE ($-$$)

KITCHEN ON GEORGE ($-$$)

AMERICAN RESTAURANT & BAR 250 Dauphin St. • 476-1890

AUTHENTIC FOODS FROM HIMALAYAN REGION 3210 Dauphin St. • 287-0115 400 Eastern Shore Center • Fairhope •990-6192

R BISTRO ($-$$)

4861 Bit & Spur Rd. • 340-6464

THREE GEORGES CANDY SHOP ($)

DOWN-HOME COUNTRY COOKIN 7351 Theodore Dawes Rd. • 654-0228

NOURISH CAFE ($)

HEALTHY WHOLE FOODS & MORE 101 N Water St. (Moorer YMCA)• 458-8572

ABBA’S MEDITERRANEAN CAFE ($-$$)

FIVE ($$)

TIME TO EAT CAFE ($) TP CROCKMIERS ($)

7070 Bruns Drive• 776-6570

7 SPICE ($-$$)

GREAT & QUICK. 2502 Schillinger Rd. Ste. 2 • 725-0126 3702 Airport Blvd. • 308-2131 6890 US-90 • Daphne • 621-2271 274 Dauphin St. • 545-3161

33 N Section St. • Fairhope • 990-5635

NEXUS CINEMA DINING ($$)

BACKYARD CAFE & BBQ ($) HOME COOKIN’ LIKE MOMMA MADE 3211 Moffett Rd • 473-4739

MAGHEE’S GRILL ON THE HILL ($-$$)

MINT HOOKAH BISTRO ($)

OLLIE’S MEDITERRANEAN GRILL ($-$$) MEDITERRANEAN RESTAURANT & HOOKAH 1248 Hillcrest St • 634-9820

TAZIKI’S ($-$$)

GREAT LUNCH & DINNER 3607 Old Shell Rd. • 445-8700

MEDITERRANEAN CAFE 9 Du Rhu Dr Suite 300 • 378-2678 1539 US HWY 98•Daphne • 273-3337

LOCAL INGREDIENTS 203 Dauphin St. • 690-6824

FAR EASTERN FARE

NOBLE SOUTH ($$) NOJA ($$-$$$)

INVENTIVE & VERY FRESH CUISINE 6 N. Jackson St. • 433-0377

ANG BAHAY KUBO ($$)

4513 Old Shell Rd. D• 473-0007

AROY THAI ($$)

OSMAN’S RESTAURANT ($$)

966 Government St.• 408-9001

ROYAL SCAM ($$)

TRADITIONAL JAPANESE WITH HIBACHI GRILLS 650 Cody Rd. S • 300-8383

SUPREME EUROPEAN CUISINE 2579 Halls Mill Rd. • 479-0006

BAMBOO STEAKHOUSE & SUSHI BAR ($$)

GUMBO, ANGUS BEEF & BAR 72. S. Royal St. • 432-SCAM (7226)

BANGKOK THAI ($-$$)

RUTH’S CHRIS STEAK HOUSE ($$$) EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE & TASTE 2058 Airport Blvd • 476-0516

DELICIOUS, TRADITIONAL THAI CUISINE 28600 US 98 • Daphne • 626-5286 3821 Airport Blvd. • 344-9995

ROLY POLY ($)

BAR-B-QUING WITH MY HONEY ($$)

SAGE RESTAURANT ($$)

BANZAI JAPANESE RESTAURANT ($$)

ROSHELL’S CAFE ($)

BAY BARBECUE ($)

SOUTHERN NATIONAL ($$-$$$)

BENJAS ($)

ROYAL KNIGHT ($)

COTTON STATE BBQ ($)

WRAPS & SALADS 3220 Dauphin St. • 479-2480

BBQ, BURGERS, WINGS & SEAFOOD 19170 Hwy 43 Mt. Vernon. • 829-9227

2904 Springhill Ave. • 479-4614

THE TASTE OF MOBILE 59 N Florida St. • 408-9997

LUNCH & DINNER 3004 Gov’t Blvd. • 287-1220

JUDY’S PLACE ($-$$)

MARS HILL CAFE ($)

DEW DROP INN ($)

NEWK’S EXPRESS CAFE ($)

COFFEE, SMOOTHIES, LUNCH & BEERS. 5460 Old Shell Rd. • 344-4575

MAMA’S ($)

THE PIGEON HOLE ($)

DAUPHIN’S ($$-$$$)

SATORI COFFEEHOUSE ($)

PUB FOOD AND DRAFT BEERS 251 Dauphin St. • 287-6871

113 Dauphin St.• 436-0989

320 Eastern Shore Shopping Center •Fairhope • 929-0055 3055 A Dauphin St. • 479-3200

A VARIETY COMFORT F00D. BREAKFAST ALL DAY. 6882 US-90 • Daphne • (251) 621-3749

LODA BIER GARTEN ($)

HEALTHY, DELICIOUS MEDITERRANEAN FOOD. 3762 Airport Blvd. • 725-1177

SEAFOOD AND SUSHI 551 Dauphin St.• 219-7051

MUFFINS, COFFEE & WRAPS 105 Dauphin St. • 433-9855

MOSTLY MUFFINS ($)

JUBILEE DINER ($-$$)

3915 Gov’t Blvd. • 219-7922 3226 Dauphin St. • 471-2590

THE HARBERDASHER ($)

CHUCK’S FISH ($$)

107 St Francis St #115 • RSA Bank Trust Building

BAKERY 5638 Three Notch Rd.• 219-6379

LICKIN’ GOOD DONUTS ($)

FALAFEL? TRY SOME HUMMUS

CLASSIC STEAKHOUSE + FRESH FISH 17107 Tennis Club Dr. • Fairhope • 517-7700

CORNER 251 ($-$$)

SALLY’S PIECE-A-CAKE ($)

HOME COOKING 4054 Government Blvd. • 665-4547

CHAR 32 ($$$)

OPEN FOR LUNCH, INSIDE GULFQUEST 155 S. Water St • 436-8901

SOUTHERN COOKING & THEN SOME 1716 Main St. • Daphne • 222-4120

PIZZAS, SANDWICHES, COCKTAILS 26 N. Royal St. • 338-4334

2159 Halls Mill Rd. . • 648-6522

DELISH BAKERY AND EATERY ($)

MOON PIE GENERAL STORE ($)

THE GALLEY ($)

SERDA’S COFFEEHOUSE ($)

COFFEE, LUNCHES, LIVE MUSIC & GELATO 3 Royal St. S. • 415-3000 1539 US-98 • Daphne • 517-3963

SIMPLY SWEET ($)

DOWNTOWN LUNCH 101 N. Conception St. • 545-4682

DICKEY’S BARBECUE PIT ($-$$)

BBQ AND MORE 6882 US-90 G2/Jubilee Square •Daphne• 210-2151 1390 W D6 Tingle Circle East/McGowin Park• 471-1050 7721 Airport Blvd. E100/Westwood Plaza • 380-8957

THE BLIND MULE ($)

DAILY SPECIALS MADE FROM SCRATCH 57 N. Claiborne St. • 694-6853

CASUAL FINE DINING 104 N. Section St. • Fairhope • 929-2219

CHINA DOLL SEAFOOD RESTAURANT($)

THE TRELLIS ROOM ($$$)

CONTEMPORARY SOUTHERN CUISINE Battle House Hotel, Royal St. • 338-5493

3966 Airport Blvd.• 343-5530

CHEF 181 ($)

MOE’S ORIGINAL BAR B QUE ($)

WINE, BEER, GOURMET FOODS, & MORE. 720 Schillinger Rd. S. Unit 8 • 287-1851

TRADITIONAL TEXAS BARBEQUE 212.5 Fairhope Ave. • 270-7250

SPECIALTY GROCER/DELI 650 St. Louis St. • 251-308-8488

960 Schillinger Rd. S • 660-4470

CHARM THAI KITCHEN & SUSHI BAR ($-$$)

THAI FARE AND SUSHI 2000 Airport Blvd. • 478-9888

5401 Cottage Hill Rd. • 591-4842

SUNSET POINTE ($-$$)

THE CHEESE COTTAGE ($$)

TAMARA’S DOWNTOWN ($$)

SEAFOOD, ASIAN & AMERICAN CUISINE 69 St. Michael St • 375-1113

MEAT BOSS ($)

SUGAR RUSH DONUT CO. ($) AT FLY CREEK 831 N Section St. • Fairhope • 990-7766

THAI & SUSHI 5369 US-90 • 661-5100

A LITTLE VINO

RIBS, SANDWICHES & GREAT SIDES 3314 Old Shell Rd. • 479-9898

AWARD-WINNING BARBQUE 1111 Gov’t Blvd. • 433-7427

4701 Airport Blvd. • 408-3379

VON’S BISTRO ($-$$)

ASIAN FUSION RESTAURANT 10179 Eastern Shore D • Spanish Fort • 621-2104

STEVIE’S KITCHEN ($)

SANDWICHES, SOUPS, SALADS & MORE 41 West I-65 Service Rd. N Suite 150. • 287-2793

360 Dauphin St • 308-2387

TRADITIONAL SUSHI & LUNCH. 312 Schillinger Rd./Ambassador Plaza• 633-9077

THE WASH HOUSE ($$)

DREAMLAND BBQ ($)

BARBEQUE & MUSIC 4672 Airport Blvd. • 410-6377 701 Springhill Ave. • 410-7427 3385 Schillinger Rd N #1 • 410-7428 6423 Bayfront Park Dr. • Daphne • 625-7427

CUPCAKE BOUTIQUE 6207 Cottage Hill Rd. Suite B • 665-3003

INSIDE THE MOBILE MARRIOTT 3101 Airport Blvd. • 476-6400

SAUCY Q BARBQUE ($) TEXARBAMA BBQ($)

DROP DEAD GOURMET BAY GOURMET ($$)

A PREMIER CATERER & COOKING CLASSES 1880-A Airport Blvd. • 450-9051

BRIQUETTES STEAKHOUSE ($-$$) GRILLED STEAKS, CHICKEN & SEAFOOD 312 Schillinger Rd • 607-7200 901 Montlimar Dr • 408-3133

17111 Scenic HWY 98 • Point Clear • 928-4838

DOMKE MARKET

FOOD PAK INTERNATIONAL FOODS FOOD, WINE & MORE 5150 Old Shell Rd. • 341-1497

FUJI SAN ($)

HALAL CUISINE OF INDIA ($$) LUNCH BUFFET 3674 Airport Blvd. • 341-6171

HIBACHI 1 ($-$$)

2370 Hillcrest Rd.• 380-6062

POUR BABY

ICHIBAN ($)

FIREHOUSE WINE BAR & SHOP

KAI JAPANESE RESTAURANT ($-$$)

WINE BAR, CRAFT BEERS & BISTRO 6808 Airport Blvd. • 343-3555 216 St Francis St. • 421-2022

RED OR WHITE

JAPANESE & CHINESE CUISINE 3959 Cottage Hill Rd • 666-6266 QUALITY FOOD, EXCELLENT SERVICE 5045 Cottage Hill Rd. • 607-6454

323A De La Mare Ave, Fairhope • 990-0003 1104 Dauphin St.. • 478-9494

LIQUID SUSHI LOUNGE ($$)

LIVE MUSIC, MARTINIS & DINNER MENU. 26 N. Royal St. • 338-2000

RICE ASIAN GRILL & SUSHI BAR ($)

ROYAL STREET TAVERN SOUTHERN NAPA

BISTRO PLATES, CRAFT BEERS & PANTRY 2304 Main St. • 375-2800

AMAZING SUSHI & ASSORTMENT OF ROLLS. 661 Dauphin St. • 432-0109 3964 Government Blvd. • 378-8083

ROCK N ROLL SUSHI ($$) 273 S. McGregor Ave • 287-0445 6345 Airport Blvd. • 287-0555

A u g u s t 2 2 , 2 0 1 8 - A u g u s t 2 8 , 2 0 1 8 | L AG N I A P P E | 17

940 Industrial Pkwy • 308-2158 6850 US HWY 98 • Daphne • 753-4367 2601 S McKenzie St •Foley • 943-4648

SHO GUN ($$)

JAPANESE ENTREES, SUSHI & HIBACHI TABLES 7038 Airport Blvd • 304-0021

SIAM THAI CUISINE & SUSHI BAR ($$) 915 Hillcrest Rd. Suite C • 380-9111

STIX ($$)

10240 Eastern Shore Blvd • 621-9088

CAJUN KITCHEN & SEAFOOD MARKET 2005 Government St. • 478-9897

ISLAND WING CO ($)

CAJUN INSPIRED/FRESH SEAFOOD & MORE 621 N Craft Hwy • Chickasaw • 422-3412

MANCIS ($)

OFF THE HOOK MARINA & GRILL ($) RALPH & KACOO’S ($-$$) THE SEAFOOD RESTAURANT 1595 Battleship Pkwy. • 626-0045

R&R SEAFOOD ($-$$)

SUSHI 9 THAI & JAPANESE ($$)

LAID-BACK EATERY & FISH MARKET 1477 Battleship Pkwy. • 621-8366

TASTE OF THAI ($$)

SEAFOOD, BURGERS & STEAKS 6120 Marina Dr. • Dog River • 443-7318

720 Schillinger Rd • 607-7073

9091 US-90 • Irvington • 957-1414

TEAK HOUSE

RIVER SHACK ($-$$)

THE GRAND MARINER ($-$$)

1703 US-98 • Daphne • 625-8680

LOCAL SEAFOOD & PRODUCE 6036 Rock Point Rd. • 443-7540

JAPANESE CUISINE 3654 Airport Blvd • 725-6078

UNIQUE SEAFOOD 64 S. Water St. • 438-4000

WASABI SUSHI ($$)

FROM THE DEPTHS BAUDEAN’S ($$)

FRIED, GRILLED, STEAMED & ALWAYS FRESH 3300 River Rd. • 973-9070

THE BLUEGILL ($-$$)

A HISTORIC SEAFOOD DIVE W/ LIVE MUSIC 3775 Battleship Pkwy • 625-1998

BONEFISH GRILL ($$)

ECLECTIC DINING & SPACE 6955 Airport Blvd. • 633-7196

BOUDREAUX’S CAJUN GRILL ($-$$) QUALITY CAJUN & NEW ORLEANS CUISINE 29249 US Highway 98 Daphne. • 621-1991

CRAVIN CAJUN/ MUDBUGS DIP SEAFOOD ($)

PO-BOYS, SALADS & SEAFOOD 1870 Dauphin Island Pkwy • 287-1168 • 479-0123

ED’S SEAFOOD SHED ($$)

FRIED SEAFOOD SERVED IN HEFTY PORTIONS 3382 Battleship Pkwy • 625-1947

FELIX’S FISH CAMP ($$) UPSCALE DINING WITH A VIEW 1530 Battleship Pkwy • 626-6710

FISHERMAN’S LEGACY ($) DELI, MARKET AND CATERING. 4380 Halls Mill Rd. • 665-2200

HALF SHELL OYSTER HOUSE ($) 30500 AL-181 • Spanish Fort • 206-8768 3654 Airport Blvd. • 338-9350

LULU’S ($$)

LIVE MUSIC & GREAT SEAFOOD 200 E. 25th Ave. • Gulf Shores • 967-5858

MUDBUGS AT THE LOOP ($)

EVERYTHING BAKED OR GRILLED 2617 Dauphin St. • 476-9464 3947 AL-59 Suite 100 • Gulf Shores • 970-1337

OLD 27 GRILL ($)

A TASTE OF ITALY. BYOB. 28691 U.S. Highway 98 • 626-1999

LUCKY IRISH PUB ($)

AUTHENTIC ITALIAN DISHES 312 Fairhope Ave. • Fairhope • 990-5535

MCSHARRY’S IRISH PUB ($)

BRILLIANT REUBENS & FISH-N-CHIPS. 101 N. Brancroft St. Fairhope • 990-5100 BAR & GRILL 6255 Airport Blvd. • 447-2514 BURGERS, DOGS & 27 BEERS & WINES. 19992 Alabama 181 • Fairhope• 281-2663

THE SEAFOOD HOUSE ($-$$)

WINGS, BURGERS & OTHER AMERICAN CHOW 104 N Section St • Fairhope • 929-2219

TIN TOP RESTAURANT & OYSTER BAR ($$)

WINGS, TENDERS, HOTDOGS & SANDWICHES 312 Schillinger Rd. • 633-5877

WINTZELL’S OYSTER HOUSE ($-$$) FRESH SEAFOOD FOR OVER 75 YEARS 805 S Mobile St • Fairhope • 929-2322 605 Dauphin St. • 432-4605 6700 Airport Blvd. • 341-1111 1208 Shelton Beach Rd. • Saraland • 442-3335

IS THE GAME ON?

ASHLAND MIDTOWN PUB ($-$$)

TAMARA’S DOWNTOWN ($) WEMOS ($)

MAMA MIA!

BUCK’S PIZZA ($$)

DELIVERY 350 Dauphin St. • 431-9444

BUSTER’S BRICK OVEN ($-$$)

FAMOUS BURGERS, SANDWICHES & WINGS 60 N. Florida St. • 450-0690

CALLAGHAN’S IRISH SOCIAL CLUB ($) BURGERS & BEER 916 Charleston St. • 433-9374

HEROES SPORTS BAR & GRILLE ($) SANDWICHES & COLD BEER 273 Dauphin St. • 433-4376 36 Hillcrest Rd • 341-9464

HURRICANE GRILL & WINGS ($-$$)

WINGS, SEAFOOD, BURGERS & BEER 7721 Airport Blvd. Suite E-180 • 639-6832 25755 Perdido Beach Blvd •Orange Beach • 981-3041

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PIZZA, PASTA, SALAD & MORE 102 N. Section St. •Fairhope• 929-2525

PIZZERIA DELFINA ($) PIZZA & PASTA 107 Dauphin St. • 375-1644

ROMA CAFE ($-$$)

PASTA, SALAD AND SANDWICHES 7143 Airport Blvd. • 341-7217

TRATTORIA PIZZA & ITALIAN ($$)

ITALIAN FOOD & PIZZAS 11311 US HIghway 31 • Spanish Fort• 375-0076

VIA EMILIA ($$)

HOMEMADE PASTAS & PIZZAS MADE DAILY 5901 Old Shell Rd. • 342-3677

TASTE OF MEXICO 5452 US-90 • 661-5509

GUIDO’S RESTAURANT ($$)

BUTCH CASSIDY’S ($)

RAVENITE ($)

GREAT PIZZA. OPEN 4PM DAILY 4356 Old Shell Rd. • 342-0024

CORTLANDT’S PIZZA PUB ($-$$)

WINGS, BURGERS & PUB GRUB 3206 Joe Treadwell Dr • 378-2444 6880 US-90/Jubilee Square • Daphne • 625-4695 BEST WINGS & SPORTING EVENTS 6341 Airport Blvd. • 378-5955

PINZONE’S ITALIAN VILLAGE ($$)

OLÉ MI AMIGO!

GAMBINO’S ITALIAN GRILL ($)

BUFFALO WILD WINGS ($)

PAPA’S PLACE ($$)

1715 Main St. (Next to Manci’s) Daphne. • 264-2520

PIZZAS, PASTAS, & CALZONES 2453 Old Shell Rd • 479-3278

BAUMHOWER’S ($)

PAPA MURPHY’S

MUG SHOTS ($$)

1715 Main St. • 375-0543

THE HARBOR ROOM ($-$$)

SEAFOOD, STEAKS, & EXTENSIVE WINE LIST 6232 Bon Secour Hwy • 949-5086

PIZZA, SUBS & PASTA 1368 Navco Rd.• 479-0066 TAKE ‘N’ BAKE PIZZA 3992 Government • 287-2345 7820 Moffett Rd. • Semmes • 586-8473 2370 Hillcrest Rd • 661-4003 3764 Airport Blvd • 338-9903 705 Highway 43 • Saraland •308-2929 27955 US 98 • Daphne • 621-8666

IRISH PUB FARE & MORE 1108 Shelton Beach Rd •Saraland • 473-0757 3692 Airport Blvd • 414-3000

751 Azalea Rd. • 301-7964

NAVCO PIZZA ($$)

ITALIAN, STEAKS & SEAFOOD 18 Laurel Ave. • Fairhope • 990-0995 FRESH CUISINE NIGHTLY ON MENU 1709 Main St. • Daphne • 626-6082

SEMMES HOUSE OF PIZZA ($) 3958 Snow Rd C. • Semmes • 645-3400

MARCO’S PIZZA ($)

5055 Cottage Hill Rd. • 308-4888 2394 Dawes Rr. • 639-3535 2004 US 98 • Daphne • 625-6550

MELLOW MUSHROOM ($)

PIES & AWESOME BEER SELECTION 2032 Airport Blvd. • 471-4700 5660 Old Shell Rd. • 380-1500 2409 Schillinger Rd S • 525-8431 29698 Frederick Blvd.• Daphne • 621-3911 2303 S McKenzie St •Foley • 970-1414

MIRKO ($$)

PASTA & MORE 9 Du Rhu Dr. • 340-6611

AZTECAS ($-$$)

CAFÉ DEL RIO ($-$$)

MOUTH WATERING MEXICAN FOOD 1175 Battleship Pkwy • 625-2722

DAUPHIN ST. TAQUERIA ($)

830 W I65 Service Rd. S • 378-5837 4663 Airport Blvd. • 342-5553

LOS ARCOS ($)

QUAINT MEXICAN RESTAURANT 5556 Old Shell Rd. • 345-7484

MARIA BONITA AGAVE BAR & GRILL ($-$$) MEXICAN CUISINE 3977 Gov’t Blvd. • 660-4970

IP CASINO:

850 Bayview Ave. Bilox • 888-946-2847

THIRTY-TWO ($$$) SEAFOOD, STEAKS, WINE

TIEN ($-$$)

INTERACTIVE ASIAN DINING

HIGH TIDE CAFÉ ($)

CASUAL & RELAXING, EXTENSIVE MENU

MAYA LUNA ($-$$)

ISLAND VIEW:

POOR MEXICAN ($)

BEACH BLVD STEAMER ($) CARTER GREEN STEAKHOUSE ($$-$$$)

AUTHENTIC MEXICAN RESTAURANT 4523 St. Stephens Rd. • 725-0627 30500 AL-181 • Spanish Fort • 621-7433

ROOSTER’S ($)

LATIN AMERICAN FOOD 211 Dauphin St. • 375-1076

TAQUERIA CANCUN ($)

3172 International Dr. • 476-9967

TAQUERIA MEXICO ($-$$) AUTHENTIC MEXICAN FLAVOR 3733 Airport Blvd. • 414-4496

NO GAMBLING CASINO FARE BEAU RIVAGE:

875 Beach Blvd. Biloxi • 888-952-2582

BR PRIME ($$-$$$)

3300 W. Beach Blvd. Biloxi • 877-774-8439

RICH TRADITIONS, STEAK, SEAFOOD

C&G GRILLE ($)

LARGE BREAKFAST, LUNCH OR DINNER MENU

PALACE CASINO:

158 Howard Ave. Biloxi • 800-725-2239

MIGNON’S ($$$)

STEAKS, SEAFOOD, FINE WINE

PLACE BUFFET ($-$$) INTERACTIVE ASIAN DINING

STACKED GRILL ($-$$)

BURGERS AND EVERYTHING IN BETWEEN

TREASURE BAY:

1980 Beach Blvd. Biloxi • 800-747-2839

FINE DINING ESTABLISHMENT.

THE DEN ($-$$)

AMAZING ARRAY OF MOUTH-WATERING FOOD.

CQ ($$-$$$)

LOCAL SEAFOOD AND 40+ BEERS

BLU ($)

EXOTIC CUISINE AND SUSHI

STALLA ($$)

WIND CREEK CASINO:

TERRACE CAFE ($)

FIRE ($$-$$$)

THE BUFFET ($-$$)

COAST SEAFOOD & BREW ($-$$) JIA ($-$$)

ITALIAN COOKING

BREAKFAST, LUNCH, DINNER, LATE NIGHT

INTIMATE & CASUAL WITH DAILY SPECIALS ELEGANT ATMOSPHERE & TANTALIZING ENTREES LOUNGE WITH COCKTAILS & TAPAS MENU

303 Poarch Rd. Atmore • 866-946-3360 PRIME STEAKS, SEAFOOD & WINE

GRILL ($)

ENCHILADAS, TACOS, & AUTHENTIC FARE Ok Bicycle Shop • 661 Dauphin St. • 432-2453

HARD ROCK CASINO:

29669 Alabama 181 • Spanish Fort • (251) 625-3300

HALF SHELL OYSTER HOUSE ($-$$) HARD ROCK CAFÉ ($)

763 Holcombe Ave • 473-0413

RUTH’S CHRIS STEAK HOUSE ($$$)

CHEF WENDY’S BAKING ($-$$)

SATISFACTION ($-$$)

UNDER THE OAK CAFE ($-$$)

DON CARLOS MEXICAN RESTAURANT ($) EL MARIACHI ($) EL PAPI ($-$$)

615 Dauphin St • 308-2655

FUEGO ($-$$)

OUTSTANDING MEXICAN CUISINE 2066 Old Shell Rd. • 378-8619

FUZZY’S TACO SHOP ($) 5713 Old Shell Rd.• 338-9697

HACIENDA SAN MIGUEL ($-$$) TASTE OF MEXICO 880 Schillinger Rd. S. • 633-6122 5805 US 90 • 653-9163

LA COCINA ($)

AUTHENTIC MEXICAN CUISINE 800 N Section St. • Fairhope • 990-0783

777 Beach Blvd.Biloxi • 877-877-6256

AMERICAN FARE & ROCKIN’ MEMORABILIA EXCEPTIONAL SERVICE & TASTE SOUTHERN FAVORITES BUFFET

HARRAH’S GULF COAST:

280 Beach Blvd. Biloxi • 288-436-2946

MAGNOLIA HOUSE ($$-$$$) FINE DINING, SEAFOOD AND STEAKS

FLAVORS BUFFET ($-$$) ALL YOU CAN EAT BUFFET

THE BLIND TIGER ($-$$)

quality food and simple unique cocktails

CONTEMPORARY & OLD-FASHIONED FAVORITES

SCARLET PEARL:

9380 Central Avenue D’Iberville • 800-266-5772 MADE-TO-ORDER FESTIVE TREATS AND SPECIALTY CAKES. CLASSIC ALL-AMERICAN CASUAL CUISINE WITH OVER 100 OPTIONS.

WATERFRONT BUFFET ($$-$$$) SOUPS, SALADS, FRESH SEAFOOD, AND MORE

CHOPSTX NOODLE BAR ($-$$)

VIETNAMESE SANDWICHES, PHO, AND APPETIZERS.

SCARLET’S STEAKS & SEAFOOD ($$$) SAVORY STEAKS AND SEAFOOD

BUTLER’S BAR & LOUNGE ($$) EXTRAORDINARY DRINK MENU, COCKTAILS

A u g u s t 2 2 , 2 0 1 8 - A u g u s t 2 8 , 2 0 1 8 | L AG N I A P P E | 19

COMMENTARY | THE GRIOT’S CORNER

Playing it safe isn’t good enough

BY KEN ROBINSON/CONTRIBUTING WRITER

O

n Tuesday, Aug. 14, Gov. Kay Ivey was all smiles as she stood with other dignitaries for the symbolic grand opening of Wal-Mart’s $135 million, 2.6-million-square-foot distribution center in West Mobile. It was a familiar scene. During this election year, Ivey has taken advantage of myriad opportunities to be in front of news cameras. This in itself isn’t surprising.

What incumbent politician trying to keep his or her seat wouldn’t do so?

However, what is surprising, or more accurately disappointing, is the governor’s lack of substantive interaction as this election year unfolds. Sure, she spoke briefly with reporters after the distribution center grand opening, but she still refuses to engage in lengthy and rigorous discussions about the serious issues facing Alabama.

If one component of quality leadership is vision — and the ability to communicate that vision with depth and clarity, in order to secure the confidence of those one hopes to lead — then Ivey is failing as a leader.

A holder of high public office should be about more than making countless appearances before cameras or numerous media sound bites — substance should be of the utmost importance. Gov. Ivey and her team may be pursuing a substance-free strategy out of a desire for political safety, but if a new report is correct, such a strategy could imperil her election efforts.

To gauge the mind of the citizenry of Alabama this election year regarding various issues and perceptions of where Alabamians feel the state is headed, the Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama (PARCA) conducted a survey of Alabama voters. The results are quite eyeopening. Chief among them is that “shared priorities” exist

among a broad cross section of Alabama voters regarding which issues are most important.

As the report “Alabama Priorities” states: “We found few significant differences between Republicans and Democrats, liberals and conservatives, blacks and whites, or other groups. While differences exist, Alabama voters are not polarized.” In this day of hyperpolarization, the latter statement is pretty profound.

Many Alabama voters, regardless of race or ideology, agree: There are some pressing issues in Alabama that need to be addressed competently, thoroughly and quickly.

To leaders of substance and engagement, the report offers encouraging words: “Policymakers have a twofold

IF ONE COMPONENT OF QUALITY LEADERSHIP IS VISION — AND THE ABILITY TO COMMUNICATE THAT VISION WITH DEPTH AND CLARITY, IN ORDER TO SECURE THE CONFIDENCE OF THOSE ONE HOPES TO LEAD — THEN IVEY IS FAILING AS A LEADER.” opportunity to inform and educate voters on critical and systemic challenges facing the state. Policymakers have an opportunity to respond to immediate, often highly personal issues that concern voters. This research suggests that elected officials and candidates have an opportunity to

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show leadership and build broad coalitions to address Alabama’s most pressing challenges.”

If the thinking is that Alabama voters are disconnected and not really concerned about serious issues facing the state, “Alabama Priorities” lucidly disabuses one of such notions. Alabamians are looking for real answers to serious problems.

What do voters feel are Alabama’s top problems? The list, in order: 1) K-12 education; 2) Health care; 3) Government corruption and ethics; 4) Mental health and substance abuse; 5) Poverty and homelessness; 6) Jobs and the economy; 7) Crime and public safety; 8) Job training and workforce development; 9) Improving the state’s image; and 10) Tax reform. Again, this ranking cuts across party affiliation and racial lines.

The report observes: “In sum, while it is possible to detect differences in the issues that most concern Alabamians in different political or demographic categories, the overwhelming pattern is one of shared concern over a core set of issues … Alabamians show a high level of concern for all 10 issues.”

The data also suggests there is even frequent agreement about “specific policy options to address issues.”

Another revealing data point: 60 percent of respondents feel the overall quality of life in Alabama has not improved in the last five years.

As stated earlier, Ivey and her staff have apparently settled for playing it safe for this election. No debates. No rigorous questioning and discussion of the issues. This is seen as a winning strategy. But if Walt Maddox is able to effectively speak to Alabamians — who we see are not as politically polarized as was believed about the issues that most concern them — playing it safe may not be a winning strategy.

The people of Alabama want good schools, accessible and low-cost health care, leaders who are transparent and believe in integrity, and real solutions to the problems of mental health and substance abuse afflicting so many of the state’s citizens. In sum, they are looking for leaders who know and understand the problems that plague this state and who are committed to employing well-thought-out, effective solutions to remedy them.

Here’s to hoping that come this November the citizens of Alabama will fill contested political offices, from the governorship on down, with leaders of substance, leaders of engagement and action — not those who are content to simply play it safe.

A u g u s t 2 2 , 2 0 1 8 - A u g u s t 2 8 , 2 0 1 8 | L AG N I A P P E | 21

COVER STORY

Cammie Wayne gives the scoop on her booming ice cream business

BY DALE LIESCH

O

ne could say Cammie Wayne has kept things churning at her sweet business for 20 years.

It was a no-fail attitude and strong work ethic that kept Wayne rolling as the new, 30-year-old owner of a landmark midtown ice cream parlor.

“I’m a hard worker. I work seven days a week. I enjoy working,” Wayne said. “So, it’s not so much a chore for me. I love it, I love doing it. As long as you’re a hard worker, you can basically do anything.”

Wayne had worked at Old Dutch Ice Cream Shoppe as a teenager and decided to purchase the business from her onetime boss, Edwin Widemire, in 1998. As she tells it, she was in the store one day and Widemire told her he was going to sell and she said she’d buy it.

“I had no idea what I was doing,” Wayne said. “It was like ‘OK, let’s do this.’ I bought a business at the age of 30. I guess complete desperation for the first 10 years is what made me make it.”

When Wayne first took over, the shop’s ice cream was made and delivered by Dairy Fresh, which limited the number of flavors.

“You bought what they sold,” she said. “It was to our recipe, but they only made so many.”

Eventually, Wayne decided to start making the ice cream in the shop using a 12 percent butterfat base from a local dairy. In the beginning, she was forced to buy a set number of cases up front.

“I had to guarantee them I would buy 90 cases when I first started,” she said. “I was like ‘Oh my God, how can I do that? All this money.’”

Today, the shop goes through 200 cases per week, she said.

Growth

It is miles away from the shop at the corner of Old Shell Road and Florida Street that many of the important aspects of the business take place. With nothing but a small sign with the familiar Old Dutch logo to differentiate it from other big, manufacturingstyle buildings, the interior of a former restaurant on Halls Mill Road is where Wayne and her husband, Larry, make the famous ice cream today.

Before opening the creamery last year, Wayne admits to not always getting the recommended amount of sleep. As she began producing for other ice cream shops and eventually grocery stores and other retailers, three hours of sleep per night was average for the shop owner.

“I was going to work at 9 o’clock in the morning and getting off at 3 a.m, crawling into bed, sleeping for three hours, and getting up and doing it again,” she said. “I just kept getting more and more customers and I thought, ‘I’ve either, I’ve got to do something. I’ve either got to take the plunge and find myself a business, or I’m going to kill myself working these hours.’”

It started with calls from small shop owners, like Matt Lump-

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kin of Matt’s Handmade Ice Cream in Gulf Shores. Lumpkin, who owns two shops on Gulf Shores Parkway and sees about 1,000 people per day during the summer, said Wayne is “awesome to work with.”

“She lets us come up with our own flavors,” he said. “She’ll customize any order with me.”

Lumpkin said he sells about 70 to 80 flavors between the two shops and loves to customize his orders. Among the shop’s best, most creative flavors are lemon icebox, peanut butter Oreo and Cookie Monster, which is a blue vanilla ice cream with chocolate chip cookie and Oreo pieces.

“She’s great with whatever I want,” Lumpkin said.

Lumpkin and Wayne agree that Matt’s is probably her biggest account during the busy summer months.

“June, July and August, we absolutely kill it,” Lumpkin said.

“We’re open from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., seven days a week. I’m working her to death.”

Lumpkin said he grew up on Old Dutch ice cream, so selling it at his own shop just seemed natural.

“It’s a great atmosphere and we’ve got a great product,” he said. “There are so many unique flavors.”

Wayne counts Mr. Mac’s Soda Shoppe inside of McConaghy’s Drug Store in Satsuma among her original vendors.

Jessica White, business manager for the drug store, said the soda shop started in honor of the pharmacy’s original owner. It opened in 2011.

When the shop opened, White said she and a coworker began researching where to buy ice cream at wholesale prices. They talked to Blue Bunny first, but decided instead to go with a local small business.

“We thought if Cammie’s can do it, that’s awesome because we were both independent businesses,” she said. “It kind of rolled from there.”

The ice cream is popular, White said, whether a customer is familiar with Old Dutch or not.

“People in Satsuma who know Old Dutch come for the ice cream and people who are unfamiliar become familiar,” White said. “We love that it comes from someone we can meet and shake hands with.”

In addition to supplying the shop with ice cream for regular business, Wayne helps Mr. Mac’s with birthday parties.

The most popular Old Dutch flavor at Mr. Mac’s is the seasonal peach ice cream.

“That seems to be everyone’s favorite,” White said. “Cookies and cream is another.”

In addition to the ice cream for banana splits and sundaes, White said Mr. Mac’s serves up malted milk shakes and floats.

Wayne supplies ice cream as far west as Baton Rouge and as far north as Birmingham. It’s not just ice cream parlors, either, she said. A small gift shop in Demopolis called Mustard Seed is among Wayne’s customers. Old Dutch ice cream is served in a total of 32 shops.

Wayne also counts 17 grocery stores among her customers.

Those include local chains like Greer’s, Piggly Wiggly and Food-Champs.

“I’ve got my eye on Rouses,” she said. “I’ve talked to them and my customers are asking them to carry it. That’s my next stop.”

Before the creamery was established, Wayne and her husband made each batch of ice cream in the back of the shop in a room she lovingly referred to as “the closet.”

“There was very limited space,” she said. “It was a little bitty room. You could fit two people in there, but barely. You were constantly bumping into each other, going around each other.”

The biggest issue with the limited space was falling behind as orders came in.

“I was frustrating my customers because I couldn’t get my flavors ready,” she said. “I’d leave at 2 a.m. on a Friday and the whole freezer would be full. By 5 o’clock Saturday, it was all gone and I’d be like ‘Oh my God, I have to go back in there again.’ It was just a constant, constant and I was frustrating some of the people who were my clients.”

In those days it was more labor intensive because the ice cream would come out hard and flavors would be added at the end of the process, Wayne said.

Now three machines at the back of the creamery churn out the product at a much faster pace, and flavors are introduced during the production. The two smaller machines can push out two 3-gallon tubs every 12 minutes and the machine known as “big mama” can produce four in the same timespan, Wayne said.

The facility also has everything else Wayne needs to produce ice cream.

“I come in here and I’ve got a walk-in freezer, I’ve got a cooler. I’ve got all the plumbing and electricity,” she said. “It was just like handed to me on a silver platter and I think that was God saying, ‘OK, here it is.’”

The building came with a kitchen and Wayne bought an oven, which has helped her cut some costs in half. Before the kitchen, she said she would buy a whole, square cake at about $5 for one batch of birthday cake ice cream. Now, she bakes her own cakes and brownies and other goods to go into the ice cream.

All in all, the new digs mean Old Dutch can produce about 1,000 gallons of ice cream per week on average and Wayne can get home at a slightly more reasonable time.

“We have had, like, four nights this summer where we were up here until midnight and that is like heaven,” she said. “We’re usually at home by 9. That’s great for us.”

Flavors

It was Old Dutch’s flavor combinations that helped business early on, following the summer rush. Wayne created such seasonal flavors as pumpkin, eggnog and peppermint.

COVER STORY

“Some of it was feast or famine,” Wayne said. “Some of it was you’re working over at the ice cream shop and your business is gone or has gone down so much because it’s wintertime and you’re thinking ‘my God I’ve got to get some people in here.’”

Other than vanilla, which is used at Old Dutch to make milkshakes and sundaes, Wayne said the shop’s most popular flavor is Creole praline.

“It’s a light butter pecan flavor and then a swirl of caramel, and my pralines are made at Tanner’s Pecans and I throw those in there,” she said. “They’re not a sugary praline. It’s more of a candied pecan. That is my best seller everywhere.”

It wasn’t a best seller at Maddie’s in Baton Rouge without the suggestion to the owner of a little tweak.

“I told him, I said ‘stop calling it Creole and call it pralines and cream,’” Wayne said. “He said ‘Cammie, I sold out.’ I guess being in Louisiana they thought it was going to be hot, using the word Creole. As soon as he took the Creole off, they sold it like crazy, out the door.”

Winter is when Wayne and staff members can get more creative with flavors, as demand for traditional varieties in the summer can consume most of their time. New flavors include Blue Moon, which Wayne described as tasting like Fruity Pebbles cereal, although there are no bits of cereal in it. There are some even more creative flavors.

“We made a corn ice cream,” Wayne said. “It didn’t go over too well, but we’re going to tweak it and bring it back. Maybe corn with cranberry through it, or something. That would interesting during Thanksgiving.”

Another popular flavor is uniquely Mobile. From New Year’s Day until Fat Tuesday, Old Dutch gets in the Mardi Gras spirit with MoonPie ice cream. With flavors including banana,

Photo | Daniel Anderson/Lagniappe

Cammie Wayne’s Old Dutch creamery can produce about 1,000 gallons of ice cream per week, supplying retailers from Baton Rouge to Birmingham. The most popular flavor at her landmark shop in Midtown is Creole praline.

chocolate, salted caramel and coconut, the sweet treat is a local favorite.

“It has MoonPies and then I swirl — some of them I swirl chocolate and some I swirl the marshmallow sauce,” she said. “The caramel has sort of a coffee taste to it and then the salted caramel MoonPies and then I swirl some caramel in there.”

The concept was inspired by Councilman Fred Richardson, who represents the neighborhood where Old Dutch is located. Wayne said she got the idea after the “MoonPie Over Mobile” event.

Richardson laughed at the shoutout from Wayne on the downtown event and said he’d never heard of MoonPie ice cream from the popular shop.

“It’s probably going to become my favorite,” he said. “That’s outstanding.”

Even though he admitted he needs to watch his weight, Richardson still enjoys a scoop of butter pecan at Old Dutch every once in a while. As for the shop itself, Richardson called it a “landmark in midtown.”

The shop is not only popular with midtowners, though. As Visit Mobile Marketing and Communications Manager Tara Zieman pointed out, businesses like Cammie’s help promote the city to tourists.

“Travelers want to get to know a city when they visit — they want to see the dive bars, the hole-in-the-wall spots and the local favorites,” she wrote. “It’s places like Callaghan’s Irish Social Club, the Dew Drop Inn and Cammie’s Old Dutch (to name a few) that give our visitors a sense of our city’s character. Travelers want authentic and they don’t mind going off the beaten path to get that experience.”

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ART ARTIFICE

Mobile part of national art project

BY KEVIN LEE/ARTS EDITOR/KLEE@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

M

aybe the most loaded yet amorphous word in our nation is “freedom.” Its wildly numerous connotations are equally challenging and comforting.

Starting in late summer, Mobile Museum of Art (MMoA) will join a state- and nationwide effort to engage local perspectives on “freedom.” MMoA’s contribution starts Sept. 1 but don’t look for immediate hoopla.

“We’re not going to have a big opening for it or anything.

They’re doing national press about it,” MMoA Curator of Programs Elizabet Elliott said.

It’s in conjunction with the Hank Willis Thomas and Eric Gottesman project, The 50-State Initiative. Inspired by President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s 1941 State of the Union address clarifying Four Freedoms, the pair began the For Freedoms Foundation and reached out to every state for participants. They listed required components for participants, such as using local artists in their respective exhibitions, a town hall meeting and public art pieces. They also announced an initial plan to place artist-created billboards in every state, Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C. “Paul Barrett — he used to be with a fine-art gallery in Birmingham but has since left — reached out to me. He is basically sort of acting as a liaison for all of the Alabama participants,” Elliott said.

Participating institutions include the Alabama Contemporary Art Center, Birmingham Museum of Art, the Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts, the Wiregrass Museum, the Coleman Center for the Arts, The University of Alabama and others.

Plans are varied. Coleman will create a “truth booth.” UAB will employ a foundry to create interactive and permanent public works.

Delayed MOJO nods to Blue Note

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For more information, call 251-459-2298 or go to mojojazz.org.

MAC Throwdown breaking ground

There’s only a month until the Mobile Arts Council’s annual Throwdown on Sept. 20, 6-9 p.m. The live art competition and silent auction has changed up a few things this year without missing a step.

Its location has moved to 23 East on the Brookley complex, MAC’s first time out of the Henry Aaron Loop. MAC Executive Director Shellie Teague is upbeat, reporting ticket sales as better than in previous years. She also reports inquiries from new parties, something she credits to the release of a promo video earlier this month.

Teague said this year’s silent auction will feature more than just the standard art items. As MAC’s single biggest fundraising event, the hope is it will raise the bar on bids.

The other big change? Their notorious Red Rooster adult bev-

obviously informed by her roots in Alabama’s Black Belt.

Loring’s abstractionist oil painting “Zombie Marketing” (1944) is linked to freedom from want. A Mobile native who relocated to Maine and New York for most of his life, his vision of a haloed and death-headed bodybuilder holding baskets of plenty questions the manipulation of basic sustenance to cultivate greater needs.

Birmingham artist Kluge’s “The Voyage” (1991) is a threedimensional work symbolizing freedom from fear. A small glass figure is cradled in a bronze boat perilously suspended from a four-legged framework.

A public program in the pipeline for Sept. 13 will hit all these notes again. Planned currently are a canned food drive (want), voter registration (speech) and possible song and dance exhibitions from the area’s religious array (worship).

“For the freedom from fear we’re thinking about having people write their fears on pieces of paper, then folding them into paper boats and having a little Viking funeral,” Elliott laughed.

Its Thursday timing is perfect. MMoA entrance is free on Thursdays for Mobile County residents.

The project highlights the role art can play in our society when we allow and embrace it. More than mere sideshow or decoration, it can be a vital cog in our expression, our motivation and our endurance.

As the 50-State Initiative founders stated: “Artists practice free speech every day and art plays an important part in galvanizing us to meet, talk and share with our fellow inhabitants of this country.”

erages will be replaced by a Frosé machine from O’Daly’s.

For more information, call 251-432-9796 or go to mobilearts.org.

Folk artist Partridge on display

Abe Partridge’s creativity pushes every outlet it can. His musical work, particularly his album “Cotton Fields and Blood for Days,” won him scrutiny in local media but he’s adept with a paint brush as well as a pick.

Partridge’s exhibit “Rethinking Preconceived Notions” will be on display at the Episcopal Church of the Redeemer (7125 Hitt Road) through the end of August. He works primarily with acrylic paintings on tar board and linocuts/ink. He has shown not only in Atlanta but has been commissioned for a mural at Haint Blue Brewing.

The exhibit may be viewed by appointment by calling 251767-8362. For a look at his other work, visit abepartridge.com.

ARTSGALLERY

When Alfred Lion, Max Margulis and Francis Wolff formed Blue Note Records in 1939, they wanted to support beloved art.

The label became one of the most storied in jazz, patterning their availability to artists’ desires. They supplied alcoholic refreshments and recorded in the hours after working musicians finished their paying gigs in clubs and bars.

Blue Note embraced the bebop revolution, was a hard bop staple and welcomed the avant-garde. Its unique album covers embodied simple yet stylized midcentury graphic design that embodied an era.

The Mystic Order of the Jazz Obsessed (MOJO) salutes the label with “A Night at the Blue Note” on Monday, Aug. 27, 6:30 p.m. at Gulf City Lodge (601 State St.) in a show postponed from May due to inclement weather. Performances by trumpeter Chip Herrington and Friends will be featured.

Entrance is $15, $12 for students and military and $10 for MOJO members. A light jambalaya dinner is included and a cash bar is available.

Originally, FDR cited four essential freedoms undergirding human dignity: freedom of speech and worship, and freedom from want and fear. They formed the core values and objectives of the post-World War II American-led order that earned global admiration.

The idea’s impact inspired generations of writers and visual artists. Most famously, Norman Rockwell created a series of paintings embodying the ethos.

That’s the basis for this new plan. Unfortunately, notice was short.

“Initially we kind of wanted to have time to engage local contemporary artists to make new work, but that just wasn’t possible in the timeline we had,” Elliott said. “For most of the museums we work three years out, and even smaller spaces need at least a year, especially if they’re going to get new work made.”

The option was to draw upon an existing exhibit — “Our People, Our Places, Our Collection” — and highlight a specific work for each freedom. Signs will guide guests to the four pieces, all of which will have additional didactics.

The choices are eclectic. The artists are Lee Loring, Gary Chapman, Janice Kluge and Tut Altman Riddick, all diverse in expression and influence.

Chapman’s “Probing the Wounds” (1993) represents freedom of speech. The UAB art professor’s realist oil painting employs visual language in several conceptual forms, with the sign language alphabet presented front and center.

Riddick’s “Celebration” (undated) is drawn from deep in Southern culture, depicting church congregants shouting and dancing in the throes of holy ecstasy. The color print on paper is

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MUSIC

BY STEPHEN CENTANNI/MUSIC EDITOR/SCENTANNI@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

FEATURE

Sermons for the modern South BAND: WILL STEWART DATE: SATURDAY, AUG. 25, 7:30 P.M. VENUE: CALLAGHAN’S IRISH SOCIAL CLUB, 916 CHARLESTON ST., WWW.CALLAGHANSIRISHSOCIALCLUB.COM TICKETS: $8 AT THE DOOR

Photo | Submitted

B

eclectic Nashville scene and its vast ocean of music irmingham would help him find his identity as a songwriter. singer-songFortunately, the Music City embraced him. Along writer Will the way, he made friends who were willing to give Stewart, one of him advice and/or connect him with people who alt. country’s could help him nurture his own sound. brightest rising “I was there four years, and I learned a ton about stars, is bringmyself and became more of a confident songwriter,” ing songs from said Stewart. “I was still unsure of myself when I his debut fullmoved up there. I was around these heavyweights, length album which can be a little intimidating. For me, that was “County Seat” going to be the best way to learn and grow as a to Callaghan’s songwriter.”

Irish Social Club this Saturday night.

Eventually, Birmingham began calling Stewart While this may be Stewart’s local solo debut, home. He was satisfied with the time he’d spent in this isn’t his first visit to Mobile. Before embarking Nashville and felt he’d gained the confidence and on a solo career, he performed in a number of bands learned the “tricks of the trade” needed to pursue a including Willie & the Giant, career as a songwriter. At the which performed at the 2015 same time, the musicians with SouthSounds Music Festival. whom he had worked in variAs a solo artist, Stewart ous music projects began their has crafted a fresh sound that own departures from Music could only come from the City. Stewart decided BirSoutheast. mingham was “more manageI IMMEDIATELY FELT “County Seat” is a smooth able” on a variety of levels.

LIKE PART OF A ride that seamlessly blends the “The cost of living is sigearly Southern rock sounds nificantly less than Nashville,” COMMUNITY, EVEN of Athens, Georgia, and the said Stewart. “I had enough contemporary country glory of tools and skills that I picked THOUGH NOBODY KNEW Nashville. This collection of up there where I could still do songs is the result of a musical the whole band thing and not WHO THE HELL I WAS journey that took Stewart from have to be in an industry city Birmingham to Nashville and like Nashville and L.A. There AT THE TIME. back again. wasn’t any big incident that When he made his move to made me want to say, ‘F*ck Nashville, Stewart admits he this place. I gotta leave.’” had no idea what Music City After releasing two EPs, would hold for him although his first impressions Stewart began preparing the tracks for “County were positive, especially coming from the “cool” Seat,” which he calls his “love letter to the South.” yet “smaller and concentrated” Birmingham music Throughout this album, Stewart found inspiration scene. Nashville’s overwhelming number of venues, from what he calls a “weird dichotomy” that exists sounds, artists and industry figures made him fall in the South. While growing up in Montgomery, instantly in love with his new home.

Stewart remembers affluent areas bordered by “Everyone you would meet was connected impoverished neighborhoods. to the industry or was a musician in some way,” All the while, he noticed these two areas existed Stewart said. “I immediately felt like part of a com- in a strange harmony. However, he also noticed an munity, even though nobody knew who the hell I underlying racial tension and class struggle between was at the time.” the two worlds. Stewart hopes his songs will act as Stewart relocated to Nashville hoping the a progressive voice that will bring more attention to

Birmingham singer-songwriter Will Stewart, formerly a member of Willie and the Giant and Blank State, has struck out on his own with a solo debut album, “County Seat.”

this racial and financial dichotomy while creating a dialogue for change, much in the tradition of such artists as Sturgill Simpson and Jason Isbell.

“I like the idea that there pretty strong progressive voices coming from straight, white males. I’d like to get to the point to where I can somehow have a platform to be a voice on that side of things. Being an average white dude down here, you get pegged as being in a certain category. That’s certainly not the case,” he said.

To accomplish this task, Stewart took both empathetic and self-exploratory approaches to his songwriting. As he interacted with “characters” from the modern South, Stewart tried to imagine what life might be like for them. For example, the album’s title track is a character study of an elderly man dealing with the loneliness age sometimes brings and the transcendence that can come from this situation. Stewart hopes listeners will discover this message of transcendence and apply it in their own lives.

“It makes me wonder what their story is and hope that they don’t go home and just sit in their easy chair and fall asleep every night doing the same damn thing,” said Stewart. “That’s not necessarily a bad thing. We all do that to an extent. It’s commentary on how I think a lot of older people might think sometime. In the end, there’s always a glimmer of hope, and they find some kind of transcendence. I leave it up to the listener to decide what that might be.”

Callaghan’s should provide a great environment for Stewart’s sermons for the modern South. This charming country troubadour will deliver a set of music in the same tradition as such notables as Jason Isbell. However, those in attendance should not be surprised if they hear a slight tinge of influence in the key of R.E.M. After promoting his debut, Stewart plans to head back into the studio to work on his sophomore effort with producer/engineer Mark Nevers (Bonnie “Prince” Billy, Calexico, The Dexateens).

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MUSIC BRIEFS

Tapped in

BY STEPHEN CENTANNI/MUSIC EDITOR/SCENTANNI@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

Band: An Intimate Evening with Billy McLaughlin Date: Friday, Aug. 24, 8 p.m.

Venue: The Listening Room of Mobile, 78 St. Francis St., www.thelisteningroommobile.com Tickets: $30 artist donation (Call 251-367-4599 for reservations.)

Photo | Ryan Taylor | Billy McLaughlin

O

n the eve of the Dauphin Street Beer Festival, The Listening Room of Mobile is hosting the enigmatic guitar talents of local favorite Billy McLaughlin.

This performance will be a chance to experience not only McLaughlin’s unorthodox guitar style in an intimate setting, but also his inspirational story.

McLaughlin specializes in an acoustic guitar technique that concentrates both hands on the fretboard.

He has become a master of a percussive finger-style that creates a unique harmonic tone. While one hand taps the strings, his other hand runs freely across the frets. McLaughlin takes this sound into new dimensions with an eclectic variety of tunings.

McLaughlin’s passion for the guitar is seen not only in his performances but also in his life. Just as his career was building momentum, a neuromuscular condition called Focal Dystonia threatened to end his career. However, this condition only kindled his musical desires further.

McLaughlin adapted by teaching himself to play his trademark style as a left-handed guitarist.

Since then, he has become one of the world’s premier guitarists and continues to relentlessly tour and record.

After party Band: Brother Hawk Date: Saturday, Aug. 25, 9:30 p.m.

Venue: The Merry Widow, 51 S. Conception St., www.themerrywidow.net Tickets: $5 at the door The Dauphin Street Beer Festival can sometimes be an early night for many in the Azalea City, while others will want to extend the party long after the last sample is poured. For the latter, Atlanta’s Brother Hawk will be on hand with its backwoods brand of rock ‘n’ roll.

Brother Hawk has crafted an epic rock style found only in Georgia, pulled from the same sonic waters that baptized such bands as The Black Crowes, Widespread Panic and The Allman Brothers Band.

Brother Hawk will feature tracks from its latest album, “The Clear Lake.” This album is a great mix of Southern and blues rock styles with a touch of twang to keep things interesting.

Throughout “The Clear Lake,” Brother Hawk fills each measure with grand, passionate instrumental ability. The track “Good as Gold” features Charlie Starr of Blackberry Smoke fame.

Out of the swamp Band: Magnolia Bayou Date: Saturday, Aug. 25, 10 p.m.

Venue: The Brickyard, 266 Dauphin St., 251-219-6488 Tickets: Call for more info The Brickyard is situated in the heart of the Dauphin Street Entertainment District, making its location an easy stumble for those wandering the streets after the Dauphin Street Beer Festival.

For this special evening, The Brickyard is bringing Magnolia Bayou back to its stage for a batch of rock jams that should last well past midnight.

This Mississippi-based band will be bringing the sounds of its self-titled debut album, recorded at The Music Shed in New Orleans. With this release, Magnolia Bayou has created an eclectic sound that could only come from “the Birthplace of American Music.”

The album’s opening track, “When a Good Dog Does Bad,” is a perfect example. A tidal wave of riffs bounce between rock and funk as vocals filled with soulful blues power through each measure. Magnolia Bayou’s cover of the Black Sabbath stoner anthem “Fairies Wear Boots” should not be missed.

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AREAMUSIC LISTINGS | August 22 - August 28 Please send upcoming music to listings@ lagniappemobile.com

by MONDAY before Wednesday’s paper.

WED. AUG 22 Beau Rivage (Eight75)— Dian Diaz, 8p Bluegill— Matt Neese Boudreaux’s Cajun Grill— Ryan Balthrop, 6p Brickyard— Chad Davidson Band Callaghan’s— Phil & Foster Cockeyed Charlie’s— Music JJ, 9p Felix’s— Bobby Butchka Flora-Bama— Neil Dover, 2p / Rhonda Hart Duo, 6p // Brandon White, 8p /// Mario Mena Duo, 10:15p Original Oyster House — Bobby Butcher, 6p Soul Kitchen— Papadosio, 8p

THURS. AUG 23 Beau Rivage (Eight75)— Dian Diaz, 8p Bluegill— Ryan Balthro 12p / Jamie Anderson Duo, 6p Blues Tavern— Al McNab Duo Boudreaux’s Cajun Grill— David Chastang, 6p Callaghan’s— Bonnie Bishop Cockeyed Charlie’s— Music JJ, 9p Cortland’s— Marcus Elizondo, 8p Dauphin Street Blues Co— Delta Smoke, 9p Felix’s— Jeri Flora-Bama— Delta Donnie Mathis, 2p / Brittany Grimes, 5p // Dueling Pianos, 5:30p /// Mark Sherrill, James Daniel, Chris Newbury, and Jose Santiago, 6p //// Mario Mena Band, 10p ///// Al and Cathy, 10:15p Off the Hook—Sugarbabies Karaoke, 6p Soul Kitchen— Haystack, 8:30p Tacky Jacks (Orange Beach) — Happy Jim, 11p

FRI. AUG 24 Beau Rivage (Eight75)— Dian Diaz, 8p Big Beach Brewing— Sugarcane Jane, 6:30p Bluegill— Lee Yankie, 12p / Jeri, 6p Blues Tavern— Johnny Barbara and the Lucky Doggs Brickyard— Lee Yankie & the Hellz Yeah Cockeyed Charlie’s— DJ Will the Chill, 10p Dauphin Street Blues Co— The Brown Goose Felix’s— Grits ‘N Pieces Flora-Bama— J Hawkins Duo, 1p / Lea Anne Creswell Duo, 2p // Brittany Grimes, 4p

/// The Big Earl Show featuring Jack Robertson, 5:30p //// Greg Lyon, 6p ///// Hung Jury, 6p ////// Smokey Otis Duo, 6p /////// Birdiez Boys, 8p //////// Justin Jeansonne Band, 10p ///////// JoJo Pres, 10:15p ////////// Spunk Monkeys 10:30p Hangout— Redfield, 7p Hard Rock (Center Bar) — PHILO, 9p Hard Rock (Live) — Billy Currington, 8p IP Casino (Studio A — Frankie Avalon, Fabian & Bobby Rydell, 8p Listening Room— Billy McLaughlin, 8p LuLu’s— The Groovinators, 5p Manci’s— Robert Sully Moe’s BBQ (Daphne) — Twang Gang Moe’s BBQ (Foley) — Shelby Brown & Friends Moe’s BBQ (Mobile) — Brandon Benson Moe’s BBQ (OBA) — Christina Christian Moe’s BBQ (Semmes) — Jamie Adamson Off the Hook—Keith “Mailman” Burns, 7p Original Oyster House — Phil Proctor, 6p Tacky Jacks (Gulf Shores)— Peoples Friends, 6p Waves DI— Red House

SAT. AUG 25 Alchemy— Venom, 60 Beau Rivage (Eight75)— Dian Diaz, 8p Big Beach Brewing— The Crackerjack Diamonds, 6:30p Bluegill— David Chastang, 12p / Hannah McFarland Trio, 6p Blues Tavern— Skyla Burrell Band Brickyard— Magnolia Bayou Callaghan’s— Will Stewart Cockeyed Charlie’s— DJ M. Beezle, 10p Dauphin Street Blues Co— The Sideliners Fairhope Brewing— Swing, 10a Felix’s— Swamp Hippies Flora-Bamaa— Brandon White Duo, 1p / Lauren Murphy and the Psychedlics, 1p // M U S T A N G, 2p /// Mike Diamond, 4p //// Nick Peraino, 5p ///// The Big Earl Show featuring Jack Robertson, 5:30p ////// Al and Cathy, 6p /////// Davis Nix Band, 6p //////// Smokey Otis Duo, 8p //////// Kurt Thomas, 10p ///////// Birdiez Boys, 10:15p ////////// Yeah, Probably, 10:30p Hard Rock (Center Bar) — PHILO, 9p Listening Room— Dash Rip Rock, 8p LuLu’s— Yeah, Probably, 5p Manci’s— The Modern Eldorados Moe’s BBQ (Foley) — Charlie Wilson

Moe’s BBQ (Mobile) — Chad Parker Duo Moe’s BBQ (Semmes) — Brigham Cason Off the Hook— Elaine Petty and Donna Slater, 7p Soul Kitchen— Butta Bash Feat, Riot Squad/ Charlie-B/ Wermzer/ Kaboom/ Naboo, 10p Tacky Jacks (Gulf Shores)— Lefty Collins, 6p Top of the Bay— Danger City, 10p Waves DI— Mudbuckets / Justin Wall Band The Wharf— Keith Urban

SUN . AUG 26 Beau Rivage (Eight75)— Triggerproof, 8p Bluegill— Leonard Houston, 12p / Lee Yankie & the Hellz Yeah 6p Brickyard— Jake Burford Callaghan’s— Molly Thomas & the Rare Birds Felix’s— Matt Bush Flora-Bama— Smokey Otis Trio, 12p / Songs of Rusty, 1:30p // Al and Cathy, 2p /// Kyle Brady, 2p //// Lefty Collins, 5p ///// Perdido Brothers, 6p ////// Davis Nix Band, 10p //////// Kevin Swanson Duo, 10:15p Listening Room— Billy McLaughlin, 7p LuLu’s— Three Bean Soup, 5p Off the Hook—Open Mic w/Brittany Grimes, 6p Tacky Jacks (Gulf Shores)— Lisa Christian, 2p Waves DI— Retribution

MON. AUG 27 Beau Rivage (Eight75)— Triggerproof, 8p Brickyard— Brennan Christian Felix’s— Bobby Butcher Flora-Bama— Gove Scrivenor, 2p / Open Mic w/ Cathy Pace, 6p // Lee Yankie, 6p /// Petty and Pace, 10:15p LuLu’s— Jimmy Lumpkin Duo, 5p Page and Palette— Erid Erdman, 5p

TUES. AUG 28 Beau Rivage (Eight75)— Triggerproof, 8p Belle Fontaine Sandbar— Bluegill— Jimmy Lumpkin Boudreaux’s Cajun Grill— Ryan Balthrop, 6p Butch Cassidy’s— Tony Chapman Felix’s— Bryant Gilley Flora-Bama— T-Bone Montgomery, 2p / Perdido Brothers, 6p // Jonathan Newton, 8p /// Albert Simpson, 10:15p Original Oyster House — Phil Proctor, 6p

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FILMTHE REEL WORLD

(Over)stating the obvious

BY ASIA FREY/FILM CRITIC/AFREY@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

AREA THEATERS AMC MOBILE 16 785 Schillinger Road South Mobile, AL (251)639-1748 CRESCENT THEATER 208 Dauphin St Mobile, AL (251) 438-2005 REGAL MOBILE STADIUM 18 1250 Satchel Paige Drive Mobile, AL (844) 462-7342 AMC JUBILEE Square 12 6898 Highway 90 Daphne, AL (251) 626-5766

F

rom the awkward title to the reliance on excessive voiceover to drive the story, “Brad’s Status” is a decent idea that could have been executed so much more subtly and skillfully. “Status” in the title refers, of course, to social media “status updates” and status in general. This is a topic that haunts the morose and petulant Brad (Ben Stiller,) a reasonably successful husband, father and founder of a nonprofit, who still feels unfulfilled compared to some unusually successful college classmates.

Brad seems to have graduated from a particularly promising crop of students at Tufts, because four of his closest friends are wildly rich and famous. Michael Sheen plays another in a string of condescending roles as Craig, a political analyst who is always on TV, publishing books and competing with an equally successful writer wife, while Michael White, who also wrote and directed this film, plays a big movie director. Jemaine Clement is living an outrageously good life in Hawaii with two girlfriends and more money than he knows what to do with, while Luke Wilson is a hedge fund

manager with his own plane. Clearly, Tufts has some quality programs.

Compared to these glittering former friends, Brad feels lame, and he resents his wife’s (Jenna Fischer) feelings of contentment. When Brad takes their son Troy on a trip to Boston to visit Harvard and Tufts, his feelings range from pride in his son’s musical genius to jealousy of his son’s imagined future successes.

The film takes a break from Brad’s whining to show us some amusing imagined sequences of Troy’s possible futures, and of course, Brad sees them only in terms of himself, and whether his son’s future will reflect poorly or positively on him in the eyes of the world. Brad imagines these eyes of the world to be on him at all times. This is an interesting and certainly relatable enough idea, but it proves too thin to hang the entire film on, and it didn’t go far enough.

Every time dialogue starts to drive characterization, the film switches over, maddeningly, to Brad’s voiceover telling us what the film was just starting to show us. Writer/director White just

won’t let the film progress without Brad needlessly explaining what he is thinking, and it’s almost insulting to think that the film’s basic themes might not be clear to the viewer without this further explication. At no point was I wondering what Brad was thinking, until his voice came over to fill me in.

Austin Abrams, the actor in the role of the son, saves the film with his delicate and quietly emotional performance.

What the director somehow manages to leave beautifully unsaid is that it’s ugly for a parent of such a cool, sweet kid to feel so unhappy when this guy is right in front of him. Far more effective than any declared realizations from Brad are his nicely underplayed scenes with his son.

If you have had the kinds of thoughts Brad has, you will experience enough sympathy to get something out of “Brad’s Status.” But if the writer/director had really worked through these issues artistically, and really synthesized these issues further, the film would have been stronger and more satisfying.

“Brad’s Status” is currently available to rent.

NEXUS CINEMA DINING 7070 Bruns Dr. Mobile, AL (251) 776-6570 AMC CLASSIC WHARF 23151 Wharf Lane Orange Beach, AL (251) 981-4444 COBB PINNACLE 14 3780 Gulf Shores Pkwy Gulf Shores (251) 923-0785

Photos | Amazon Studios / STX Films

From left: In “Brad’s Status,” a father (Ben Stiller) takes his son (Austin Abrams) to tour colleges on the East Coast and meets up with an old friend who makes him feel inferior about his life choices. The R-rated “The Happytime Murders” follows a disgraced LAPD detective-turned-private-eye puppet as he investigates puppet murders.

NEW THIS WEEK THE HAPPYTIME MURDERS

EASTERN SHORE PREMIERE CINEMA 14 30500 State Hwy 181 Spanish Fort, AL (251) 626-0352

Brian Henson directs this R-rated action comedy about two clashing detectives with a shared secret, one human (Melissa McCarthy) and one a puppet, who are forced to work together again to solve the brutal murders of the former cast of a beloved classic puppet television show. All listed multiplex theaters.

Information accurate at press time; please call theaters for showtimes.

A.X.L. is a top-secret, robotic dog with an advanced artificial intelligence created by the military. After an experiment gone

A-X-L

wrong, A.X.L. is discovered hiding in the desert by Alex, a kindhearted outsider who finds a way to connect with the robot.

All listed multiplex theaters.

THE LITTLE MERMAID

Yes, they made a live-action movie of the little mermaid. AMC Mobile 16

BEAUTIFULLY BROKEN

A refugee’s escape, a prisoner’s promise and a daughter’s painful secret all converge, causing their lives to become intertwined in ways they could have never imagined. AMC Mobile 16

NOW PLAYING

All listed multiplex theaters.

MISSION IMPOSSIBLE: FALLOUT EIGHTH GRADE All listed multiplex theaters, AMC Mobile 16 Nexus Cinema Dining.

DOG DAYS TEEN TITANS GO TO THE All listed multiplex theaters.

MOVIES VISHWAROOPAM 2 All listed multiplex theaters.

Regal Mobile Stadium 18 THE EQUALIZER 2 THE MEG Regal Mobile Stadium 18 All listed multiplex theaters, HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA 3: Nexus Cinema Dining.

SUMMER VACATION SLENDER MAN All listed multiplex theaters.

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MAMMA MIA! HERE WE GO ANT-MAN AND THE WASP All listed multiplex theaters.

AGAIN THE FIRST PURGE All listed multiplex theaters.

Regal Mobile Stadium 18 CHRISTOPHER ROBIN JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN All listed multiplex theaters.

KINGDOM THE DARKEST MINDS All listed multiplex theaters.

All listed multiplex theaters.

DEATH OF A NATION INCREDIBLES 2 AMC Classic Jubilee Square 12 All listed multiplex theaters.

THE SPY WHO DUMPED ME

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CALENDAR OF EVENTS AUGUST 22 - AUGUST 28

GENERAL INTEREST Bradley Byrne town hall tour U.S. Rep. Bradley Byrne’s “Better Off Now” town hall tour continues in South Alabama through August. Stops include Seminole, Aug. 22; Loxley, Aug. 22; and Spanish Fort, Aug. 22. Visit byrne.house. gov.

Discover Girl Scouts Come see what being a Girl Scout is all about at upcoming events in August: Thursday, Aug. 23, at O’Rourke Elementary School, 6 p.m.; Tuesday, Aug. 28, at Robert E. Lee Elementary School, 6 p.m.; and Tuesday, Aug. 28, at Allentown Elementary School, 6 p.m. Visit www. girlscoutssa.org for more information.

Friday at the Firehouse Come visit Station 3/Central Fire in downtown Mobile this Friday, Aug. 24, 5:30-7 p.m. to tour the fire station, trucks and equipment and meet firefighters.

Free and open to the public on Fridays throughout the summer. For more information and locations, follow Mobile Fire-Rescue on Facebook.

Superhero showcase Dress up in your favorite superhero costume and join us for a showcase of superheroes and nanotechnology on Saturday, Aug. 25, at the Exploreum in downtown Mobile. Call 251-208-6893 or go to exploreum.com.

Marriages end, families don’t Lifelines Counseling Services will host an educational program on how effective parenting can lessen the negative impact of divorce and parental separation on children. Saturday, Aug. 25, 8 a.m. to noon. Sign up online at lifelinesmobile.org.

MCHD rabies shots The Mobile County Health Department will provide low-cost rabies shots for dogs, cats and ferrets during the final August weekend clinic this Saturday, Aug. 25, 12:30-2:30 p.m. at Mobile Animal Shelter (855 Owens St.). Cost ranges from $8 to $10 per pet, payable in cash. Visit MCHD.org.

Sensory Friendly Experience The Gulf Coast Exploreum in conjunction with the Autism Society of Alabama invite you to a Sensory Friendly Experience in a new summer exhibit, “Water’s Extreme Journey,” and IMAX film “Madagascar: Island of Lemurs” on Sunday, Aug. 26, noon to 2 p.m. (doors at 11:45 a.m.). Cost is $8 per person; Exploreum members only pay $5 for IMAX. Visit exploreum.com.

Photo | Keith Necaise

Business Expo 2018 Mobile’s largest business-to-business trade show will be held Thursday, Aug. 23, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Mobile Convention Center Exhibit Hall. General admission tickets cost $5, available at events. mobilechamber.com. Contact Mobile Chamber at 251-433-6951.

A.g.S Con Join us Aug. 25 and 26 at the Ashbury Hotel & Suites for the A.g.S Con two-day convention celebrating anime, gaming and sci fi. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased via Eventbrite. Contact The Hideout at 251-545-5440.

Jazz Jambalaya The Mystic Order of the Jazz Obsessed (MOJO) hosts its August Jazz Jambalaya — “A Night at the Blue Note” featuring the Chip Herrington Quintet — Monday, Aug. 27, 6:30-9:30 p.m. at Gulf City Lodge (601 State St.). Cost is $10 for members, $15 for guests and $12 for students and members of the military w/ID. Visit www.mojojazz.org.

August admissions discount During August, Bellingrath Gardens and Home offers a reduced rate on combination Gardens and Home tickets: adults $17 (regularly $21), ages 5-12 $12 (regularly $13). Fee for commercial and professional photography also discounted by 50 percent during August; fee includes entrance to gardens for photographer and up to four participants. To book a photography session, call 251-459-8986.

For details, visit bellingrath.org.

Compassionate Friends Mobile/Baldwin Group offering friendship and support for families (parents, grandparents and siblings) who have lost children of any age meets at 7 p.m. the second Tuesday of the month at Dauphin Way United Methodist Church. Call 251-721-2209 or visit compassionatefriendsmobile.org; find us on Facebook, @The Compassionate Friends Mobile/Baldwin.

Music in the Park Enjoy free concerts in the Pavilion at Town Center Park in Spanish Fort Friday evenings through Aug. 31. Aug. 24 — ABRO Trio; Aug. 31 — Trilogy, a Motown variety trio. Visit spanishforttowncenter. com for latest updates.

Back-to-school haircuts Throughout August, Remington College is providing free back-to-school haircuts for kids through the Cuts for Kids program.

Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 2

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Dauphin Street Beer Festival

The annual Dauphin Street Beer Festival takes place Saturday, Aug. 25, in downtown Mobile, as 30 taverns and restaurants welcome participants to sample more than 80 different craft brews and imports from all over the world. Tickets available at any of the participating venues. Visit Facebook @DauphinStreetBeerFestival. p.m. Call 251-342-4848 to schedule an appointment.

Dauphin Island family movie series On Fridays during August, Dauphin Island’s West End Beach is the site of free family movie nights. Aug. 24 — “Secret Life of Pets”; Aug. 31 — “Cars 2.” Visit dauphinislandtourism.com.

Marry me Join us for an evening of food, cocktails and wedding vendors on Tuesday, Aug. 28, 5 p.m. at The Pillars. The event is free and open to anyone getting married or planning a wedding. Find us on Facebook @thepillarsofmobile.

FUNDRAISERS “Fill the Boot” The Mobile Fire-Rescue Department is gearing up for its annual Boot Drive fundraising event to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association. MFRD personnel will be staged at Wal-Mart and Winn-Dixie locations around Mobile on Aug. 24, Aug. 25, Aug. 31st and Sept. 1 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Miles for Medicine Join us for the Miles for Medicine 5K Fun Run on Saturday, Aug. 25, at Langan Park (4901 Zeigler Blvd.). Race starts at 7:30 a.m., walk at 8:30 a.m. Post-race party with prizes, food, music and free parking.

All proceeds benefit Ozanam Pharmacy, USA Lions Club and HSOP-Mobile.

Register at eventbrite.com.

Rubber Ducky Regatta Ronald McDonald House will host the Rubber Duck Regatta on Saturday, Aug. 25, from 10 a.m. to noon at Cooper Riverside Park. Rubber ducky adoptions are available for $5 online at rubberduckyregatta.com for a chance to win multiple prizes. Call Ronald McDonald House Charities of Mobile at 251-6946873, and be sure to read the feature in this week’s Lagniappe.

Belk Charity Sale Support the Bellingrath Gardens and Home Foundation by purchasing a Belk charity sale ticket for $5, which gives you a discount on your first purchase at the sale Saturday, Aug. 25, from 6-10 a.m.

Contact the Gift Shop at Bellingrath, 251973-2217, for more information.

Support #TeamAnthony A $10 plated lunch will be available for pickup on Wednesday, Aug. 29, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Government Plaza Atrium. Proceeds will benefit Anthony LaFrenier, son of Mobile County employee Beth LaFrenier Jones, who was involved in a motor vehicle accident in May. Tickets can be purchased in the Government Plaza Atrium Info Booth or the Mobile County receptionist desk on the 10th floor.

Salvation Army Annual Luncheon Please join us Wednesday, Aug. 29, noon to 1 p.m. (doors at 11:30 a.m.) at The Battle House Hotel. The annual luncheon is the Salvation Army’s primary fundraising event, serving as the official kickoff for its “Our Family” campaign. Featured guest is Deion Sanders of CBS Sports and the NFL Network. For tickets visit www.sacoastal.org.

ARTS “The Faces of India” University of South Alabama Libraries announce the opening of a new exhibit, “The Faces of India” by Jelena Kryschun, in the Mary Elizabeth and Charles Bernard Rodning Gallery of Art on the third floor of the Marx Library. Through Sept. 30. Contact Paula Webb, 251-461-1993.

“My Fair Lady” at CCT Chickasaw Civic Theatre’s 2018-19 season opener “My Fair Lady” runs one more weekend. Call 251-457-8887 or visit cctshows.com.

“Mamma Mia! — The Musical” The Joe Jefferson Playhouse performance of “Mamma Mia!” runs one more weekend.

Visit joejeffersonplayhouse.com.

Organ concert and hymn-sing Featuring Andrew Atkinson, virtuoso organist. Sunday Aug. 26, at 6 p.m., Government Street United Methodist Church, corner of Government and Broad streets. Call 251-438-4714.

Garden sketch club Visit Mobile Botanical Gardens every Friday from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. for a relaxing time sketching in the gardens. All levels of experience are welcome. General admission is $5 for nonmembers.

MUSEUMS “Water’s Extreme Journey” An exciting quest that transforms you into a drop of water entering a watershed and traveling to oceans, while learning how clean choices keep our drops healthy and moving toward a clean ocean. Daily through Sept. 3 at Gulf Coast Exploreum. Visit exploreum.com for details.

“To the Arctic” An extraordinary journey to the top of the world, the documentary adventure ”To the Arctic” reveals a compelling tale of survival.

Visit exploreum.com for details.

“Ice Age Imperials” History Museum of Mobile, through Aug. 26. Imagine traveling 20,000 years into the past when fierce cats, enormous mastodons and woolly mammoths, 6-foot-tall beavers and other giant creatures roamed the land and every day was a struggle for survival.

Visit historymuseumofmobile.com or call 251-301-0266.

“National Parks Adventure” A trio of adventurers’ quest to experience America’s wildest, most historic and most naturally beautiful places becomes the ultimate off-trail adventure in MacGillivray Freeman Films’ “National Parks Adventure” narrated by Robert Redford. Visit www. exploreum.com.

Thursdays at MMoA Every Thursday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., the Mobile Museum of Art offers free admission to all Mobile County residents.

No reservations are necessary. MMoA is at 4850 Museum Drive. Call 251-208-5200.

SPORTING EVENTS/ACTIVITIES “Grey’s Anatomy” trivia Mellow Mushroom at 2032 Airport Blvd. will host Themed Trivia on Wednesday, Aug. 22, 8-9 p.m. Dress up as your favorite character and have a chance to win gifts card and prizes. Call 251-471-4700.

Mobile BayBears vs. Mississippi Braves Catch the last two games of the season on Wednesday, Aug. 22, and Thursday, Aug. 23, between the BayBears and the Mississippi Braves at Hank Aaron Stadium.

Visit baybears.com for game times and tickets.

Fit & Boujee Sweat Camp Hosted by Rock Paper Fitness, please join us for the free community sweat camp on Saturday, Aug. 25, 6-7 a.m. at Sage Park.

Bring water, 5- to 8-pound weight and yoga mat.

Rock ‘n’ roll bingo Join us at Manci’s Antique Club in Olde Towne Daphne on Tuesday, Aug. 28, at 6:30 p.m. for rock ‘n’ roll bingo.

For more information visit http://www. mancisantiqueclub.com/.

Pop-Up Yoga The final complimentary yoga class of the current session instructed by Nonie Taul of Naturally Strong Nonie will be held this Saturday, Aug. 25, at 9:15 a.m. at The Shoppes at Bel Air in the fountain area.

Class is family-friendly and open to all ages and fitness levels on a first-come, first-served basis. Attendees will be offered water and light snacks. Visit facebook.com/ TheShoppesAtBelAir. Irish dancing Beginner classes for ages 3 through teens are held Saturday mornings at 9:30 a.m. at the Azalea City Center for the Arts, 63 Midtown Park E., and feature traditional jigs, reels, hornpipes and ceili dances.

Learn the beautiful art form that is Irish dancing, which develops confidence, poise and stamina. Fun performances during the year, competition also available. Call 228239-2422 or email maccrossanirishdance@ yahoo.com.

Bingo at Via! Every Tuesday and Thursday, 1:30-3:30 p.m. at Via! Health, Fitness & Enrichment Center, 1717 Dauphin St., 251-478-3311.

Open to the public.

WORKSHOPS Free real estate career seminar Hosted by Keller Williams Daphne and Orange Beach on Tuesday, Aug. 28, 5:30-7 p.m. Call Donna Taylor at 251-607-8800 for more information.

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MEDIA MEDIA FRENZY

Uncle Henry goes coastal

BY ROB HOLBERT/MANAGING EDITOR/RHOLBERT@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM

S IF I WERE YOU

BY ROSS TRUDEAU / EDITED BY WILL SHORTZ

ACROSS 1 Begin 6 Commercial aunt since 1889 12 Prep to find fingerprints 16 Checkup sounds 19 Deduce 20 Rabid supporters 21 Steel head?

23 Land O’Lakes and Breakstone’s?

25 Part of the SkyTeam Alliance 26 With severity 27 The only way to get respect, so they say 29 Kind of torch 30 Commies 31 Ministering?

35 Giant in direct sales 37 Pro or con 38 Vientiane native 39 Stag’s mate 40 Laundry unit 41 “Inside the N.B.A.” analyst beginning in 2011 43 Wunderkinds, say 47 “Damn, I can’t seem to get a ball into fair territory!”?

53 Fabrication 54 Chicago airport code 55 Wide divide 56 Lose an all-in hand, say 57 Vitriol 58 Aziz of “Master of None” 60 Most susceptible to sunburn 61 Biblioklept’s targets 62 Like a trip overland from Venezuela to Bolivia?

67 Musical closings 70 Easy buckets 71 Tiny, multitentacled creatures 75 Operating system since the early ’70s 76 Mother ____ 77 “Robinson Crusoe” author 80 Fútbol stadium cry 81 Ingredient in a Cuba libre 82 Expensive line of nonsense someone throws you?

85 Novel endings, maybe 87 Informal assertion of authority 88 Indigo source 89 Part of NGO 90 Orders 93 “Feed me!,” maybe 94 Tannery stock 95 “What are you hauling in there?” and “How many axles you running?”

100 Course 101 Actress Moreno 102 One putting others down 103 Ivory, e.g.

106 In a state

108 Entering your middle name, then date of birth, then adding a “1,” etc.?

112 Missile in a mating ritual 113 Best of all possible worlds 114 Amounts to 115 Amount to 116 “… ish” 117 Nitpicky know-it-all 118 Scoring factor at a crossword tournament

DOWN 1 Bros, e.g.

2 Letter-shaped fastener 3 Subsequently 4 Sadly unoriginal works 5 In vogue 6 Box of 12?

7 Manning with two Super Bowl M.V.P. awards 8 “I want my ____” (1980s slogan) 9 Suggestion from a financial adviser, for short 10 Rami ____ of “Mr. Robot” 11 Attack vigorously 12 Title role for Jamie Foxx 13 Like the Statue of Liberty at night 14 Most common U.S. surname 15 Wee one 16 Trattoria option that means “garlic and oil” 17 Poem name whose singular

and plural forms are the same 18 Slowness embodied 22 Betrays, in a way 24 “Treasure Island” monogram 28 Genetic messenger 31 Excessive lovers of the grape 32 Classical theater 33 Concrete 34 Temptation location 35 Big name in soda cans and foil 36 Show grief 37 Guest bed, in a pinch 42 Extended writer’s blocks?

43 Scrapbooking need 44 Big success 45 Good source of calcium 46 Grasps 48 Hosiery shades 49 This Hebrew letter: 50 American Girl products 51 Keep watch for, maybe 52 Overdo it on the praise 57 “The Lord of the Rings” actor Billy 59 He fought alongside Achilles 60 Remote button 61 Aspirin maker 63 Narrow valleys 64 Oreo ingredient until the mid-’90s 65 One ogling 66 “You just blew my mind!”

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67 Medical breakthrough 68 “Movin’ ____” 69 Tiny 72 Wide-swinging blow 73 CBS’s “Kate & ____” 74 Peddles 76 Harbor sight 77 Box of 12, say 78 “Ticklish” toys 79 Raced 82 [The light turned green!

Go!] 83 Free trial version 84 Where you might open a whole can of worms?

86 Track down 90 Move in the direction of 91 Jerk 92 Rise to the occasion 94 Comedic duo?

95 Skipping syllables 96 Difficulty 97 2022 World Cup host 98 Alternatives to cabs 99 About to blow one’s top 100 3, 4 or 5, usually 103 What a 76-Down pulls 104 Certain buy-in 105 Vet’s malady, for short 107 Kerfuffle 109 Turf 110 Luxury-hotel amenity 111 Get gold from one’s lead?

ANSWERS ON PAGE 41

ome listeners were shocked Monday morning to not only hear a new voice on the air with their favorite local curmudgeon, but a new show name.

“The Uncle Henry Show” has morphed into “Gulf Coast Mornings with Kelly Bennett and Uncle Henry,” and can now be heard from Slidell, Louisiana, to Loxley in Baldwin County. The move pairs Uncle Henry with cohost Kelly Bennett, who joins in from a studio at WBUV in Biloxi. In essence, the show ties coastal Mississippi and Alabama together with two hosts in different stations — one FM and the other AM. “This has been in the works for months,” Uncle Henry explained. He said the move fills a few needs, giving WBUV-FM a local news show and providing Uncle Henry with a cohost to help relieve the pressure of producing a solo show every day. Uncle Henry says it also gets him on an FM station, reaching a new market. The show will still also run locally on WNTM-AM and on 99.5-FM The JAG. While the idea of co-hosting approximately 60 miles away from each other might seem a bit strange, Uncle Henry says he and Bennett have both worked in radio for many years and also worked with co-hosts before, which makes the transition easier. For his part, Uncle Henry welcomes the help.

“A lot of days when I get done it feels like I’ve been trying to move a couch,” Uncle Henry said of hosting solo. “To have her come in and carry half the weight feels great,” he said.

Perhaps as challenging as co-hosting with someone in a different city is somehow tying Mobile and the Mississippi Gulf Coast together in a way that will interest listeners who aren’t necessarily familiar with events taking place in other parts of the coverage area. But Uncle Henry said he believes the two areas do have enough in common to find stories and topics that will be of interest to both. He and Bennett will work together to select those topics.

With 16 years under his belt hosting “The Uncle Henry Show” on WNTM, Uncle Henry says it’s good to make some changes and to be able to continue trying to grow his audience for iHeart Radio.

“I’m excited that they’re still taking chances with me after doing this for so long,” he said.

Byrd flying the coop

After nearly 12 years at WALA-TV, meteorologist and morning co-host Chasity Byrd has announced she is leaving the station to start a new career working with Baldwin County Public Schools.

Byrd co-hosts the morning “Studio 10” show weekdays and also serves as meteorologist for the 4 p.m. broadcast. She has also worked as an award-winning general assignment reporter and covered a wide array of stories over the years. In her new position she will work with the school system’s communications department. Her last day on the air will be Aug. 24.

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SPORTS UPON FURTHER REVIEW

Local colleges expected to compete for soccer titles

BY J. MARK BRYANT/SPORTS WRITER/SPORTS@LAGNIAPPEMOBILE.COM/TWITTER @GOULAGUY

A

re you ready for some (association) football? Well, you are in luck as our three local colleges are expected to field some outstanding soccer teams this year.

Spring Hill men

Spring Hill women

SHC women will attempt to build on the 2017 campaign that saw them fail to pick up a conference victory. Senior forward Gabrielle Burmaster, a threeyear letter winner, is back after leading the team with four goals.

The other upper-class members on the team are senior goalie Melissa Schwartz and junior midfielder Johanna Meister. Eleven sophomores have earned a varsity letter.

The GSC included freshmen Olivia Odimegwu and Libby Durrough on its 2018 Top Newcomers List. Odimegwu is a forward who finished her career in Tennessee as the program’s all-time leading goalscorer. Durrough, a midfielder from Kentucky, joins the Badgers from Notre Dame Academy where she was a three-year varsity player and a National League club player for Kings Hammer Academy, which won multiple Ohio South State Cup championships.

The University of South Alabama program not only was picked to win the Sun Belt Conference (SBC) this year, but its players swept the major preseason awards.

Hannah Godfrey, the team’s only senior, was voted SBC Defensive Player of the Year. Junior Kory Dixon was tabbed Offensive Player of the Year. The Jaguars received seven first-place votes in the team poll.

The Jaguars have won a league-record five straight SBC tournament titles and four consecutive regularseason crowns. They went 14-6-1 after losing their first four outings.

Godfrey started all 21 games and played a teamhigh 1,935 minutes. She led a defense that ranked second in goals against average and tied for first in shutouts. Godfrey was named third-team all-South Region honors by United Soccer Coaches, and first team all-conference and Defensive Player of the Year by the Sun Belt.

Dixon capped her season by accounting for four goals and 10 points in the final five contests, including three goals and two assists in the Sun Belt Tournament. She was voted second-team all-conference and all-tournament.

Junior goalie Justice Stanford has 18 career shutouts, which is tied for fourth in school history.

Sophomore forward Ana Helmert had four goals and two assists.

University of Mobile women

The University of Mobile (UM) Rams are coming off an outstanding 2017 campaign. UM was the co-regular season champion of the Southern States Athletic Conference (SSAC) with a 14-5 record, which was good for a final national ranking of No. 9.

They advanced to Round of 16 in the NAIA Women’s Soccer National Championship Another fine effort is expected, as the Rams are ninth in the NAIA preseason poll. Despite this, they have been picked to finish third in the SSAC. William Carey is the preseason pick to win the conference, with 76 points (five first-place picks) and is No. 4 in the NAIA poll, while Martin Methodist was second with 74 points (three first-place picks) and is No. 5 in the national ranking. The trio finished the 2017 SSAC regular season as co-champions after all going 6-1.

Key veterans include senior forward Colleen Kennedy (2017 third-team All-American, first-team all-conference) and senior midfielder Noemi Mallet

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Photo | Spring Hill College

Coming off a school-record 12 victories in 2017, hopes are high for the Badgers as they enter their first season of eligibility in NCAA Division II. The men’s soccer coaches of the Gulf South Conference (GSC) have picked Spring Hill College to finish second this season behind defending league champion University of West Alabama.

Named to the GSC’s preseason all-star roster are forward Alex Lipinski and defender Jack LaForge. A junior, Lipinski was the 2017-18 SHC Male StudentAthlete of the Year after scoring a school single-season record 38 points. His 14 goals were the secondbest single-season mark in SHC history, while his 10 assists established a new school record.

LaForge, a senior, is a three-time letter winner as well as a three-time member of the GSC Academic Honor Roll. He has made 43 starts in 48 appearances and led the Badgers to four shutout victories in 2017.

Senior forward Tilman Schober has earned three varsity letters at SHC, while junior forward Donte Oliver has lettered twice.

Freshmen George Brown and Eldi Seiti were picked to the GSC Top Newcomers roster. Brown is a forward from England, while Seiti is a midfielder from Venice, Italy, who was born in Athens, Greece.

South Alabama women

Spring Hill College junior forward Alex Lipinski scored a school single-season record 38 points last year. (second-team all-conference, 2016-17 Academic Player of the Year for SSAC Women’s Soccer).

Other returning starters are senior defender Zoe Phillips, junior defender Heidi Giles, junior forward Cheyne Bush, junior midfielder Abigail Bush and sophomore forward Tanja Hymøller.

University of Mobile men

The UM men also had a tremendous record of 14-4-3. They were the SSAC conference tournament champions and advanced to Round of Eight in the NAIA Men’s Soccer National Championship. They were ranked No. 6 in the final national poll, and hold the same spot in this year’s initial NAIA rankings.

In the preseason conference poll, William Carey stands in first place with 79 points (seven first-place picks) while UM was close behind with 73 points (two first-place picks).

The Hattiesburg school, which won the regular-season title last year with a 17-2 record, is No. 5 in the NAIA poll.

Goalkeeper Guilherme Altoe returns after an outstanding junior campaign. He was on the first-team all-conference team and won the SSAC Golden Glove award. An honorable mention All-American, he will be one of the captains this year.

Matthew McArthur is a senior midfielder who will be another captain. Senior defender Jordan Sinclair has twice been a first-team all-conference selection, and was the SSAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2015.

The Rams are also expecting a big year from Victor Pimentel. The junior forward spent the summer with Next Level Academy in the Premier Development League.

SPORTS FROM BEHIND THE MIC

Hype for young Alabama quarterback not unprecedented

BY RANDY KENNEDY/CONTRIBUTING WRITER

T

here once was a quarterback who was a major recruit coming out of high school. I’m sure you’d recognize his name because he played in the SEC. He arrived at college, where there was already an established championship quarterback on the roster. So, he mostly waited his turn.

He famously got on the field as a freshman as his team won the national championship. In fact, he played enough that fans were touting him for the Heisman Trophy even before he became a full-time starter.

Many other people questioned if the hype was too much, too soon.

The quarterback went on to justify all the hype by winning another national championship as a starter, becoming a two-time SEC Player of the Year, winning the Heisman Trophy as a junior and becoming an NFL first-round draft choice.

No, I’m not projecting that greatness onto Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa.

The quarterback I’m describing is Tim Tebow.

Tebow arrived in Gainesville, Florida, as perhaps the most famous high school football player ever. Even with the increased media today compared to when he left Ponte Vedra’s Nease High School in 2006, there still has not been a player who has garnered more attention before arriving at college.

Tebow is in the discussion as the best college quarterback of all time. But as a freshman, he played behind established starter Chris Leak as the Gators won the 2006 national championship.

He didn’t come into the national championship and save the day the way Tagovailoa did, but it’s easy to make the comparison between the two players at this stage of their careers.

Like Tebow, Tagovailoa was a five-star recruit and many analysts thought he was the best quarterback in the country coming

out of high school. Also like Tebow, he wasn’t scared away by the prospect of joining a team with an established leader at quarterback, in this case reigning SEC Player of the Year Jalen Hurts.

Everybody knows how Tagovailoa’s story has unfolded so far. He played only in mop-up duty as Hurts led Alabama to an 11-0 start. He sat on the bench while Hurts and the Tide were throttled by Auburn in the Iron Bowl. He was expected to play against Clemson in the playoff semifinal, but Alabama’s defense was so dominant there was no need to put in the inexperienced freshman, even if he had completed 54 of 58 passes in practices against the Tide’s No. 1 defense leading up to that game.

In the championship game, Tagovailoa came off the bench to save the day, throwing a 41-yard touchdown pass on the final play of the college football season to lift the Tide to the national championship.

Is Tagovailoa the next Tim Tebow? Will he win another national championship, capture the Heisman Trophy and be a first-round NFL draft pick? There’s no way to know that. And, frankly, the comparison is probably unfair this early in his career.

But it is equally unfair to assume he will become the next Jeremy Johnson, which many fans are doing.

Johnson’s story begins in a remarkably similar way to that of Tebow and Tagovailoa. He was Mr. Football in the state of Alabama while playing for Carver High School in Montgomery.

He earned one start as a freshman but played sparingly as Nick Marshall led the Tigers to the SEC championship and a spot in the national championship game.

The following year, Marshall was suspended for the first half of the season opener against Arkansas. Johnson delivered a stellar performance, completing 12 of 16 passes for 243 yards and two touchdowns.

While he spent much of the rest of the season on the bench, Johnson’s Arkansas performance was enough to begin the hype machine about his future. It was impossible to find anyone at the time who didn’t project Johnson as a star in the SEC. That included his coach, Gus Malzahn.

Of course, the rest of the story was not as pretty. Johnson struggled mightily once he became the center of attention on a team that was supposed to contend for titles. He never looked comfortable in the role, on or off the field. There were no national championships or Heisman Trophies or first-round draft picks in his future.

So, as we enter the 2018 season, Tagovailoa is in a position similar to what Tebow and Johnson found themselves in before him. If there is a difference it’s that Tagovailoa is getting even more hype. He is now the co-favorite to win the Heisman Trophy this year (both Bryce Love of Stanford and Tagovailoa are 7-1), despite the fact that he hasn’t started a game or even been named the Tide’s starter.

Tagovailoa has passed for 636 yards in his career on 49 of 77 passing. He threw 11 touchdown passes and only two interceptions last season.

Are those numbers enough to justify all the hype? Probably not.

But the the thought that Tagovailoa is going to be the next Tim Tebow is just as realistic as him being the next Jeremy Johnson.

The good news is, we’re less than two weeks away from beginning to find out which it will be.

Randy Kennedy writes a weekly column for Lagniappe and is co-host of “Sports Drive” every weekday from 3-6 p.m. on WNSP 105.5 FM, the country’s first all-sports FM station.

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STYLE FEATURE

Rubber Ducky Regatta benefits Ronald McDonald House

BY CATHERINE RAINEY

M

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duck is numbered, so if you win, you won’t find yourself digging through thousands of ducks wondering which one is yours. If you‘d like more than one duck, no problem. It gives you more of a chance to score some sweet prizes.

Various other winnings include: a family pack to visit the Gulf Coast Exploreum, GulfQuest National Maritime Museum passes and a private duck boat tour, among many others.

Although the regatta is only on its second run in Mobile, it has been making waves in other cities around the globe for many years.

Rubber ducky races have been used for fundraising events since before the 1990s. The first one ever recorded was in Canada, and the largest one to date was in London, England, with 200,000 ducks!

“We first heard about it from Chicago. Here we are a nonprofit that supports children and we didn’t have an event that involves them,” McAleer mused. “We have Little Black Dress, which is 21 and older, and we have Girls Just Want to Have Fun — but they’re all adult events.”

The opportunity doesn’t come every day for you and yours to visit beautiful Cooper Riverside Park and witness a family-fun rubber ducky race.

“We thrive in our water environment. The city is extremely excited about it, and it’s fun to get downtown and see something like this happening on the river,” McAleer said. “It’s just a happy feeling.”

For more information, visit www.rubberduckyregatta.com.

Photo | RMHC of Mobile

aking its second appearance in Mobile, the Rubber Ducky Regatta, organized by Ronald McDonald House, will take place at Cooper Riverside Park at 10 a.m. this Saturday, Aug. 25.

Founded in 1974, Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) specializes in helping ailing children and their families. When a child is seriously ill, lower-income families often have to sleep in their cars or in waiting rooms during their child’s stay in a hospital. That’s where RMHC comes in, providing temporary housing for families of patients.

“It’s wonderful to witness these kids get better alongside their parents,” said Mary McAleer, the house’s development director, when asked why she got into nonprofit work. “You see a small child who is terribly sick, with no energy, and then later they come back and visit and they’re a lively 2-year-old — like they’re supposed to be. I originally wanted to help people, but I feel like it’s helped me more than I expected.”

The purpose of the regatta is not only to make a splash with local advocates and laymen alike by spreading awareness of children in need, it’s also to have a great time with local people and vendors. Attractions include face painting, a local balloon clown, ice cream from Cammie’s Old Dutch and a tugboat dance, to name a few. The Joe Jefferson Players will make an appearance with a snippet of their “Mama Mia!” performance. You might even glimpse a couple of princesses.

“Last year I was walking around the event and suddenly Ariel appeared,” McAleer reminisces. “I was thinking, ‘Oh! this is fantastic.’”

The rubber ducky race is where the opportunity for you to help comes in.

“Ducks are $5 apiece, and the winner gets two tickets for a Carnival cruise, but you don’t have to be present to win!” exclaims Paul Giardina, executive director at Ronald McDonald House. The affair will involve no fewer than 10,000 of these friendly floating fellows.

The ducks will be dropped into the Mobile River and run with the water’s current along a buoyed course. The ducks will be corralled by boats from the Mobile Fire-Rescue Department and United States Coast Guard to prevent any from escaping the course. Each

The second annual Rubber Ducky Regatta benefitting the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Mobile will be Saturday, Aug. 25, from 10 a.m. until noon at Cooper Riverside Park.

STYLE HOROSCOPES THE SINCEREST FORM OF INEBRIATION

ANSWERS FROM PAGE 36

LEO (7/23-8/23) — You’ll have a delightful time at Drag Queen Story Hour at the Mobile Public Library, just as you would at any story hour, and go about your life not getting i to everyone else’s business. Your Dauphin Street Beer Fest hangover cure is two bloody marys at Sunday brunch.

VIRGO (8/24-9/22) — In an effort to encourage your ducky to win the Rubber Ducky Regatta, you’ll stand on the riverfront along with a couple of Baldwin County’s rabid foxes.

Your Dauphin Street Beer Fest hangover cure is a trip across the Bayway poking your head out of the sunroof while it’s raining.

LIBRA (9/23-10/22) — You’ll send a condolence letter to the USA Board of Trustees for mismanaging the 250 percent tuition hike over the past 15 years and not creating a fund for a football stadium. Your Dauphin Street Beer Fest hangover cure is a cold therapy mask and Roman Street quietly strumming in the background. a SCORPIO (10/23-11/21) — Hearing that houses in Baldwin County are selling in 24 hours or less, you decide to put yours on the market without disclosing the leaking roof or raccoon infestation. Your Dauphin Street Beer Fest hangover cure is the face Mayor Stimpson made when the USA stadium vote failed.

SAGITTARIUS (11/22-12/22) — Speaking of leaking roofs and racoon infestations, it appears your next visit to Bama Bayou may finally have something to offer. Your Dauphin Street Beer Fest hangover cure is counting Alexander Shunnarah advertisements.

CAPRICORN (12/23-1/19) — After Mobile Baykeeper canceled The Big Float due to the poor water quality of Fly Creek, you plan to host The Big Flush kayak tour instead. Your Dauphin Street Beer Fest hangover cure is a cold swim in dirty Magnolia Springs.

AQUARIUS (1/20-2/18) — Always the rebel, you’ll bring a bowl of gumbo to this month’s installment of Jazz Jambalaya. Your Dauphin Street Beer Fest hangover cure is the entire cup of Communion wine at mass.

PISCES (2/19-3/20) — You’ll be offered payment from a shadow organization to oppose Fairhope’s vote on a council-manager form of government. Your Dauphin Street Beer Fest hangover cure is one part Gatorade, one part Pedialyte and five parts ipecac.

ARIES (3/21-4/19) — In a new ploy to pay back your student loans, you’ll develop a plan to be thrown into Mobile Metro Jail, lose a lim, and force a settlement with the county. Your Dauphin Street Beer Fest hangover cure is attending your local government’s 2019 budget deliberations.

TAURUS (4/20-5/20) — You become the first person to debate Gov. Kay Ivey when you get into an argument over the most wholesome 1950s TV characters over drinks at the Perdido Beach Resort bar. Your Dauphin Street Beer Fest hangover cure is a 100-mile LimeBike race.

GEMINI (5/21-6/21) — Relieved the Republican incumbent politicians of Baldwin County successfully blocked a proposed immigrant detention facility, you issue a stop work order on the 12-foot fence being constructed around your backyard. Your Dauphin Street Beer Fest hangover cure is a half-gallon of Cammie’s Old Dutch ice cream.

CANCER (6/22-7/22) — Preparing for the inaugural A.g.S Con at the Ashbury Hotel, you’ll don your Bulma cosplay and prepare to save Son Goku. Your Dauphin Street Beer Fest hangover cure is 10 puppies licking your face.

A u g u s t 2 2 , 2 0 1 8 - A u g u s t 2 8 , 2 0 1 8 | L AG N I A P P E | 41

LAGNIAPPE LEGALS | 251.450-4466 | legals@lagniappemobile.com CIRCUIT IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY, ALABAMA DOMESTIC RELATIONS DIVISION NOTICE OF DIVORCE ACTION CASE NO. 02-DR-2018-900376.00S SHANTAE SHERNITA WATTS, PLAINTIFF VS. ALI JOVONN ANDERSON, DEFENDANT ALI JOVONN ANDERSON (Defendant), whose whereabouts is unknown, must answer the plaintiff’s Petition for Divorce and other relief by OCTOBER 1, 2018 or, thereafter, a Judgment by Default may be rendered against him/ her in the above styled case. The defendant’s written answer must filed with the Court and a copy mailed to the plaintiff’s attorney of record at the address provided below. Done this 20th day of July, 2018. JoJo Schwarzauer, Circuit Clerk Attorney: Caitlin Smitherman P.O. Box 1986 Mobile, AL 36633 Telephone: (251) 433-6560 ext. 3414 Attorney for the plaintiff Lagniappe HD August 8, 15, 22, 29, 2018

PROBATE NOTICE OF ESTATE ADMINISTRATION PROBATE COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY, ALABAMA Estate of: EDWIN LEWIS LAMBERTH, JR., Deceased Case No. 2018-1604 Take notice that Letters Testamentary have been granted to the below named party on the 13th day of August, 2018 by the Honorable Don Davis, Judge of Probate of Mobile County Probate Court, Alabama and that all parties having claims against said estate should file the same with the Probate Court of said county within the time allowed by law, or they will be barred. CAROLINE SPENCER LAMBERTH as Executrix under the last will and testament of EDWIN LEWIS LAMBERTH, JR., Deceased.

Attorney of Record: STEPHEN G. CRAWFORD, ESQ. P.O. BOX 123 MOBILE, AL 36601

estate should file the same with the Probate Court of said county within the time allowed by law, or they will be barred. MARSHA HATTENSTEIN, as Administrator CTA under the last will and testament of WILLIAM HERBERT RILEY, Deceased.

Attorney of Record: R. MARK KIRKPATRICK Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 29, 2018

NOTICE OF ESTATE ADMINISTRATION PROBATE COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY, ALABAMA Estate of: BRANDON MICHAEL BAILEY Case No. 2018-1261 Take notice that Letters of Administration have been granted to the below named party on the 30th day of July, 2018 by the Honorable Don Davis, Judge of Probate of Mobile County Probate Court, Alabama and that all parties having claims against said estate should file the same with the Probate Court of said county within the time allowed by law, or they will be barred. BECKY ALANE BAILEY as Administratrix of the estate of BRANDON MICHAEL BAILEY, deceased.

Attorney of Record: RUTH R. LICHTENFELD Esq. Lagniappe HD August 8, 15, 22, 2018

PUBLIC NOTICE NOTICE OF COMPLETION STATE OF ALABAMA COUNTY OF MOBILE In accordance with Chapter 1, Title 39, Code of Alabama, 1975, notice is hereby given that J. Hunt Enterprises, General Contractors, LLC, has completed the contract: Taylor Park – Site Drainage Repairs & Walking Trail, PR-090-16, 1050 Baltimore Street, Mobile, Alabama 36605. All persons having any claim for labor, material or otherwise in connection with this project should immediately notify the Architectural Engineering Department, City of Mobile, PO Box 1827, Mobile, Alabama 36633-1827.

J. Hunt Enterprises, General Contractors, LLC 4657 Gold Mine Rd. East, Mobile, AL 36619.

Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 29, September 5, 2018

Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, September 5, 2018.

NOTICE OF COMPLETION

NOTICE OF COURT PROCEEDING

STATE OF ALABAMA COUNTY OF MOBILE In accordance with Chapter 1, Title 39, Code of Alabama, 1975, notice is hereby given that Marathon Electrical Contractors, Inc., has completed the contract for: Covered Outdoor Football Pavilion at the University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL. All persons having any claim for labor, materials, or otherwise in connection with this project should immediately notify Godwin Mills and Cawood, Inc. 11 North Water St. Mobile, AL 36602 Marathon Electrical Contractors, Inc. 2830 Commerce Blvd.

Irondale, AL 35210

August 01, 2018 Case No. 2016-0070-1 In the Probate Court of Mobile County, Alabama Estate of CHARMAINE MARCIA BELL, Deceased On to-wit the 17th day of September, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. in COURTROOM 1, THIRD FLOOR, Mobile County Government Center Annex, 151 Government Street the court will proceed to consider the FINAL SETTLEMENT as filed by VONCILLE BELL PERKINS. NOTICE is hereby given to all parties in interest who may appear and contest same or file a proper responsive pleading thereto if they then think proper.

Don Davis, Judge of Probate Attorney Name and Address: SANDRA RANDER 107 N. JACKSON ST. MOBILE, AL 36602 Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, Sept. 5, 2018

NOTICE OF ESTATE ADMINISTRATION PROBATE COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY, ALABAMA Estate of: JOHNNY DAVID HILL SR., Deceased Case No. 2018-1506 Take notice that Letters Testamentary have been granted to the below named parties on the 9th day of August, 2018 by the Honorable Don Davis, Judge of Probate of Mobile County Probate Court, Alabama and that all parties having claims against said estate should file the same with the Probate Court of said county within the time allowed by law, or they will be barred. JOHNNY D. HILL, JR. and ANGELA H. BUTLER as Co-Executors under the last will and testament of JOHNNY DAVID HILL, SR., Deceased.

Attorney of Record: JOHNNY D. HILL, JR., ESQ. P.O. BOX 572 FAYETTEVILLE, TN 37334 Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 29, 2018

NOTICE OF ESTATE ADMINISTRATION PROBATE COURT OF MOBILE COUNTY, ALABAMA Estate of: WILLIAM HERBERT RILEY Case No. 2018-1432 Take notice that Letters of Administration on the Annexed Will have been granted to the below named party on the 6th day of August, 2018 by the Honorable Don Davis, Judge of Probate of Mobile County Probate Court, Alabama and that all parties having claims against said

Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 29, September 5, 2018

NOTICE OF COMPLETION STATE OF ALABAMA COUNTY OF MOBILE In accordance with Chapter 1, Title 39, Code of Alabama, 1975, notice is hereby given that Double AA Construction Company, LLC has completed the contract for: Alabama Department of Corrections, Re-Roofing Mobile Work Release, 2423 East I-65 Service Road North, Prichard, Alabama 36610. All persons having any claim for labor, materials, or otherwise in connection with this project should immediately notify Godwin Mills and Cawood, Inc., 2660 EastChase Lane, Suite 200, Montgomery, AL 36117.

Double AA Construction Company, LLC 8735 Lott Road Wilmer, AL 36587 Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 29, September 5, 2018

NOTICE OF COMPLETION STATE OF ALABAMA COUNTY OF MOBILE In accordance with Chapter 1, Title 39, Code of Alabama, 1975, notice is hereby given that Double AA Construction Company, LLC has completed the contract for: Alabama Industrial Development Training, Maritime Training Center Water Intrusion Repair, 360 Addsco Road, Mobile, Alabama 36602. All persons having any claim for labor, materials, or otherwise in connection with this project should immediately notify Godwin Mills and Cawood, Inc., 2701 1st Street South, Suite 100, Birmingham, Alabama 35233.

Double AA Construction Company, LLC 8735 Lott Road Wilmer, AL 36587 Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 29, September 5, 2018

42 | L AG N I A P P E | A u g u s t 2 2 , 2 0 1 8 - A u g u s t 2 8 , 2 0 1 8

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING Notice is hereby given that the Mobile City Planning Commission proposes to consider an amendment to the Subdivision Regulations to amend the Subdivision Jurisdiction to the City of Mobile corporate limits. The adoption of said amendment will be considered by the Mobile City Planning commission in the Auditorium of the Mobile Government Plaza, Located at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama, on the 6th day of September 2018, at 2:00 PM. Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on September 10, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 111 Levert Avenue (West side of Levert Avenue, 40’± South of Deleon Avenue) for a Swimming Pool Setback Variance to allow a 6’-deep swimming pool to be constructed 5.5’ from a rear property line in an R-1, Single-Family Residential District; the Zoning Ordinance requires swimming pools be constructed a distance equal to at least one (1) foot greater than the maximum depth of the swimming pool from any side or rear property line in an R-1, Single-Family Residential District.

The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama. This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 17th day of August, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on September 10, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 820 Ingleside Drive West (East side of Ingleside Drive West, 125’± South of Parkwood Drive West) for a Side Yard Setback Variance to allow the construction of a shed and a garage within 6.8’ and 7.7’, respectively, of a side property line in an R-1, SingleFamily Residential District; the Zoning Ordinance requires all structures over 3’ tall to be constructed a minimum of 8’ from a side property line in an R-1, Single-Family Residential District. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama.

This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 17th day of August, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on September 10, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 205 Congress Street (South side of Congress Street, 100’± West of North Conception Street) for a Use Variance to allow a bar/café with an occupancy load over 100 people in a T-4 Sub-District of the Downtown Development District; the Zoning Ordinance does not allow bars/cafes in a T-4 Sub-District of the Downtown Development District. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama.

This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 17th day of August, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on September 10, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 901 East I-65 Service Road South (East side of I-65 Service Road South, 900’± South of Airport Boulevard) for a Sign Variance to amend a previously-approved Sign Variance to allow three (3) wall signs, for a total of five (5) signs, on a single tenant site in a B-3, Community Business District; the Zoning Ordinance allows a total of three (3) signs for a single business site in a B-3, Community Business District. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama. This notice is to advise

you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 17th day of August, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on September 10, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 2500 Burden Lane (West terminus of Burden Lane) for a Surfacing Variance to allow aggregate surfacing for an access road and parking lot for a proposed telecommunications tower in an I-1, Light Industry District; the Zoning Ordinance requires all roads and parking areas to be surfaced in asphalt, concrete, or an approved alternative paving surface in an I-1, Light Industry District.

The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama. This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 17th day of August, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on September 10, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 363 Rapier Avenue (Northeast corner of Rapier Avenue and Texas Street) for a Use Variance to allow a duplex in an R-1, Single-Family Residential District; the Zoning Ordinance requires a minimum R-2, Two-Family Residence District, for duplexes. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama. This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 17th day of August, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on September 10, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 911 Government Street (South side of Government Street, 150’± East of Marine Street) for a Tree Planting, Landscape Area, and Access and Maneuvering Variances to allow no tree plantings, reduced landscape area, and substandard access and maneuvering for a proposed mixed-use occupancy in an R-B, Residence-Business District; the Zoning Ordinance requires full compliance with tree planting and landscape area requirements, and 24’-wide driveways and access aisles for two-way traffic in an R-B, Residence-Business District. The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama. This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 17th day of August, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT MOBILE, ALABAMA PURSUANT TO THE ZONING ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF MOBILE, adopted the 16th day of May 1967, as amended, the City of Mobile’s Board of Zoning Adjustment will hold a Public Hearing on September 10, 2018 at 2:00 p.m. to consider a request at 221 South Dearborn Street (Northeast corner of South Dearborn Street and Canal Street Service Road) for a Site and Setback Variances to allow a third building within the required secondary frontage setback on a residential lot in a T-3 Sub-District of the Downtown Development District; the Zoning Ordinance allows a maximum of two (2) buildings per lot with outbuildings no closer to the secondary frontage than the rear of the façade of the primary building in a T-3 Sub-District of the Downtown Development District.

The meeting will be held in the Auditorium at 205 Government Street, Mobile, Alabama. This notice is to advise you of the public hearing so that you may attend the meeting and present your views to the Board concerning this request.

Dated this 17th day of August, 2018.

BOARD OF ZONING ADJUSTMENT Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

ABANDONED VEHICLES NOTICE OF SALE These abandon vehicles will be sold 09/20/2018 at 5781 Three Notch Road at 9am if not redeemed before then BOAT ASPB3301M84GOB FORD 1FTDF17W9VNC07061 HOND JHMFA36246S017381

Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 21, 2018 - Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 7960 Two Mile Rd., Irvington, AL 36544.

2002 Chevrolet Impala 2G1WF52E129178368

Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 21, 2018 - Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 712 Chin Street, Mobile, AL 36610.

1999 Ford Expedition 1FMRU1766XLC05998

Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 21, 2018 - Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 6780 Gran Forest Dr., Irvington, AL 36544.

2004 Ford F150 1FTRF12WX4NC73114

Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 21, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 558 S Wilson Ave., Mobile, AL 36610.

2005 Honda Accord 1HGCM56435A102243

Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 21, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 1709 Laurel St., Mobile, AL 36604.

1998 GMC Sonoma 1GTCS1445WK513901

Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 21, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 2509 Morningside Dr., Mobile, AL 36605.

2006 Hyundai Tucson KM8JN12D66U418605 Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 21, 2018 - Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 13333 Roy Miller Rd., Grand Bay, AL 36541.

2005 Nissan Altima 1N4AL11E65C162965 Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 21, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 106 Martin Luther King Dr., Prichard, AL 36610.

1999 Mercury Sable 1MEFM53S9XA656984 Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 21, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 3055 Springhill Ave., Mobile, AL 36607.

2006 Dodge Charger 2B3KA43G06H252018 Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 21, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 173 Green Park Dr., Mobile, AL 36695.

2003 Hyundai Sonata KMHDN45D93U471868

Lagniappe HD August 15, 22, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 28, 2018 - Time - 12pm, if not claimed - at 1732 Colonial Lane E., Mobile, AL 36618.

1995 Ford Crown Vic 2FALP73W6SX134202

Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 28, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 6502 Barker Dr N., Mobile, AL 36608.

2008 Chevrolet Avalanche 3GNEC12078G268557 2012 Honda Accord 1HGCP2E73CA140098

Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

LAGNIAPPE LEGALS | 251.450-4466 legals@lagniappemobile.com The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 28, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 534 South Richie St., Axis, AL 36505.

2012 Honda Accord 1HGCP2F85CA118224

Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 28, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 201 Spring Run Dr., Apt 6, Fairhope, AL 36532.

2000 Ford Mustang 1FAFP4040YF284275

Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 28, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 15510 Dogwood Rd., Bay Minette, AL 36507.

2006 Gulf Stream Fema Trailer 1NL1GTR2861037607

Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 28, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 9500 Oak Farms Lane S, Lot D.,Irvington, AL 36544.

Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

e following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 28, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 620 Bay Bridge Rd., Prichard, AL 36610.

2007 Honda VTX1300 1HFSC52697A405380

Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

The following unclaimed vehicle(s) will be sold on September 28, 2018 - Time -12pm, if not claimed - at 7960 Two Mile Rd., Irvington, AL 36544.

2001 Honda Civic 1HGES26731L071176 2011 Ford Fusion 3FAHP0HA3BR117835

Lagniappe HD August 22, 29, 2018

F U T U R E S H O C K

Zingers, drag queens and Nixon

BY BOOZIE BEER NUES/SOCIAL BUTTERFLY

T

he tide is about to roll. The eagle is about to war. The jaguar is about to rrrrooooowwww. It’s almost the most wonderful time of the year! Better get your yard work done and your closets cleaned out because we are about to lose our weekends to the couch and Jack Daniels, folks. Aww, fall in the South. It may not feel like it standing in our backyards, but it sure does sitting in our living rooms listening to the “College Game Day” dudes, while gorging on buffalo chicken dip.

But before we get to the most wonderful season of all (football), we have to clear out our summer gossip closet. So let’s get to it.

Grab some boxes!

Odds are you’re getting burned

Oddsmaker Danny Sheridan spoke at the Mobile Bar Association luncheon at The Admiral last week, offering his insights on the college football season to the city’s top legal minds. It’s no secret he feels like Jalen Hurts will be Alabama’s starting QB, but he seems to favor Clemson as his top team, citing the number of first round draft picks they will no doubt have.

In addition to gridiron predictions, he shared his thoughts on some state political races, as well as taking some jabs at local attorneys. And he didn’t hold back.

Let’s just say it’s probably a good thing Kay Ivey wasn’t in the room, and at least one Nappie Award-winning criminal defense lawyer probably wishes he hadn’t been there, as many of the jokes were at his expense. But it was all in good fun and I’m told the lasagna was pretty spectacular, so everyone who attended can claim this one as a W.

When drag queens … read

This week’s Mobile Bay outrage seems to center around the upcoming “Drag Queen Story Hour” planned at the Ben May Memorial Library on Sept. 8. The program is presented by Rainbow Mobile.

According to its Facebook page, Rainbow Mobile is “an LGBTQ community organization dedicated to providing resources, presenting community events and pursuing projects in Southwest Alabama with the goal of having a healthier, happier and connected LGBTQ community.”

These “story hours” have been held at libraries all over the country. And they feature drag queens, trained by elementary school teachers, reading children’s books geared to kids ages 3-8. These readings have also not come without their share of controversy, across the country and here.

There have been some pretty nasty comments about it on social media, which are kind of ridiculous. This event is not put on by the Mobile Public Library, as some have incorrectly stated. They are simply letting the organization use the space, as they let many other civic and community groups. And it’s voluntary! If you don’t want to go, then don’t. It’s really that simple. No one is forcing you to go to this, no more than they are to church on Sunday. No need to lose your mind over it.

But being Mobilians, we don’t feel complete unless we have something to be outraged over every single week, so thankfully Rainbow Mobile came through for us with this week’s offering. Don’t worry, we will all have our panties in a wad over something else and will have forgotten about this completely by Sept. 9.

Keep being outraged and carry on!

Photo | thedragonqueenstoryhour

2000 Oldsmobile Bravada 1GHDT13W5Y2220078

STYLE BOOZIE

A Nixon you will not want to impeach

So my spies tell me the owners of Callaghan’s have plans for a new bar/eatery in the former Old Shell Growlers location, across from the Dew Drop Inn. We are told it will be called Nixon’s (the name of the drug store that was there for 70 years) and will not be an Irish pub like its sister bar but similar in that it will be a “laid-back neighborhood bar with a casual menu.” They are hoping to open in eight weeks, so midtowners can rejoice! Finally, a new watering hole for us!

Stork report

We are pleased to announce we have added a new member to the Lagniappe family. Our art director, Laura Mattei, gave birth to her first child, Julian, last Friday and we could not be more thrilled for her. Mom and baby are doing great! Congratulations to Laura and her husband, Brian, on their beautiful baby boy!

Well, kids, that’s all I got this week. Just remember, whether rain or shine, dramatic or scandalous, or some plain ol’ drag queen lovin’, I will be there. Ciao!

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