Carr resigns from Edgewood
Sports, Page 10 Wetumpka, AL 36092
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SATURDAY-SUNDAY • JUNE 18-19, 2016
THEWETUMPKAHERALD.COM
VOL. 11, NO. 24
Tallassee takes no action on IDB project By WILLIAM CARROLL and CARMEN RODGERS Staff Writers
The Tallassee City Council took no action Wednesday evening regarding the proposed construction of an access road for Gulf Packaging at the southern end of the Tallassee Industrial Park as they seek to obtain more information on the cost of the project. The meeting was a joint meeting between the council and the Tallassee Industrial Development Board to determine funding for the project. Specifically, the city had originally been requested to put up $79,000 in a cash match for engi-
neering, design and general administration and costs as part of matching funds for an anticipated grant. When the grant did not come through, the IDB asked the city to provide the money anyway to help fund the project. During Wednesday’s meeting, city board members asked a number of questions regarding the project including the need for competitive bids. City officials stressed the need for bids, while Don Heacock, vice chairman of the Tallassee Industrial Development Board said that the IDB is exempt from such bidding requirements. During a later interview on the matter Heacock explained that under Alabama
statutes the IDB has never been required to have an open bid process. “That never has been in the past,” Heacock said. “In the past, when putting together building projects where we have had multiple bids, SCF has always come in low. We have never had a situation were we have taken competitive bids.” “In the case of a city industrial development board, as we are, board members are selected by the city council, but the thing that is not widely understood, is that the IDB is actually not a city department or a part of the city financial package. Because, in essence, the IDB is an independent corporation. We have
our own bookkeeping, we have our own records, we have our own audits and so forth. The only real direct tie is the fact that the city council appoints the members, but our operation is a separate entity from the city. The city of Tallassee does contribute to the IDB’s annual income. The monies received from the city are used to pay for the IDB’s administrative assistant, utilities, maintenance and other ‘normal operations’.” According to Alabama Code Section 11-54-98, industrial development boards are exempt from the provisions of Alabama’s competitive bid laws. The See IDB • Page 3
Millbrook Chamber inducts new board
Elmore County unemployment state’s second lowest
STAFF REPORT TPI Staff
Elmore County’s preliminary, seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for May – the second-lowest of any county in the state – increased slightly from April, but remained well below what it was in May of last year, according to statistics released Friday by the Alabama Department of Labor. The county’s May unemployment rate was measured at 4.8 percent, up from April’s 4.5 percent, but lower than last May’s 5.1 percent. The Elmore County rate was 1.3 percentage points lower than the overall state unemployment rate of 6.1 percent for May and behind only Shelby County (4.2 percent) as the state’s lowest. The state’s unemployment rate remained unchanged from both April 2016’s rate and May 2015’s rate. May’s rate represents 132,106 unemployed persons in the state, compared to 133,252 in April and 130,722 in May 2015. “These numbers show that we are continuing to see job growth in Alabama,” said Gov. Robert Bentley. “We are working hard every day to put Alabamians back to work. Though this month’s percentage remains the same, more people are working See UNEMPLOYMENT • Page 3
By WILLIAM CARROLL Managing Editor
Corey Arwood / The Herald
A team with the Wetumpka-based Haynes Life Flight show off an emergency helicopter at the Rocking with Responders event at Gold Star Park Friday.
Rocking with responders Local kids learn from first responders By COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
Multiple youth groups from Wetumpka and the surrounding communities gathered Friday to meet first responders and learn about the city’s fire departments, police, and ambulance services at the annual Rocking With Responders event. What appeared to be hundreds of kids from Wetumpka Boys and Girls Club, the MLK Rec Center, Crenhsaw Community Center and the local YMCA milled about Gold Star Park and visited displays set up by Wetumpka police and fire departments along with Haynes Ambulance, among others groups. They got first-hand experiences with the
equipment and tools used by the agencies, including fire trucks, a life flight helicopter and even a group of service dogs. They were having fun for a serious cause. The Elmore County Partnership for Children, described as a substance abuse prevention group, held the event. Emma Bass, a prevention specialist and a bus driver with Elmore County Public Schools, said she coordinated the event in conjunction with the Wetumpka Police Department. Bass explained the reason behind the event. “Bringing the kids together with first responders and letting them get familiar See EMERGENCY • Page 3
The Millbrook Area Chamber of Commerce inducted its new board of directors Thursday as part of its 2016 annual meeting. The newly appointed board includes President Bill Myers, the executive director of Grandview Family YMCA, Vice President Kevin Kelley, service manager of Garner Electric Inc., Treasurer Rusty Smith, vice president relationship manager of Trustmark National Bank and Immediate Past President Clay McConnell of Alabama Power Company. Millbrook City Council member Michael Gay performed the induction See CHAMBER • Page 3
William Carroll / The Herald
The newly selected Board of Directors for the Millbrook Area Chamber of Commerce being sworn in my Millbrook city officials Thursday at the Millbrook Civic Center.
Local teen represents Wetumpka High in statewide project on governance By COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
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A Wetumpka High School student spent a week at the University of Alabama for the American Legion Auxiliary Alabama Girls State where high school girls from around the state gathered to learn about city, county and state government. Adele Tessier, 17, said from June 5-10 she stayed in a dormitory along with 32 other girls representing their city, called “Wiregrass.” According to the American Legion Auxiliary, which sponsored the event,
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the girls from across the state gathered and became “citizen(s) of an imaginary state” in which they campaigned for elected offices. In all Tessier said about 400 students attended. She said she campaigned to be governor at the event, along with about 40 other girls. Alabama Girls State, according an ALA document, “is a laboratory of practical government, and a personal application of the duties, responsibilities and privileges of being an See STATE • Page 5
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Adele Tessier, 17, pictured on the right, represented WHS at Alabama Girls State, a weeklong event held this year at the University of Alabama where students from across the state met to form theoretical city, county and state governments.