COMMUNITY COLUMNISTS INSIDE!
THE SUPPORT YOUR NEIGHBORS!
WEDNESDAY
Lighting the way for Alexander City & Lake Martin since 1892 June 22, 2016 Vol. 124, No. 125 www.alexcityoutlook.com
Local teams compete in tournament play. SPORTS, PAGE 8.
Concerns over landfill grow With full capacity in sight, alternate inert debris options needed By MITCH SNEED Editor
When it comes to things that matter to most residents, a landfill to handle inert materials like limbs, brush, lawn clippings and construction scraps doesn’t rank high on the list.. Alexander City Public Works Director and City Engineer Gerard Brewer said that as long as the truck comes on schedule, picks up items by the
curb and hauls them off, they give little thought to where they go after that. “There is no question that the brush pickup is the service, of all of the 22 operations that we have, that residents keep a close watch on,” Brewer said. “If we get off schedule or there is an issue, you can bet that the phone is going to ring.” In Alexander City, residents are lucky enough See LANDFILL • Page 6
Mitch Sneed / The Outlook
Funds force Camp Hill to give up on sewer grant
Alexander City missionary dies after battle with malaria
By CLIFF WILLIAMS Staff Writer
By DAVID GRANGER Staff Writer
Alexander City missionary Myron West, a member of Alexander City’s Sixth Street Baptist Church who had been serving in northern Uganda as a missionary for Birmingham’s Four Corner Ministries, died Tuesday at UAB Hospital, according to Matt Haines, pastor at Sixth Street Baptist. West, who contracted malaria four months ago, died surrounded by family at 1:08 p.m., Haines said. “I got a call this morning that his vitals West had really changed, that he’d taken a turn for the worse,” Haines said. “The family knew it would be a matter of hours, but they weren’t sure if it would be one, three or six. I got the call that he had died at about 1:30.” West lived approximately 10 days with just a tracheotomy tube and an IV after being removed from life-supporting equipment, as he had indicated was his wish in his living will. West leaves behind his wife, Holly, and children Ryan and Rachel, among other relatives. Haines said West was “a pastor’s dream.” “Myron loved the Lord and the See MYRON • Page 6
Cliff Williams / The Outlook
Christopher Collins, left, who will be a sixth-grader at Radney, and Brandon Smith, who will be a freshman at Benjamin Russell look over a Lego robot they built for races at the CACC STEM Camp Tuesday.
BUILDING A FUTURE Robotics competition spurs interest in CACC STEM Camp By DAVID GRANGER Staff Writer
It’s becoming more and more popular with school-age children and it has proven a sure-fire way to get them engaged in the STEM disciplines of science, technology, engineering and math. It’s robotics. And the robots built by the 26 kids at the current session of STEM camp at Central Alabama Community College were the stars of the show on Tuesday at the Betty Carol Graham Technology Center on the CACC campus. “I think I figured it out,” said Braxton Lashley, a rising senior at Central High
School in Coosa County, who was puzzled as to why his speedy robot kept pulling to the left. “If I push here, it loosens this up. I think it’s been getting stuck and causing it to pull.” Lashley’s robot was competing against those put together by 12 other teams made up of students from Radney Elementary, Stephens Elementary and Faith Christian Academy in Alexander City, Dadeville High School, Horseshoe Bend High School and one homeschool student. Each of the two-person teams constructed a robot from Legos, a brick (or CPU, computer programming unit), gears and See CAMP • Page 5
With money tight, the town of Camp Hill Council decided it could not afford not to try for a competitive grant to work on its sewage lagoon. The council heard from grant writer Larry Monroe of Monroe and Associates at Monday’s meeting about the Community Development Block Grant Program. The Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) administers the program. “Camp Hill can get up to a $350,000 grant,” Monroe said. “And with the decline in population to 981, the town qualifies for a no-match grant.” Monroe explained that the grant is scored and that offering some match helps. Also, the project being at the sewage lagoon helps with scoring too. Monday’s meeting also served as the public hearing for the grant application. “By putting some match money in helps,” Monroe said. “Even a small match shows that you are buying See GRANT • Page 6
Today’s
Dadeville Lake Fest set for Saturday at New Water Farms By DAVID GRANGER Staff Writer
The Dadeville Area Chamber of Commerce’s annual Lake Fest is set for Saturday, June 25, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at New Water Farms on Lake Martin and will feature something for everyone, according to Linda Andrews, executive administrator for the Dadeville Chamber. New Water Farms is located at 460 Civitan Road in Dadeville. “We decided to co-host Lake Fest with New Water this year,” Andrews said. “They have a great facility on the lake and they also offer some great products.” New Water Farms is a part of New Water Ministries and operates a 22-acre facility at the old Camp Civitan in Dadeville. The farm is known for its local honey, berries and baked goods. Andrews said that Lake Fest will fea-
City landfill employee Richard Brazzell works Monday to disperse debris. Estimates show that the facility could reach full capacity in as little as three years.
ture vendors of arts and crafts, food vendors and activities for children. Among the arts and crafts that will be available are hand-forged knives, pen-and-ink drawings of historic places around the area, handmade wood furniture, pottery and “jewelry made from paper by women in northern Uganda,” Andrews said. She said food available will include snow cones, fried pork skins, pita hamburgers, hot dogs, corn dogs and kettle corn, among other treats. “We’ll have activities for the kids, too, including a bouncy house, a slide and someone making animal balloons,” Andrews said. “And admission is free,” she added. “All anyone has to pay for is their food and whatever they might buy from any of the vendors.”
Weather
92 69 High
Low
Lake Martin
Lake Levels
490.40 Reported on 6/21/16 @ 6 p.m.
LACEY HOWELL 256.307.2443
laceyshowell@gmail.com 5295 Highway 280, Alex City, AL
Mitch Sneed / The Outlook
Vendors with all sorts of wares are scheduled to be in Dadeville this weekend for Lake Fest.
6
54708 90050
8
USPS Permit # 013-080
Dadeville Insurance Come see us for all your Insurance needs. •Progressive •Auto-Owners Insurance •The National Security Group •National General •And More
114 West Cusseta Street • Dadeville, AL
256-825-4612
¡© ¦ £ ¡© ထ ¦ ¤® ¦ ¬ ¤ဘ
256.234.0007
3775 Hillabee Street • Alexander City, AL 35010 www.candtelectricllc.com