Montgomery Advertiser (Montgomery, AL) articles from October 2005

Montgomery Advertiser (Montgomery, AL) archives from October 2005

Group unites business with arts.
October 30, 2005... Byline: Robyn Bradley Litchfield Oct. 30--Kelton Morris can't imagine life without the arts. "Whether it's the Riverfront Arts & Food Festival, Mistletoe, 'The Nutcracker' or a simple piece of artwork, the arts enhance quality of...

SportsFirst members look for second home.
October 30, 2005... Byline: Deborah Willoughby Oct. 30--By the time SportsFirst Health & Racquet Club closes Nov. 16, some 1,200 members will have decided where to go next, whether it's joining another health club or doing their workouts on their own. ...

Siegelman, Scrushy say they're 'absolutely' innocent of fraud charges.
October 28, 2005... Byline: Mike Linn and John Davis Oct. 28--Former Gov. Don Siegelman stood confident Thursday afternoon before U.S. Magistrate Charles S. Coody, saying he was "absolutely" innocent of a wide range of corruption charges made against him...

Jubilee moving back to the river.
October 28, 2005... Byline: Rick Harmon Oct. 28--Jubilee CityFest, the area's largest music festival, is returning to the riverfront for Memorial Day weekend 2006. Jubilee Executive Director Marianne McLeod said that during the past three months,...

Rundown homes in spotlight.
October 28, 2005... Byline: Sebastian Kitchen Oct. 28--More than 100 dilapidated homes with falling roofs, failing floors and frustrated neighbors are strewn across the city of Montgomery waiting for demolition. There are dozens more with people living...

Former 'Advertiser' publisher Martin dies at age 74.
October 28, 2005... Byline: Crystal Bonvillian Oct. 28--Family and friends are saying goodbye to Montgomery businessman James G. Martin Sr., a former publisher for the Montgomery Advertiser who died Thursday morning at his home. He was 74. Visitation is...

Proposed sign rule gets mixed reaction.
October 28, 2005... Byline: Sebastian Kitchen Oct. 28--Emotions and reactions were mixed Thursday to a proposed city ordinance intended to clear signs from along city right-of-ways and off of utility poles. Several people expressed concerns about the...

IRS holding refund checks for dozens.
October 28, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 28--The Internal Revenue Service is trying to track down more than 100 taxpayers in the tri-county area, but not because they are shirking their financial obligations to the government. This time, the...

Few take advantage of fairs for tutoring.
October 28, 2005... Byline: Erin Elaine Mosely Oct. 28--WETUMPKA -- Kim Franklin knows her daughter, Carryn, is doing fine in school but that didn't stop her from attending an Elmore County Schools fair that showcased tutoring programs for reading and math....

EDITORIAL: Withdrawal of Miers was pragmatic move.(Editorial)
October 28, 2005... Oct. 28--The decision by Harriet Miers to withdraw as a nominee for the U.S. Supreme Court was a plainly pragmatic one, the only realistic option in a personal-political-judicial jumble that was bungled from the beginning and was only getting...

Churches offer family fun, less spooky fare.
October 28, 2005... Byline: Darryn Simmons Oct. 28--While Halloween is best known for ghouls, ghosts and creepy things, area churches continue to provide an alternative that's more fun and games and less spook and scare. Several churches will be holding...

Companies asked to report 'suspicious' activity.
October 27, 2005... Byline: Mike Linn Oct. 27--Alabama security officials are asking private businesses with critical infrastructure to inform them of odd activities in and around work sites, a program they expect to unveil in December in Birmingham. ...

Riley promises SMART budget.
October 27, 2005... Byline: John Davis Oct. 27--Gov. Bob Riley touted efforts Wednesday to make Alabama's budgeting process better or, as he puts it, SMART. SMART is an acronym for specific, measurable, accountable, responsive and transparent, all...

Tuberville's speech sparks BCS debate.
October 27, 2005... Byline: Jay G. Tate Oct. 27--AUBURN -- Tommy Tuberville took his controversial opinions about ESPN and the Bowl Championship Series to a national audience Wednesday. The Auburn coach spent approximately 15 minutes as a guest on "The...

ArvinMeritor grows globally and culturally.
October 26, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 26--Erik Roeren, a German native, was brought up on plain food. But in his role as a general manager with global auto-supplier ArvinMeritor, he had to brave some spicy Korean cuisine to develop relationships...

EDITORIAL: Fiscal policies part of reform.(Editorial)
October 26, 2005... Oct. 26--To judge from the emergency aid payments handed out by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, one would conclude that Hurricane Katrina really hammered Mobile County. FEMA paid more than $34 million in $2,000 chunks to 17,050...

Past, present meet at crossroads.
October 26, 2005... Byline: Teri Greene Oct. 26--People from out of town comment on it or see it as an ironic geographic statement -- the Civil War meeting the civil rights movement on a street corner. A recent Associated Press story about Montgomery called...

Interstate may drive recovery of neighborhood it split.
October 26, 2005... Byline: Rick Harmon Oct. 26--"It tore up homes. It tore up businesses. It tore up churches. It tore up our community," said Georgette Norman, who now is director of the museum dedicated to a woman who grew up in the area with her, Rosa...

Estimated sales taxes too taxing?
October 26, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 26--An area business owner said Monday he will no longer pay estimated sales tax to the state if an attorney tells him he successfully can challenge the law in court. Richard Milner, owner of American Door...

Selma job fair attracts hundreds.
October 25, 2005... Byline: Alvin Benn Oct. 25--SELMA -- Billy Robinson slices turkey and cheese at Selma's Wal-Mart store but he wants something more, something better for his family. He said he is paid twice a month and his net take-home pay is about...

Mobile port traffic down in September.
October 25, 2005... Byline: John Davis Oct. 25--Traffic through the Alabama State Port Authority was down hundreds of millions of dollars in September compared with a year ago, though overall the international port at Mobile is seeing gains over last year....

Officials want to widen section of Vaughn Road.
October 25, 2005... Byline: Sebastian Kitchen Oct. 25--The boom in east Montgomery continues, and local officials want to widen Vaughn Road to meet the increasing demands due to unceasing commercial and residential development. The Alabama Department of...

More testing of drinking water ahead.
October 25, 2005... Byline: Mike Linn Oct. 25--Beneath all the fancy words was a theme that municipalities and rural water authorities have heard time and again: The Environmental Protection Agency wants more systematic testing of drinking water. Like...

Bridges may link Trenholm Tech, buildings.
October 24, 2005... Byline: Erica Pippins Oct. 24--H. Councill Trenholm State Technical College is working with state, city and county leaders to build two pedestrian bridges that will give students and residents safer access to the campus and to buildings...

Civil Rights Memorial Center dedicated.
October 24, 2005... Byline: Crystal Bonvillian Oct. 24--Willie Brewster's great-grandchildren stood in awe as their tiny hands rested upon the plaque bearing his picture and telling the story of his violent death 40 years ago at the hands of white...

Business Q&A: Terry Adams.
October 24, 2005... Byline: Deborah Willoughby Oct. 24--Terry Adams races cars and has been riding motorcycles since he was 6. It made sense for him to go into business with products he loves. He opened Adams Motor Sports in 1996, selling motorcycles,...

Deal adds room for sidewalk near school.
October 24, 2005... Byline: Kirsten J. Barnes Oct. 24--Residents of Southlawn and the Alabama Department of Transportation have reached a compromise on a sidewalk along U.S. 31 in front of Southlawn Middle School. The highway is being widened from three...

1,212 Montgomery, Ala., students will get free tutoring.
October 24, 2005... Byline: Antoinette Konz Oct. 24--More than 1,200 Montgomery public school students have been accepted to receive supplemental services, and parents will find out this week when and where their children can receive free tutoring. ...

EDITORIAL: Alabama trails in reading, math.
October 23, 2005... Oct. 23--Alabamians can depend upon state government's corps of public relations professionals to try to put the best spin it can whenever bad news comes forward about poor performance by the state. But try as they might, the state's overall...

Tough-talking prosecutor tracks down securities scams.
October 23, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 23--As a regular state of affairs, Alabama securities regulator Joseph Borg chases down white-collar criminals who defraud investors and the American capital system of hundreds of millions of dollars -- and sends...

Casino police patrol delayed.
October 22, 2005... Byline: Julie Arrington Oct. 22--WETUMPKA -- A vote expected to resolve who will police a proposed casino here has been delayed because of concerns from Elmore County leaders. The Wetumpka City Council met Friday, in part, to vote on...

GKN expanding Tallassee, Ala., plant.
October 21, 2005... Byline: Julie Arrington Oct. 21--TALLASSEE -- A long anticipated jump-start to the economy here finally has begun. GKN Aerospace Inc. broke ground Thursday on a 120,000-square-foot expansion to its existing manufacturing facility....

Experts weigh in on renewal plan for Mississippi coast.
October 21, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 21--A Montgomery professor last week joined a band of city planners, transportation engineers, architects and politicians for a highly focused redeveloping planning session for the devastated Mississippi coast....

Trenholm gets $3 million grant to train auto workers.
October 20, 2005... Byline: Greg Wright Oct. 20--WASHINGTON -- Montgomery's H. Councill Trenholm State Technical College will get a $3 million U.S. Department of Labor grant to train workers to build automobiles, Labor Secretary Elaine Chao said Wednesday....

Bankruptcy law triggers filing surge.
October 20, 2005... Byline: Mike Linn Oct. 20--If unpopularity was a crime and charges could be filed, prosecutors would have little problem making a case against the federal government's new bankruptcy law, which took effect Monday. Consider the...

EDITORIAL: Realistic reforms needed in coverage.(Editorial)
October 20, 2005... Oct. 20--As the fiscal pressures stemming from Hurricane Katrina grow (see the editorial above), realistic reforms of the nation's flood insurance program should be a part of the overall solution. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., is leading a...

EDITORIAL: Medicaid cuts will bring harm.(Editorial)
October 20, 2005... Oct. 20--Some proposed reductions in Medicaid would have serious detrimental impact on a segment of the population that is heavily dependent on the program -- foster children. In Alabama, there are about 5,000 children in foster care;...

Wachovia taking over SouthTrust.
October 20, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 20--If you wake up Friday morning with a new bank, don't sweat it. That's according to Wachovia bank officials, who will consummate a big bank merger tonight when they transform all the SouthTrust bank...

Farm offices won't close, for now.
October 19, 2005... Byline: Greg Wright Oct. 19--WASHINGTON -- Alabama farmers will not have to drive miles out of their way to apply for government disaster aid and other benefits -- at least for now. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Tuesday it...

Enstar bankrolls buyout of troubled broker.
October 19, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 19--A Montgomery-based publicly held financial holding company is in the middle of a preliminary $768 million buyout of one of the world's largest commodities brokers. Enstar's (Nasdaq: ESGR) stock jumped $7...

ASEA seeks facts on appeals judge.
October 19, 2005... Byline: John Davis Oct. 19--The state's refusal to provide public information about a hearing officer is landing it in court, courtesy of the Alabama State Employees Association. This morning the association is filing a lawsuit,...

Concerns delay sign ban plans.
October 19, 2005... Byline: Sebastian Kitchen Oct. 19--Several residents and Montgomery City Council members expressed their concerns Tuesday over a proposed sign ordinance that would prohibit the displays in the public right-of-way. The ordinance is...

Public gets first look at Hyundai plant.
October 18, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 18--One of the first public visitors to tour the Montgomery County Hyundai plant once helped build Saturn V booster rockets to launch astronauts to the moon. Jim Stutts was working in a New Orleans plant when...

Corn, cotton big growers in Alabama this season.
October 18, 2005... Byline: Marty Roney Oct. 18--Harvest season is in full swing for farmers in central Alabama, and most forecasts call for a good year. Spring held the promise of bumper yields, due to plenty of rainfall. But when you factor in a...

Groups help seniors get up to speed on Medicare options.
October 18, 2005... Byline: John Davis Oct. 18--The federal government is using the Web as a tool to disseminate information about Medicare's prescription drug benefit that takes effect in two and half months. Beginning in January, an estimated 800,000...

Caddell adds on projects in Moscow, Mexico.
October 18, 2005... Byline: Deborah Willoughby Oct. 18--Caddell Construction Co. of Montgomery has been chosen as the general contractor for two U.S. State Department projects in Mexico and Moscow. For people like Dan Brantley, chief estimator for...

Fair fattens city economy.
October 17, 2005... Byline: Julie Arrington Oct. 17--Sunday marked the final day of the 52nd annual Alabama National Fair in Montgomery, and it will be another year before the smell of cotton candy and the din of sirens and buzzers fill the grounds at...

Business Q&A: Melissa Hobbs.
October 17, 2005... Byline: Deborah Willoughby Oct. 17--Melissa Hobbs has more than 22 years of experience in transportation, starting with the avionics department of Montgomery Aviation and then working in the automotive field, managing an auto repair...

Prattville counts on plastics.
October 17, 2005... Byline: Marty Roney Oct. 17--PRATTVILLE -- Prattville was founded as an industrial town with cotton gin manufacturing as its base, but in recent years plastics has become a pillar of the local economy. Daniel Pratt founded the town...

Gas crunch puts squeeze on family outings, business profits.
October 16, 2005... Byline: Deborah Willoughby Oct. 16--Dana Moonan describes herself as a stay-at-home mom who rarely stays at home. Most days, she loads her children, 4-year-old Emily and 1-year-old Matthew, into her van and hits the road by 8 a.m. ...

U.S. 231 improvements in Wetumpka, Ala., still in works.
October 16, 2005... Byline: Julie Arrington Oct. 16--WETUMPKA -- A dispute between the state and private property owners may cause a delay in a much-needed highway improvement project here. At a public hearing in January, the Alabama Department of...

New Medicare handbook contains error.
October 16, 2005... Byline: John Davis Oct. 16--The "Medicare & You 2006" handbook, which has arrived in the mailboxes of about 750,000 Alabama residents, contains a mistake about drug coverage for poor seniors and disabled people. Basically it says...

State's rivers in fast decline.
October 16, 2005... Byline: Mike Linn Oct. 16--Jim Graham likes canoeing in Alabama's rivers and streams. Swimming, however, is a different story. The water is too dirty, the Montgomery resident said, and he isn't sure about the "foam" he sees on the...

Higher fuel prices hit hourly workers first.
October 16, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 16--High gasoline prices forced Brad Hackett to start slashing away at his lawn care company a few weeks ago. Faced with unmanageable costs, he made a calculated decision and released his employees so he...

New building could lure big business.
October 15, 2005... Byline: Marty Roney Oct. 15--It's just an empty shell now, with dirt floors, but Autauga County officials are hoping that a $1 million investment will lead to good things in the future. A speculative building constructed in the...

Residents want less low-income housing.
October 15, 2005... Byline: Sebastian Kitchen Oct. 15--Several south Montgomery residents believe low-income housing should be spread throughout the city and not concentrated in their neighborhood. They are attempting to stop the movement of the...

Fears grow over state soybean rust.
October 15, 2005... Byline: Mike Linn Oct. 15--Baldwin County farmer Donald Underwood had prepared for the worst this year, buying into the fear that a global disease new to America would wipe out portions of his soybean crop. Luckily, he said, that...

Project targets county, not city.
October 14, 2005... Byline: Marty Roney Oct. 14--A large part of Autauga County's industrial future is rising to the north. The Prattville Area Chamber of Commerce today will unveil a 50,000-square-foot speculative building at the Interstate 65 Business...

Bus riders still waiting for transfer facility.
October 14, 2005... Byline: Sebastian Kitchen Oct. 14--Work was expected to be complete by now on the city's intermodal bus transfer facility, but construction has not started and riders continue to wait in the elements along Dexter Avenue. "I was...

Rapid-fire retail openings cash in on eastside boom.
October 14, 2005... Byline: Deborah Willoughby Oct. 14--If traffic ever slowed long enough for you to stand in the middle of the intersection of Taylor and Vaughn roads, you could look out over enough retail outlets to satisfy a small city. Hungry?...

King casts net for gougers.
October 13, 2005... Byline: Mike Linn Oct. 13--Attorney General Troy King wants detailed price information from 16 additional companies in gasoline chains, the second wave in his office's investigation of possible price gouging in the wake of Hurricanes...

Siegelman touts plan to seniors.
October 13, 2005... Byline: Jannell McGrew Oct. 13--Former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman has seniors on the brain, and he is making health-care reform for the state's older residents a platform issue in his run for governor in 2006. Siegelman, who is...

Sewage upgrade coming.
October 13, 2005... Byline: Sebastian Kitchen Oct. 13--The odors and inconveniences of septic tanks should be a problem of the past for Madison Park residents of northwest Montgomery. In the coming weeks, crews are expected to begin placing sewage and...

Come to fly, but enjoy the style.
October 12, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 12--The most recently completed phase of the Montgomery Regional Airport is a combination of tall glass doors, flat-screen TVs, Greco-Roman columns and pop art stylings of Auburn and Tuscaloosa doorways. ...

City workers' health costs jump.
October 12, 2005... Byline: Marty Roney Oct. 12--PRATTVILLE -- A lean year ahead: That's what Prattville Mayor Jim Byard is saying of the upcoming fiscal year. The city is scrambling to come up with ways to pay for a $506,000 increase in health insurance...

No city staffers available for expertise on housing codes.
October 12, 2005... Byline: Sebastian Kitchen Oct. 12--Despite the request of City Council members, no city staffers were in the room Tuesday when a council subcommittee discussed updating housing codes. Council members believed the chief housing codes...

Tenant codes assistance coming.
October 12, 2005... Byline: Sebastian Kitchen Oct. 12--In a state with no legislation protecting tenants or landlords, Montgomery City Council members want to improve city codes to support renters and reduce the number of houses being demolished. ...

Proposed water park could lift west Montgomery.
October 12, 2005... Byline: Sebastian Kitchen Oct. 12--Negotiations to bring a water park to the city could create a stream of opportunities for west Montgomery. Montgomery Mayor Bobby Bright, Councilman C.C. Calhoun and other city officials met Tuesday...

Workers' fun day costly in state pay.
October 10, 2005... Byline: John Davis Oct. 10--State employee Mary Ann Wilson is having a busy weekend. Between church services and supporting her son's football team, she's pretty well booked for all three days of this long weekend. Most of Alabama's...

EDITORIAL: Flu pandemic could hit state.(Editorial)
October 10, 2005... Oct. 10--If the virus that causes the deadly "bird flu" mutates into a form that can be easily transmitted from human to human, which many scientists believe is likely to occur, it could trigger a flu pandemic that in a worst-case scenario...

EDITORIAL: State job growth spurs surpluses.(Editorial)
October 9, 2005... Oct. 9--First the good news: Thanks in large measure to more than 30,000 additional jobs in Alabama, the state has seen an 11 percent increase in state tax collections over the past 12 months, with state government ending the fiscal year with...

Entrepreneurs set out the fixins' for big hunt.
October 9, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 9--When it's deer-hunting time, plenty of city slickers make their way to Alabama for their chance at getting a trophy mount or some meat for the freezer, according to a few hunters-turned-entrepreneurs in the...

Prattville gets 200 new jobs.
October 8, 2005... Byline: Erin Elaine Mosely Oct. 8--PRATTVILLE -- The Prattville community can look forward to 200 new jobs thanks to the arrival of global auto supplier M-Tek. The family-owned Arkay Plastics Alabama Inc. sold its Prattville plant to...

AmSouth bank goes beyond banking.
October 8, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 8--For Robby and Mary Frances Spaeth, their first baby boy, Robert Barrett Spaeth, came with a $50 savings bond. "We just happened to be in the right place at the right time," Robby Spaeth said. The...

EDITORIAL: State pension system earns good marks.(Editorial)
October 8, 2005... Oct. 8--The fiscal health of the Retirement Systems of Alabama is a concern for all Alabamians, not just those whose pensions rest with the agency. As taxpayers, all Alabamians contribute to the pension programs. Given that, it is...

Career needs dictate degrees.
October 7, 2005... Byline: Erica Pippins Oct. 7--Ashleigh Thompson thinks of a master's degree "as the new high school diploma." "With many career fields nowadays, you can't get the type of job you want or advance in your career without an advanced...

Drivers use loophole to avoid insurance.
October 7, 2005... Byline: Topher Sanders Oct. 7--Phillip Taylor said he heard tires screeching before he felt the impact of the collision. "I didn't know where it was coming from, and then bam, the car hit me from behind," Taylor said. "The roads were...

FEMA projects lure 400 contractors to city.
October 7, 2005... Byline: David Irvin Oct. 7--Amid controversy this week over the location of a meeting about government contracts, more than 400 contractors from across the region converged Thursday at a downtown Montgomery hotel to hear officials talk...

Smelly farms under attack.
October 7, 2005... Byline: Mike Linn Oct. 7--Delorice Morris left the stench in her neighborhood Thursday, coming to Montgomery with a handful of other Dekalb County residents to voice concerns about flies, pollution and big, fat, smelly hogs. She...

Ice odyssey leaves truckers cold.
October 7, 2005... Byline: Mike Linn Oct. 7--Paul Mullinaux will deposit the $20,000 check he received from the federal government. But he just doesn't feel right about it. Not after hauling ice in a zigzag motion for two weeks, from New York to...

Cross shop promotes unity.
October 6, 2005... Byline: Jannell McGrew Oct. 6--They want to build 10,000 crosses to celebrate the Montgomery Bus Boycott, and area ministers and their congregations are joining the effort. Groups are working overtime to make thousands of crosses to...

Parade of Homes begins Friday.
October 6, 2005... Byline: Deborah Willoughby Oct. 6--Kimberly Lumpkin is a big fan of the annual Parade of Homes for personal and professional reasons. "I'm in the mortgage business so I like to see what's out there," she said. "I like to see the...

Got $343 more for natural gas warmth?
October 6, 2005... Byline: Erica Pippins and Topher Sanders Oct. 6--John Sykes isn't looking forward to paying an estimated $343 more this year for the natural gas that heats his home during the winter. But he's prepared to accept what he calls "the...

State enjoys double-digit revenue gain.
October 6, 2005... Byline: John Davis Oct. 6--The state of Alabama received a double-digit revenue increase as it closed the books on the 2005 budget year. Buoyed by strong job growth, the state's tax receipts were up 11 percent for the budget year...