The World Around You » Montgomery

Alabama HD-73 Candidate Joe Hubbard Hits the Airwaves

TWAY Kris — Mon, 30 Aug 2010 03:47:47 +0000

Democratic candidate for Alabama House District 73, Joe Hubbard is up with his first television ad, which begins airing tomorrow, and is called “Say Anything”,

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Hubbard obviously wants to diffuse some of what is being said about him by those who oppose his candidacy, and bringing humor to your initial ad buy is an effective way to accomplish that. I will be following this race closer than most as I have just moved into the district and look forward to more from Hubbard and his opponent Rep. David Grimes.

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Montgomery’s Use of Blight Laws Getting Mayor Strange National Attention

TWAY Kris — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 01:30:08 +0000

Fox 6 in Birmingham ran a story this week on the City of Montgomery’s use of blight laws to tear down the homes of poor city residents,

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That story was then picked up by Christina Walsh at The Daily Caller, who said,

Jim Peera, who fought the city for years to keep a property he was rehabilitating himself — the kind of entrepreneurial private redevelopment that should be encouraged, especially in this economy — obtained copies of demolition records that indicate hundreds of homes and properties have been demolished over the past five years in Montgomery. Some may have posed an immediate threat to public health and safety — but that was certainly not the case with all of them.

Consider Jimmy McCall. Jimmy was in the process of building from the ground-up a home for his family when he was notified it was slated for demolition. After one failed attempt to bulldoze the half-completed home, the city came back under this state law and got what they were fighting for: Jimmy’s would-be dream home was demolished, and he was stuck with the bill.

There was also coverage from ABC News. That led to some additional commentary from Conor Friedersdorf at The Atlantic’s Daily Dish, who obviously doesn’t understand anything about how municipal elections work in Alabama.

This would seem to be an example where libertarians, already on the scene doing excellent work, might ally themselves with a carefully chosen liberal challenger for mayor, given that the local conservative establishment is insufficiently enamored of property rights and limited government. If Strange doesn’t face or beats back a primary challenge prior to the next election — some local conservatives are upset too — I don’t see how any libertarian voter could fail to root for his ouster in the general election.

Obviously, anyone who does know about our municipal elections work knows that we don’t have primaries, because city leaders are not required to declare a party affiliation and do not run under a party banner. And this is the first negative press I have seen for Mayor Strange, not any indication of a pattern of behavior that has the city in an uproar. How the mayor deals with this issue will say a lot for his future as mayor, but it wouldn’t be smart to assume he will or should be voted out of office.

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Montgomery TV Reporter Charged with Assault

TWAY Kris — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 19:34:00 +0000

Eileen Jones, television reporter for WSFA in Montgomery, known for her hard-hitting style and tough questions was arrested last night on assault charges. The circumstances of the incident, as reported by the Montgomery Advertiser, seem quite strange and I’ll be interested to hear Ms. Jones’s side of the story.

The way the facts read in this initial report, Ms. Jones drove toward the newsvan at the scene of an accident, was told to stop (it isn’t clear whether she was aware she had been told to stop) and ran over an officer’s foot. Then the officer yelled for her to stop, which she did. He then reached into her car and put a cuff on one hand. At which point, she continued driving toward the newsvan, having not yet identified herself as a news reporter (though any police officer in Montgomery should have known her by sight). The officer then followed her and put her under arrest. Those facts make little to no sense to me…do they to you?

UPDATE: Here is how WSFA reported the story…nothing about the handcuffs and saying she ran over “part of the officer’s foot”. They also report she is facing a 3rd degree misdemeanor assault charge, but also a felony charge of 3rd degree escape.

UPDATE 2: The Saturday edition of the Montgomery Advertiser presents Eileen Jones side of the story, which is pretty much what I suspected, that she doesn’t believe she ran over the officer’s foot and that the officer seemed to her to be quite agitated and attempted to forcibly remove her from her vehicle, which is why she drove to the newsvan, for her safety.

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Montgomery City Council rejects discount drug program 7-2

TWAY Kris — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 11:48:20 +0000

As I discussed here yesterday, this whole deal with the prescription drug discount cards seems to be a little fishy. This is a program that has been implemented successfully in cities across the country and in Alabama…and has saved those cities money on prescription drugs. However, Montgomery’s “risk manager” did a “study” and determined that apparently Montgomery is in some sort of black hole where it would, in fact, cost people more.

The whole thing seems really fishy to me…I think there is more to this story, possibly having to do with local pharmacists who didn’t want to buy into the program run by CVS/Caremark, possibly something else. Stay tuned…

Montgomery City Council rejects discount drug program 7-2 | montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery Advertiser.

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Mayors of Pike Road and Montgomery Working Things Out

TWAY Kris — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 11:47:55 +0000

This is the kind of thing we see far too little of nowadays. I applaud both Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange and my mayor, Pike Road’s Gordon Stone for trying to come to an amicable solution the border dispute that has bouncing in and out of the courts for the last several years.

The two sides also intend to come to an agreement that, as much as possible, will not block the other from expanding, will make neighborhoods whole again and will keep both parties out of a courtroom.

The two mayors have been in talks since Strange took office in March after succeeding now Congressman Bobby Bright.

Strange said he and Stone are about “90 percent” through the process, which likely will conclude with a judge formally recognizing whatever agreement the two sides reach.

“I think it’s just good, sound business practice to not have the court determine the outcomes and for it to be worked out between leadership — and that’s what we’re trying to do,” Stone said.

The specifics are still being hashed out, but both mayors said the rest of the process will determine how to define boundary lines while respecting the wishes of property owners.

Neither said how clear the boundary lines would be, but as of today, the properties in the two municipalities create a confusing hodgepodge in east Montgomery County.

No doubt, it is extremely confusing and the idea that we may finally get a resolution is a relief to everyone who lives out in this area. There is no need for it to have gotten to where it has and I am thrilled to hear that we may have a resolution soon.

Montgomery Advertiser – Mayors Team Up to Resolve Annex Dispute

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Divided Montgomery Co School Board Votes to Offer Superintendent Position to Thompson

TWAY Kris — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 22:08:55 +0000

The Montgomery County School Board meeting apparently got quite heated before the board voted to offer the superintendent position to the lone remaining candidate, Barbara Thompson, on a razor-thin 4-3 vote. School Board votes – WSFA 12 News Montgomery, AL |. Montgomery Advertiser – Montgomery County School Board Votes to Offer Thompson Job No related [...] No related posts. Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

The Swine Flu is Officially in Montgomery

TWAY Kris — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:45:57 +0000

Now the panic can really begin…it’s just the flu! Yes, we need to be careful. Yes, people are going to get sick, but let’s not go into hysterics. Updated: Swine Flu now in Montgomery – WSFA 12 News Montgomery, AL |. Related posts:What’s Next for Susan Parker? Danny at Political Parlor and the AP noted [...] Related posts:

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Under Southern Family Markets Bid, All Montgomery-Area Bruno’s to Close

TWAY Kris — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:37:01 +0000

According to a list obtained by the Mobile Press-Register all Montgomery-area Bruno’s stores would close if the Southern Family Markets bid is accepted by bankruptcy judge. The new owners would also close a large number of Birmingham-area stores, where Bruno’s was based. Another one bites the dust… Most Bruno’s stores in Mobile area would stay [...] Related posts:

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Strange Asks for Support from Young Leaders

TWAY Kris — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 10:53:44 +0000

I was excited for the event last night with Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange. Unfortunately, I was unable to make it, as we were celebrating my step-daughter’s birthday, but it sounds like Mayor Strange hit the right notes.

“Don’t bad mouth us. Sometimes we’re our own worst enemy,” Strange told the group of about 50. “We’ve got good things happening here. We need to celebrate the positive things.”

Strange rattled off numerous examples, from catching a baseball game at the Biscuits stadium to watching a play at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival to sitting on the porch at the Exchange.

Strange was speaking Monday night to members of both the River Region Democrats and the Capital City Young Republicans. The two groups met in the spirit of bipartisanship, which is an attitude Strange championed during his campaign and one he has brought with him to the mayor’s office.

I applaud the River Region Democrats and Capital City Young Republicans for planning the joint event and hope to see similar things in the future. I also applaud Mayor Strange for his willingness to reach out and listen to ideas and I think it bodes well for the city’s future.

Strange asks young leaders to support city | montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery Advertiser.

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Montgomery Event Organizers Don’t Count Real Well

TWAY Kris — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 10:58:22 +0000

I’m so glad yesterday is over with, but it seems even the organizers couldn’t agree on how many people showed up…

Cindy Wright, one of the central organizers of the event, said “a thousand plus” were in attendance. Others put the number at close to 2,000. Matthew Givens, another local organizer of the event, said the crowd was between 2,500 and 3,500.

I know crowd estimation isn’t exact, but you should be able to stay within a range (if you care at all about the truth)…I thought my fellow blogger Matthew’s numbers were a little off from anything I had seen. Anyway, I hope they all feel better about themselves now that they’ve been heard and we can all move on.

UPDATE: Tim Lennox says a few hundred, maybe five hundred, and has pictures to document it…so glad someone else went over there.

UPDATE 2: Birmingham/Shelby County looked to have similiar issues…the Hoover Mayor says 5,000, but the Birmingham News reporter said several hundred…

UPDATE 3: Nate Silver uses the 1,000 person estimate for Montgomery in compiling his nationwide estimate of just over 250,000 participants.

via Tax Day Tea Party protesters tea’d off at government | montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery Advertiser.

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Ready for Baseball Season in Montgomery

TWAY Kris — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 13:08:28 +0000

It is baseball season again…regular readers will know that the one sport that tends to creep into this site from time to time is baseball. I’m pumped about the Biscuits returning to action this Thursday.

It seems like there will be a lot of new additions near the ballpark in Montgomery before the season is out. I’m looking forward to the new dining options and the new bars. It should be interesting times in downtown.

Extra treats meant to entice fans to Montgomery stadium | montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery Advertiser.

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What to Do with Garrett Coliseum

TWAY Kris — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 11:20:27 +0000

There is yet another story this morning about the dire need for repairs and upgrades at Garrett Coliseum. It’s amazing the facility has been able to continue to operate this long. I was surprised to read that the state owns the facility, but provides very little support to it. I applaud Commissioner Reed Ingram for taking an interest as a new member of the board in charge of the facility. But simply applying for grants is not going to get the job done.

This is one of those times when we have to make a decision, either you’re going to support making it a safe and useful facility, or cut it loose. I believe Garrett Coliseum is worth upgrading and maintaining for the next several decades, but it will take a significant investment to make that happen. In lieu of grants, I would be pursuing funding from prominent members of the community through their wills. There are certainly a number of people in the community who could offer a substantial gift to the Coliseum and have their name placed alongside that of Mr. Garrett as the people who helped keep the facility alive. The city, county and state certainly have an obligation to keep the facility operating, but the long-term upgrades that are needed are not likely to find funding there.

Garrett Coliseum in dire need of repair | montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery Advertiser.

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School Zone Changes Always Bring Out the Fire

TWAY Kris — Tue, 24 Mar 2009 11:30:43 +0000

I don’t mean to get too local, but this is a story that will have some legs in Montgomery over the next few weeks. We have a new elementary school and a new middle school opening in the fall. The redrawn district maps were just released, and, of course, some parents are upset. My children live in the affected areas, but will not be making any move.

I certainly have sympathy for the parents whose children will have to change schools, but I think the district was as fair as they could be in drawing the new districts. You are always going to have people who are upset, but the kids will adjust and it will all be okay.

Parents discuss school zone changes | montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery Advertiser.

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Dilworth Leaving Montgomery Schools

TWAY Kris — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 12:46:22 +0000

Montgomery Public Schools will once again be looking for a new superintendent, as John Dilworth has been offered and will accept the same job with East Baton Rouge Public Schools in Louisiana. Back on the search we go for yet another leader for our public schools. La. school board chooses Dilworth | montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery [...] Related posts:

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What to Do About Sexting?

TWAY Kris — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 11:13:53 +0000

We need to have a serious discussion in this community, and across the country about so-called “sexting”. Are we really going to lock up and give a juvenile criminal record to every teenager for playing the electronic equivalent of “if I show you mine, will you show me yours”?

In Montgomery, a 12-year-old boy was arrested Monday evening after sending an explicit photo with a cell phone. According to police reports, the boy sent a photo of his genitalia to a 13-year-old girl.

Maj. Huey Thornton, a Montgomery Police Department spokesman, said it was the 13-year-old girl’s father who found out about the photo and called police.

Of course it was the father…(a) this is a good reason for kids NOT to have cell phones, or certainly not cell phones with cameras, (b) is this really the kind of thing that requires an arrest? I think this is another place where technology is being blamed as creating some sort of “new crime” that is really just the electronic equivalent of something that was never a crime before.

Now, if the boy was harassing the girl, that’s one thing, and there are laws to address that, but charging him with distributing child pornography for sending an image of himself? I have the same issue with charging an underage person who has sex with another underage person with statutory rape, that’s not what the law was intended to protect.

And this is coming from someone with a 12 year old stepson and a 10 year old stepdaughter in the household…it’s easily preventable. First of all, there is no reason for a 12 or 13 year old to have a cell phone, none. Second of all, if they do, don’t give them one with a camera and block incoming media messages (MMS). Problem solved!

via Police: Boy sent girl explicit photo | montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery Advertiser.

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Where Are Strange’s Cuts Going to Come?

TWAY Kris — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 13:07:57 +0000

Todd Strange will be sworn in as Montgomery, Alabama’s next mayor on Monday and he already knows he wants more police presence and he needs to cut the city’s budget. It will be very interesting to watch where he pulls that rabbit from…

I’m meeting with (the finance director) to get a better understanding of what the 2 percent budget cut will get us and what the candidates might be for a $20 million (cut). And I’ll ask him to get the department heads and begin to focus on the 2010 budget.

I might ask some of our accounting firms to lend us some of their good minds to help us look at that. And maybe even go to what we call a zero-based budget and budget functionality, and from that, build it up.

Traditionally, government looks at, “Well, we spent $227 million this year. Let’s only spend $220 million. Or let’s cut it 2 percent or let’s add 2 percent.” The reality is you may not need $220 million as a budget. So you go in and start at baseline one. We’ll probably spend the summer doing that.

Sounds good, but that still means something gets left behind…what’s it going to be?

Police, budgets top Stranges to-do list | montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery Advertiser.

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Strange to keep Briddell with City

TWAY Kris — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 12:06:17 +0000

I applaud Todd Strange for recognizing what an asset Michael Briddell is to Montgomery and bringing him back onto the city payroll. That took courage and is a good sign for the kind of administration he will have. Strange to keep Briddell on staff | montgomeryadvertiser.com | Montgomery Advertiser. No related posts. Related posts brought [...] No related posts. Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Montgomery Mayoral Election Night

TWAY Kris — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 00:59:50 +0000

The Montgomery Advertiser is posting the latest election results

7:59pm CDT: As of this moment, Michael Briddell is ahead of Todd Strange, but without knowing which precincts have reported, it’s hard to know what that means. Only about a quarter of the boxes are in. We
ll see how things develop.

8:04pm CDT: Another 23 boxes are in, and Todd Strange has pushed ahead, but it doesn’t look like he will cross the 50%+1 mark and there will be a runoff with Michael Briddell.

8:09pm CDT: Strange’s lead just surged, 12212 to 8392 for Briddell…spoke to soon…Strange may close this out tonight…

8:12pm CDT: Wow…with 85% of precincts reporting…Strange is right at 51%!

8:16pm CDT: WSFA has the numbers with percentages, which is what we really care about right now.

8:20pm CDT: As I say that, the Advertiser added percentages as well…way to go guys.

8:23pm CDT: It’s over…Todd Strange will be the next mayor of Montgomery, Alabama

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Montgomery Mayoral Election Predictions

TWAY Kris — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 11:50:33 +0000

For someone who isn’t an expert in Montgomery politics, mooncat called it pretty well. I think after all the votes are counted, it will be a run-off between Todd Strange and Michael Briddell, but the voters will make their decision, and the entire river region will feel the impact of their decision. Left In Alabama:: [...] No related posts. Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

VOTE in Montgomery TODAY

TWAY Kris — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 11:35:49 +0000

The special election for mayor in Montgomery, Alabama is today. Please get out and VOTE! No related posts. Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin. No related posts. Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.