Published 12:02am Thursday, November 25, 2010
As families gather around to give thanks for their many blessings, Covington County officials listed numerous reasons for celebrating the Thanksgiving season.
In Andalusia, Mayor Earl Johnson said he could fill pages “with the many reasons we in Andalusia have to be thankful.”
“The key point I think is that we live in a very special place with very special people who care about their community and their neighbors,” Johnson said. “We have a strong local economy supported by many solid businesses and industries that provide a wide range of opportunities for our citizens to earn a good living with secure futures.
“We enjoy a quality of life rarely found in communities the size of Andalusia, and the future is bright with a wider variety of entertainment and leisure activities becoming available every year,” he said. “I truly believe 2010 and 2011 will set historic marks for the development of our community, and I am thankful that the citizens of Andalusia have permitted me to play a small part in all of this.”
Coming on the heels of the announcement it would lose one of its biggest employers, Opp Mayor H.D. Edgar said he is thankful his city has “been able to survive.”
“I’m thankful that during these tough economic times, we have been able to survive,” Edgar said. “Our sales tax is holding up. I’m so thankful for the progress we’ve made this year in the construction area and beautifying downtown and the projects that are continuing to make Opp a nicer place to live.”
Edgar said 2011 will bring good things to the City of Opp, despite the closing of the Micolas Mill in January.
“We have some industry prospects coming, which is going to be a great thing for Opp,” he said.
Florala Mayor Robert Williamson said that he, like the people of Florala, is thankful to live in a great community.
“Rather than focus on the many and varied projects in Florala over the last 12 months that have improved our community, I choose to be thankful this holiday season to live in a city that genuinely cares for one another,” he said. “Florala is the epitome of loving one’s brethren. We don’t always agree, and a squabble may even occasionally surface, but when it comes to standing with a neighbor in that time of need, helping a friend when they’ve fallen on hard times or sacrificially giving to an impoverished child, no community stands taller.
“At Thanksgiving, I thank God for family, friends and Florala,” he said.
Red Level Mayor Mike Purnell said his town is “blessed.”
“We seem to be blessed during a time when others don’t,” Purnell said, speaking of the opening of the town’s first retail establishment in years, the Dollar General store.
“We got a few jobs for those in the community and a new source of tax revenue,” he said. “We are very grateful.”
Purnell said he hopes to see the city’s sales tax collections expand after the first year.
“It’s very unofficial, but we think the Dollar General will start selling beer sometime after the first of the year,” he said. “That is a great stream of revenue.”
Published 12:03am Wednesday, November 17, 2010
By Michele Gerlach
Andalusia Star News
The Andalusia City Council voted 3-2 Tuesday to purchase the strip mall between city hall and Springdale Estate, allowing the development of the 15 to 16 acres of the three properties into a central park.
Mayor Earl Johnson said the building that sits right on the property line will go away.
A Birmingham landscape architect who designed the gateway, the Veterans Memorial Park and the grounds of city hall visited Andalusia on Monday, toured Springdale and began the planning process for a park.
The property where the building now sits will be landscaped and will include a parking lot providing access to the east side of city hall.
“In the long term, we’ll have a central park in Andalusia, Ala.,” he said. “We’ll have Springdale at Central Park, an aboretum at Central Park, walking trails in Central Park, the Veterans Memorial and Central Park, and City Hall at Central Park.”
The city is purchasing the property from John Tisdale, to whom they will pay $350,000. Councilwoman Hazel Griffin made the motion, and Councilman Will Sconiers seconded. Mayor Earl Johnson voted with them, while Councilman Kennith Mount and Councilman Jason Jewell opposed. Councilman Terry Powell was away on business.
The sales contract requires Tisdale to invest half of the purchase price, or $175,000, in improvements to the Prestwood Building, which he owns, to make it ready for tenants. If the improvements cost less than $175,000, the remaining monies are to be invested in other properties downtown.
City clerk John Thompson said the city is working with the USDA to put together long-term financing for the park financing with a 3.5 percent interest rate.
In other business, the council:
• Approved the Westgate Development Agreement, also with Tisdale, in which the city will rebate half of the sales tax generated by any retailer Tisdale is able to recruit that provides a minimum amount of jobs.
Under the terms of the proposal, put together after Tisdale made a request, half of the sales tax generated by the potential retailer for the first five years would go into a trust fund managed by the city. The funds would be dispersed to Tisdale to match any money he spent improving property he owns in downtown Andalusia.
Johnson said the city has given incentives to two other retailers in the past, and said those businesses have helped Andalusia’s sales tax base remain steady during the recession.
• Transferred a retail liquor license to Mike Smith and Darren Raines of S&R Entertainment, Inc. for the Pitt Stop.
Published 12:00am Tuesday, November 16, 2010
By Staff Reports
Andalusia Star News
In addition to family and friends, this weekend’s Absolutely Andalusia: Homecoming 2010 event brought another old friend to the area – revenue.
Mayor Earl Johnson predicted last week that the event would bring increases in retail sales, lodging and gasoline taxes. Statements from local merchants, restaurateurs and hoteliers proved his predictions true Monday.
Those at the Andalusia Best Western, the Holiday Inn Express and the Days Inn reported full occupancy.
Kim Jenkins, general manager at the Holiday Inn Express, said the hotel was “booked out.” The hotel was the host hotel of this year’s Air Force air show personnel.
“From Monday until Sunday we were packed,” Jenkins said. “Our revenue looks amazing this month, which is tremendous news. The impact of events like this is amazing for Andalusia, not only for the revenue, but also from a PR standpoint.
“I heard that a lot of other people left other venues to come to the air show,” she said. “It was that much of a draw.”
Jenkins said she hopes to see additional events of this type come to the area, which was the same sentiment expressed at the Andalusia Best Western and Days Inn. A three-day horse show at the arena, as well as two local funerals and the air show, helped to fill their rooms.
Local restaurants also saw increased traffic Saturday as a result of the air show.
Huddle House employee Summer Savage, who was on duty Saturday, said the store “was packed.”
“We pretty much stayed that way until 1 or 2, and then, after it ended at 5, we had another round,” Savage said.
Larry’s BBQ manager Mike Armstrong said usual business doubled.
“We were pretty busy,” he said. “Actually a lot more – about twice as busy according to my numbers.”
Pizza Hut shift leader Arlie Shakespeare said her restaurant was “pretty steady,” which is good news.
“We’ve been slow lately,” she said. “Saturday, we were pretty steady because of the air show.”
Published 12:00am Tuesday, November 16, 2010
By Michele Gerlach
Andalusia Star News
If any of Alabama’s small towns celebrated the Year of Small Towns and Downtowns in a bigger way than Andalusia, the Alabama Department of Tourism doesn’t know about it.
Marilyn Stamps, publications manager for the Alabama Tourism Department, was on hand for some of Thursday ‘s events. Tourism and Relocation Committee member Martha Duggan took Stamps to lunch.
“She said she didn’t think anybody did it quite as big as we did.”
And if no other town matched Andalusia’s efforts for Absolutely Andalusia: Homecoming 2010, the city outdid herself, as well.
“I think it is the absolutely premiere event to occur in Andalusia in my lifetime,” Mayor Earl Johnson said.
Local historian Sue Bass Wilson echoed the sentiment.
“There has never been anything in Andalusia that drew as many people as the air show did,” she said.
South Alabama Regional Airport co-manager Jed Blackwell, who led the air show effort, said officials estimated the crowd at 11,000.
Even the weather was perfect. The four-day homecoming event came to pass under beautiful blue skies and in balmy weather.
Jewell Curry chairs the city’s Tourism and Relocation Committee, which was responsible for the homecoming event.
“It was everything and more than we wanted when we started out,” Curry said Monday.
Many of the projects took on lives of their own, she said. Take for example the T&R Committee’s brainstorming about a civic project to be completed for the event.
“We thought we’d do the renovation of the Dream Park,” Curry said. “You know, we thought we’d freshen up, paint it up – and look what happened. Lisa Patterson and Kristy White took over and we got a whole new section added. We never dreamed that much would come of that.”
The committee was trying to think of ways to showcase the city’s most positive points and was considering ways to show off the airport.
“We said, ‘Let’s show off the airport; that’s just a major thing.’ Then someone said, ‘Let’s see if we can have a fly-in.’ We talked to the mayor and got Jed Blackwell on board and look what happened. It’s been that way with everything.”
The T&R Committee asked Paula Sue Duebelt to work on something musical and Sue Bass Wilson to work on the city’s history. In the end, the two collaborated for Andalusia in Revue, the story of Andalusia in story and song which featured more than 200 people.
“After the revue a man who was out there said to me, “Lady, that’s the most bang I ever got for five bucks in my life. You’ve got a lot of talented people here.”
Johnson said he takes no credit for the event’s success.
“I’m in awe of the people who did the work,” he said. It was outstanding. They were outstanding. It goes to show what a small community like Andalusia can accomplish when we believe in ourselves enough to come out and do it.”
“The amount of planning and organizational skills brought to bear on this would have been sufficient to have planned the Normandy invasion,” Johnson quipped.
While he was also awed by the weather, he said, “The weather wouldn’t have helped us if the organizers hadn’t done such a wonderful planning.
Challenge anyone to tell me of any other event, or group of events, in that short period of time.
While Absolutely Andalusia: Homecoming 2010 was a success in that so many people attended, early indications are that it also was a success in terms of the Tourism and Relocation Committee’s overall goals. The events brought thousands of people to town, both the hospitality and retail segments reported good business, and there’s even some talk of relocations.
“I talked with two families that are moving back here,” Duggan, a T&R Committee member and a Realtor, said. One of the families has local ties but never planned to return. This weekend, the were headed home to the Carolinas to list their current property.
“In terms of the long-term reach of this, that’s good,” Duggan said. “When I first got involved in this committee, I learned in a seminar that bringing three families to town was like recruiting a small industry in terms of the economic impact.”
The sentiment was repeated over and over.
“Two or three dozen people said to me, ‘I cannot believe what y’all have done in my hometown,’ ” Johnson said.
The mayor wasn’t alone in giving credit to others.
“It took the whole city to make this good,” Curry said.
Published 12:00am Tuesday, November 16, 2010
By Michele Gerlach
Andalusia Star News
Organizers of Saturday’s air show at South Alabama Regional Airport estimated that approximately 11,000 people attended the event.
In addition to the crowd in and near the airport’s reviewing stands, many people set up lawn chairs outside the airport gates to view the show, which was coordinated and staged by David Shultz Air Shows.
Working with Shultz to pull off the event were 21 airport employees, nine volunteers, 21 City of Andalusia ambassadors, members of the fire departments in Andalusia, Opp, and Babbie, and Advanced EMS.
There were 24 vendors on hand selling everything from BBQ sandwiches to toy airplanes.
And all over town, people are marveling at the scope and success, and wondering if it will happen again.
“The airport board meets Nov. 23 and will discuss future air shows,” SARA co-manager Jed Blackwell said. “At that time the decision will be made on a 2011 show and future years.”
Mayor Earl Johnson won’t get a vote, but that won’t stop him from lobbying for a repeat.
“We need to do the air show again next year and bring some top name entertainment afterward and we need to start working on it now,” he said.