Our Town - Economic Development Partnership of Alabama

Our Town
THE EUFAULA TRIBUNE, 5A
SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2015
Eufaula receives
AdvantageSite
designation
L
akepoint Industrial
Park site in Barbour
County has received
an Alabama AdvantageSite designation. There
are currently 48 active advantage sites in Alabama.
The AdvantageSite
program requires that
community economic
development organizations provide documentation specific to a proposed
industrial site, including
a set of standard data
related to ownership/control, environmental and
geotechnical conditions,
and infrastructure status.
Sites must also meet size,
zoning and accessibility
requirements.
The 30.90-acre site is
located within the Lakepoint Industrial Park. The
site is in the Eufaula city
limits at the intersection
of U.S. 431 and Lakepoint
Industrial Park Drive and
is owned by the Eufaula
Industrial Development
Board. The application
process was managed
by the Eufaula Barbour
County Chamber of Commerce with a team of local
entities supporting or participating in the process.
“The Barbour County
Commission is very proud
to receive the AdvantageSite designation at
Lakepoint Industrial Park
and consider it an accomplishment that will better
prepare us for job creation
in the county,” said Commission Chairman Earl
Gilmore.
“We commend the
economic development
team of Eufaula/Barbour
County,” said chamber
past president Richard
Hutto. “Without the
financial support of the
county, Senator Billy
Beasley and the Eufaula
Barbour County Chamber
of Commerce, this would
have not been possible. A
lot of people worked hard
for over a year to help us
reach this major community milestone.”
Eufaula Mayor Jack
Tibbs said, “This has been
a team effort, and we
congratulate all of those
that have contributed to
the effort to make this
happen. We believe this
will make our city more
competitive in the effort
to attract quality jobs.”
The program is jointly
sponsored by the Alabama Department of
Commerce, Alabama Gas
Corp., Alabama Power
Co., the North Alabama
Industrial Development
Association, PowerSouth
Energy Cooperative, and
coordinated by EDPA.
AdvantageSite is a
teamwork approach with
representatives from each
of the entities actively
participating in application reviews and on-site
visits to prospective
AdvantageSite designees.
For more information
on the AdvantageSite
program, visit http://
www.edpa.org/about-us/
advantagesite/.
Special to the Tribune
REALTORS HONORED
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Pictured are: (back row) Jeanie Tillis, John Lolley, Gerald Phillips Jr., Brad Murph, (front row) Dianne Green, Kathy Fredrickson,
John Baker Jr., Michele Hawkins, Laura Scoggins and Jackie Herring.
Million Dollar
realtors named
T
he Eufaula Board of
Realtors recently announced members of
its 2014 Million Dollar Club.
Members in the One Million
Dollar Club are: Dianne Green
($1.1 million sales), Gerald Phillips
Jr. ($1 million sales), Laura Scoggins ($1.5 million listings), Michele
Hawkins ($1.3 million sales and
$1.1 million listings), John Lolley
($1.4 million listings), Brad Murph
($1.5 listings and $1.2 million
sales), and Jackie Herring ($1 million sales and $1 million listings).
Members in the Two Million
Dollar Club are: John Baker Jr. ($2.7
million sales), Kathy Fredrickson
($2.7 million sales and $2.3 million
listings), Jeanie Tillis ($2.2 million
sales and $2 million listings), and
Tommy Jones ($2 million sales and
$2 million listings).
Member in the Three Million
Dollar Club is Laura Scoggins ($3.2
million sales).
Members in the Four Million
Dollar Club are John Lolley ($4.1
million sales) and John Baker Jr.
($4.2 million listings).
John Baker Jr. was also the 2014
Top Producer with $6.9 million in
sales/listings combined.
Special to the Tribune
Barbour County Schools Consolidation
Residents voice opinions on personnel, programs
BY ANASTASIA SCARBOROUGH
ascarborough@eufaulatribune.com
Several residents voiced
their opinions on Barbour
County Schools’ planned
consolidation
Monday
night during the school
board meeting.
Pastor Dan Stewart said
his greatest concern is
keeping younger and older students on the same
campus separate.
“The smaller kids don’t
need to be around the
older ones,” said Stewart.
“The younger ones are too
easily influenced.”
Hobdy assured Stewart
that even the junior high
grades would be separate from the ninth-12th
grades.
Stewart also expressed
his concern on quality of
district teachers.
“Especially for grades
three to sixth, we need
teachers with the zeal and
desire to give our children the best instruction,”
said Stewart. “By the time
these kids reach seventhand eighth-grades, it’s too
late.”
Faculty member Janice
Stewart also expressed
her
concern
regarding personnel for the
“Even when it comes
down to hiring a
janitor, pick someone
who cares about the
kids.”
Kelsei Chambers,
BCHS alum
consolidated schools.
“We’ve had some drastic turnovers (recently)
at BCJHS and BCHS,”
she said, adding that this
instability was not good
for the students.
Hobdy replied, “(Next
year prior to consolidation) we will hire faculty
based on qualification,
passion and knowledge of
content. I will be active in
the hiring of personnel.”
Stewart asked if Barbour
County Schools’ alumni
could be considered first
for personnel positions.
Board President Shirley
Johnson answered this
stating, “We can’t always
do that. We hire first based
on qualifications.”
“What will these (new
schools)
be
called?”
Stewart asked.
Hobdy said parents,
personnel and students
will have input on the new
schools’ naming. He went
Alabama’s #1
Life Insurance
on to state that the district
will probably return to a
2A athletic conference.
(It’s currently 3A.) The
consolidated district will
have seventh, eighth and
ninth-grade
basketball
and football teams as well
as 2B boys’ varsity and
junior varsity. Band will
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or do I need to send my
child elsewhere?”
Hobdy replied, “We must
expand our career tech
program knowing some
(of our kids) won’t attend a
four-year college.”
He referenced the current Wallace Collegesponsored drafting program at BCHS which “18
of our brightest students
— no less than 3.5 GPA
— attend,” he said, adding his hopes to expand
the career tech program
in the system.
Chambers also echoed
other citizens in saying
she hopes the district
hires personnel and faculty invested in the students.
“Even when it comes
down to hiring a janitor,
pick someone who cares
about the kids,” she said.
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ANASTASIA SCARBOROUGH/TRIBUNE
Pastor Dan Stewart voices his opinions concerning
consolidation.
still remain an extracurricular activity.
BCHS
alum
Kelsei
Chambers said she wants
to see more rigor and discipline from teachers toward students, increase in
school pride and counseling for students who plan
to attend college.
One BCS parent, Maree
Guice, commented on
an internship program
American Buildings opens
up to Eufaula High School
students.
“Barbour County High
School never applies (to
include its students) in
the program,” she said.
“My son has said since he
was 4 years old he wants
to be an engineer, but is
my kid going to get the
education that prepares
him for that future at
(Barbour County Schools)
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