Volume 63, Number 37
Azle News
Wednesday, February 25, 2015 IT’S HE
THE
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Our firs t edition
Heritage of February
2015
www.azlenews.net
Exceptional drought persists
Wrestling champs
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Azle New Springtow n Epigraps h The
What a weekend! Well, what a Thursday-Saturday! On Thursday, Feb. 19, the Lady Hornet softball team began a tournament in Brock where Azle would go 6-0 and win by a combined score of 85-1. That effort shot AHS up to No. 2 in the state in 5A. On Friday, the Lady Hornet basketball team defeated Burleson in the Area round – the first time a girls hoops team had won two playoff games in decades. Then, on Saturday, Feb. 21 came an Azle first: Two wrestlers won gold at the state tourney in Garland. First, sophomore Lauren Dale went unbeaten in the 138-pound class. Then, in the final match of the state event, Justin Scarbro (left) defeated a much bigger rival as coaches and fans celebrated behind him. It was a trio of days the likes of which had never been seen around here. SEE STORIES ON PAGE 8A! Photo by Mark K. Campbell
B.J. Clark dies Former councilman, businessman, philanthropist, community supporter leaves large legacy by carla noah stutsman Bobby Joe Clark – known fondly to most people around Azle as simply “B. J.” – died Tuesday morning, Feb. 24, at Azle Manor Nursing Home and Rehabilitation in Azle. He was 86 years old. Arrangements were pending with White’s Funeral Home in Azle at press time. Clark and his wife Betty had resided at Azle Manor for several years prior to her death Nov. 30, 2014. The Clarks were married 69 years. B. J. Clark was a longtime member of Azle’s Sertoma and Optimist Clubs. He served on the city’s Parks Board from 1979 to 1992, and as a city
Top 24: by Carla noah Stutsman Trevor Douglas – who made it to the Top 24 on Fox’s American Idol last week – has been flying under Azle’s radar, it seems. The 17-year-old, who attended Eagle Heights Elementary through his fourth grade year and lives just outside the Azle city limits, says he claims to be from the DFW area – sometimes shortened to just Fort Worth – for a good reason. “Our mailing address is in Fort Worth, we live just outside Azle not far from Eagle Heights, but I attend school in Dallas,” Douglas says. “I’m really from the whole area.” But, he says, his love for performing began while he was a student at Eagle Heights. “Mrs. Matteson, my teacher there, had karaoke Fridays, and it was so much fun. I think that’s when I first realized I liked music and performing,” Douglas says. “Then, at the end of the year, the school had a talent show – incredibly, it was called Eagle Heights Idol – and me and a couple of friends did the Blues Brothers’ “Soul Man” – and we won second place.” Douglas says he instantly knew that “embarrassing myself in front of people onstage” was really fun and he wanted to do more of it.
councilman from 1992 to 1999. Clark donated the land on which Azle’s Community Caring Center sits. He owned and operated Clark’s Gun and Ammo and later Clark Precision Machine and Tool. In February 2012, he was voted Azle’s Favorite Hometown Hero in the People’s Choice Awards given by the Azle Area Chamber of Commerce. Clark’s contributions to the Azle community are countless and will be recounted in more detail in next week’s News. Arrangements will be posted on the News’ website, Facebook, and Twitter sites when information becomes B. J. and Betty Clark are pictured above in February 2012 after B. J. was selected the People’s Choice available. for Favorite Hometown Hero. Photo by Carla Noah Stutsman
Azle youth advances on American Idol So, he auditioned and earned a spot at the Fort Worth Academy of Fine Arts, a public charter school, where he attended school for two years. Since then, Douglas has attended Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Dallas. Yes, Dallas. Douglas and his mom make the commute five days a week – well, when they’re not in Hollywood. It works for them, Douglas says, especially since his mom got a job at the Perot Museum just a block or two from his high school. “Plus, employees get a free membership to the museum, and it’s really cool,” he added. Booker T. Washington is a fun school with lots of fun opportunities like open mics during lunch and big opportunities to showcase his music – even though he’s actually in the theater program, Doulas said. “Doing theater really teaches you how to be creative, and it’s also taught me how to really feel a song. I think it makes me a better performer,” he said. If you’ve been watching Season XIV of American Idol, you’ll recognize Douglas as the “geeky” con-
Jacksboro Highway early beneficiary of Prop I
Trevor Douglas, who lives just outside Azle, is in American Idol’s Top 24. He performs at The Fillmore in Detroit tonight, Wednesday, Feb. 25 on Fox. Photo credit Jeff Neira / FOX. © 2015 FOX
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This Week in Azle History
Hanger, 9 Mile TxDOT projects accelerated by Carla noah stutsman At long last, there is good news about three construction projects that will virtually complete the 10-mile stretch of highway between Azle and Lake Worth known as State Highway 199 or the Jacksboro Highway. According to State Representative Charlie Geren, the three projects are now included in the Texas Department of Transportation’s (TxDOT) proposed projects for years 2, 3 and 4 of Proposition I. The Texas Transportation Funding Amendment, Proposition 1 was on the Nov. 4, 2014 general election ballot in the state of Texas as a legislativelyreferred constitutional amendment, where it was approved by voters. The measure diverted half of the general revenue derived from oil and gas taxes from the Economic Stabilization Fund (ESF) – also known as the Rainy Day Fund – to the State Highway Fund for the purpose of providing transportation funding for repairs and maintenance of public roads.
It was anticipated that this would result in approximately $1.2 billion per year going toward transportation funding instead of the Rainy Day Fund. The measure took effect immediately and has been applied to transfers the comptroller made after Sept. 1, 2014. The three SH 199 projects include constructing an overpass at Nine Mile Bridge Road; building an overpass at Hanger Cutoff Road/Tenderfoot Trail; and reconstructing the main lanes of traffic between those two intersections. The three projects are anticipated to cost $44 million, Geren said. “We’re in the first year of Proposition 1, and these projects are proposed to begin in years 2, 3 and 4,” Geren explained. “I’ll do all I can to try to get them moved up in the process, but the important thing is that we’re in the system now. Before, we were just on the sidelines.” Earlier estimates had put the projects years – maybe even decades – into the future.
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25 Years Ago In February 1990, a tree fell at Stewart Street and Hwy. 199 causing a nocturnal 16-minute power loss to 3,000 Azle residents.
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