WEDNESDAY
THE
OPINION, 4 Flowers says gas tax came at a good time
Lighting the way for Alexander City & Lake Martin since 1892
March 13, 2019 Vol. 127, No. 51 www.alexcityoutlook.com 75¢
SPORTS, 10 Cade Brooks leads Wildcats to 4-0 victory
Judge OKs condemning property, adding to landfill By JIMMY WIGFIELD Managing Editor
Tallapoosa County Probate Judge Tal East ruled Tuesday the City of Alexander City can condemn 108 acres of property and buy it to expand its landfill on North Central Avenue. The C&D inert landfill — designated to accept mainly cut brush and trees,
discarded furniture, construction and demolition materials — was approaching the end of its usability, according to city public works director Gerard Brewer. With the addition of the 108.83 acres owned by Clay Service Corp. and 40 more acres already purchased from McGill Timber Co., the size of the landfill will increase from 13.3 acres to
162.13, Brewer said. “Condemnation is necessary to extend the life of the landfill and provide cover,” Brewer testified under oath before East in the judge’s chambers of the Tallapoosa County Courthouse in Dadeville. A day before the hearing, Brewer estimated the extra acreage would extend the life of the landfill 40 to 50
years “and that might be on the low side,” he said. After hearing sworn testimony from Brewer and city clerk Amanda Thomas and noting the city has already negotiated a sale price of $152,362 with the owner of Clay Service Corp., East ruled the city could condemn the property and buy it. See LANDFILL • Page 3
Ivey signs gas tax increase into law STAFF REPORT TPI Staff
Marine superstore ‘progressing well’ Interior being gutted and cleaned; contractor chosen By JIMMY WIGFIELD Managing Editor
R
ussell Marine has begun reshaping an abandoned building into a multi-million-dollar boating superstore it hopes will be the prow of economic development along the U.S. Highway 280 corridor in Alexander City. Workers have been stripping the interior of the former Russell Corp. new No. 1 building which, when finished, will offer 150,000 square feet of retail space on two floors — 75,000 square feet on the ground floor for rigging boats and 75,000 square feet upstairs, with 50,000 of that devoted to selling refurbished boats and 25,000 to a lifestyles and accessories store. “It’s progressing real well,” Russell Marine president Dave Commander said. “We’re close See SUPERSTORE • Page 9
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Lake Martin
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486.16 Reported on 03/12/19 @ 6 p.m.
LACEY HOWELL 256.307.2443
laceyshowell@gmail.com
Coosa County chamber finally gets office to itself Members of the Coosa County Chamber of Commerce opened their own door to the public for the first time Tuesday despite being around since 2015. “We have gone without an office,” chamber member Jodi McDade said. “We worked out of the (Coosa County) extension office.” The new office is a third-grade classroom from the old Rockford Elementary School. The chamber also has neighbors in the building including the Coosa County Sheriff’s Department and the Coosa County E911 office. The new-to-if office already has furniture. “We got it from Auburn University surplus,” McDade
5295 Highway 280, Alex City, AL
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Top: The top floor of the former Russell Corp. new No. 1 building has been cleared as crews prepare for the structure’s conversion into the Russell Marine Superstore in Alexander City. Above: Rubbish from the interior awaits pickup as crews prepare the structure to be converted into the superstore.
By CLIFF WILLIAMS Staff Writer
73 61 High
Jimmy Wigfield / The Outlook
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey signed the state’s first gas tax increase since 1992 into law Tuesday after the bill sailed through both chambers of the legislature during a special session that required only five days. “Every penny that is raised through this new resource will be scrutinized, will be accounted for infrastructure only, period,” Ivey said in remarks made during a ceremony to sign the bill at the State Capitol building. The gas tax, now at 18 cents, will increase 6 cents a gallon after Aug. 31, then 2 cents a gallon on Oct. 1, 2020, and another 2 cents on Oct. 1, 2021. It will also be indexed for inflation and tied to a national highway construction cost index beginning in 2023 which could increase the tax 1 cent every other year. The 10-cent per gallon increase will raise an estimated $320 million a year to fund road construction and maintenance. The Alabama Department of Transportation will get 67 percent of the proceeds, counties 25 percent and cities 8 percent. Overwhelming bipartisan support pushed the bill through the Republican-controlled legislature a week to the day Ivey issued a clarion call for a gas tax increase in her State of the State address, then ordered a special session to focus on it. See TAX • Page 12
Cliff Williams / The Outlook
Guests gather at the open house for the Coosa County Chamber of Commerce at the old Rockford Elementary School on Tuesday.
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