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THE WETUMPKA HERALD Elmore County’s Oldest Newspaper - Established 1898
Wetumpka, AL 36092
50¢
WEDNESDAY • APRIL 6, 2016
THEWETUMPKAHERALD.COM
VOL. 118, NO.11
City Council to target national retailers By COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
Wetumpka has entered into a contract with a Birmingham-based consulting firm to develop a plan to attract retailers and restaurants to Wetumpka, it was learned at Monday’s council meeting A representative of Retail Strategies, which was described as a municipal consulting firm, gave a lengthy presentation and laid out their “strategic plan”
for the public, along with the information they had collected, and the nature of their partnership with the city. Mayor Jerry Willis introduced Scott VonnCannon, a portfolio director with Retail Strategies, and what was called the Retail Marketing Plan for the City of Wetumpka. VonnCannon went through a slideshow with the vast amounts of information his firm had collected on the city
and its population, such as their daily travel patterns and the spending habits of residents along with that of people passing through on a usual day. He said the company and city had been in a partnership for a few months, and in the last 120 days or so a retail strategy had been created for the city from what VonnCannon said were hundreds of reports on data and analysis about who the consumers are in
WHS students get virtual lesson on distracted driving
Firefighters complete training on Coosa River
Students visited by the leaders of the Arrive Alive tour
By COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
A fire squad could be seen on a grey and stormy Friday afternoon entering the flash-floodlevel waters of the Coosa River at the boat ramp of Wetumpka’s Gold Star Park. They had taken what they said was a “daytrip” from Norman, Oklahoma – a roughly 12-hour drive – to Wetumpka solely to use the Coosa River as their training grounds for their first time practicing fast-moving water-rescue techniques. One firefighter with the group said they would have had to wait months to get the amount of rainfall needed in order to practice See RIVER • Page 5
CONTACT US 334-567-7811 • Fax: 334-567-3284
USPS 681-260
By COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
Liz Ely / The Herald
Above, Monica Midena, owner and operator of Le Jalisco, poses in front of the authentic international goods offered in her store. Below, Maribel Perez and Jose Contreras Flores, owners of Los Veracruzanos pose in front of their store. Los Veracruzanos and Le Jalisco are the onlly two stores in Wetumpka that sell Mexican produce.
FLAVOR OF HOME Wetumpka welcomes Mexican store owners
By LIZ ELY TPI Staff
According to Census data, Elmore County has seen its Hispanic population grow exponentially, rising by 97 percent in a 10-year-period. In 2014 estimates, 17.4 percent of the Elmore County population was listed as Hispanic according to the Census Bureau. To fill the needs of that growing group, there are a couple of stores that sell Mexican produce and other goods in Wetumpka, and the store owners have found a welcome home in the city for their businesses. Located on 651 S. Main St. sits the quiet establishment of Los Veracruzanos, owned by Mexican native, Jose Contreras Flores. Down the road, on 1101 Jackson Trace Rd., La Jalisco boasts a small storefront that is owned and operated by Mexican native, Monica Midena. Both have lived in the See OWNERS • Page 3
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Wetumpka and their “buying power.” “Technically we work with cities, economic development offices and chambers of commerce throughout the country to help bring new business that is simply geared toward retail to cities across the country,” said VonnCannon. After the nearly 45 minute long presentation Willis opened the floor to See COUNCIL • Page 7
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Students and faculty members at Wetumpka High School were able to experience driving while drunk and distracted Wednesday, March 30, through a virtual reality simulator that recreated the environment and the often-devastating results of operating a vehicle under either of the conditions. All through the school day, groups of early and soon-to-be drivers gathered around a sport utility vehicle parked at WHS and, as one student took the wheel, the others watched their efforts to navigate a virtual roadway full of traffic and pedestrians. The team leader with the Arrive Alive Tour, Patrick Sheehy, said they took the biannual tour to college campuses, high schools, military bases and community events around the country to raise awareness with younger, less-experienced or inexperienced drivers. The operator wears virtual reality glasses, which display a driving simulation program, while sensors connected to the steering See DRIVE • Page 3
Corey Arwood / The Herald
Students at Wetumpka High School watch their classmates go through the drunk and distracted driving simulator while a monitor outside of the vehicle displays the performance of the driver.
CREATIVE PLAY Child Development Center
NOW ENROLLING! Ages 6 Weeks - 4 Years
Free enrollment until September 1, 2016 334-478-3608 Hours: Monday-Friday 7am-6pm 80 Red Eagle Drive, Wetumpka, AL 36092 | www.Creativeplayedc.tk
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HILTON KNIGHT
723 Alabama Hwy. 170 Wetumpka, AL (334) 728-1840