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THE WETUMPKA HERALD Elmore County’s Oldest Newspaper - Established 1898
Wetumpka, AL 36092
50¢
WEDNESDAY • MARCH 22, 2017
THEWETUMPKAHERALD.COM
VOL. 119, NO. 12
City Council talks dispatch move
By DAVID GRANGER Managing Editor
The Wetumpka City Council will consider at its April 3 meeting a move of its police and fire dispatch to the Elmore County emergency operations center. The move was discussed at Monday night’s meeting of the council. The Council also passed a resolution supporting local legislation that would allow Sunday sales of alcohol for off-prem-
ise consumption in the city. Discussion of the agreement on dispatch services dominated the meeting. Technically, the agreement would be between the city and Elmore County Sheriff Bill Franklin. Franklin said that he is required to personally sign certain agreements that deal with matters of security. He said that should he leave office, the city would have to negotiate an agreement with the new sheriff and joked, “I hope that’s not for a long time.”
“We’ve been working on this for two years,” said Wetumpka Police Chief Danny Billingsley. “The city would continue to pay our dispatchers’ salaries.” According to Billingsley, the city has six dispatchers that would make the move. Franklin said that it was imperative that the council approve the move by April 3. “We’re working with a company called RPSS, and they plan to be in here around April 17 or 18” Franklin said. “They will need some time to divert the city’s lines to
BMX blowout teaches kids to cool it in school for fun later
the county. So if it looks like you’re going to go past April 3, please let us know.” RPSS is Ryan Public Safety Solutions, a Guntersville-based company and one of the leaders in the public safety communications industry. Franklin said the contract allows either party to sever ties with 90 days notice. He said he currently has such a contract with the Town of Eclectic and things are working well. See COUNCIL • Page 3
State Senate passes scaled down prison reform bill STAFF REPORT TPI Staff
By COREY ARWOOD Staff Writer
Wetumpka Elementary School’s pre-k through fourth grade students saw freestyle BMX pros out of Athens, Georgia perform Friday, landing complex flatland runs and quarter pipe combos in front of screaming students all in the name of good behavior. Principal Bonnie Sullivan called it positive reinforcement, but the three-team Freestyle Connection called it tailwhip, one-hand, can can, full cab, toboggan, nollie, manual 180 and the crowd favorite, the backflip. They had set up their sound equipment, vert ramp and quarterpipe out of their gray tour van parked behind the school surrounded on both sides by scores of kids. Team owner Jon Dowker was the emcee in between trick sets,
Corey Arwood / The Herald
Above, owner of Freestyle Connection Jon Dowker surfs past a crowd of Wetumpka Elmentary School students who watched in awe of the three-member team of BMX pros from Athens, Georgia. Below, Wetumpka Elementary School counselor Natasha MacMillan did not jump to volunteer for the highlight trick of the day, but sat still while Doug Morrison launched overhead.
See BMX • Page 3
The Alabama Senate took a step last week aimed at solving the long-standing crisis in Alabama’s prisons by passing a measure to build up to three new prisons. Under Senate Bill 302, Alabama would get three new prisons, two built by local governments and one built by the state. The Senate passed the bill by a vote of 230-11 Thursday. Sen. Cam Ward (R-Alabaster) said that the Senate plan protects against waste or cost overruns by requiring Corrections to hire an outside project manager to oversee construction of the facilities, and limits the bond authority to $325 million. But one Elmore County senator opposed the move and one county representative says the “buildings are not going to solve the problems.” Sen. Dick Brewbaker (R-Montgomery), who represents part of Elmore and Montgomery counties and voted against the bill, likened it to a professional sports trade, saying the bill See BILL • Page 2
WES outdoor classroom will help kids be conservation-conscious By DAVID GRANGER Managing Editor
Wetumpka Elementary School officially opened its new outdoor classroom March 15 with a ribbon-cuttting and celebration at the Micanopy Street school. Wetumpka Elementary School principal Bonnie Sullivan said her school was one of six in Alabama to receive a 2016
CONTACT US 334-567-7811 Fax: 334-567-3284
grant for an outdoor classroom from the Alabama Power Foundation’s Students to Stewards grants program. “What we really wanted was a learning environment that existed outside so that our students could learn about conservation and the environment, but also use the area just to be outside while they were studying other subjects, too,” Sullivan said. “Anything to allow them the opportunity to get out of the normal
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classroom.” Sullivan said the outdoor classroom’s features will allow for several types of activities for the children from pre-K to fourth grade. “We have workstations and they are great,” Sullivan said. “That will allow the kids to work on their science habitats for the animals that they care for. Rather than doing it in the classroom, they can See CLASSROOM • Page 3
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Submitted / The Herald
Wetumpka Elementary School students join school and county officials in breaking ground on the school’s new outdoor classroom, funded by an Alabama Power Foundation “Students to Stewards” grant.