At Year's End, City Looks To Future Projects
As the year begins to draw to a close, members of the City Council are looking at projects that will affect Piedmont in the future.
Members of the engineering firm Goodwyn, Mills and Cawood joined the work session to reintroduce themselves to council members and ask questions about the future needs of Piedmont. City Clerk Bill Fann invited the panel to the meeting in response to the idea of adding a camping area into property already owned by the city.
Fann said that it is in everyone's best interest to take best advantage of the Rails To Trails project "this year, next year, and the year after that."
According to Fann, the number one request from visitors at the Eubanks Welcome Center was concerning camping facilities in the area.
Currently there is no place for recreational vehicle owners to park here that has hook-ups for electrical, water or sewer.
Mayor Charlie Fagan stated that projects of this nature take time and with the downtown renovation completed, it is time to start another project. He encouraged council members to decided which direction "we want to go," and he plans work sessions in the near future to further discuss potential projects.
Dr. Ben Ingram addressed the council about the need to recruit both medical and dental professionals for the residents of Piedmont. He suggested the city purchase both the surplus medical equipment located in the Crawford building and the Davis Dental Clinic building.
Ingram said a consulting group currently owns the medical equipment and is offering it to the city at "pennies on the dollar." He also noted that the asking price of the clinic has been greatly reduced and would make a good spec building.
The city, said Ingram, is in great competition with other communities in securing both medical and dental professionals. Having the equipment and facilities available to a potential prospect could make the difference in acquiring such professionals.
Councilman Eddie Baldwin said, "It is important for this council and the next council to work for the growth of Piedmont and we are on the right track" but stopped short of supporting the issue presented by Ingram.
When the mayor opened the floor for comments for the spectators, Elizabeth Mitchell, chairman of the Nuisance Abatement Board, Carter Jones, chairman of the Tree Committee, and Keith Word took the floor to laud city employees for their involvement in recent holiday activities.
Word cited all city employees and City Clerk Bill Fann for their efforts in the week-long activities. Mrs. Mitchell said out-of-town judges were impressed with the Christmas decoration efforts and the general appearance of the city. Jones added his comments saying the half-marathon was a huge success due to the volunteers in the Piedmont area.
Each of the council members praised the work by area volunteers in the various Christmas season activities.
The only other business the appointment of Jerry Mobley to the Personnel Board and the payment of $117,413.20 in city bills.

Steve Smith Is Named Bulldogs Head Coach And Athletic Director
At a special meeting Thursday afternoon, the Piedmont Board of Education unanimously voted to hire Cedar Bluff's head football coach to take the same job at Piedmont High School, plus become the school athletic director.
Steve Smith was named to the post and brings with him an impressive record. He comes to Piedmont High School after an 11-year stint at Cedar Bluff High School. A 1988 graduate of Cherokee County High School, Coach Smith went on to play football at Jacksonville State University under Coach Bill Burgess from 1988 to 1991. Smith graduated from JSU in 1991. The 1992 football season at JSU was a National Championship year for the program. That year, Smith served as a graduate assistant coach under Burgess. During his five years as a player and coach, the JSU football program won 55 of 64 games.
In 1993 Smith served as assistant football coach at Cherokee County High school, coached girls' softball and served as the track coach. He moved to Georgia in 1994 to coach at Coosa High School where he was an assistant football and baseball coach.
In 1995 at the age of 24, he was named Cedar Bluff's head football coach. During his 11 years at the Bluff High School he had an overall record of 85 wins with only 45 losses. His teams have reached the AHSAA playoffs each of the last ten years. Coach Smith has reached the semifinal round of the playoffs three of the last four years. Since the inception of Region play in 2000 Smith's teams have won 38 out of 42 regional games.
"Steve is an outstanding leader, a person of unquestioned integrity and a fine coach who has proven through his record that he is prepared for the opportunity to be head football coach at Piedmont High School" said City School Supt. Matt Akin.
Smith said he was excited about coming to Piedmont, and that the local football program had interested him for years. As a player, he repeatedly faced George Hoblitzell's teams on their way to the state playoffs. It was an experience that taught him respect for the Bulldogs.
The newly named athletic director said he thought both the community and the players were "hungry" for some winning seasons and a return to the former year of glory. While he did not give a time frame when the thought he team would post a winning center, but he pledged to "work my tail off" to improve team play.
Akin said the board had been seeking a head coach since Nov. 2. Former head coach Michael Bobbitt resigned Oct. 31. The superintendent said he had received 50 applications from across the Southeast. He added that he was delighted at the board's decision to hire Smith. "There's no doubt he's the right man for the job."
Smith and his wife, Rachel, have two sons and are expecting their third child, a girl in March.

Natural Gas Prices More Than Double
Months ago, Mayor Charlie Fagan warned area residents of a huge increase in the price of natural gas. When he made the comments, it was in a council meeting. Outside, it was still daylight and the temperatures were gradually descending from near 90 degrees. No one paid much attention at the time, but the mayor's prediction is coming true.
The wholesale cost of natural gas has more than doubled since 2004. The fuel's market Dec. 1, 2004, was $7 per decatherm. A decatherm is the amount of natural gas necessary to provide 1,000 BTUs of heat. Thursday that price jumped to almost $15.
Fagan has again warned that heating costs this winter could break all records. He has cautioned area residents to take all precautions to insulate their homes and conserve all the heat possible.
Last week, temperatures across north Alabama dipped to unseasonable lows, and forecasters say there may be colder weather on the way for the coming week.
In the meantime, Public Service Commissioner George C. Wallace Jr. has authorized an investigation into the natural gas prices being paid by Alabamians. According to some complaints reported to the PSC, Alabama residents have been paying higher prices than have been charged in other Southeastern states. The increased costs have been blamed on hurricanes damaging off-shore production stations.
According to trends on natural gas futures, the price increases will continue for several weeks and will be reflected on the gas bills to be sent to customers shortly after Jan. 1.

Strictly Personal
Peace, Good Will Vs. Joy To The World...
There are a couple of familiar phrases I would like to mention this week. I believe you will find a contrast in the true character of Christmas and the practices of a couple of groups of people.
The first comes from the Holy Bible, and "Peace on earth, good will toward men" has come to symbolize the spirit of Christmas. During the Christmas season, we are urged to remember that peace and love are the tenets of the teaching of Jesus. This time of year is supposed to be set aside to exemplify the peace and love that marked that first Christmas.
I realize this is pretty hard to do in this modern world, but Christians and members of other dominations should at least find a little time to remember how we should conduct ourselves in our daily lives.
Even the oil sheiks in the Middle East seem to be aware of the season. According to a recent CNN newscast, they have pledged to keep the cost of crude oil below $60 per barrel and to keep the supply flowing.
On the other hand, we have the American petroleum industry, including the companies that produce natural gas. To them, this season can best be characterized by the title of a familiar Christmas carol, "Joy to the World." Their practices have nothing to do with peace on earth or good will toward anyone.
Gasoline prices are again on the rise, fueled by nothing but greed, and there's nothing anyone can do about it. Even the U.S. government finds itself stymied. The oil giants have gotten so powerful, they own Congress. It recently became very clear that even if federal regulations were imposed, it may result in a fuel shortage.
This would be the same sort of fake shortage we experienced once before when oil companies simply refused to release fuel, thereby driving up the cost at the pump. There was no shortage, nor will there be in the foreseeable future.
As to natural gas, that really hits people where they live. The price has more than doubled during the past year, and that means those who heat with gas will have bills that will more than double since last year. This includes elderly and disabled persons who live on fixed incomes and depend on the fuel to stay warm during the coldest months of the year.
The price hike is blamed on hurricanes damaging some off-shore gas wells, but it doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out this is only an excuse for price gouging.
Take power, for instance. It is a source of energy, and ice storms, irresponsible motorists, vandals and lightning constantly damage the distribution system. The power companies repair the damage as soon as possible and continue with business as usual.
There are no drastic rate increases because lightning strikes a substation. The hurricane theory, therefore, doesn't stand up under scrutiny.
The natural gas and petroleum companies will be warm and toasty this winter. Their fireplaces will be stoked with the money from obscene profits wrested from the pocketbooks of millions of Americans.
Our national leaders, too, will be basking in the glow of huge campaign contributions from these companies.
We can only hope that the avarice and greed will one day return to haunt all these people. In the meantime, we can only hope to stay warm and pay those high fuel and natural gas prices.