| Friday, March 16, 2012 | Opelika, Alabama |
Vol. 4, No. 21 |
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Santorum wins in Alabama and Lee County; Patsy Jones elected as Obama delegate
by Greg Markley
Political Writer
Rick Santorum was raised primarily in Butler, Pa., 644 miles from Opelika and well within “the North.” But Santorum has the social conservatism that most Deep South Republicans love.
The former U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania won the GOP presidential primary in Alabama with 35 percent of the vote to 29 percent for Mitt Romney and also 29 percent for Newt Gingrich.
In Lee County, Santorum had 33 percent to 30 percent for Romney and 28 percent for Gingrich, of Georgia. Also with 97 percent of the vote counted, Ron Paul had 7 percent.
That is 2 percent more than Paul attained statewide and reflects the presence of a number of libertarians here. The Ludwig Von Mises Institute, well known nationally for its Austrian economics emphasis, is in Auburn.
Santorum also won Mississippi, by two percentage points over Gingrich.
Whoever the nominee is, “The Republicans will win the presidency in November, I look forward to it,” said State Sen. Tom Whatley, an Opelika native and now an attorney in Auburn.
Whatley was easily elected as a Gingrich delegate to the GOP convention in Tampa to be held in August. He had 2,434 votes (71 percent) to 982 (29 percent) for Steven D. Henry.
“But I have to pay my own way, meals, hotel and everything,” the senator noted.
Patricia “Patsy” Jones, president pro-tem of Opelika City Council, got the most votes of any of the 17 women who sought to be delegates committed to President Obama at the Democratic convention in Charlotte, NC in September.
She received 1,842 votes, for 22 percent, with 37 of the 38 precincts counted. Fred Gray, Jr. topped the male delegates, with 18 percent.
Roy Moore, running again for chief justice of the Supreme Court, earned 48 percent, close to his percentage in winning the GOP contest statewide.
Tommy Bryan received 2 percent less of a win percentage in Lee County (66 percent) than overall in his run for associate justice.
Twinkle Andress Cavanaugh won Lee County with 48 percent, one percent shy from her state percentage. Failing to make 50 percent, she faces Karen Peterson in a runoff April 24 for the presidency of the Public Service Commission. The winner of that race will face sitting PSC chair and former lieutenant governor Lucy Baxley in the November election. Baxley is currently the only Democrat serving in a statewide elected office.
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Photo by Robert Noles |
| Incumbents Russell Bush (left) and Bill English both won their re-election battles in Tuesday’s state Republican primary. |
Bush, English soundly defeat challengers
by Greg Markley
Political Writer
Lee County District Court Judge Russell Bush and Probate Judge Bill English, both longtime Opelikans, trounced their opponents Tuesday in the 2012 Republican Primary by identical scores of 71 percent to 29 percent. With 92 percent of precincts reporting, Bush gained a third term by beating Auburn attorney Gary Black by 7,152 - 2,879. English won a third term by outpolling Auburn businessman Jon Chase 7,566 - 3,154.
Auburn city councilwoman Sheila Eckman denied District 1 Commissioner Mathan Holt of Auburn a third term, by a vote of 1,539 - 934. Eckman was at 62 percent and Holt got 38 percent with 88 percent of precincts reporting. Eckman suggested that her “no contributions” pledge may have attracted voters, in her self-financed race.
“I drive an old car, do not own a bass-fishing boat, and I don't play golf,” Eckman joked, noting that she used her own money not as a rich person but because she believes that is essential to good government. “I'm pleasantly surprised that I won because it's always an uphill battle against a long-time incumbent like Mathan.”
Judge Bush said he was confident of winning, mostly based on his years of competence on the bench. “My first campaign, in 2000, was the most difficult because there were six other candidates and we all scrambled for name recognition,” he reflected. He was unopposed in 2006.
“My message was clear and concise,” said Judge English. “I reminded people of my education, experience, and qualifications.” He timed everything well, mailing 10,000 campaign flyers within two weeks of the primary.
At the end of his new term, in 2019, English will be the third longest serving Lee County probate judge, only trailing his predecessor I.H. “Hal” Smith (1977-2001) and Judge Smith's predecessor Ira Weissinger, Sr. (1950-1977).
There were no Democratic contests in Lee County this year, except for presidential delegates.
District 5 Commissioner John Andrew Harris earlier secured the Democratic label to challenge U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers in the 3rd Congressional District.
Also, with 88 percent of precincts reporting, Roger Keel led with 61 percent - 39 percent over Shane Franks, for the GOP nomination for LC School Board, District 4.
In LC School Board, District 5, Fred Copeland, Jr. had 51 percent to 34 percent for Evelyn Harris and 14 percent for Jeff Drury. That was with 67 percent totaled.
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Photo special to the Opelika Observer |
| A photo from 2009 shows the late Chet Rowe with Mayor Gary Fuller at his left; Gene Hunter stands between two unidentified birders and spotting scopes, at the lagoon. |
Opelika selected for Urban Bird Treaty challenge grant
by Mara Hawks
Opelika Observer
At the turn of the 19th century, when women of high society were sporting plumage with millenary madness in bird feather fashion (literally killing off millions of migratory birds every year to adorn high-priced hats), conservationists and naturalists began to notice a sharp decline in worldwide migratory bird patterns and numbers.
A federal “cap” was put on hunting regulations that prohibited the capture and sale of any migratory bird, in the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918. The subsequent treaty was originally between the U.S., Canada and Great Britain. (Later amendments brought in Mexico, Japan and Russia.)
In 1999, The Urban Conservation Treaty for Migratory Birds (Urban Bird Treaty) was launched to help municipal governments conserve birds that live and nest in or over winter or migrate through America's cities.
Last fall, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced its allocation of $650,000 in project funding to support migratory bird initiatives for 10 cities nationwide. Opelika was selected as the only city in the Southeast region for the partnership that will develop and implement urban conservation projects for migratory birds.
The City of Opelika will receive up to $70,000 in a matching grant to establish the Opelika Wood Duck Heritage Preserve and Siddique (pronounced “sa-deek'-ee) Nature Park (“Preserve and Nature Park”), located just off Waverly Parkway near U.S. Hwy. 280.
City Administrator John Seymour, Jr. said that this 73-acre preserve and park has been made possible by the conversion of a 66-acre waste water lagoon property owned by the City, combined with the private donation of seven acres of land adjacent to the lagoon site. The Wood Duck Heritage Preserve has become home to a significant population of wood ducks and waterfowl. Over 135 separate species of birds have been identified at the Preserve and Nature Park, including birds that nest, winter, or just pass through the Opelika community.
According to Gene Hunter, who served as the third president of The Friends, the non-profit corporation that formed to propose the project to the city and lend support in any way, the unwavering goal of this group “is dedicated to working with the City of Opelika to make the 85-acre site that includes the Westside Waste Water Treatment lagoon into a world-class nature center.”
For each city, the Fish and Wildlife Service has awarded a maximum $70,000 challenge grant that provides matching dollars, technical assistance and in-kind support for use toward bird conservation projects that include environmental education, preservation and beautification.
Opelika is populated with an impressive population of “birders” who seem to make their home here in Lee County, appreciating the many natural bird habitats and opportunities to enjoy nature, with plenty of bird-watching activities as well as habitat preservation work. Local enthusiasm is easily spotted among homeowners with “backyard birding” sanctuaries.
Seymour shared some of the story of how this concept to designate a specific area of land for migratory bird preservation came to fruition here in Opelika, naming a handful of key visionaries who played a critical role in this development to acquire partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services and become recognized as an Urban Bird Treaty City.
“They have been working parallel with the efforts of the Piedmont Plateau Birding Trail, making the case for birding that could also benefit tourism and economic development,” Seymour said. “We were working with them over time,” he continued, “using them to help us do this.”
“Last spring, they applied for a migratory bird grant, to include ducks and geese,” Seymour said.
“At that time, the City of Opelika didn't have the extra funds to build it from scratch. Not long after, an opportunity for the grant came along and was approved. The group was informed in September that Opelika was to be recognized as one of the (Urban Bird Treaty) cities.”
“The Friends,” Seymour clarified, “is a group of folks that formed a private, non-profit organization.”
The founders of The Friends began as just that — friends who enjoyed spending time together and sharing their common interest in observing birding habits and habitats.
The late Chester (Chet) Rowe (who served as the first president of the Friends Corporation) and Gene Hunter were two of these initial friends who entertained the idea of a wood duck preserve.
“We did a lot of birding together, and always came up with high counts of wood ducks,” said Gene.
“Chet kept the ball rolling when my wife, Carolyn, and I moved to Germany for awhile,” said Hunter. In 2009, Rowe was ultimately at the helm for introducing the concept to the City of Opelika.
Virginia (Ginny) Rowe continues to carry on the legacy of her late husband, and his dream to designate Opelika as a recognized sanctuary for migratory birds.
Dr. Irtaza H. Siddique, “a very civic-minded person and retired professor from Tuskegee University,” Seymour said, “offered his parcel of land to the city (seven acres), as we were talking about the water fowl that migrate through here to the lagoon area.”
Other founders of The Friends who serve as current or past members of the board are Betsy Gore, a science teacher at OHS, Lew Scharpf, who works at Auburn Research and served as second president, Andrew Landis, a doctoral student at AU in the fisheries program, Barry Fleming, a fine arts professor at AU, Roger Johnson, serving as the current president, and John Seymour, Jr., who is an ex-officio member.
Two consultants that offered much expertise and support to the Friends group are Dr. Gary Hepp, a professor in AU's Forestry and WIldlife Sciences Department, who has a specialized expertise with wood ducks, and Dr. Geoff Hill, an ornithologist and AU professor for biological studies.
The City of Opelika partnered with The Friends of the Opelika Wood Duck Heritage Preserve, Inc. (The Friends). Together, they gained support and momentum through networking partnerships with members of the faculty at Auburn University, Opelika City Schools, Keep Opelika Beautiful, the Alabama Birding Trails project through the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources and local area scouting organizations. The project encompasses six specific goals that are outlined in the Urban Conservation Treaty for Migratory Birds Program.
According to the program summary, the project was proposed by the City of Opelika in partnership with The Friends, and listed these goals as “the protection, restoration, and enhancement of an urban habitat preserve; the reduction of hazards to migrating urban birds; the education and engagement of citizens in monitoring, caring about, and advocating for birds and their conservation; the fostering of youth environmental education with the focus on birds; the management of invasive species to benefit and protect birds; and the increasing of awareness of the value of migratory birds and their habitats.”
Next month, the Observer plans to report, in depth, on how each of these six goals will be integrated into the phases of development throughout the project.
We will also report on fundraising efforts that will be at work throughout the year and in need of your support.
Every dollar will help to reach the matching grant challenge, and there will be plenty of opportunities for volunteers.
The City of Opelika recognizes the treasure that nature has provided in this 73-acre site, and has accomplished much in their collaborative pursuit with private citizens to protect and enhance a natural habitat for migratory birds and waterfowl.
