What Can Dr. Diana McCutcheon Expect?

The formal announcement that Dr. Diana K. McCutcheon had been indicted for Medicare and other insurance fraud came as no surprise to many in Lexington or the surrounding communities in Lauderdale County. From physicians to Nurse Practitioners to laser technicians...one by one they had left McCutcheon's practice over the past few years, citing differences in vision...or sometimes worse.

The question on everyone's lips today is what can McCutcheon expect should she be convicted. Obviously no two judges will think alike on such matters, but we can look at others who have faced similar charges. Most over billing accusations have been leveled at hospitals, but a few have been lobbed at physicians. A doctor in Virginia served 18 months for fraud that occurred over a two year period from 2005 to 2007. Is this indicative of what McCutcheon might expect?

The second concern is repayment and fines. How hard pressed will McCutcheon be to repay 1.3 million? That figure may seem inconsequential compared to fines that are often levied against those convicted--not to mention the loss of her medical license. The aforementioned doctor in Virginia was forced to sit a second time for his medical exam, something those who have been in practice for many years do not find easy.

Others are asking what the Elgin-Lexington communities will do if they are deprived of a physician. Sadly, most insurance will not allow them to drive to Tennessee. Look for Rogersville and Florence physicians to pick up a number of patients...

Related post: Lexington Medical Clinic Closes

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Don't forget Larry Fisher and  Debra Glass will be at First Fridays tomorrow in downtown Florence. If you can't make it Friday, the pair will be at Ye Olde General Store across from the post office on Seminary Street Saturday morning with copies of their latest book. If you missed Volume 1 of Remembering Florence, we understand there are a limited number of these remaining.

Many thanks to Larry for taking the time to come back home to personally autograph these fantastic volumes. Thanks also to Debra for her tireless efforts in helping compile these wonderful memories.

Larry Fisher Fan Page

Shoalanda

Ghosts Tonight, Zombies Tomorrow

Ghosts in April? Well, you didn't think they just made appearances in October, did you?

Debra Glass, a UNA alumna and author, will conduct a campus ghost tour and discussion April 12 at 7 p.m. beginning at the Memorial Amphitheater. Glass is the author of more than 15 books and the 1992 recipient of the National Society of Arts and Letters Alabama Screenwriter Award. Glass, a local ghost historian, will lead the free tour for UNA students, employees and members of the community.

Thanks, Debra, for giving back to your alma mater and your community!

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Did someone say zombies? We've heard that ChargerCon will have more than zombies. It's a gaming convention and much more. Our own Belgreen cop Daniel Horton is the driving force behind this event. What better way to spend Friday the 13th?

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A reader pointed out that we owed our friend Larry Fisher an apology since we didn't include him in the category of little men who aren't here. Yes, we had temporarily forgotten that Larry was once stated to be a woman from Tuscumbia...  

Larry Fisher Fan Page

Shoalanda

Defense for Mayor Irons? Maybe...

Is There A Defense For Mayor Bobby Irons' Behavior?

A Guest Commentary By

Bailey Quarters

I never lived in Sweetwater, East Florence, or Weeden Heights, so I had no interest in the Sweetwater Reunion other than hoping they had a large turnout. I do live in Florence and it seems that our mayor's visit to the reunion has caused a lot of controversy, at least on Facebook.

Should he have made an attempt to visit with the guest of honor from out of town or only visited with registered voters? It's possible he did attempt to meet Mr. Fisher. Perhaps Larry was away from the venue for a short time and Mr. Irons had to leave. We'll never know unless Mayor Irons chooses to comment on the issue and I doubt that he will.

What if Mayor Bobby Irons ignored the Sweetwater Reunion guest of honor intentionally because he is not a registered voter in Florence? Then we do need a more caring and, yes, thinking chief executive for our city.

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While on the subject of Mayor Irons' behavior, we've seen some comments on "voting them all out." We will go on record here that since all humans make mistakes, we'll venture that Dick Jordan and Sam Pendleton have also--that does not mean they are not the best Florence has to offer. We may not always have agreed with them on some issues, but we've always believed they've placed the interests of Florence first. We doubt that Mayor Irons will comment on his behavior at the Sweetwater Reunion since that would serve to draw more attention to it.

Related post from OB's Corner: Mayoral Fail



Shoalanda

Mayor Irons at Sweetwater Reunion?

According to some who attended last Saturday's Sweetwater Renunion, Florence Mayor Bobby Irons was in attendance. The problem? It seems guest of honor Larry Fisher didn't meet Mayor Irons during the festivities. It does seem both prudent and hospitable that our mayor would have sought Mr. Fisher out...

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This weekend marks Russellville's annual Watermelon Festival, but if you're planning on going, you may not see Kerry Gilbert and his band. It seems he was bumped in order to make way for Travis Wammack on the lineup. One would think there would be room for both great entertainers.

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According to today's TimesDaily, Christopher Michael Rich's estranged girlfriend and mother of his two children, Hollie Elizabeth Newbury, has now become his "common-law wife." Is this just an error on the part of the TD, or is the prosecution attempting to add an element to its case?

One would think the crime was so heinous that a conviction is a given, but considering some fairly recent verdicts* in Lauderdale and Franklin Counties, perhaps Rich's defense team may be able to find 12 individuals who sympathize with this abuser.

* David Darryl Thompson, Lauderdale County/Mark Anthony Hurley, Franklin County



Shoalanda

Meet Larry Fisher at Sweetwater Reunion Saturday

Saturday August 13th marks the 25th annual Sweetwater Reunion. This year's honored guest is Larry Fisher, political pundit and raconteur. The event will be held at the Florence Colosseum from 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m.

If you haven't yet met Larry, here's his fan site: Link

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And he's an attorney...



Shoalanda

Sweetwater Reunion/Webster Hotel Closes

For the past twenty years those who grew up in East Florence, aka Sweetwater, have been holding an annual reunion. According to Ruth Rickard, a member of the Sweetwater Reunion Committee, “We try to honor someone who has been well known in the community and someone who grew up here and helped Sweetwater over the years.”

The honoree in 2011 will be Larry Fisher. Now a resident of Shreveport, Louisiana, Fisher has never forgotten his Sweetwater roots. In 2010, he founded the Facebook page Remembering Florence. The page now has over 3,800 members. Fisher also has a political page and is the subject of his own fan page.

This year's reunion will be held August 13th at the Florence Coliseum. We'll have more information before the big day. Congratulations to Larry--it's a well deserved honor.

Remembering Florence

Larry Fisher Fan Page

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Sources say the Webster Hotel and Suites in Sheffield has closed. The hotel has been faced with financial problems the past few years and suffered from extremely unkind reviews from the public. As with the Southland Restaurant, we hope someone can purchase the facility and restore it to its former glory.

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It's been some time since we've honored a local hero. Today we want to thank Kerry Gilbert for all he and his band do for this area, especially Franklin County. It's hard to pick just one video to showcase the KGB, but we think this one's a real crowd pleaser:





Shoalanda

Cherokee: Bigger Than You Thought/Remembering Florence Book

As promised, we have J.J.'s latest take on Cherokee, but first we want all our readers, especially those with Lauderdale County ties, to be aware of the new book Remembering Florence. This beautifully done treasure will be available March 1st. Contact: Link

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Cherokee and the City Council

By J.J. Ray

You have to give credit when it is due and the city council aka the Burger King four get a real Atta boy for the tough decisions they made at last weeks meeting. Unfortunately, this gave Señor De La Viagra a soapbox forum from which to allege a list of problems.

One is the $1029.00 bill for fuel at the fire department. This started me to thinking, which is always dangerous but when you divide out that bill that equates to 343 gallons of fuel per month. Then when you figure about 6 miles per gallon you get 2058 miles driven. Some of those vehicles will do better. How do you drive 2058 miles in an area the size of Cherokee?

How many fires do they have on a monthly basis? What is their patrol area? My goodness it must go all the way to Florence. Does the fire department purchase fuel for everyone on the staff? What happened to conservation?

When you make a statement like that there has to be some kind of explanation. No one in their right or left mind would want a fire department to do without fuel or the equipment needed to accomplish their mission. Give me a break Mayor Señor De La Viagra how about some justification here. Is there no coordination on the number of vehicles used or do they just drive up and down the roads extinguishing cigarettes?

Really, Mr. Mayor how long have you known about the financial condition of the city. Did you just find out last week? I do not think so. No chief executive would wake up one morning and say we are broke. In this tough economic climate, revenues have fallen off for most cities and I am sure Cherokee is no exception. According to the record Mr. Mayor, you have been aware of the financial condition of the city since January 10 and 12, 2010. That was the time of the brawl, lest you forget.

When you make a statement like that on TV and in print there must to be some answerability. How about disclosure in the form of an audit for the fire department and rescue squad? That should settle any disputes. Mr. Mayor, do you really want to settle the controversy?

Have you decided to become the Alcalde Masculino the sufferer for a cause and perchance rest in the pillory that you and your faithful cohort wanted for Ms. Malone? I really do not think sainthood is in the offing for you. I can give the address for the Vatican though, if you choose to apply.



Shoalanda

South of the Tennessee River...

Barry Obama and the Redheaded Step Children

By J.J. Ray

Most will be wondering what Barry has to do with the redheaded stepchildren south of the Tennessee River. The answer is nothing right now. Actually many folks have asked me to quote on the State of The Union address by Barry. The Pepto-Bismol was ready and I took some after the speech. The nausea left and I slipped serenely into sleep. Of course, there is nothing that we can do about the rhetoric and baldfaced misnomers he loosed except shrug and hope for better days in 2012.

Now about the rest of us that live on the south side of the river in cities like Muscle Shoals, Sheffield, and Tuscumbia. Has anyone ever wondered why we have to go to Florence all the time to eat or shop leaving our tax dollars in Lauderdale County when they should stay here? Driving through the main shopping areas on any given night, the eateries are full and store parking lots are full of Colbert county tags. Where have our leaders on the south side been? Asleep at the wheel apparently. What happened to our mall--it sits empty, the new Wilson Dam road, restaurants or Movie Theater?

Apparently, Tuscumbia, Sheffield and Muscle Shoals are content to remain the epicenter of the world for minimum wage employment. Mr. Mayors, why do we not have large chains moving here? Oh, I forgot we have a Billion Dollar White Elephant in Barton, that great golf course in Ford City and 43 new jobs coming to Wise Alloys. Mercy, I may have to increase my heart medication the shock is to great.

Could it be the liquor on Sunday law in Florence? Perhaps. The real reason however is much deeper than that. How about the old south mindset and the old money portrayed in so many books and movies. Why if the folks over here were to make a living wage instead of minimum wage, poverty could decrease and they might have a say in government. My goodness prosperity could set in, crime might go down and then the minimum wage folks would not have to live like third-rate citizens. The old money and lazy politicians would lose control of the minimum wage workers and that would be calamitous for them. They might have to move into the 21st Century.

Why are the armies that threw out the bums last election not ringing the phones at city halls? Why do we have to fly to Memphis and change planes to get to Atlanta? That is kinda like going around your elbow to get to your thumb. Bottom line is it is not necessarily the economy but the reluctance of our civic leaders to actually do their job. While we are talking about leaders, has anyone seem the phantom representative Mo Brooks over on this side of the state or our State Senator Abstaining T. Irons?

Be proactive--take a stand. Call or write those in charge get involved don’t just gripe. After all, we do pay their salaries they are supposed to work for us not the reverse.

*****

Another great column from J.J., and we understand he has a big story lined up. Stay tuned for a shocker...

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For all you on Facebook, be sure to check out Larry Fisher's Remembering Florence page. He's begun to sign off each day with a very interesting quote.


Shoalanda

Larry Fisher & Ben Tate--Getting It Right

Ramon's on South Court Street

Today the TimesDaily published an extremely well done piece on Remembering Florence, the Facebook page run by Florence native Larry Fisher. Thanks to Tom Smith for an excellent article on an endeavor that adds to our city and the entire Shoals area.

We've done blogs on Larry's contributions to our area before, but today we're going to add Ben Tate to the list of those who are selflessly attempting to improve our town's image. Ben is an excellent photographer. If you haven't yet seen his many original photographs, you are in for a treat. Ben has spent countless hours documenting Florence as it is today; those who come after us will undoubtedly learn more about our town in the early 21st Century from his work than from any other source.

However, if you haven't yet visited the site, don't expect it to be all new photos. Old images are appearing every day. We're going to compare it to YouTube's cache of old Hank Williams videos--images no one knew existed.

We've called Larry a hero before for standing up to those from Sweetwater who were verbally abusing anyone who asked questions about its owner and its finances. Now, we're calling him a hero twice over for his time-consuming work of love.

Links:

TimesDaily Article

Remembering Florence

Meet Larry Fisher

Larry Fisher Fan Page

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Shoalanda

Remembering Florence/"He Just Failed As A Dad"

Look for the TimesDaily to do a story on the Facebook page Remembering Florence. Larry Fisher tells us the article may be published as early as this weekend.

Related Links:

Remembering Florence

Larry Fisher: Real Person, Real Hero

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We're strong believers that those teachers who commit sex crimes should have their teaching licenses permanently revoked, but what about those guilty of domestic violence? Last week Muscle Shoals teacher/coach Jonathan D. Shirah was arrested on a misdemeanor charge of domestic violence against his wife. Shirah has seemingly always been known for his affable manner with students, but what about at home?

His daughter has characterized him as having "failed as a dad," while Mary Elaine Shirah's aunt has commented, "I also know this is not the first, second or third abuse by Shirah. And you can see by so many nasty comments, why so many wives do not come forward about their abuse...Would your boss let you include in your job yelling, throwing things, hitting, punching, shoving, breaking things, throwing down a fellow employee like he threw his infant into a crib once upon a time...He got in her face after throwing her against the wall and started choking her until she saw stars and was passing out and he picked her up and threw her into a very thick glass topped kitchen table and it broke all to pieces and she landed on the floor with the broken glass covering her all over and three broke ribs among all the other bruises. If God had not protected her and she had not had on a thick turtle neck shirt and thick clothing, as she had just come in from the outside she would be dead today."

Elaine Shirah reportedly suffers from Crohn's disease, resulting in limited diet choices and loss of weight. In a 1997 paper, Dr. R. Horan Jones linked Crohn's disease to domestic violence. In other words, women who are the victims of abuse are much more likely to develop the disease, aka irritable bowel syndrome.

Does Shirah deserve to keep his teaching license? Elaine Shirah is filing for divorce. Without her to abuse, is it possible he will turn his anger toward his students? Our children deserve better...much better.

Related Links:

A Tale of Two Coaches

No Defense Here *

*This link is to Margaret's Musings. If you don't read her blog, you are missing out on one of the best writers in the Shoals.

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Local authorities are urging Shoals residents to refrain from driving until Thrusday. Please be careful if you have to venture out. Do so only during the day and remain on well-traveled highways and away from bridges. So far there have been few accidents in the Shoals; let's keep it that way.



Shoalanda

TimesDaily Won't Do Article?

It seems several who enjoy Larry Fisher's Remembering Florence have asked the TimesDaily to do an article on the Facebook page--so far to no avail. We hope all our readers have visited this wonderful site. Florence is the focus of the page, but other areas are also remembered. If you have old photos of Florence and the surrounding communities, please post them.

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If you're interested in history beyond the Tennessee Valley, you will certainly enjoy Kelly Kazek's new book, Forgotten Tales of Alabama. Kelly is a feature writer for the Athens News-Courier. You can find her book on Amazon.com: Link

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From Doc's Political Parlor: Robert Bentley hopes Santa brings some Alabama problems that are only skin deep.

Unfortunately, most of the state's problems are far more entrenched, but we wish the best for the dermatologist.



Shoalanda

The Truth Hurts, but It's Good for Us...

How does that old joke go? Atlanta envies New York, Birmingham envies Atlanta, Huntsville envies Birmingham, and Florence & the Shoals envy Huntsville. We're here to tell you that after reading the TimesDaily the past few months, Florence and the Shoals should envy...Florence and the Shoals.

There may be some crime; there may even be a modicum of bickering among local leaders, but there's no true recession here. Jobs are plentiful in most fields, and if they aren't in yours, stick around because they will be after a few more months of SEDA recruiting.

The National Alabama rail car plant is set to explode--just tell them when. The Alabama Music Hall of Fame now has a second group to solicit funds for the HOF. According to TD staff writer Russ Corey, the formation of a foundation to seek additional funding for the Tuscumbia boondoggle is a positive thing. If you refuse the first one to ask for a contribution, you'll feel bad and contribute to the second one? We wonder how many will now give to neither since the whole situation smacks of a family feud?

The new year will also see a new Internet company based in Lexington--we're guessing because the Snow Masters company has so much more experience in that sort of thing than AT&T. Heaven forbid the TD portray such a project as anything short of the second coming. It will only be when National Alabama, the Hall of Fame, a Francisco Guerra company, or a similar endeavor goes under that the local press will be missing in action.

For real news concerning the local economy, look at the obituaries--that's right, the local obituaries. Those of a certain age who pass on have fewer and fewer children...at least living in the Shoals. If they do have resident children, their grandchildren have migrated to the lush economic pastures of larger cities. Even those who stay here for personal reasons are quick to paint a bleak picture of life in northwest Alabama. The Shoals is saturated with attorneys, nurses, and accountants. Many in these highly skilled professions barely eke out a living, at least compared to their colleagues in other geographical areas.

Nevertheless, we can rejoice because Florence will now have one of the top five school systems in the state...and not leave any child behind to do so. How do we know this? The TimesDaily has told us so. Belief in one's self is essential, but it takes more to make the system work. If local stores took inventory in the same manner the TD takes stock of local industry, we're afraid most would go bankrupt very quickly.

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Hard words are often necessary. We've recently encouraged readers to write those in state and national government to request a link to the interstate highway system. We still think that should be the number one project for the area, but what would be the second?

Several things come to mind, but the easiest is community clean-up. Would you want to put a restaurant in the East Florence Entertainment District (whatever that may be)? Would you want to open a large chain store in downtown Sheffield? Would you want to place an upscale art gallery in downtown Leighton?

We're betting you answered no to all three questions. If the answers are ever to change to yes, local governments are going to have to treat the offending property owners in a fair, but extremely strict manner. Junk is junk, no matter who owns it.

We'll add that the City of Sheffield should appoint Steve Wiggins to head a monumental clean up campaign. The city should give Steve authority to do what it takes to clean up what used to be a beautiful town. There are only two choices, and those who choose to do nothing should expect nothing. Think about it.

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It's Christmas Eve, and the above subjects of urban and economic decay in the area, while necessary, aren't exactly uplifting. If you're looking for a treat on your afternoon off, we suggest you take a look at Remembering Florence. If you haven't visited Larry Fisher's Facebook page recently, you'll be amazed at the added material. There are now over 300 photos of Florence and the surrounding area. Thanks again to Larry for creating and monitoring this wonderful sight.


What's up with this: It's 12/24 and we haven't heard from J. J. Ray. Will Santa escape Rhea Fulmer Michael Tays' evil plot to ruin Christmas? Let's hope everyone has a joyous and fantastic holiday!

Shoalanda

"Remembering Florence"

Whether you live in Florence or not, we encourage you to share your memories of this beautiful river city on a new Facebook page. Our friend Larry Fisher launched his homage to this wonderful town only two days ago, and the site already has well over 600 members. Let's see if we can get it to 1K by the end of the week.

Remembering Florence

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While on Facebook, be sure to become a fan of Mr. Fisher himself. Larry is not only a strong supporter of his former hometown, he doesn't shirk when it comes to speaking up for the truth. We hope all those who become members of the Remembering Florence community will also become fans of Larry.

Larry Fisher Fan Page

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Here's an update on Maisie: Link

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Pictured at top is a Florence scene from 1922. If you have any photos to share, please send them to Larry via Facebook.

Shoalanda

Marcel Black & Backyard Burger(s)?

Yesterday's column featured the almost unheard of deal the city of Muscle Shoals is giving to Zaxby's, a fast food eatery specializing in chicken. We've received several questions about this and will attempt to answer some of them.

Q. Does Marcel Black own Backyard Burger?

A. We find no connection between Mr. Black and the fast food chain. Research on the former Backyard Burger restaurants is made more difficult by some writers referring to it as "Backyard Burgers." Below is the official record for the chain. This does not mean that Mr. Black could not be connected to the business in some other way.


Q. Could Bojangles or some other chain stop this deal?

A. We would consider it doubtful. Bojangles, with corporate funds for co-op advertising, will not be as damaged by subsidized competition as the homegrown restaurants. Here's what one Muscle Shoals businessman has to say:

I'm a long time business owner in the city of Muscle Shoals and like many other local business owners, have struggled to stay open through a very difficult time for small business in a down economy. We have paid our electric, sewage, water bills to the city of Muscle shoals, Kept our license fees and taxes paid etc. So where do all us business owners who have helped foot the bills for many years for the city of M.S., go for a ZAXBY deal or any kind of assistance from the city government? Any fool (even a politican) can see the numbers on the ZAXBY deal don't work. So these people are either stupid or crooks, either way they have no business representing the people of Muscle Shoals. - "Don Matthews"

Q. Just what businesses is Marcel Black involved in with the City of Muscle Shoals?

A. If Mr. Black is not connected to Zaxby's this question would seem irrelevant to the issue, but a quick check shows that Mr. Black is listed with the State of Alabama as an agent with only two functioning entities, his law practice in partnership with Jimmy Hughston and North Alabama Abstract and Guaranty in which he is again partnered with Mr. Hughston.

The latter could conceivably be a broach of ethics since Mr. Black's law firm deals extensively in real estate transactions. We'll check with our legal eagle friends and get back with you on this.

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The Connection should be up sometime this afternoon. The URL is:

http://theconnectionna.com/

Trader and Nan have asked us to remind readers this is a work in progress for the first few weeks. Be sure to send in your feedback and ideas for articles and regular features.


What's up with this: We questioned the finances at Sweetwater and were banned from their Facebook page; Larry Fisher questioned the finances at Sweetwater and was banned from their page; now Sheila Hill Colston has questioned Sweetwater's finances and has been banned. Anyone see a pattern here?


Shoalanda

Muscle Shoals Must Eat a Lotta Chicken

From yesterday's TimesDaily, the town of Muscle Shoals...

approved a resolution allowing the city to purchase the former Backyard Burgers building on East Avalon Avenue, renovate it and lease it for 20 years to Chandler-Wilson LLC. The company will open a Zaxby's restaurant and pay $2,000 a month for the first 10 years and $2,500 a month for the remaining 10 years of the lease. The city granted a 50 percent credit on sales taxes that will be applied to the lease payment. The city agreed to spend up to $800,000 in renovation costs and improvements for the property.

Rumors have abounded for months that Zaxby's would be moving into the former Backyard Burger location in Florence; but now Muscle Shoals has confirmed the speciality chicken chain will be occupying the vacant Backyard Burger building directly across from city hall. Great news, but everything has a cost.

Muscle Shoals has agreed to purchase the property (at an undisclosed price) and further to pay up to $800K in improvements on the building. We're sure that Zaxby's will bring its unique style of restaurant to the location, but the Backyard Burger building is less than six years old and was, after all, originally built as a fast food/take-out eatery. What will the city of Muscle Shoals receive in return? Rent for the next 20 years, assuming Zaxby's remains in Muscle Shoals, will total $540K--leaving a possible $260K deficit on the improvements alone.

The city will also take .25% of its .5% sales tax in lieu of actual rent. We have no idea how much Zaxby's would gross in one month, but based on a figure of $50K in gross sales, Muscle Shoals would take $125.00 off the amount of rent due. This incentive deal must make other city restaurants extremely happy. Will Ruby Tuesday now have Zaxby's envy?

The disposition of this .25% tax/lease payment should also be of great interest to Muscle Shoals City Schools. Will the funds remain in the sales tax account or be transferred to the account designated for rents?

Returning to the original purchase/lease agreement, if these figures are correct as reported, something is very much amiss. The average life of a McDonald's or Burger King building rarely extends past 20 years--it's called built in obsolescence. If we were residents of Muscle Shoals, we would be giving our councilperson a phone call.

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Today marks the last day that Trader, Nurse Nan, and Amaryllis will officially be part of our blogging group. We wish them the best with the new Internet magazine The Connection.

Be sure to become a fan of The Connection, as well as these other sites, on Facebook:

The Connection

Trader Evaluates

Larry Fisher

*****

Collect James Joiner memorabilia? Here's a 45 produced in Florence c. 1965: Link




Shoalanda



Get Connected Tomorrow!

Meet Larry Fisher: Real Person, Real Hero

Larry Fisher is a Shoals native, US military veteran, retired retailer, political activist, and Southern gentleman. It's the latter attribute that catapulted him into a situation he never anticipated.

Born in the Shoals, Larry enlisted in the Air Force after finishing school. After eight years of serving his country, he worked in retail for 38 years. His career in sales was varied; at one time Larry owned seven clothing stores in Mississippi. Most recently he worked as a retail consultant from 2000 to 2004, traveling around the country overseeing going-out-of-business sales.

Since 2004, Larry and his wife of 49 years have been retired and living in Shreveport, Louisiana. The couple have three successful children: His daughter is a banker in Texas; one son is an attorney in Florida, and another son owns a mortgage company in Shreveport. Larry proudly states he has four grandchildren, ages 18, 14, nine, and two.

If you think Larry is now content to rest on his accumulated laurels, nothing could be farther from his current life. Larry has become a political activist and isn't shy about voicing his opinions, political or otherwise. A niece who resides in Muscle Shoals describes Larry as "very political, and opinionated and outspoken."

It was a mixture of Larry's activism and genteel upbringing that recently caused the former Shoals resident some egregiously unfair criticism. On the morning of September 27th, Larry logged onto Facebook and began to read the posts since his last visit. A video from Sweetwater Mansion caught his eye, and after watching the brief clip, Larry felt he had to comment. In today's world of Paris Hilton soft porn hamburger commercials and airwaves filled with words that were unmentionable a generation ago, the video may have seemed innocuous to most, but to Larry Fisher, a clip involving synchronized pelvic thrusts seemed totally out of place coming from an "ante bellum mansion," a home whose renovation he was encouraging others to support.

Sweetwater promptly answered Larry, stating she thought the clip would be viewable by only a select few, but offered no apology. Larry took umbrage to the message, and thus began a surprising battle between the Sweetwater Mansion Facebook page and the retired retailer. Below are some remarks from Sweetwater's media coordinator and Florence Neighbors.





Larry would like for everyone to know that he has only one personal Facebook page, he is indeed male, he doesn't live in Tuscumbia, and he's about as real as they come. As far as his being a narcissist, we will have to ask his wife if he spends too much time in front of the mirror.

We'll add that we're unsure to what threats Ms. Bowers is referring, but Sweetwater is not a Federal landmark. The vulnerability of Sweetwater Mansion to developers is the primary reason we wish to see it safely in the hands of a legal public or private organization that will ensure future generations may enjoy it, as well as ensure all funds designated for restoration are indeed used for such.

Many have been so impressed by Larry Fisher's attitude and insight that they have created a Facebook Fan page for the former Shoals resident. You can become a fan of Larry at:

Larry Fisher Fan Page

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You may also wish to become a fan of Larry's political page:

Democrats, Liberals and Other Idiots

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Shoalanda



Connecting October 7th. This time we mean it!