Montgomery elects its first black mayor
Montgomery, a city where more than half the population is black and known as the birthplace of the civil rights movement, elected an African American to the highest position in municipal government for the first time in its 200-year history. Steven Reed, the Montgomery County probate judge, on Tuesday beat television station owner David Woods in a runoff, gaining 32,918 votes to Woods’ 16,010 votes with 47 precincts of 47 precincts, according to incomplete, unofficial returns. He will be sworn into office Nov. 12 at Montgomery City Hall. – USA Today
Work begins on new downtown Huntsville hotel near VBC
Huntsville’s downtown hotel boom has reached another milestone with the groundbreaking for the Hampton Inn & Suites by Hilton. The hotel is being built on the vacant lot at Monroe Street and Clinton Avenue adjacent to what will soon be a reconstructed parking deck along Monroe. The hotel, developed by Vision Hospitality Group in Chattanooga, will have 150 rooms and is scheduled to open in early 2021. – AL.com
Counties to fix more than 1,000 miles of road with new tax funds
New data released by the Association of County Commissions of Alabama shows that more than a 1,000 miles of road will be improved next year with the proceeds of the new gasoline and diesel fuel taxes. A look at the 2019-2020 work plans adopted statewide, counties are scheduled to improve 1,013 miles of crumbling county roads and to perform long-overdue maintenance on 20 failing county bridges. – AL Political Reporter
Alabama will soon learn the economic benefits of its airports
Mississippi’s 73 airports generated 20,000 jobs, $2.53 billion in economic output and had a $722 million in payroll, a 2014 report showed. Meanwhile, in Louisiana, a report released that same year showed that state’s 68 airports supported 58,900 jobs while infusing the economy with $6.7 billion. But in Alabama, it has been 15 years since there has been a comprehensive look at that kind of analysis on the state’s 76 airports – six commercial and 70 general aviation facilities. A $1.4 million project is now underway by Colorado-based Jviation to change that. – AL.com
Birmingham Race Course places a bet on the past — historical horse racing
Birmingham Race Course has added a new vehicle for betting – machines that allow users to place wagers on horse races that have already taken place. Historical pari-mutuel betting begins today at the course, with the addition of 301 of the machines, and that number could increase based on demand. The machines use historical information from previously run races, allowing betters to pick the favorites or handicap for themselves. – AL.com
Alabama music legend Henry ‘Gip’ Gipson dies at 99
Anyone who knows blues music likely knows where to go in the Birmingham area to hear great live blues tunes. That’s Gip’s Place in Bessemer. The juke joint that has been in operation for decades has lost its legendary founder, however, as Henry “Gip” Gipson died Tuesday, just short of his 100th birthday. Gip’s Place, a little tin-roofed garage, has hosted the likes of the Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards, Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page and other music legends since opening in 1952. – Patch
