Top Headlines: Shinhwa Group plans Auburn plant, Construction Partners acquires Florida company

Shinhwa Group plans $42 million Auburn plant, to hire 95
The Shinhwa Group, a South Korean auto supplier, will open a $42 million Auburn manufacturing operation, expected to create 95 jobs. It is the manufacturer’s first U.S. manufacturing location. The company plans to make drive shafts for vehicles made by Hyundai in Montgomery and Kia in West Point, Ga. But the company announced that it also plans to expand the Auburn production site to provide parts for other automakers. – AL.com

Construction Partners acquires Florida company
Dothan’s Construction Partners Inc. has acquired Palm City, Florida’s Mancil’s Tractor Service. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Construction Partners is a civil infrastructure company operating in five southeastern states, with 33 hot mix asphalt plants, nine aggregate facilities and one liquid asphalt terminal. – AL.com

September auto sales ‘disastrous’ for Toyota, Honda
U.S. auto sales took a big step back in September, setting the stage for hefty incentive spending by carmakers struggling to clear old models from dealers’ inventory. Results were disastrous for leading Asian automakers Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co., which both suffered double-digit declines that were worse than analysts anticipated. A fuller picture will emerge Wednesday when General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. are due to report. – Bloomberg

Latino voter group files lawsuit over Alabama claim on census
A civil rights organization representing Latino voters filed a lawsuit against the government Tuesday night seeking to prevent it from leaving undocumented people out of congressional apportionment after the 2020 Census. In the suit filed against the Commerce Department, Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross, and the Census Bureau, the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) asked a federal judge in Alabama to declare that apportionment must be determined by total population, as has been longstanding practice. – Washington Post

Founder of Guthrie’s Restaurants dies at age 82
Hal Hudson Guthrie Sr., founder of Guthrie’s Restaurants, died Monday at age 82. Visitation will be held at the First Baptist Church in Haleyville Thursday from 2 to 4 p.m., with the funeral to begin at 4 p.m. The Jasper native, a graduate of Auburn University, moved to Haleyville in 1965 where he founded the first Guthrie’s restaurant. It wasn’t until 1978 that Guthrie introduced the item most associated with the brand – chicken fingers – along with its signature sauce. – AL.com

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Retired Alabama House Rep. Pete Turnham dies at 99
Retired State Rep. Pete Turnham, D-Auburn, died Monday night at the age of 99. Turnham served as the representative from House District 79 for 40 years as a member of the Alabama House of Representatives. He grew up on a farm in Chambers County and served as a platoon leader in the European theater during World War II, earning a Bronze Star. He received a bachelor’s degree from Auburn in 1944 and a master’s degree in 1948. While in the Legislature, Turnham introduced more legislation for agriculture than any other lawmaker in Alabama history. – AL Political Reporter

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