The Fayette City Council approved the building of new airport hangers during its Aug. 11 meeting. Councilwoman Linda McCraw was absent from the meeting. A proposal from Northwest Bama Builders was submitted to the council to build the hangers at a cost of $20,650. This was the lowest estimate received for the project. Airport manager Kip Madison said that there is a waiting list for hangers at the airport, and said that this appears to be a good time to build the additional hangers.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to hold a firm grip on the state and nation as students return to classes for another school year. Fayette County had its largest one-day increase in new cases from Aug. 10 - 11, with 11 new cases of the coronavirus reported in one day. The county had a weekly increase of 34 new cases, down slightly from the 38 new cases reported the previous week.

Waldon Tucker retired from coaching following the 2010 season, having led the Fayette Tigers to an undefeated, state championship season in 1996, and to a 230 - 95 record in 27 seasons at the school. When he retired, Tucker had amassed a 309-126-3 overall record, which was a state record for an Alabama high school football coach at the time. His 1980 Gordo team also earned him another state championship title. His son Lance took over at Fayette after his retirement, and kept the winning tradition going before Bill Smith took the reins at Fayette for one year in 2019.

Coach Caleb Hynds enters his fourth season as head football coach at Berry, beginning this season with the momentum of making the first round of the playoffs in 2019. “I feel good about our team this year,” Hynds said. “We have 54 total players, with nine seniors and 16 returning starters on offense and defense. We have some potential, if we can stay healthy and get better each week.” Hynds said that Isaiah Kizzire returns at quarterback for the Wildcats, having finished the second half of the 2019 season at the position.

The 2020 football season is about to begin at Hubbertville and for the 44th consecutive season, Lamar Harris will be leading the team as head coach. Harris’ 44-year tenure leads current Vestavia Hills’ Coach Buddy Anderson by one year as the longest tenured football coach at any high school in Alabama football history. Although he has seen a lot in his 44 years at Hubbertville, Harris said that he has never seen anything like the current COVID-19 pandemic sweeping through the nation and world. “It’s so unpredictable,” Harris said. “The information is constantly changing.

Investigators with the 24th Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s office announced the arrest of Deario Deshawn Bryant on nine felony charges and one misdemeanor charge on Sunday, Aug. 2.

Fayette Medical Center (FMC) was named earlier this year as one of the top hospitals in the nation by a national magazine publication. The hospital, which is part of the DCH Health System, was one of two hospitals in Alabama to be named to Newsweek Magazine’s “Best Hospitals for 2020,” with the other hospital being UAB in Birmingham. Hospitals were evaluated by the magazine in three areas: recommendation from peers, patient experience and key performance indicators.

The Fayette County Board of Education discussed coaching supplements for the upcoming school year during a work session prior to its Aug. 4 meeting. Prior to the work session and subsequent meeting, John Aaron took the oath of office as the board’s District 1 representative, replacing Waldon Tucker who resigned from the board earlier this year. The board tabled a motion at its last meeting to cut the coaching supplements by 50 percent if the teams did not play this year.

The Berry Town Council voted to certify the candidates for Berry mayor and council offices as elected to their respective positions during its Aug. 3 meeting. All council members were present for the meeting. Since only one candidate qualified for each of the upcoming Berry mayor and city council positions, the sitting council declared the candidates elected to their respective positions. The officers will start their new terms on Nov. 2.

The FFA Fayette Lamb and Goat show was held on Aug. 8 at the Fayette Multipurpose Complex. The show was attended by numerous students from across the state.

Fayette County saw its weekly total of new cases increase from 174 on Aug. 3 to 212 on Aug. 10. The 38-case increase is the largest seven-day increase yet for Fayette County. The county’s new cases of the coronavirus have more than doubled in less than a month. On July 13, the Alabama Department of Public Health showed only 90 cases of the virus reported within the county.  Fayette County’s death toll from the COVID-19 virus remains at five.

The Fayette City Council held a special called meeting on Monday, Aug. 10 to appoint poll workers for the upcoming municipal election. Councilman Jason Cowart and Councilwoman Linda McCraw were absent from the meeting. The council had previously appointed poll workers at an earlier meeting, but replacement workers had to be selected to replace the ones that would no longer be serving. The poll workers approved for the Fayette municipal election are: Electronic Machine Coordinator, Billy Joe Howton; Chief Inspector, Barry Lowe; Inspector, Dottie Brasher; and Chief Clerk, Anita Morris.

The Glen Allen town council met on Tuesday, Aug. 4 at the Glen Allen Community Center. All council members were in attendance for the monthly meeting. Addressing items of old business, Mayor Allen J. Dunavant announced that municipal elections would not be held during the upcoming municipal election cycle, as only one candidate had qualified for each position for the town’s governing body. He acknowledged that Joel Isham would be a newcomer to the town council, serving as councilman in Seat Two, as councilwoman Gail Bircheat decided not to seek re-election for that position.

Toni Robertson, representing the Fayette Area Community Development Corporation (CDC), attended the July 28 meeting of the Fayette City Council to address the council concerning a liquor license for a proposed hotel. All council members were present for the meeting.

The Fayette County Commission voted to hire Phillip Rushing as a temporary, part-time maintenance supervisor during its July 27 meeting. Commissioner John Underwood was absent, with all other commissioners in attendance. The Fayette County Commission is currently without a maintenance supervisor, and the commission had inquired about the availability of former supervisor Rushing to fill in until the position can be filled with a full-time person. Rushing held the position for more than 10 years prior to his retirement last year.

The parents of students who were juniors and seniors at Fayette County High School during the 2019-2020 academic year held a prom for the students at Timber Valley Lodge on Saturday, Aug. 1. The parents wanted the students to enjoy one of the big social events of the year, since so many of their events had been cancelled or postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Alabama’s new cases of the COVID-19 virus again increased by nearly 11,000 new cases last week, with the weekly death toll dropping from 189 new deaths to 134. Although the numbers in Alabama are slightly better than last week, the number of new coronavirus cases remains alarmingly high as school is scheduled to reopen on Aug. 19. Fayette County saw its weekly total of new cases increase from 23 the previous week to 30 new cases for the seven-day period ending Aug. 3. Fayette County’s death toll from the COVID-19 virus remains at five.

The descendants of James William Smith and Rebecca Little Smith held their annual Smith - Little Reunion at the Paul Hubbert Pavilion, located on the campus of Hubbertville School, on Saturday, Aug. 1. The reunion was a little different this year, with the attendees practicing social distancing and wearing facial protection due to the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent restrictions. Although the pandemic kept some of the usual participants from attending this year’s event, a few family members were able to attend for the first time in many years.

The Fayette County Board of Education selected John Aaron to fill the vacancy left on the board by the resignation of Waldon Tucker in District 1 during its July 21 meeting. The action was taken at the conclusion of the board’s regular agenda and before the meeting was adjourned. Board Member Keith Madison was absent from the meeting, with the remainder of the board members present.

Qualifying has ended and the candidates are set for the Aug. 25 municipal election in Fayette. There will not be an election in the towns of Belk, Glen Allen and Berry, as no more than one candidate has qualified for each position. In Belk, incumbent Sherry Spack qualified for Seat One, incumbent Bill Davis qualified for Seat Two, former Council Member Karen Strickland will again be a part of the Belk governing body in Seat Three, and incumbent Jeanie Hollingsworth qualified for Seat Four.