Chad Watts knows all too well how hard kayaks are to see in the dark. Several years ago, while fishing in a tournament on Lake Jordan, he nearly ran over a kayaker.
They were fishing at what is considered “safe light,” just as it is getting light enough to see, but before the sun has risen. “I was running 75 miles an hour toward a wide cove. There was a piece of land that jutted out about 30 feet, so I couldn’t see around the other side of it until I got almost even with it,” said Watts.
“By that time, I was doing about 60. When I came around, there was a kayaker 20 yards from my boat. How I avoided running completely over the top of him, I don’t know. I was so rattled, I couldn’t fish.”
Watts went to check on the kayaker and wound up talking to him for 30 minutes (in the middle of the tournament). What came from the experience was a friendship and a product that makes kayak fishing safer.
Watts started Firefly Marine, a company out of Trussville, that produces the Firefly stern light. The difference in their product over what was available previously is both the height of the light (telescopes to over 9 feet) and the material of the light (refracting plastic to eliminate blinding light).
As most pivotal moments in history have their roots, this one began with a ‘what if?’ What if a group of business and civic leaders formed an organization that would work as a team to serve their community?
The notion that these men could work together to give back to the community that had served them so well individually sparked the founding of Pell City Rotary Club, a story of service that has unfolded over the past 50 years.
Just take a look around, and Rotary’s good works are easy to spot. The new park benches throughout historic downtown are courtesy of Rotary. So is the cutting-edge recording studio for Museum of Pell City’s Living History program.
Dozens of students have furthered their education with college scholarship awarded by the club, and the Sheriffs Boys Ranch has a new home and more because of Rotary’s efforts. The Love Pantry’s shelves are stocked for feeding those in need, and the Children’s Place Child Advocacy Center comforts children at their most vulnerable moments in life.
Jingle Bell 5K Run at Lakeside Park
Those in need of health care but unable to afford it, find it at St. Clair Community Clinic, yet another entity supported by Rotary.
The list is seemingly endless. Good causes – large and small – have Rotary’s helping hand behind them. Echoing through the heart of it all is the club’s motto, “Service Above Self.”
“That’s why we do what we do,” said President Kelly Furgerson, who represents a continuation of a part of the club’s history herself. Rotary was once a ‘men only’ club. June Brascho broke the gender barrier as the first woman member and later president in the 1990s, and Furgerson follows in her footsteps as the sixth.
“It is an honor to serve in the community in which we live,” said Furgerson. “Each day, we have an opportunity to do good individually and together as a club. The Pell City Rotary Club is made up of people of action who want to make our amazing community better one project at a time.”
How do they do what they do?
Rotary works beyond its own boundaries, bringing the community together to further its good causes. The money raised through these events provides the foundation for so many worthwhile projects throughout the community.
The Father-Daughter Dance is one of the most anticipated events of the year with daddies and daughters making lifetime memories on their special ‘date night.’ Led by Rotarians Blair Goodgame and Meg Clements, the dance venue is magically transformed into its colorful, imaginative theme, whether it be Candyland, fairy tales or lighting up the festivities with Glow Crazy.
The club’s tennis tournament in October each year could be called ‘spooktacular.’ Just in time for Halloween volunteers and competitors dress up for the occasion, making it a fun time for all. Meg Clements leads the effort.
Rotary’s Ray Cox Memorial Golf Tournament brings golfers, sponsors and volunteers together in a fun, sporting event at Pell City Country Club that continues a longstanding tradition of 42 years of service. Joe Paul Abbott heads this major fundraiser that has made so many charitable projects possible.
New to Rotary is the Jingle Bell 5K Run and 1-Mile Fun Run/Walk. Led by Rotarian Bill Ellison, this event raised $65,000 in 2023 to help build a new home at St. Clair Sheriffs Boys Ranch. Set for Dec. 14, the run is through Pell City Lakeside Park and this year, it will set its sights on raising funds for Boys Ranch and a number of other charities throughout the community.
Why join?
Rotary continues to grow its membership roll, seeking business, government and civic representatives to join their movement to make their community a better place.
It’s all about community service – seeing a need, rolling up your sleeves and working to fill it. That’s Pell City Rotary Club, Where Leaders Meet. l
Editor’s Note: If you’re interested in learning more about Rotary or applying for membership, go to: pellcityrotary.org.
New commerce park for Springville could bring in $500 million in investments
A partnership between the City of Springville and the St. Clair County Commission to buy 250 acres of land to use as a commerce park is expected to deliver a sizable return – $500 million in investments from new companies employing 1,500 people.
The planned commerce park is located east of Wal-Mart and will be accessed from the County 23/I-59 interchange. “This will minimize any traffic impact while providing a location for quality companies to build and employ people from the surrounding area,” said Don Smith, executive director of the St. Clair County Economic Development Council. “The less we must drive for good paying jobs the better it is on the overall traffic congestion in the region.”
Further along in the development process, Kelly Creek Commerce Park is also on the receiving end of SEEDS grant, which will help run sewerage service to the park.
The EDC and St. Clair County Industrial Development Board are working with both partners to obtain grants and outside funds. “Our focus is to minimize the local funds being invested into the parks but at the same time, develop a park that will provide jobs and taxes for decades.”
This park will be the only rail-served park in St. Clair County for new companies to locate. “There are fewer and fewer rail sites in Alabama, and this park will give the I-59 corridor a recruitment advantage,” Smith predicted. “We target advanced manufacturers in food production, automotive supplier and advanced metals.”
Based on the acreage and target sectors, “We believe we will be able to recruit multiple companies into the park,” Smith said.
The initial effort was boosted by a SEEDS grant that provided $2.1 million for the purchase of the property. The remaining funds needed were split between the county and city.
The SEEDS program was launched in 2023 to provide state funds to purchase and develop competitive properties for the state’s target sectors in Alabama. The funds have a 50 percent local match with smaller communities and distressed counties a lower local match.
In addition to the Springville grant, the EDC was able to obtain roughly $400,000 to run sewer to the new Kelly Creek Commerce Park, a similar project in Moody. “It was the only missing piece of infrastructure needed to make the park complete,” Smith said.
Officials in Moody cut the ribbon on that 170-acre park in early 2023, and it is expected to generate 1.5 million square feet of distribution facility space and $125 million in investments in good paying jobs.
Looking ahead, the economic forecast for the county continues to be bright, Smith said. “We are in the running for a few manufacturing projects in Moody and Pell City. I also believe we will have several impactful retail projects to announce in the upcoming months throughout the county.”
He credited residential growth as the factor “now catching the eye of many retailers that just 10 years ago would have passed on us. They see our growing household income and job creation numbers and are ready to invest in St. Clair County.”
Commission settlement, interest rates examined in housing market outlook
Story by Carol Pappas
There’s more to being a Realtor than opening a door and showing a home, and a settlement by the National Association of Realtors that took effect Aug. 17 is being viewed as a means of demonstrating just that.
The suit centered on the nondisclosure of a buyer’s agent commission when a house is sold. The commission for agents for the buyer and the seller was shared, averaging about a 6percent split. As part of the settlement, the commission for the buyer’s agent and the seller’s agent are no longer shared when a home is on the Multiple Listing Service
“This is not a bad thing,” said ERA King CEO Josh Wright. “It’s us being more transparent in dealing with the client.”
Basically, the seller’s price increased to cover the total commission, and it appeared the buyer’s agent was working for free.
Now Realtors disclose who is paying and how. “Commission was always negotiable, it’s just more transparent is all as an industry we’re doing,” Wright said. A real estate agent is not part of the contract. The agreement is between the buyer and seller, and the commission is part of that agreed upon price.
Since the requirements of the suit have gone into effect, “we haven’t seen much disruption,” he said. As the trainer for ERA’s sales force, he stresses that they need to understand their own value to the process and relate that to the client.
He pointed to the over 100 services Realtors provide to their clients. Some of the key services include property valuation, negotiating the contract, marketing the house – a sizable cost and undertaking – overseeing the inspection process to make sure it is done thoroughly and facilitating appraisals.
Wright, whose background is in finance, sees the outlook for the housing market in a positive light. The Federal Reserve cut interest rates by a half point in September, which will have a good impact on financial markets, but it’s not expected to impact mortgage rates significantly in the immediate future. A better indicator, he said, is the 10-year treasury bond. Mortgage rates follow that trend.
Over the next 12 months, he expects mortgage rates to slowly drop, probably into the 5.5 percent to 6.25percent range. In the fourth quarter of 2025 or into the first quarter of 2026, he anticipates mortgage rates to be in the high 4percent range.
Rates would need to get into the 5percent to 5.5percent range “before it starts booming again. It’s closer to a buyer’s market right now.” A buyer’s vs. seller’s market is determined by how long a house is on the market. When it’s less than six months, it’s a seller’s market.
“We’re closer to a buyer’s market,” Wright said. “We’re starting to see things getting more normal.”
During the COVID pandemic, new construction “went away,” he said. Now it’s coming back in significant ways. In St. Clair, much of the growth is due to large builders developing subdivisions with a high number of homes and having the ability to offer their own mortgage rates in the 5.5percent range.
It’s still good news, Wright reasoned. “Overall, it’s the sign of a healthy market and a great one for our local economy.”
In fact, it’s littered with so much uncertainty it’s really best not to form any preconceived ideas or make too bold of assumptions about what the future holds. Because the truth is… You. have. no. idea.
You will walk through things you never thought you would. You will find yourself in situations for which you absolutely can’t prepare. You will be forced to make hard decisions you never thought you’d have to make. You will make false friends and feel the sting of their ulterior motives. You will be humbled and have your heart broken. You will try and fail and face unexpected consequences and disappointments. You will lose people you love and thought you’d get to keep forever.
But you will also find love and unshakable friends. The right people stay, and the wrong ones will go. You will find grace and forgiveness are the best gifts you can give and receive. You will learn grit grows best in tough times, and trials really are the best teachers. You will find light in dark places and compassion in the eyes of hard faces. You may find your broken heart held together by unexpected hands and mended in ways you can’t really comprehend.
And just as soon as you start to assume you’ve got a solid grip on your life …
It will shift and surprise you all over again.
– Mackenzie Free –
Wife, mother, photographer & current resident of the unassumingly magical town of Steele, Alabama
If you’re in need of medical services, no matter the specialty, chances are you’ll find it in St. Clair County.
That wasn’t always the case. Little more than a decade ago, an aging hospital served the community, but it was not able to keep pace with a quickly growing medical industry. A new, state-of-the-art hospital – Ascension St. Vincent’s St. Clair – soon took its place, offering everything from one-day surgeries to a comprehensive list of specialties, procedures, imaging and quality healthcare close to home.
The Col. Robert L. Howard Veterans Home, a model for the nation, and the School of Nursing and Allied Health at Jefferson State Community College, round out the medical landscape fronting Interstate 20 and serves an entire region.
Main Street Pediatrics opens in Pell City
Just announced is the hospital’s acquisition by UAB Health System, known throughout the country and around the world as a leader in medicine. The move is predicted to enhance the hospital’s ability to provide top-notch healthcare throughout the region.
Meanwhile, Pell City is home to two growing and thriving primary care practices – Complete Health-Pell City and Pell City Internal Family Medicine. They offer much more than primary care with specialists of all descriptions providing services. Pediatric care in offered through Springville Pediatrics in Springville, Purhoit Pediatrics in Moody, and Main Street Pediatrics in Pell City, which has moved into the clinic formerly occupied by Children’s.
Complete Health also operates practices in Moody and Trussville along with its Birmingham locations, and Grandview is located in Springville.
Physical therapy services can be found in Pell City at Therapy South, ATI at PCIFM, Drayer in Leeds, Ascension St. Vincent’s St. Clair and Back in Motion in Springville.
No longer do residents have to travel to larger cities to have access to state-of-the-art diagnostics with MRIs, CT scans, colonoscopies and other advanced technology testing and imaging are available at Ascension St. Vincent’s St. Clair. Complete Health provides advanced imaging as well.
Orthopedic medicine is available through Montclair Orthopedic Surgeons and OrthoSports Associates at Complete Health and Andrews Sports Medicine at PCIFM. Orthopedists Dr. Carter Slappey and Stephen Cowley also practice in Pell City.
Birmingham Heart Clinic, located at the Complete Health campus in Pell City, offers full-time cardiac care at that location as well as its headquarters in Trussville.
ENT Associates of Alabama has just opened an office in Pell City for ear, nose and throat services, and Alabama Vision Center just joined the eye care community at Physicians Plaza in Pell City. Callahan Eye is located in that same building, and longtime vision care provider, Bedsole Eye Care, has expanded in recent years, operating from a new, larger facility on U.S. 231 South in Pell City.
For Dermatology, you’ll find a number of specialists – True Dermatology at PCIFM, Brookwood Dermatoloy at Complete Health, Southern Skies Dermatology at Physicians Plaza and Coosa River Dermatology on Martin Street South in Pell City.
Need a specialist? Check with local practices and the hospital for a complete listing of what services are available right here at home.
