Category: Community News

Students at Montgomery’s new Park Crossing High School are working to sharpen their skills to get college and career ready.  It’s called Thunderbird Flight School.

Students took part Wednesday in six mini-sessions including improving study skills, social interactions, long range goal setting and setting high expectations.

“Sometimes you don’t get that motivation from certain people,” says 9th grade student Maya Henderson, “and you need other people to motivate you.”

Henderson adds, “It’s good to have someone to tell you to keep going – especially in high school – so you can achieve your goals.”

Representatives from Auburn Montgomery, The Council on Substance Abuse, PC Media, Trenholm State Technical College and the Boys and Girls Club of America facilitated the sessions.

This article was written by the WSFA 12 News Staff for WSFA on February 5, 2014.

Ground was broken Thursday at Edward Thompson Park on courts that will soon provide people with physical disabilities an opportunity to receive tennis lessons.

The groundbreaking was for two “dream courts” – courts that will allow individuals with intellectual and physical disabilities to participate in tennis.  It is the result of Dream Court, a nonprofit organization that offers an adaptive tennis program specifically designed so that those with physical or mental challenges to take part in the sport of tennis.

Jessica Weyreuter, a former professional tennis player, and who moved to Montgomery in 2010 to work on her master’s in international relations at Auburn Montgomery, has spearheaded both Dream Court and the project.  Weyreuter personally raised $200,000 from businesses and individuals.  The land was donated to the nonprofit by the city of Montgomery.  Construction is expected to take about four months, depending on the weather.

The tennis courts will be maintained by the city of Montgomery, but will be used by Dream Court.

“When I saw the Miracle League (baseball field) for the first time, I fell in love with that idea and thought we could do something similar,” said Weyreuter, who was born in Germany and raised in Argentina.  “Then a friend of mine had a ski accident and is now a paraplegic.  And I wanted to do something for people with disabilities.”

The location of the courts complement what the city already is involved in, said Scott Miller, director of leisure services for the city of Montgomery.  “This provides an active recreation area to our mentally and physically challenged in the area,” he said.  “There’s a lot of kids in Montgomery who can use this.  It completments what we do in the leisure services in the therapeutic recreation center.”

About Jessica Weyreuter

Jessica came to the United States with a full tennis scholarship at Lindsey Wilson College in Columbia, Ky.  While there, she was named a National Association of Intercollegiate Athletic Women’s finalist, Mid-South conference Academic All Conference, and All American recipient, selected by Intercollegiate Tennis Coaches Association.

This article was written by Kym Klass for the Montgomery Advertiser December 13, 2013.

The Edward Thompson Park is located on Ray Thorington Road, just past New Park.

The Greater Montgomery Home Builders Association presents the Moonlight Dash 5K & Street Party Saturday, August 17, 2013. The race will start at the James W. Wilson, Jr. YMCA in New Park at 8:30 p.m. You must be at the YMCA by 8:00 p.m. for parking.
The cost per runner will be $35.00. The packet pickup will be Friday, August 16th at the GMHBA office at 6336 Woodmere Blvd., Montgomery, AL 36117 from Noon – 5:00 p.m. or Saturday at the Wilson YMCA beginning at 6:00 p.m. Call 277-7766 to register or if you have any questions.

Everyone is encouraged to invite their family, friends, and co-workers to cheer you on. For all non-race participants, there will be a $10.00 charge per person for the Street Party following the race.

Thank you to everyone who voted for New Park as the Best New Homes Community/Development!

New Park is happy to welcome Excel Construction and Elegant Homes, LLC to their Builder’s Guild.

Robert Nelson, founder and CEO of Excel Construction and Elegant Homes has been in the home building and remodeling industry for 30 plus years. Excel Construction focuses on custom design and unmatched quality. Excel Construction has built an outstanding reputation based on attention to detail and exceptional customer service. The company’s philosophy of building a spacious, family-friendly,yet comfortably stylish home at an affordable price has everything to do with you, the customer. The company’s dedication to excellence is shown in the many neighborhoods they have built in across Alabama and the Southeast. Everything Excel Construction does comes down to one basic principle: When you care, it shows. One of their greatest rewards is contributing to a family’s joy on the memorable day they move into their NEW home.

Excel Construction’s four commitments to their customers are Uniqueness, Style, Choice, and Value.

Elegant Homes is a builder of quality homes. With Elegant Homes’ built to order experience, their customer will enjoy high quality construction, unique architecture, dedicated customer service and design features that all come together to create your one-of-a-kind home. Elegant Homes are eye-catching and luxurious: each has the “WOW” factor to impress any buyer.

Elegant Homes mission is to provide the highest value through leading design and technology, experienced leadership and quality workmanship. It’s a buyer’s market – but it may not last for long. That’s why RIGHT NOW is a fantastic time to BUY or BUILD and “Elegant Home” and get the absolut best deal for your money.

Elegant Homes is a member of the Greater Montgomery Home Builder’s Association.

The proposed zoning for Park Crossing High School, set to open for the 2013-2014 school year, was discussed during a called meeting of the Montgomery County Board of Education on Friday.

The boundary for the proposed zone in the eastern part of the county would run north from the Montgomery/Pike county line along Hobbie Road to Woodley Road.  It then would run northeast to Troy Highway, then northwest to Taylor Road, then north to Taylor Road, then north along McLemore Road to the northern Montgomery/Elmore county line, according to information provided by Montgomery Public Schools.

A map of the proposed school zones will be available online at www.mps.k12.al.us.

The schools impacted by the proposed Park Crossing zone are Robert E. Lee High School and Jefferson Davis High School.  It’s estimated about 290 students combined could come from the two schools.  Superintendent Barbara Thompson said officials estimate the school will have 400 students, making up 9th and 10th grades, during the first school year.

Park Crossing will add 11th grade in 2014 and 12th grade in 2015.  It’s estimated that at that time the school will have about 1,100 students, according to MPS.  An additional pod, or hall, might be added, if needed in the future, to bring the capacity to 1,600 students.

A public hearing on the proposed school zoning changes will be held at 11:30 a.m. April 9th in the auditorium of the school system’s central office, 307 S. Decatur St.  The board is expected to consider the proposal at its April 23rd monthly meeting.

Also during Friday’s meeting, Rocky Smith was announced as Park Crossing’s first principal.

“I am impressed with Mr. Smith’s enthusiasm and his dedication to students,” Thompson said in a prepared statement.  “His experience and commitment to excellence is just what is needed to launch this new school.”
Smith has worked as a teacher, coach, athletic director and assistant principal for MPS for more than a decade.  His most recent assignments were as assistant principal for both Loveless Academic Magnet Program and Booker T. Washington magnet high schools.

“We are very excited about Park Crossing’s opening,” Thompson stated.  “The school’s design will have a college campus feel.  The students, faculty and parents will find this school an inviting and vibrant learning experience.”

This article was written by Matt Okarmus for the Montgomery Advertiser March 23, 2013.

Three schools and one in the making are reaping the benefits of the recent opening of Park Crossing in east Montgomery.

Deputy Mayor Jeff Downes called the three-mile corridor that connects Ray Thorington Road and Taylor Road a safer, more convenient travel option.

Its opening affects the traffic of Wilson and Blount Elementary schools and Carr Middle School.  Park Crossing High School, which is scheduled to open in 2013, is also located on the new road.  The new road overrides the portion formally known as New Park Drive.

Downes said the city has big hopes for the area after a University of Alabama study projected 25,000 people will move into the are in the coming years.

“That’s like picking up the city of Prattville and sitting it in east Montgomery,” he said, calling the development one of the city’s next greatest projects.  “It will be a very attractive road that all of Montgomery will be proud of.”

Although public access is now permitted, the road is not complete.  The public-private partnership project involves the city and local developers Aronov, Alfa, Wilson, and Hampstead.  The road will feature pedestrian and bike routes that promote safe and healty lifestyle choices for the residents of the projected 13,500 dwelling units.

Montgomery Public Schools Superintendent Barbara Thompson said it will take a few years to see what the growth will require of the school district, but she projects a new elementary and middle school will eventually be needed.  Wilson, Blount, and Carr have all nearly reached capacity.

For now, the road opening means a time and gas savings for families who live on Taylor Road, as well as the school district.

“It should take care of a lot of the traffic we currently have trying to get their kids to (those schools),” Thompson said.  “It will save a lot of people a lot of time.”

Upon completion, Downes said the corridor’s price tag will be nearly $7 million dollars, nearly 80 percent of which developers will reimburse the city.  He said the infrastructure matched with the area’s projected growth equals a recipe for success and rapid economic development.

This article was written by Tiffany Nabors for The Montgomery Advertiser October 9, 2012.

Think Park Crossing Thunderbirds has a nice ring to it?

The committee tasked with establishing a name and mascot for the new east high school does.  That’s what they intend to recommend to the Montgomery County Board of Education.

The committee, which met for the second time Monday, selected Park Crossing High School as the potential name for the new school since it reflects the area but does not reference a specific neighborhood.

The nickname Thunderbirds was selected because of the strength it projects, but also as an homage to the military.  Officials envision the mascot as a bird or eaglelike creature, but it also could reference the squadron of the Air Force.

A Thunderbird is defined as “a bird that causes lightning and thunder in American Indian myth.”

“It is strong, powerful,” board member and committee chairwoman Melissa Snowden said of the Thunderbirds, adding the nickname will help people to think of the Air Force and what a strong presence the military has in the area.

The $23 million high school, and the first new one to be added to the school system’s roster in decades, is expected to open in fall 2013.  The naming committee held its initial meeting in February.

Snowden also was looking at how the nickname could potentially motivate students, saying, for example, the Thunderbirds could be “soaring to new heights.”

The committee’s decision to use a location-based name and military theme was unanimous.  The school colors also will reflect that theme.  The group proposed navy blue, silver and red.

“We’ve lost the military schoolkids to Prattville,” said city councilman and committee member Charles Jinright at the meeting’s start.  He added that officials should attempt to bring those families back.

The next stepin the naming process will be for the committee to make its formal recommendation to the school board April 12th.  Superintendent Barbara Thompson can accept the committee’s recommendation or make her own, and that likely will come before the board April 24th.

Before the consensus Monday, the committee ruled out several options, including Taylor Field High, which was discussed at the initial meeting.  It was ruled out because its meaning might be obvious to those outside Montgomery.

Taylor Field was Montgomery’s first military flying installation and training field during World War I.

Board Vice President Eleanor Dawkins, who is also on the naming committee, said the Park Crossing Thunderbirds has a nice ring to it.  Plus, she said she couldn’t picture all the other options.  “I can see this clearly,” she said.

Article written by Annie McCallum of The Montgomery Advertiser.

For the complete article on The Montgomery Advertiser’s website, please click the link below:
www.montgomeryadvertiser.com

It is only a two-mile segment of roadway, but this short road could represent a shortcut to a new high school and an explosive development that Montgomery officials envision for this portion of east Montgomery.

From the vantage point of today’s struggling economy, it is difficult to imagine that new residential developments with the potential to accommodate 27,300 people at full build-out would be successful.  City officials said they see the risk, but at the same time, they are focused on the potential — including the construction of a public high school.

“It’s just one of the risks that you take on, but it’s a manageable risk,” Mayor Todd Strange said Thursday.

The $6.7 million road project, more commonly known as the “connector road,” started this week, with W.S. Newell as the contractor for the construction work.  The road, which will become known as Park Crossing, will start on Taylor Road next to the Hampstead development and connect to Ray Thorington Road.

“We should start seeing visible progress weekly,” Deputy Mayor Jeff Downes said recently

Over time, the four land owners in the area, Vaughn Road Developers, Wilson, Lowder and Alfa, will repay 80 percent of the connector road’s costs to the city as they begin to develop their properties.  The city will be responsible for the remaining 20 percent, or $1.3 million.  The total cost of the project is $6.7 million, of which $5.6 million will be construction.

Ultimately, the total developer contribution would be $5.4 million.  Wilson, which has already constructed a portion of the road on the Ray Thorington Road side, would pay the largest share, or $2.6 million.  Alfa would pay $1.07 million; Vaughn Road Developers would pay nearly $1 million; and Lowder would pay $750,000, according to the base contract agreement.  The repayment cost is based on acreage.

This is one of the projects funded through the city’s $67.5 million bond issue.  If the land is not developed, the city does not recoup that $5.4 million.

Downes acknowledged that the road would not artificially change the current sluggish residential growth, but he said the thought is that this would at least offer the opportunity for growth.

Strange said Thursday that even if the area does not develop, at least the road would improve the traffic flow.

A city within a city

There are nearly 4,000 acres of land that sit off of Taylor Road like a mostly untouched, undeveloped island.  Most of the land is accessible only by foot.

But city officials see this as one of the next growth spots of the city — and some would even argue that it is the next big thing for the city.  The area is next to a mixed-use development, Hampstead, that has offered a different lifestyle for Montgomerians who embrace the ideals and close quarters of new urbanism.

City officials believe that it is conceivable that in the next 15 years this land could be home for 11,880 new houses and an additional 27,300 people.  an economic impact study for the road supports that belief.

“If you took Prattville, picked it up and put it in southeast Montgomery, that’s what it is,” Downes said this week.

Downes added that this project allows for “logical, rational planned growth that would otherwise inch along at a very slow pace.”

The connector road idea is not a new one.  Former Mayor Bobby Bright wanted the road constructed when he was in office, but attempts to pull it off at the time were unsuccessful.  The difference now is that the city is willing to front the costs and allow the developers to repay the city later.

“By building it all at once, you open the area up for multiple developments and open the area for diverse developments, whether it be commercial or residential,” Downes said.  “And you improve the speed of all this development, and finally, you improve the traffic flow.”

“This really addresses many concerns of the area and (enables us) to have it done relatively quickly and at once instead of incrementally.  It makes a lot of sense,” Downes added.

A public high school

The growth in Montgomery has been occurring in the eastern part of the city for several years, but just how drastic that growth actually was did not become truly apparent until the U.S. Census numbers were released this year.
Because of dramatic growth in east Montgomery over the past decade, there is a disproportionate number of residents in several of the districts.  In the most extreme cases, District 4 in west Montgomery has 15,258 residents, or 7 percent of the total population, and District 8 in east Montgomery has 31,683, or 15 percent.

Members of the Montgomery County Board of Education did not need the new population date to understand that a new high school was needed in east Montgomery.  The board has been working seriously on the high school project since last year, and now funding has been identified and a site selected.

Now that contruction has started on the Park Crossing, the work should be completed within a year.  That means, the road could be finished just one year before Montgomery Public School officials hope to open the new high school.

The school would be off of Park Crossing and back up to Hampstead.  Once completed it would be about 13 miles away from the future site of the public high school in Pike Road.  At this point, Pike Road intends to open a kindergarten through eighth grade school in the fall of 2015 at the Waters, a mixed-use development; it plans to add a high school within eight years.

Board president Charlotte Meadows said current plans for the new high school are to have the core of the building — i.e. the office, cafeteria and gym — created for 1,500 students and classrooms built to accommodate about 800.  That way the school is positioned for future growth.

If growth happens faster, Meadows said, officials will have to figure out how to pay for additional space.

Article written by Jill Nolin of The Montgomery Advertiser

For the complete article on The Montgomery Advertiser’s website, please click the link below:
www.montgomeryadvertiser.com

Registration for Montgomery Public Schools pre-kindergarten programs started Monday and will continue for the next couple weeks. Students may attend the pre-k program at the site where their zoned school is clustered. Parents can find that information by logging onto the Montgomery Public Schools website.

There is a pre-k site located at Wilson Elementary School, but because it is not a Title I school, it requires an application. Applications for that program must be turned in by June 27th. A drawing for the 18 pre-k positions at Wilson will be at 11 a.m. June 29th.