Huntingdon Opens Wanda A. Howard ’81 BSU Center
The ribbon has been cut, and the doors are open to the fully refurbished space renamed the Wanda A. Howard ’81 Black Student Union Center on the Huntingdon College campus. Howard, a member of the Huntingdon board of trustees and a founding member of the College’s Black Student Union 40 years ago, was present for the ceremony, as were dozens of current and former students and college friends, including the BSU’s first president, Ida Kay Davis, Class of 1982.
In October 2020, Huntingdon President J. Cameron West announced that the space, located on the ground floor of the YWCA Hut building on campus, would be renovated and renamed for Howard as the College developed a set of goals and objectives as part of Huntingdon’s Race and Justice Initiative.
Goodwyn Mills Cawood Opens New Orleans Office, Adds Architects
Montgomery architectural firm Goodwyn Mills Cawood has opened a new office in New Orleans, expanding its footprint along the Gulf Coast; it already has offices in Daphne and Mobile, Alabama, and Pensacola, Florida. Additionally, it has added two New Orleans-based architects to the office who will help expand its healthcare expertise. Healthcare architect Steve Ritten joins GMC, bringing more than 14 years of experience with a New Orleans architecture firm, where he has led projects including inpatient, emergency, surgical, imaging and nuclear medicine services. Ritten’s colleague, Dustin Hartman is also joining GMC.
Two Banks Merge to Become Cadence Bank
Cadence Bancorporation merged into BancorpSouth Bank. The surviving company is named Cadence Bank. BancorpSouth Bank and Cadence Bank will continue operating under their old brands until they finish integrating their systems in late 2022. The company says customers should not see immediate changes and should continue using their current bank cards, checks and other services. Cadence is becoming the sixth largest bank headquartered in its nine-state footprint. It operates in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee and Texas.
Fred D. Gray Avenue Naming Ceremony in Montgomery
Montgomery’s Jeff Davis Avenue, has been renamed Fred D. Gray Avenue by Mayor Steven L. Reed, the first Black mayor in the city’s 200-year history, in honor of famed Civil Rights attorney from the capital city, Fred D. Gray. Originally named for Confederate President Jefferson Davis, the street intersects with Rosa L. Parks Avenue. Mayor Reed and the Montgomery City Council hosted a public ceremony on October 26 to unveil and dedicate the new Fred D. Gray Avenue signage. The ceremony’s site is only a few yards from Attorney Gray’s childhood home, 705 W. Jeff Davis Avenue, which sits near the corner of Oak Street and Fred D. Gray Avenue (formerly W. Jeff Davis Avenue).
Sam Wootten Joining Cloverdale Playhouse as Artistic Director
As Montgomery’s community theatre, nestled in the heart of Old Cloverdale, wraps up its 10th anniversary season of storytelling, the next decade will begin with new leadership. Sam Wootten, a familiar face in the theatre and business communities in Montgomery and beyond, will be making a home with the Playhouse family as its third Artistic Director.
Popular Montgomery Restaurant Expands to The Waters
NYC Gyro is expanding to Pike Road. A third location opened on Thursday, November 4, at The Waters Town Center. NYC Gyro also has brick and mortar locations in downtown Montgomery and near Maxwell AFB, and two food trucks, one of which is contracted to stay on campus at Auburn University.
Economic Development Partnership of Alabama Announces New Board Members
The Economic Development Partnership of Alabama (EDPA) recently announced the appointment of five members to the Board of Directors. This brings the number of board members to 37. These new directors will bring industry expertise and represent their respective geographies to provide strategic direction and continued growth around EDPA’s mission.
They are: Stephanie Bryan, CEO/Chair of Poarch Band of Creek Indians; Macke Mauldin, CEO and President of Bank Independent; John Mazyck, Principal at The Frazer Lanier Company; Ruffner Page, President of McWane, Inc.; James Rane Jr., Founder and CEO of Great Southern Wood Preserving.
Payne Design Architects to Design Federal Courthouse
Payne Design Group Architects in Montgomery has been selected as the Architect of Record to prepare the Bridging Documents Design for the new GSA Federal Courthouse in Huntsville. Three architects and their firms -- David H. Payne, AIA; Fentress Architects’ Steve White, AIA; and Lee H. Sims, AIA -- have been working in close harmony to provide the classically inspired structure that Judges Burke, Smith and Coogler have had in mind for the Huntsville community for more than two decades. The final interior spatial layout of the 123,000 square-foot, multilevel building as designed by Payne and his firm meets GSA’s program spatial requirements better than any other courthouse project in recent history, and the beautifully illustrated and carefully detailed sections and elevations further developed in the Revit computer program by White and the Fentress team, present clearly and accurately the beauty of the interior and exterior classical details. The design effort of Sims’ creativity as illustrated in his original conceptual design, and Payne’s and White’s skillful maturation of that conceptual design, is an excellent example architects and their firms working together. These collective efforts and the judges’ vision will finally come to fruition when construction on the courthouse is completed in early 2024.
Faulkner's College of Health Sciences Begins Phase II Renovations
Phase II renovations of Faulkner's College of Health Sciences began last October and will include a student library, expansion of classroom space, research labs and additional faculty offices. Phase II also includes more than 20,000 square feet of dedicated space for expanding Faulkner’s pro bono clinic, which will not only be for speech services, but also for pediatric and adult and occupational and physical therapy services. Renovations are expected to be completed in May 2022. Phase III renovations will include the exterior façade, parking beautification and a pedestrian bridge to connect the two campuses. Classes for the inaugural cohort of 36 students in the PT program began on August 25, 2021.
Faulkner University and Heritage Christian University Sign Agreement for Biblical Studies Graduates
Officials with Faulkner University and Heritage Christian University signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that will benefit graduates seeking to complete their Ph.D. in Biblical Studies. The agreement would allow Heritage alumni who graduated with a master’s degree to pursue a Ph.D. in Biblical Studies at Faulkner. If accepted for admission, they will be eligible for a scholarship.
Caddell Construction Opens New Corporate Office
Montgomery-based Caddell Construction officially opened its fourth corporate office in Jacksonville, Florida, on October 21. A small reception was held onsite with employees, clients and strategic partners in attendance. The new location was a strategic move for the company, according to Executive Vice President Mac Caddell.
