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Hubbard ethics case, Eufaula highway widening and IBM grants

Speaker Mike Hubbard
Alabama House Speaker Mike Hubbard

Prosecutors continue to trade barbs with House Speaker Mike Hubbard over details connected to his ethics case.

Hubbard's defense is working to force prosecutors to release conversations with legislators and the media. The Attorney General’s office is objecting to that tactic and they made their displeasure known through court filings. Prosecutors say Hubbard is seeking a fishing expedition in search of any information in to a claim of prosecutorial misconduct.

His defense lawyers are the information is needed because they suspect improper communications occurred after a talk show host recorded an off-record conversation with one of the prosecutors.

Hubbard faces 23 felony ethics counts against him, after being accused of using his offices for personal gain. He has pleaded not guilty and his trial is expected begin in October.

Residents of the city of Eufaula will hear what Alabama’s state auditor thinks about plans to widen U.S. Highway 431. The current plan runs through the town’s historic district which was used for filming the motion picture “Sweet Home Alabama.”

State Auditor Jim Zeigler will issue an opinion today on the plan which would remove historic trees from the district. Zeigler thinks his report will help the people of Eufaula realize what is best for the historic district.

“There’s a split among the people in the city of Eufaula. Many support the historic district and see that we need to do everything possible to protect the historic district.”

As an alternative to the widening project, Zeigler is proposing a truck route that goes around North Eufaula Avenue. This truck route would help eliminate traffic from trucks and cars that chose to take the route.

IBM is looking for a few good ideas for a campaign to help cities work smarter and how Birmingham could serve as an example.

IBM is offering grants to municipalities worldwide. It’s called the Smarter Cities Challenge, and Birmingham won one of those grants last year to address what are known as food deserts. Those are neighborhoods where it’s hard to find fresh and healthy food choices at a grocery store.

Birmingham used that IBM grant to send out mobile food markets to underserved areas. Today is the deadline for cities to propose ideas for this year’s round of the half million dollar grants. Five hundred communities have applied over the past four years. One hundred and sixteen were selected to address issues like health, public transportation, social services, and utilities.

Alabama Governor Robert Bentley, a retired physician, will be speaking at a medical forum in Tuscaloosa today.

Bentley is a retired dermatologist, and plans to discuss the importance of leadership in medicine this afternoon at the University of Alabama’s annual medical scholars forum.

The McCollough Medical Scholars Forum was established to help students interested in the medical and health science field find job opportunities.

Gaylon McCollough, the forum’s founder, is a plastic surgeon and played football at the University. This is the 13th year the medical forum has been held.

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