The State of Alabama executed its third person in 2024 on Thursday evening. Kenneth Edmund Gavin, 64, was put to death by lethal injection for the 1998 killing of William Clayton Jr. Gavin was pronounced dead at 6:32 p.m. The Alabama Political Reporter said the lethal injection procedure took 23 minutes and media witnesses reported no unusual circumstances with the process.
The Madison Street Tower facility at Huntsville Hospital will eventually be five stories taller. Huntsville Hospital received a $10 million donation for the project. That’s the largest charitable donation in the history of the system. WHNT TV reports the project will include a new neuroscience intensive care unit and three floors will be for medical intensive care. This expansion will double the capacity of the emergency room. Huntsville Hospital’s CEO, Jeff Samz, says this new addition will help combat wait and bed times. It will also add 350 new health care jobs and will allow more flight transfers from regional hospitals. There’s no word on when construction is set to begin.
During a ceremony on Wednesday, the city of Huntsville was awarded a $50 million Choice Neighborhood Implementation Grant. City officials say the goal of the grant is to help revitalize and transform the area surrounding Butler Terrace and Johnson Towers. The city says this grant will go toward redeveloping the 27-acre site into a mixed-income community. Officials tell WAFF TV it will have workforce housing, medical and childcare services, along with retail options. The Mill Creek project is located west of Memorial Parkway between Seminole Drive, Clinton Avenue and Governors Drive.
Each year, Alabama shoppers have the opportunity to buy school supplies, computers and clothing without paying the 4% state sales tax. The tax holiday started Friday, July 19 at 12:01 a.m. and ends Sunday, July 21st at midnight. Tax-exempt items include pencils, paper, binders, calculators, rulers and computers, as well as school uniforms, gym suits and other types of clothing. Depending on the locality, local sales tax may apply. To see which areas are participating in the tax-free weekend, go to the Department of Revenue website, www.revenue.alabama.gov/sales-use/sales-tax-holidays. You can also find a complete list of exempt items.
Huntsville made the top 10 on the U.S. News & World Report’s 2024-2025 Best Places to Live rankings — a position it earned thanks to its recent growth and overall real estate value. Huntsville’s development has historically been directly tied to NASA and the Marshall Space Flight Center as well as Boeing’s facilities. Huntsville is favorable for first-time homebuyers; as of July 2024, Zillow reports that the average home value in Huntsville is around $281,000, significantly below the national average. Huntsville came in at number ten on the list with Charleston, SC ranked first.
Huntsville Botanical Garden is offering a new learning experience for 4- and 5-year-olds as it launches its Garden Sprouts Pre-K program. Registration is open now for the fall semester which will start Sept. 4, 2024 and will go through Dec. 20th. A news release from the garden says Garden Sprouts’ approach integrates nature play, enabling children to observe, explore, and engage with the natural world, and prepares them for transition to Kindergarten. Garden Sprouts will take place Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Pre-registration is required and must be done online at www.hsvbg.org/learn/youth-programs/garden-sprouts-prek/