Penny Record Eedition
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
DOWN ORANGE Outdoors KAZ’S LIFE’S COUNTY HUNTING & KORNER HIGHWAY FISHING FISHING SPORTS Roy Dunn- Columnist Capt. Dickie Colburn Capt. Chuck Uzzle COMMENTARY Page 5 Section A Page 1 Section B Page 3 Section B Page 1 Section B TheRecordLive.com The Penny Record Vol. 61 No. 37 Distributed FREE To The Citizens of Bridge City and Orangefield Week of Wednesday, February 10, 2021 Orange aims abatements at medical complex DAVE ROGERS Plans were for the medical liberation Regarding Eco- for the council’s Jan. 26 gun. zone is the first step to being For The Record center to open in 2021, after nomic Development Negoti- meeting. In its previous meeting able to grant tax abatements. 15 months for engineering ations: and also said “delib- Eagle Point Parkway was Jan. 26, city council approved In this week’s meeting, Mum’s the official word, and construction. eration regarding real estate the name of a four-lane bou- a resolution to participate in council took the next step, but look for some news com- Then Imelda, the fifth- development project propos- levard the EDC board and a tax abatement reinvest- “ratifying guidelines and cri- ing up soon about the Eagle wettest storm on record, hit al … regarding Eagle Point city council agreed in 2018 to ment zone and ordinance teria for granting tax abate- Point project, maybe even and brought major flooding Parkway.” spend up to $425,000 build- designating a reinvestment ments … effective until Janu- the long-needed Gisela to Southeast Texas. It was The exact same executive ing. zone at Eagle Point. MEDICAL COMPLEX Page 3A Houseman Medical Com- followed in early 2020 by the item appeared on the agenda No construction has be- Creating a reinvestment plex. new coronavirus pandemic In June of 2019, three and shutdowns of businesses months before Tropical across the country. Storm Imelda hit Orange Plans for Eagle Point have Lost and found, original BCHS gym floor saved County, Houseman donated been on hold for a while. 20 acres of land at Eagle But the closed executive Staff Report week on the job when I was Point on which to build of- session at the end of the Or- For The Record exploring the old PE gym,” fices and surgical suites for ange City Council’s Tuesday Wooley said. “It immediate- up to 20 doctors and a “mini- meeting included appear- In 2008, Hurricane Ike ly caught my eye and I knew hospital” with eight to 20 ances by Gisela Houseman, ravaged Bridge City. Though someone had saved it for a beds with an ER and urgent Shawn Sparrow of House- the main campus of Bridge reason. It has always looked care. man Corp. and County Judge City High School was like it would make a great Local physician Dr. Marty John Gothia, none of whom spared, the original gymna- table to me and I’m so glad Rutledge announced he had would comment on anything sium built in the 1950’s, re- that future Cardinals will be recruited health care pros to as they left council cham- ceived over 18” of water. able to see this piece of hid- bring specialized medicine bers. That gym would later serve den history.” to Eagle Point, a strip of land A woman answering the the Junior High Campus Coach Chad Landry and southeast of the intersection telephone at Rutledge’s clinic when the high school moved his Building Maintenance of Interstate 10 and US Route said the doctor was not au- to Bower Drive. class were commissioned to 62. thorized to speak on the Ea- Since 2004, when the high turn this piece of hardwood It would include a surgical gle Point plans. school moved back to its into a conference table for center, an imaging center, an The public agenda for Texas Avenue location, it use at Bridge City High infusion center and a cancer Tuesday’s non-public execu- again served the BCHS School. Students took extra center, Rutledge said. tive session was titled “De- campus and continues to care to protect the artwork serve the community. Less that was added by Coach than two weeks after the Former Bridge City High School Principal and coach Richard Larry Ward in the early flood waters receded, the Briggs is seen with current BCHS Principal Tim Wooley with the 1960’s. preserved center court of the original BCHS gym. BC’s Nickum vows gym floor was being re- “This was an incredible moved and discarded. preserved. “At the time, I The campus would go on project to be a part of,” Though he retired from remember thinking ‘this is a to celebrate the history of Landry said, “we are thank- ‘proactive’ approach the district in 2016, Richard part of our history,” Briggs BCHS through the con- ful to Mr. Woolley for al- Briggs was BCHS Principal said, “The early graduation struction and display of nu- lowing our students the job to city government when Ike hit. He recalls the ceremonies took place in merous items as part of its of preserving and restoring work crew “burning up saw this gym and on this very Traditions Project. Though the gym floor into a time- blade after saw blade” cut- floor. This floor was home several ideas were explored, less piece.” DAVE ROGERS ting the floor into pieces to generations of school what exactly to do with the As former graduates, For The Record and it being hauled away. dances, pep rallies, One Act old center court was never Briggs and Woolley echoed John Nickum, born into an But their work was not done. Play performances, athletic settled. that the project was made Orange County insurance Beneath that first floor was contests, and decades of Fast forward to 2020 ... extra special by the fact that family, says he was delivered a second hardwood floor other community events. Principal Tim Woolley, a current students played “with a State Farm tattoo.” and, finally, a third floor; in- We picked it up and put it 2000 graduate of BCHS, de- such an important role in But the 1993 graduate of deed the original BCHS on the stage in the gym.” cided it was time for others restoring a piece of campus Bridge City High School gym floor. According to Briggs, he to be able see this piece of history that celebrates a hasn’t just spent his entire Briggs, a 1981 Bridge City wasn’t exactly sure what to history. “Cardinal Pride” that start- life quoting great rates and grad, took one look at the do with it but knew it had to “I caught a glimpse of the ed over 60 years ago. offering safe-driving dis- old gym floor and knew the preserved. cut out floor during my first counts. center court needed to be Nickum, whose whose fa- John Nickum ther, Bill, operates Bridge City’s State Farme Bridge working on my MBA at La- Commissioners approve Sheriff’s K-9 unit City’s State Farm agency, has mar,” he said. his State Farm business in “I wanted to get involved, tion. I’ve ever had.” Vidor. DAVE ROGERS so I got involved in the Vidor K-9 expenses were hardly Commissioners deliberat- But before that, he first For The Record Chamber of Commerce. I go the largest of the day, though. ed the best way to pay for achieved a degree in health- to a lot of meetings and I be- The Orange County Sher- Commissioners approved $664,000 of capital expendi- care administration and gan to realize that each town iff’s Office is going for the a total of $2.03 million in tures by the Road and Bridge long-term care from the in Orange County, they talk, dogs. weekly bills, one of the larg- Division, and sent County University of Texas Medical but they don’t talk.” County Commissioners est totals in memory. Engineer Clark Slacum back Branch in Galveston. Nickum means the com- signed off Tuesday on rees- Almost half that amount to get a quote on a three-year He worked at M.D. Ander- munities don’t always realize tablishing a K-9 program went to pay bills resulting financing agreement. son Hospital in Houston ne- their connectedness. with two drug dogs. from Hurricane Laura debris The county leaders noted gotiating contracts between “If Vidor’s clearing out its The purchase and training cleanup. that they had not yet re- pharmaceutical companies drainage, that water goes to will require the expenditure Plessala Enterprises got a ceived any of the $10 million and the hospital. Bridge City,” he said. “They of $20,000 of drug forfeiture check for $463,911 for use of reimbursement promised by He earned a master’s in should talk.” funds from the Sheriff’s Of- its landfill. TetraTech, the FEMA for debris cleanup business administration As examples, John Nick- fice plus $10,000 of county company hired to satisfy FE- and cash flow was a concern. from Lamar University, with um offered the cases of Jef- money to pay expenses for MA-required oversight of “Until we get some dollars a dual concentration in fi- Sheriff Lane Mooney ferson County grabbing two dog handlers. debris-hauling trucks, was rolling in, I hate to spend nance and marketing. what should be Orange “The Drug Enforcement from traffic stops and search paid $434,306. money,” County Judge John He is currently the presi- County’s spoils. Administration requires us warrants in 2019. The county jail, which suf- Gothia said. dent of the Vidor Chamber He cited the fact that the to use a K-9 anytime we seize Those funds are turned fered heavy wind damage in Mauriceville Heritage As- of Commerce and the Vidor city of Port Arthur collects currency,” Sheriff Lane over to the U.S.