Bess Rich Makes It Official, Filing Papers in a Bid to Lead Mobile
Former Mobile City Councilwoman Bess Rich formally filed for mayor in March 2005, promising sales tax relief, stronger core services and a more transparent City Hall.
Mobile’s Golden Age: A Retired Banker Traces the City’s Rise, Its Missed Container Revolution and Its Long Plateau
Asked to name Mobile's golden age, a 76-year-old retired banker names three, then explains how the city that hosted the inventor of the container ship failed to capitalize on it…
Small Talk in Daphne: The Quiet Newcomer Who Toppled a Political Regime
Daphne's new mayor runs a convenience store, quietly bankrolls a Catholic school, kept every city official he inherited and says his only agenda is controlling the growth barreling toward the…
A Brilliant Surrender: The Provocative Case for Dissolving Mobile and Starting Over
With Mobile slipping to third-largest city in Alabama and annexation stalled, a satirical dialogue floats a radical fix: abolish the city entirely, fold it into the county and build metro…
Nodine’s Blunt Talk to Mobile Civic Leaders Exposes a Widening Split Over Annexation
Newly elected Mobile County Commissioner Stephen Nodine acknowledged a spirited and forceful exchange with civic leaders at a December 2004 meeting, exposing deep divisions over annexation and city spending.
Insiders Weigh a Racially Divided Mayor’s Race, and a Long-Shot Fix for Annexation
In December 2004, Mobile political insiders privately weighed the risks of a Peavy-Jones mayoral race dividing the city along racial lines, and floated a retail development as an annexation icebreaker.
Peavy Votes for the Budget He Criticized, Then Takes Charge of Rewriting the City’s Playbook
Mobile's newest councilman backed a budget that drains $21.1 million from capital funds, calling the vote a fait accompli, and was promptly handed the city's new strategic initiative.
Peavy Votes for the Budget He Criticized, Then Takes Charge of Rewriting the City’s Playbook
Mobile's newest councilman backed a budget that drains $21.1 million from capital funds, calling the vote a fait accompli, and was promptly handed the city's new strategic initiative.
Mobile’s Paychecks Fall Behind the State’s: A Decade of Slipping Wages
Federal data show Mobile's average wage per job fell from $400 above the Alabama average in 1992 to nearly $750 below it a decade later, a quiet reversal with real…
Rainwaters Endorses Nodine, Handing Him a Bloc of Anti-Establishment Votes in the Runoff
Third-place finisher Austin Rainwaters endorsed Stephen Nodine in the 2004 Mobile County Commission District 2 runoff, saying his supporters were unanimous in rejecting Ralph Buffkin.