State and city officials broke ground on the new emergency vehicle operation training center for law enforcement officers and other emergency vehicle operators. The multi-phase project is a public safety training partnership of the Alabama Peace Officers Standards and Training Commission and the city of Montgomery. “The training center will be beneficial by saving lives and equipment” said Mayor Todd Strange at the groundbreaking ceremony. APOSTC Executive Secretary Chief R. Alan Benefield noted that traffic crashes are the leading cause of line-of-duty deaths for law enforcement officers.

Training that will be offered to police officers, deputy sheriffs, state troopers and other operators of emergency vehicles will include:

•Defensive Driving – Basic non-emergency driving to include braking, turning and backing and off-road recovery.
•Pursuit Driving – When to initiate a pursuit, proper hand positioning, how to proceed safely while in a pursuit, collision avoidance and when to call off a pursuit.
•Tactical Vehicle Intervention – Stationary roadblocks, tire deflation, rolling roadblocks, etc.
•Emergency Response Driving – Title 32, clearing intersections, maneuvering techniques while in traffic, radio use while driving, and proper hand positioning.
•All Weather Driving – Skid recovery (skid pad and through use of skid car).
•Roadside Safety – Proper vehicle placement during traffic stops, proper Y-turn procedures, proper U-turn procedures.
•Motorcycle Operation – Classes for motorcycle officers for safe vehicle operation in all conditions.
•Executive Protection – Dignitary protection driving and vehicle operation to include motorcade driving.

Phase 1 of the project, which is tentatively set to be be completed within a year, will provide a safe and controlled area to teach new recruits. The project will teach driving fundamentals such as vehicle placement, vehicle positioning, backing, and skid avoidance. It will also include a building that will provide offices for the instructors and classroom facilities for the training of public safety personnel.

In the video, the mayor expresses the positive impact the project will have for the City of Montgomery and surrounding areas.

Work on Montgomery Public Schools’ advanced manufacturing career academy building officially started Wednesday, and officials framed the occasion as a testament to partnerships across Montgomery and as a milestone for the area.

The $1 million facility, which is being funded through the city’s bond issue, is expected to open by January. The 3,500 square foot building, located on the George Washington Carver High School campus, will include welding machines and ventilated booths, as well as pneumatic and hydraulic training stations.

About half of the project’s budget will pay for the construction of the pre-fabricated building and the other half will fund equipment for the building. The space will also have an office for the academy instructor, as well as restrooms. There is also space reserved for future machine tools.

The academy and its new facility aim to give students hands-on, real-life skills for electrical and mechanical engineering; electronics; welding; pneumatics and automobile maintenance careers.

The Montgomery Public School career academies seek to provide students with specialized skill sets so they can seek highly skilled jobs straight out of high school or get a leg up on whatever higher education they choose to pursue. MPS has seven such academies, which the school system and the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce have worked to bolster in recent years.

Officials said during a groundbreaking ceremony for the new building that the facility coming to fruition is important not only to the school system, but to the community at-large because it will go a long way toward educating a future workforce.

“This is really something very close to my heart,” said Montgomery County Commission Chairman Elton Dean, who noted he is a Carver alumnus. “Today what do you see? It’s not just a school building, but an institution. This is what we need. (Students) will be ready for these jobs.”

Dean and other officials in attendance at the groundbreaking said Montgomery is poised for growth and the advanced manufacturing building and program would only further facilitate that growth.

Mayor Todd Strange said Montgomery has “just begun” and this new building speaks volumes about the area’s commitment to education.

“We talked a good game for many years,” Strange said of the commitment to education, “but now we’re putting our money where our mouth is.”

Superintendent Barbara Thompson said one component of the initiative that she believes is critical is the fact that the school system will be teaching students skills employers have specifically said are necessary.

“This is what they told us they want,” she said.

Thompson also said having that qualified workforce will be an asset to Montgomery and a way to bring businesses to the area.

“It’s such a pivotal point in what we’re trying to do in Montgomery,” she said of the creation of the new facility.

Thompson, along with the other officials who gave remarks Wednesday, made a point to thank the many agencies that have been involved with the project and the establishment of the system’s career academies.

Board President Charlotte Meadows also underscored that sentiment.

“We want to thank you for everything you’ve done for the school system,” Meadows told those who gathered for the groundbreaking. “More than anything this building represents partnerships.”

The link to the original Montgomery Advertiser article can be found here.

Police officers seized more than $1 million during a recent traffic stop, and some of that money could end up benefiting the Montgomery Police Department, authorities announced Monday.

Officers found the money hidden in the cab of a tractor-trailer after pulling over the vehicle for an illegal lane change early Friday, said Montgomery Public Safety Department Director Chris Murphy.

A drug-sniffing dog named Daisy played a pivotal role in the recovery of the cash, which had cocaine residue on it, Mayor Todd Strange said. An energetic Daisy was in attendance at the Monday news conference at police headquarters.

The traffic stop was made on Interstate 65 near the 169 mile marker, which is between the South Boulevard and Fairview Avenue exits.

The driver of the tractor-trailer consented to the search, which was carried out by the Police Department’s Highway Safety Team, Police Chief Kevin Murphy said.

No arrest have been made in connection with the seizure.

The seizure of about $1.15 million set in motion a federal asset forfeiture process that will involve agencies including the U.S. Marshals and the U.S. Department of Justice.

The MPD could receive 80 percent of the seized money, which by law must go toward the department’s law enforcement efforts involving drugs, Chris Murphy said.

No arrest is necessary for the asset forfeiture process to move forward, but it could take months before the money finds its way back to Montgomery, Kevin Murphy said.

The money could come in handy, Strange said, pointing out that the purchase of Daisy herself was made possible with drug money the department seized.

Link to the original article can be found here

Mayor Todd Strange would like to thank everyone who attended the ‘Keep Montgomery Strange’ young professionals event at the Tipping Point last Thursday. With over two hundred supporters showing up for the event, it proved to be a major success. The event marked the kickoff of a new initiative that was dedicated to highlighting all the things that are fun, young, and a little funky about our city. We feel that under the leadership of Mayor Todd Strange we have the opportunity to continue bringing vibrant and vital festivities and venues throughout our great city! The goal of the project is to generate user based content, showing how things just keep getting better under our mayor’s leadership, and how we are all working together to Keep Montgomery Strange.

Please email any photos you have celebrating events and activities involved in the community to these61ire@photos.flickr.com and be sure to visit the Keep Montgomery Strange website.

Mayor Todd Strange appeared on 107.9′s Viewpoint with Dan Morris Tuesday morning. He discussed employment in the City of Montgomery and it’s position in comparison to other large cities in the state of Alabama.