Wadley Waits

 ========= Old Image Removed =========Array
(
    [_wp_attached_file] => Array
        (
            [0] => 2009/09/rural.jpg
        )

    [_wp_attachment_metadata] => Array
        (
            [0] => a:5:{s:5:"width";i:1174;s:6:"height";i:792;s:4:"file";s:17:"2009/09/rural.jpg";s:5:"sizes";a:12:{s:6:"medium";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:17:"rural-336x227.jpg";s:5:"width";i:336;s:6:"height";i:227;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:5:"large";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:17:"rural-771x520.jpg";s:5:"width";i:771;s:6:"height";i:520;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:9:"thumbnail";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:17:"rural-140x140.jpg";s:5:"width";i:140;s:6:"height";i:140;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:12:"medium_large";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:17:"rural-768x518.jpg";s:5:"width";i:768;s:6:"height";i:518;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:9:"wbhm-icon";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:15:"rural-80x80.jpg";s:5:"width";i:80;s:6:"height";i:80;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:13:"wbhm-featured";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:17:"rural-800x450.jpg";s:5:"width";i:800;s:6:"height";i:450;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:20:"wbhm-featured-square";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:17:"rural-600x600.jpg";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:600;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:18:"wbhm-featured-home";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:17:"rural-461x311.jpg";s:5:"width";i:461;s:6:"height";i:311;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:22:"wbhm-featured-carousel";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:17:"rural-393x265.jpg";s:5:"width";i:393;s:6:"height";i:265;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:28:"ab-block-post-grid-landscape";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:17:"rural-600x400.jpg";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:400;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:25:"ab-block-post-grid-square";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:17:"rural-600x600.jpg";s:5:"width";i:600;s:6:"height";i:600;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}s:14:"post-thumbnail";a:4:{s:4:"file";s:17:"rural-125x125.jpg";s:5:"width";i:125;s:6:"height";i:125;s:9:"mime-type";s:10:"image/jpeg";}}s:10:"image_meta";a:12:{s:8:"aperture";s:1:"0";s:6:"credit";s:0:"";s:6:"camera";s:0:"";s:7:"caption";s:0:"";s:17:"created_timestamp";s:1:"0";s:9:"copyright";s:0:"";s:12:"focal_length";s:1:"0";s:3:"iso";s:1:"0";s:13:"shutter_speed";s:1:"0";s:5:"title";s:0:"";s:11:"orientation";s:1:"0";s:8:"keywords";a:0:{}}}
        )

    [_imagify_data] => Array
        (
            [0] => a:2:{s:5:"stats";a:3:{s:13:"original_size";i:0;s:14:"optimized_size";i:0;s:7:"percent";i:0;}s:5:"sizes";a:1:{s:4:"full";a:2:{s:7:"success";b:0;s:5:"error";s:77:"WELL DONE. This image is already compressed, no further compression required.";}}}
        )

    [_imagify_status] => Array
        (
            [0] => already_optimized
        )

    [_imagify_optimization_level] => Array
        (
            [0] => 1
        )

)
1666279844 
1252368000

It’s hard to find a one company town any more. But in rural east Alabama, there is a town where three-quarters of residents work at the same manufacturing plant. Or at least they did, until the plant closed down. WBHM’s Tanya Ott reports.

Mayor pro-tem Toni Gay is a one-woman welcome wagon for Wadley, Alabama.

“You never have to ask anybody for help because somebody knows what you need help before you need it and they’ve already helped you. It is a beautiful, beautiful, sweet little town.”

Small town picturesque, on the outside. But walk inside City Hall and you see the decay that symbolizes the challenges facing this town of 650 people. Gay points to water stains on the ceiling. The roof leaks.

“We are seeing the sheetrock that’s deteriorated back there. We’re seeing the ceiling that is almost falling in…”

The town doesn’t have money to fix up the historic building. The poverty rate was already 31% before the largest employer filed for bankruptcy. And MeadowCraft Incorporated owes Wadley more than $100,000 in back utility bills. Sales tax revenues are down, too, since MeadowCraft laid off hundreds of workers.

Just a few blocks from the plant, Bonnie’s Country Kitchen no longer opens for breakfast. Bonnie used to deliver chicken biscuits to the plant every morning. These days the meager lunch crowd is all that’s left. While steak quesadillas sizzle on the griddle, resident Kathleen Newman chews on the changes Wadley’s gone through. After a textile plant closed two decades ago, the city had a hard time attracting any new businesses. It put all its eggs in one basket – Meadowcraft.

“Almost at times makes you want to cry! To think about what the impact it’s doing on the families in town.”

Newman runs a small accounting firm. She kept the books and did tax prep for some of the local businesses that closed. She says she may have to lay off some of her employees.

And that’s what frustrates locals. They’re suffering, even though MeadowCraft’s business was up. The company says it had plenty of orders from big retailers. What got the nation’s largest manufacturer of outdoor wrought iron furniture in trouble was an accounting scandal. In March, the company announced its president and chief financial officer were “no longer with the company”. Wells Fargo and several others financial institutions revoked the company’s credit and pushed Meadowcraft into involuntary bankruptcy. Wells Fargo did not return requests for an interview. Johnny Whitaker is with the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union.

“Ahhh, you know I get irritated every time I think about that because all of these billions of dollars that was given to the banks, and you’ve got a group of people in rural Alabama that’s gonna be put out on welfare. And when you call Congress and say ‘help us!’, no response.”

Alabama Congressman Republican Mike Rogers says he did ask Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner for help.

“And still, just got a vanilla response, well you know it’s painful, we’re gonna have to work through this and he wouldn’t really address the direct problem that I presented him with.”

Roger says he hopes to find money to retrain the laid off workers. But the union’s Johnny Whitaker says there’s no place else nearby for them to work.

“I mean, how can you buy gas to drive 50 miles? They lost their cars, they’re losing their homes. It’s depressing!”

The laid off workers are trying to keep busy. When word spread that a Texas company was coming to Wadley to look at the plant – and possibly buy it – a group of them voluntarily came in to tidy up the place. But so far, there’s no deal.

 

As deadline for Trump’s colleges compact looms, schools signal dissent

Of the original nine schools that received the Trump administration's Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education, the majority have indicated they are not planning on signing.

Can collagen supplements improve your skin? Here’s what the research shows

With age comes wisdom. And wrinkles. And joint pain. In wellness circles, the buzz is that collagen supplements can help with all these concerns. But are these claims something you should swallow?

Centrist Rodrigo Paz wins Bolivia’s presidential runoff, topping right-wing rival

Centrist senator Rodrigo Paz won Bolivia's presidency with 54% of the vote, ending 20 years of rule by the Movement Toward Socialism party amid economic turmoil.

Trump announces tariffs and an end to U.S. aid to Colombia amid clash over drug trade

The U.S. will slash assistance to Colombia and enact tariffs on its exports because the country's leader, Gustavo Petro, "does nothing to stop" drug production, President Donald Trump said Sunday.

Sam Rivers, bassist and founding member of Limp Bizkit, dies aged 48

"Sam Rivers wasn't just our bass player — he was pure magic. The pulse beneath every song, the calm in the chaos, the soul in the sound," Limp Bizkit said in a social media post Saturday.

Israel strikes Gaza as both IDF and Hamas accuse each other of breaching ceasefire

The Israel Defense Forces said Sunday it responded after "terrorists" attacked troops operating in the Rafah area with gunfire and an anti-tank missile. Hamas said it was unaware of the clashes.

More Economy Coverage