Madison County Chamber of Commerce News

Job growth and sustainability have been hot-button words at the forefront of much of lawmakers’ rhetoric for the last few years, but Alabama may be seeing a few worthwhile initiatives pushed through legislation that could stimulate and develop the state’s economy. AL.com reports that three bills, which are all supported by both the Republican Caucus…

It’s been nearly five years since the British Petroleum (BP) Deepwater Horizon oil spill erupted in the Gulf of Mexico seabed on April 20, 2010, becoming the largest oil spill ever to have occurred in U.S. waters.And even today, the Alabama coastline is still attempting to clean up the remnants of that spill.According to a March…

The state of Alabama has a conservative record when it comes to LGBT issues — but some local residents are trying to change that. The online newspaper Gay Star News reports that, along with Nebraska and Arkansas, Alabama is the latest state to participate in the Human Rights Campaign’s (HRC) “Equality is Our Business” initiative,…

An Alabama man was arrested on March 5 for holding his 93-year-old grandmother down, punching her repeatedly in the face, and pouring rubbing alcohol down her throat. According to reports, the elderly woman, whose name has not been released, was walking out of her bathroom at 6:30 a.m., when she saw a masked man standing…

The first clothing-optional wilderness for gay men in Alabama is closing after roughly 15 years of operation. Owner John Bales, 71, says that he and his partner are both ready to retire and do some traveling. The camp, called Black Bear Camp, was nestled in the Alabama wilderness near Little Loblockee Creek. Bales purchased the…

According to a recent statement published jointly by the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology in the academic journal Circulation, studies have shown that there is a very strong connection between sleep apnea and heart diseases, including high blood pressure and cholesterol, stroke, and heart failure. Although the physical and mental consequences…

Farmers and coordinators in Alabama are implementing two different programs to bring locally grown produce to schools. In Montgomery, the Farm to School program is funded by a 2014 grant from the United States Department of Agriculture amounting approximately $100,000. In Foley, Alabama, local farmers and a Foley-based produce distributor are starting a food aggregation hub to…

This month the Hunstsville-Madison County Public Library System in Alabama has not only banned smoking, but also chewing and dipping tobacco, and vaping with electronic cigarettes, in a new policy that went into effect on New Year’s Day. While safety reasons were also cited in the ban, given that a cigarette’s ash could easily ignite…

Boecore’s CEO, Kathy Boe, started the small space, cyber and missile defense systems company in her basement 14 years ago, and opened a regional office in Madison County about five years ago. Now, Boecore has doubled its square footage and tripled its workforce at the Huntsville headquarters, according to a Dec. 24 report from AL.com. “We’ve…