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Local musician spotlight: Brett McDaniel

By Alex Wilkerson | Contributing Writer | September 21

The Auburn Plainsman has decided to begin a weekly column to highlight the musicians and bands that contribute to the area's unique live music landscape.

Local bar receives license to serve alcohol after 2 a.m.

By Alex Wilkerson | Community Writer | February 2

Early morning partiers can buy a drink after 2 a.m. again. For many, the War Eagle Supper Club was an Auburn tradition, but it was also the only bar in Auburn that could sell alcohol after 2 a.m.

Opelika distillery wins big awards at national spirits competition

By Alex Wilkerson | Community Writer | January 20

Jimmy Sharp and his father John Sharp, owners of John Emerald Distilling Company, have plenty to be excited about this year.

Mom and pop stores are too rare

By Alison McFerrin / COMMUNITY BEAT REPORTER | January 19

Sometimes I think South College Street must be cursed.

Chefs bring Farm to Table

By Natalie Yarid / NEWS EDITOR | July 14

If a meal prepared with local, fresh ingredients is something you've been seeking, seek no longer.

Firehouse subs donates thermal imaging cameras to Auburn Fire Department

By Natalie Nettles / Intrigue Editor | July 14

The sub restaurant founded by firefighters is taking the heat off some local firemen.The Firehouse Subs on Magnolia Avenue donated three MSA 5600 thermal imaging cameras to the Auburn fire department this afternoon.Chris Holmes, area representative for Firehouse Subs, said each camera is valued at around $10,000."We actually take donations from our customers and then we roll it all up together throughout the rest of the company and make donations to different public safety departments," Holmes said.Lee Lamar, fire chief, said the cameras search for and identify heat."A smoky environment where you have zero visibility and you've got a lot of different heat signatures in there, the camera can actually go in and differentiate those signatures and you can identify what's a bed, what's a wall and where a person or a body is," Lamar said.Lamar said the fire department previously only had one thermal imaging camera, which was purchased over a decade ago through fundraising efforts of citizens in the community.Lamar said one of the cameras will be placed in the battalion chief's vehicle, while the other two will be place in the department's ladder trucks."It allows us to find victims in structure fires and emergency operations a lot faster than we could before," Cody Carlson, an Auburn firefighter, said.Lamar said the donation is a tremendous asset to what the fire department can provide to the citizens of Auburn."By far the most important aspect of this is the life saving," Lamar said.

Local Legends Lie in Local Cemetery

By Natalie Nettles/Intrigue Editor | July 9

Five University presidents, two U.S. generals and the man responsible for bringing football to Auburn.These individuals are among the many Auburn men and women buried in Pine Hill, a 6-acre cemetery on Armstrong Street."It's the oldest and most historic cemetery in Auburn," said Ann Pearson, member and past president of the Auburn Heritage Association.Pearson said the land for Pine Hill was given to Auburn in 1837 by Judge John Harper, founder of the city."There are 1,500 people or more buried here, that we know of," Pearson said.

Web Site Pinpoints Local Sex Offenders

By The Editorial Board | July 9

You'd like to know if you were living next door to a registered sex offender, wouldn't you?We know we would.A recent update to the Lee County Sheriff Office's Web site enhances residents' awareness of sex offenders in the area.The site allows users to conduct a search for registered sex offenders living in their neighborhood, as well as the option of subscribing for e-mails alerts about sex offenders who plan to locate to the area.While our editorial board acknowledged both sides of the issue, we believe this to be an invaluable tool for residents of Lee County.Some may argue the features of the site are too intrusive, as they provides users with the names and addresses of registered sex offenders in the county, but this is information we think any family would want at its disposal.Imagine you're starting a family and have found the perfect home in the perfect neighborhood to begin raising your children.For their well-being, you would want to know if you were planning to become the neighbor of a person who had previously committed some form of sexual abuse.Even if this information wouldn't keep a family from moving into a certain home or a certain neighborhood, we still see merit in the site providing this information.Simply knowing where these people reside we feel is something any caring parent should be concerned about, and if the site increases a family's awareness of the neighborhood and tightens the parents' concern for where their children go, it's a good thing.We don't believe offenders found on the site should be so blatantly singled out to the point it's the equivalent of a Wild West "Wanted" sign or being shunned in the stocks in the town square, but we do applaud the awareness and heightened safety the Web site provides to families of Lee County.That said, for our editorial board's contrasting view, read below.

Cambridge Coffee Closes for Repairs

By Courtney Johnson/Staff Writer | July 9

An integral part of the coffee-lovers community across Auburn suddenly closed June 29.Owners of Cambridge Coffee on College Street closed their doors, turned off the lights and hung a "renovation" sign.A former employee of Cambridge, who did not want his identity revealed, said the shop is not undergoing aesthetic renovations, but has shut its doors and is considering a different business avenue."There's talk about all kinds of new types of businesses coming into this spot," he said.

Life-long Sentencing Unfair for Sex Offenders?

By The Editorial Board | July 9

While we acknowledge the utility of a Web site that allows users to locate nearby sex offenders in their county, we question if this added public scrutiny is fair to those one-time offenders.The same is true for having to re-register as a sex offender after moving.By no means do we view sexual offenses as insignificant crimes -- quite the opposite, actually.However, the lifelong stigma of being labeled a sex offender is too severe if we're not 100 percent sure that person is worthy of carrying that label with them for the rest of their life.We discussed scenarios where an over-18 partner is convicted of sexual abuse after having sex with their boyfriend or girlfriend who is not of age.There could have been consent at the time, but if that person comes back with charges of rape, there's no way to disprove such accusations, and just like that, someone is forever labeled a sex offender.Is this fair?We believe that, rather than having set guidelines that apply to each situation, a case-by-case method of determining whether sexual abuse actually occurred would be more just than the current method.Obviously this process would be more time consuming and more costly. But again, when someone is dealing with the everlasting dishonor of being known as a sex offender, the "Ah, but we're going to have to do more work!" excuse loses the minute amount of worth it had in the first place.Maybe a change should be implemented that would eliminate the tainted status after so many years of a clean record.While there should be no leniency for repeat offenders, we think it's unfair to require the constant registration for a one-time sex offender after they have already served their time. One-time convicts of other crimes aren't forced to publicly introduce themselves as a criminal after serving their time. They're certainly not listed with name and address on the sheriff's Web site, either.Again, with revision to the system, lifting of the label could be something that is dependent on the severity of the crime, as well.Why is it that only sex offenders are persistently highlighted for their crimes?We don't believe in revision of the system simply for justice, but for safety as well.If the reason for providing citizens with the names and locations of local sex offenders is to heighten their awareness and to protect them, then why not alert them about the proximity of previous convicts of other crimes?

Charter Communications to Keep WSFA News 12 in Auburn

By Callie Garrett/ Staff Writer | July 2

Charter Communications mistakenly included Auburn in their news release about removing the local channel WSFA news 12 from Chambers County and Lanett."WSFA - NBC will remain on our line-up in the City of Auburn and in Lee County, but not in Chambers County and Lanett," said John Miller, director of communications for Charter Communications.A press release was sent to newspapers and put up on the screen for Charter subscribers to view, Mark Wilder, WSFA director of operations, said."When Charter put out the information to its subscribers, they made a mistake in the wording and included the word Auburn within Chambers County as to the area it was going to be taken off," Wilder said.

Local Honey Helps Ease Allergies

By Sarah Craft/Associate Copy Editor | July 2

Runny noses, watery eyes and embarrassingly loud sneezes could be a thing of the past for Auburn students with a sweet tooth.Local honey is becoming an increasingly popular way for people to prevent the symptoms of allergies."I have terrible allergies this time of year," said Ben Pryor, a senior in human resources.Though many college students use prescription medicines to treat allergy-related symptoms every spring and summer, people have been using honey for thousands of years as a natural cure for allergies."Honeybees are one of the oldest insects mankind has had interaction with," said Ben McGehee, local beekeeper and honey salesman.