Our nation seems awash in allegations of corruption. From former Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and her $200 million advertising adventure, to Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz and his state's $9 billion in Somali fraud, Americans are fed up and recognize that a reckoning must occur on all levels.
But while we are appalled by the fraud in D.C. and Minnesota, we often fail to realize that such massive corruption can start on a small scale. When bypassed or ignored, corruption spreads like kudzu.
That brings us to a potential local problem in North Alabama. Muscle Shoals, with its small population of roughly 18,000, may be on the hook for millions for a sportsplex project which, after many years of "planning," hasn't even broken ground.
In October 2025, TimesDaily detailed what this ghost project is costing the Muscle Shoals (and state) taxpayers:
By Nov. 1, Muscle Shoals will have paid more than $1 million in contracts to two companies for the proposed $65 million sportsplex, while work has yet to begin, and an exact completion date has not been established.
According to documents obtained by the TimesDaily, the municipality is currently issuing monthly checks to Tuscumbia-based Strategic Construction Solutions (SCS), and Sports Facilities Management LLC., located in Clearwater, Florida.
In the event the municipality does not cancel either of the contracts before the end of October, Muscle Shoals will have paid $1,073,333.40 to the two companies without any visible work being performed in 15 months.
Enter William Underwood, a retired attorney and Muscle Shoals resident, who is sounding the alarm about the sportsplex matter and other issues, including flooding and its link to the city's actions.
Underwood, who himself doesn't have a perfect record, has been silenced and stonewalled for speaking out at council meetings and demanding accountability and redress. He speaks out not to showboat, but to sound the alarm about how the city will be destroyed by the potential rot at its center if not dealt with soon.
In March, Underwood filed an ethics complaint, naming former Muscle Shoals Mayor Mike Lockhart, City Engineer Brad Williams, and City Councilmembers Willis Thompson, Gina Clark, and Ken Sockwell for failing in their fiduciary responsibilities and for conflicts of interest surrounding the sportsplex contracts.
Initial approvals for the project began in 2006, while money began changing hands in 2024. Underwood kindly supplied me with his extensive documentation of these contracts, council meeting minutes, and council resolutions relating to the issue, as well as the exorbitant checks signed by Lockhart and City Clerk/Treasurer Brittney Walker in payment to three companies.
The third company being paid is Sports Facilities Management LLC, a Florida-based management company. Why would the city pay for a management operation in advance for a sports facility that hasn't been built?
The other two companies have one common thread: Brad Williams, who was appointed the Muscle Shoals city engineer by city resolution 3107 – 20 on Nov. 2, 2020. Williams is a longtime Colbert County resident and businessman whose partner, William "Trey" Alexander III, is with CG Jones Construction and is also partnered with Alexander and Rusty Carbine in Strategic Construction Solutions (SCS). SCS is the main recipient of pre-construction funds for the sportsplex.
Williams is also listed as the registered agent for Sixth Street Solar, which constructed a solar panel farm in the city, resulting in flooding issues, which I mentioned in a 2025 op-ed. 1819 News has also reported extensively on the solar farm wars in Stockton, and implementation in the state continues to be an issue.
Underwood has threatened to sue the city over flooding. In 2025, he filed a new lawsuit against Williams and the city, alleging that the engineer attempted flood mitigation, which caused damage to Underwood's farmland and several other properties.
I fully understand Williams – a licensed engineer and a city employee – giving expert opinion and overseeing city projects. However, why do any of the companies that receive city monies have Williams, a city employee, as a partner? This appears to be a conflict of interest which Alabama's ethics law explicitly forbids.
As the Alabama Policy Institute 2025 Blueprint says on pages 108-109:
Section 36-25-5 of the ethics law prohibits public officials and employees from using their official position to obtain personal gain for themselves, a family member, or any business with which they are associated, unless specifically authorized by law. [Emphasis added.]
This sleight of hand is done on a small scale in many major cities, which is how you get a Minneapolis "Learing Center" one day, and $9 billion in fraud the next.
Seeing this pattern potentially occurring in a small town is disheartening, especially when it could be nipped in the bud with enough outcry from concerned residents like Underwood. If more people paid attention, questioned, and demanded accountability, Muscle Shoals might not be facing this crisis of confidence.
Lockhart lost the Muscle Shoals mayoral office by roughly 100 votes; apparently, enough of the residents understood the stakes and were fed up with the lack of accountability he offered.
In March, Mayor Billy Hudson halted the sportsplex project until the contracts could be reviewed and said he was receiving positive feedback on the move.
But what of the thousands in taxpayer money already paid out? And what does it say about a council that allowed money to be wasted in this manner?
Jennifer Oliver O'Connell, As the Girl Turns, is an investigative journalist, author, opinion analyst, and contributor to 1819 News, Redstate, and other publications. Jennifer writes on Politics and Pop Culture, with occasional detours into Reinvention, Yoga, and Food. You can read more about Jennifer's world at her As the Girl Turns website. You can also follow her on Facebook, Twitter, and Telegram.
The views and opinions expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the policy or position of 1819 News. To comment, please send an email with your name and contact information to [email protected].
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