By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

ALABASTER – The founder and general manager of the Alabaster-based APH Radio station has announced he plans to run for the District 4 seat on the Shelby County Commission, and said he will serve as a “solidly conservative voice” if elected.

Rowley announced his candidacy a few days after Republican qualifying began for the 2016 county elections on Oct. 5. District 4 includes portions of Pelham and Alabaster from Valleydale Road to Alabama 119 and along U.S. 31 and Interstate 65.

Rowley said he is “staunchly pro-life” and “believes in low taxes and that successful small business is the key to sustaining the county’s economic growth.”

Rowley founded APH Radio, which stands for Alabaster-Pelham-Helena, in 2014, and moved the station into its current location off U.S. 31 in Alabaster in August. The station does not feature a traditional advertising model, and instead accepts donations from local businesses and organizations in exchange for on-air advertising slots and support from the radio station. APH Radio then distributes donations to local charities, civic projects and nonprofit organizations.

Rowley is a former member of the Shelby County Republican Executive Committee and is active in several local civic organizations. He regularly speaks at high schools, churches and civic clubs on topics ranging from leadership to the value of failure. He is a retiree from the Alabama National Guard, where he served at the headquarters of 20th Special Forces Group, Airborne located at the Birmingham Shuttlesworth International Airport.

“I look forward, if elected, to working with the other Commissioners, in a spirit of mutual respect, to continue the outstanding growth of Shelby County. I will work to expand and foster the renewed cooperation with the Shelby County Sheriff’s Department and my work with the Shelby County Schools Foundation,” Rowley said. “I understand what the term ‘selfless service’ means because I lived it for most of my adult life, in the Army.”

Rowley is an ambassador with the Greater Shelby County Chamber of Commerce, a member of the South Shelby County Chamber of Commerce, a member of American Legion Post 555 and the Helena Business Association. He lives in Alabaster with his wife, Mandy, and three daughters.

To learn more about Rowley, visit Generowley.com.

Primary elections will be held on March 1, 2016, with a primary runoff on April 12, 2016, if necessary. The general election will be held on Nov. 8, 2016.