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Public engagement session held on expanding historic preservation in Elizabethtown

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The City of Elizabethtown formally began conversations with the public on the potential expansion of historic preservation in the city with a public engagement session at the Historic State Theater Wednesday evening.

“We want to educate the public on the benefits of historic preservation,” said City of Elizabethtown Director of Planning Joe Reverman. “We want to educate them on how historic preservation works in Elizabethtown and hopefully encourage citizens and property owners to support the expansion of our preservation in the city.”

Reverman noted during the meeting that the city has had plans to discuss expanding historic preservation as part of the city’s comprehensive plan, but the city council asked the city to move forward sooner following public feedback on a College Street zoning change.

Craig Potts and Dr. Nicole Roth with the Kentucky Heritage Council discussed benefits related to historic preservation districts including access to tax incentives and grants, and Roth noted benefits to economic development such as property value stabilization and neighborhood stability.

“If you live in your house or say your apartment for a long time, you become physically, financially, as well as socially invested into your neighborhood, and caring about the development and the change that follows through,” Roth said.

Roth said the purpose of establishing a local preservation ordinance or district is not to restrict growth or use, but to allow for “thoughtful consideration of change.”

“Just because you’re in the local district, that does not mean you live in a museum and cannot also adapt with the changing times,” Roth said.

The current downtown historic district is mostly limited to the downtown square, to a point that even the 200-year-old Brown-Pusey House is not within the district’s borders. 

Reverman said this is the beginning of a months-long discussion. Potential properties will be discussed at the May 8 meeting of the city’s Historic Preservation Commission. Questions may be directed to Reverman’s office at city hall.

Anonymous tip leads to bust of Meade County marijuana operation

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The Meade County Sheriff’s Office is touting a bust that turned up more than 150 marijuana plants. 

According to a post on the sheriff’s office’s Facebook page, on March 14 a deputy responded to a tip of a marijuana cultivation/growing operation in the Meade County area. When the deputy arrived at the residence to execute a search warrant, they “found a full operation inside the residence and barn.” All items were seized as evidence in the case, which resulted in one arrest.

“It basically came from an anonymous tip, and that’s how important these tips are for everybody to work together in our community to solve these issues to keep our community safe,” said Meade County Sheriff Phillip Wimpee. “That’s our biggest thing.”

Wimpee said the bust is an example of the importance anonymous tips can play in investigations.

“You can keep these tips anonymous, and this is what’s saving our kids on the street,” Wimpee said. “This is what’s saving these deaths in our county. We have to put a stop to it, and this is one of the avenues we can take is through the drug tip line. This was a really good, a really big bust. It’s no telling how many lives it saved.”

You can leave an anonymous tip with the Meade County Sheriff’s Office through their HOPE line at 270-422-4673.

Feeding America, Kentucky’s Heartland promoting the importance of healthy foods during National Nutrition Month

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Feeding America, Kentucky’s Heartland is encouraging area residents to reflect on how food choices impact health during National Nutrition Month.

FAKH says the organization’s mission is not only to provide food for those in need but also to ensure distributed food helps create a balanced and nutritious diet. The organization says it strives to provide healthy food options for individuals and families facing food insecurity through school pantries, distribution events, and partnerships with local organizations.

National Nutrition Month focuses attention on the importance of making informed food choices and developing sound eating and physical activity habits. The organization says healthy food access is a key step in preventing chronic diseases such as heart disease and Type 2 diabetes. Simple changes like reducing carbohydrates and small changes to diet and exercise can have lasting benefits.

FAKH says you can support their mission during the month of March through Walmart and Sam’s Club’s Fight Hunger, Spark Change campaign. Now through March 31 participants can donate at store checkouts, purchase participating products, or donate directly through the organization’s website. Visit feedingamericaky.org for more information.

Don’t take fire risks when clearing out yard waste this spring

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Thursday marks the first day of spring, and as the season changes and you start your spring cleaning make sure you are keeping your home and property fire safe.

Radcliff Deputy Fire Marshal Tommy Crane says check with your local jurisdictions on outdoor burning for limbs, and limit what you are burning to what is allowed.

“Regardless of where you are, the state law prohibits burning garbage, tires, buildings, and stuff like that, so you have to remember what you’re burning,” Crane said. “Basically, branches, brush, and stuff like that is about all that you can burn.”

Crane says if you are looking to get rid of leaves and limbs, your city likely has options for you.

“The cities have different limb and leaf pickup times, and so they’ll do that stuff for you so you don’t have to try to figure out how to get rid of it, so just check with them,” Crane said.

If you do decide to conduct a controlled burn, let the authorities know ahead of time.

“Make sure that you’re calling the local dispatch in the unincorporated areas,” Crane said. “That way we’re aware of what’s going on. The local fire department, wherever it is, is able to be aware that there’s a control burn.”

Monitor wind conditions before conducting a controlled burn, and never leave a fire unattended.

Silverleaf hosting fifth annual Survive to Thrive Art Auction

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Support Silverleaf Sexual Trauma Recovery Services and bring home a one-of-a-kind piece of artwork at the 2025 Survive to Thrive Art Auction.

“This is our fifth year we’ve done this art auction, and we ask local artists to donate their artwork to us and as our annual fundraiser we auction off that artwork,” said Silverleaf Executive Director Dr. Jillian Carden. 

There are multiple ways to participate in the auction.

“We offer an online auction where a large chunk of the art pieces are done in an online auction format, so anybody in the community can sign up to be a bidder for those, and then on April 12 this year we have a live event where we hold off some of the pieces and we will live auction off those pieces at the event along with some other fun stuff we’re doing,” Carden said.

The in-person event on April 12 will feature beverage tastings, complementary food pairings, exclusive bidding on the in-person art auction, and new for 2025 a local artist is offering flash tattoo specials. All proceeds benefit Silverleaf and their cause.

“It could be overhead, it could be for staff, it could be for projects, and it can be for costs that we have associated with direct services with the clients that we serve,” Carden said.

The online auction opens on March 22. Find the link to bid, and the link to purchase tickets to the April 12 event, on Silverleaf’s website or Facebook page.