Quicksie 98.3
The Hardin County Sheriff’s Office is the latest service in Hardin County to get financial assistance courtesy of the CARES Act. Over $45,000 was given to the Sheriff’s Office in order to update equipment in order to better respond to the pandemic. The CARES Act has also provided assistance to Elizabethtown Community and Technical College, as well as other local government, as the county continues to try and navigate through the COVID-19 pandemic.
After a weekend off from reporting, local health departments announced subtle increases in the number of COVID-19 cases in their area. The Lincoln Trail District Health Department confirmed nine new cases on Monday, bringing the department’s total to 208 positive cases with 175 recovered, 22 in home isolation, and six hospitalized. Elsewhere, the Grayson County Health Department announced two new cases from over the weekend, bringing the county’s total number to 135, with 109 patients recovered.
Monday marked the first reading of the City of Elizabethtown’s next budget. The City Council met at the Historic State Theater complex Monday evening, where Mayor Jeff Gregory gave his budget recommendation for the fiscal year 2021. Mayor Gregory acknowledged that the recent COVID-19 pandemic impacted budgetary decisions, resulting in a budget that is intended to be more conservative in spending. The budget, which comes in a $60.5 million, is down almost $10 million from this year’s operating budget of $70.1 million. The budget also underscores the impact the tourism industry has faced in the wake of COVID-19, with a lack of revenue coming from places such as the Sports Park, which directly brings in money through restaurant and room taxes. The budget will be read a second and final time in the coming weeks.