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Hardin County Fiscal Court approves budget amendment

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The Hardin County Fiscal Court met for their second meeting of the month Tuesday.

The court approved an ordinance on second reading that amends the 2024-2025 budget. Hardin County Judge/Executive Keith Taul said the amendment facilitates a $1 million Federal Community Development Block Grant for Family Scholar House.

District Four Magistrate Fred Clem attempted to motion to reintroduce a resolution drafted by the Hardin County Finance Committee to form “a steering committee to study land use evaluation of properties at the current and old landfill” after it was removed from Tuesday’s agenda ahead of the meeting. Taul said Clem’s motion was out of order as “only the judge/executive can establish or appoint committees of fiscal court per the administrative code.” Clem and Taul disagreed on Taul’s authority to refuse action on Clem’s motion.

In other meeting news, Hardin County Coroner Pat Elmore said during his report to the court that the coroner’s office handled 1,178 cases in 2024. That included 5 homicides and 78 accidents, of which just under half were overdoses.

Hardin County Sheriff John Ward told the court that in December and January the sheriff’s office made 215 arrests, issued 180 citations, and served 103 warrants. Ward encouraged drivers to remember to use caution and said in 2024 Hardin County was third in total fatal traffic accidents in Kentucky, and Ward noted a fatal accident Monday involving two commercial vehicles.

“We had a fatal accident on I-65 last night, one which was basically driver inattention, not speed related,” Ward said. “If anything, it was low-speed related, but it was driver inattention.”

The Hardin County Fiscal Court will next meet March 11.

Area veteran and service dog recognized

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Daniel O’Dell says the most important part of documenting the journey of he and his service dog The Fluffy Poodle has been the ability to reach out to the community.

“We’ve been lucky enough to share our story for five-plus years to the military and disability community and everybody all around the world, to give them hope and let them know no matter what you’ve been through in the past, you can still follow your dreams,” O’Dell said.

O’Dell and The Fluffy Poodle’s work is receiving some special recognition, as the two are featured in the spring issue of U.S. Veterans MagazineM honoring the Service Dogs of the Year.

“When we got that announcement, I definitely shed a tear, because it’s an overwhelming feeling,” O’Dell. “We got that thank you that we really deserve, and just being a guiding light for the military community is ultimately what it’s all about.”

O’Dell says the recognition is motivation to continue spreading the message.

“I tell everybody, no matter what you’re going through in the past, or no matter what you’re going through now or in the past, you can still follow your dreams, because if I can get through my challenges and disability with my service dog, The Fluffy Poodle, I know you can too, so ultimately we just give a little bit of hope and tell our story to inspire everybody all around the world,” O’Dell said.

If you get a copy of U.S. Veterans Magazine’s spring issue, turn to page 46. You can follow O’Dell and The Fluffy Poodle by searching for The Fluffy Poodle on social media.

Rineyville Elementary preschool teacher receives district award

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A Rineyville Elementary School teacher is being recognized by the school district. 

Rineyville Elementary preschool teacher Jennifer Arnold has been selected as the 2025 recipient of the Hardin County Schools WHAS-11 ExCEL Award.

According to a release from HCS, Rineyville Elementary Principal Stephanie Breeding says Arnold was recognized for meeting the needs of her students, customizing the way she teachers literacy, math, language, and social and writing skills, her preparation and implementation of special education plans for students with disabilities, her adaptability, and her use of communication devices to help students build language and speaking skills.

Arnold said in the release: “I am grateful for the recognition and inspired to continue working hard to ensure inclusion for all learners. I believe that every student deserves access to a fun learning environment where they feel supported, challenged, and inspired to reach their full potential.”

Arnold is the fifth Rineyville Elementary teacher to receive the award, which was first presented in 1991. She will be honored during a celebration at the school on March 19, and will receive $1,000 from Miracle Playgrounds of Kentucky and Tennessee to purchase items for her classroom.

BlueOval SK reps say Kentucky One is still on track to open this year

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BlueOval SK External Communications representative Mallory Cooke says the company is excited to get things underway in Glendale.

“2,500 jobs at capacity at each plant, battery production on schedule to begin this year,” Cooke said. “We are very excited about that, and as someone who’s been with the company since 2022, this is a big deal, so we’re very excited to begin production later this year.”

Cooke and other representatives from the company spoke to participants during a Lunch and Learn event hosted by the Hardin County Chamber of Commerce at the Elizabethtown Police Department Monday. Cooke said the event was an opportunity to provide an update on the Glendale Battery Park and to discuss some misconceptions.

“You hear a lot of people, they may say BlueOval or SK, or the Ford plant,” Cooke said. “We are not Ford. We are not BlueOval. We are not SK. We are BlueOval SK. If you’ll make sure you share those names together, both of our parent companies are very important, and as (External Affairs Director) Keli (McAlister) likes to say, we’re like a Southerner with a good double name, BlueOval SK.”

Carl Swope with the Swope Family of Dealerships discussed increased reliability in electric vehicles, including longer ranges and easier charging opportunities. Cooke said the Kentucky Two plant is still delayed based on consumer demand, but the EV market has seen growth.

“EV and hybrid sales reached 20 percent of U.S. vehicle sales in 2024 for the first time ever,” Cooke said. “That’s great. We know that EV sales continue to rise, not at the amount that they initially predicted, but EV sales are still on the rise.”

Cooke said batteries built at BlueOval SK should outlast the life of the cars they are in, with lifespans of 500,000 to 700,000 miles.

EPD chief proposes communications upgrade to E-Town council

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Elizabethtown Police Chief Jeremy Thompson made a proposal to improve communications abilities for city emergency responders during the Elizabethtown City Council’s work session Monday.

Thompson proposed rather than new construction the city partners with Motorola and the Kentucky State Police on their expansion project, which would allow the EPD and the Elizabethtown Fire Department to use the KSP’s upgraded system. Thompson said this would be a significant savings compared to the estimated $6 million for the city to install its own infrastructure.

“The $1.6 million that you see there is the estimate that we have, but the only cost associated with that is not towers, it’s not building new radio towers, microwaves, or any of those things,” Thompson said. “it’s for equipment. That number is for 100 handhelds and 100 mobile radios to go in the cars.”

Thompson said the KSPs project will be ready in the area by Quarter Four 2026, which means the city has more time to cover the costs. Thompson also said the new equipment helps alleviate stresses on the current system brought on by population increases and expansion the city knows is on the horizon.

“Prior to my arrival, we started talking about some of the strengths and weaknesses of our communications in the city, and the south end of the city has been historically poor for communications,” Thompson said.

Members of the council agreed to review the city’s upcoming budget to evaluate including the proposal.