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E-Town council holds first reading on outdoor music venue bond ordinance

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The Elizabethtown City Council met for their second meeting of the month Monday.

The first reading was held on an ordinance approving a general obligations bond for the Buffalo Lake outdoor music venue. The bond is not to exceed $47 million to be paid over a term not to exceed 30 years. Elizabethtown Mayor Jeff Gregory asked City Attorney Ken Howard to clarify that no additional taxes are being created to pay for the bond.

“It is not anticipated that any additional taxes will have to be imposed,” Howard said. “We’ve done the analysis, your financial advisors are here today as well and believe that the current sources of revenue available to the city and to tourism will be sufficient to pay the bonds.”

An ordinance establishing new sewer rates for the city also had its first reading. In addition to establishing new connection, industrial, and commercial fees, the ordinance sets gradual increases in the minimum residential bill, with a rate for the first 2,000 gallons beginning at $14.46 in 2025 and increasing to $19.52 by 2028. Gregory said the city is very careful when considering any increases to fees or taxes, and the fees and rates are still among the lowest in the state.

“We are very cognizant of the fact that with inflation and the economy the way it is right now that people don’t have a ton of extra money and we still want to keep our fees as low as we possibly can, but like I said we have not changed since 2012 on the rate change, and the connection fee since 1999,” Gregory said.

The Elizabethtown City Council will next meet March 24.

KSP accepting applications for youth academy

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The Kentucky State Police will once again be hosting an opportunity for area youth to learn more about a career in law enforcement.

Registration is now available for the second-annual KSP Youth Academy Program, which will be held at the Trooper Island Camp on Dale Hollow Lake from July 21 through 25. The KSP says the weeklong camp “allows Kentucky’s future officers the chance to interact with state police troopers while developing leadership skills, physical fitness, and an understanding of law enforcement principles.”

Participants will take part in a variety of activities including participating in team-building exercises to foster collaboration and teamwork, learning forensic techniques through demonstrations by the KSP Crime Lab, and understanding criminal investigations and crime scene analysis. Last year’s program saw 23 participants from 17 counties across the commonwealth.

The program is open to 16 and 17-year-old Kentuckians. There is no cost to participate. Find more information and the application on the KSP’s website.

Kentucky unemployment sees small increase in January

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Unemployment in Kentucky in January came in slightly higher than where it was the year prior. 

The Kentucky Center for Statistics says the state unemployment average for January was 5.3 percent. That is an increase from January 2024 when the rate was reported at 4.7 percent, but the rate is unchanged from December 2024.

Kentucky’s unemployment average also came in higher in January than the national unemployment rate, which the U.S. Department of Labor reported at 4 percent.

The Kentucky Education and Labor Cabinet says the state’s civilian labor force, which includes people currently employed and people actively searching for work, saw an increase of about 3,900 people from December to January, bringing the civilian labor force to about 2,109,000.

The Education and Labor Cabinet says the Business and Professional Services sector saw an increase from December to January, while numbers in the Manufacturing sector were unchanged. Decreases were seen in the Mining and Logging, Educational and Health Services, Information Services, Financial Activities, Government, Construction, Leisure and Hospitality,  and Trade, Transportation, and Utilities sectors.

Visit the Kentucky Center for Statistics website to learn more about labor market information.

West Point mayor concerned with city council’s decision to end lease on former West Point School building

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West Point Mayor Richard Ciresi says the decision by the West Point City Council at the March 10 council meeting to not renew the city’s lease on the former West Point School building caught him off guard.

“There was no discussion,” Ciresi said. “They had never requested any information or anything else prior to that.”

The city currently leases the building from Hardin County Schools, under which the building came under the jurisdiction of following the merger of the West Point Independent School District into HCS in 2020. The city’s current lease on the building expires on May 31.

Ciresi addressed the issue in a post on the West Point KY Facebook account Friday. He says he is concerned that if the city doesn’t occupy and use the building, it will become another abandoned building, which he said was the case before the city began leasing it.

“The building just wasn’t very cared for, you know, they didn’t cut the grass as often as they should,” Ciresi said. “The building had gotten in rough shape, you know, everything was filthy dirty, and the windows were dirty, and it’s just not good for a building of that stature particularly to sit empty without somebody checking on it and making sure the temperatures are good and people aren’t breaking into it and all those kinds of things.”

Ciresi says he believes it is in the best interest of the city and the citizens of West Point for the city to have a lease agreement on the building.

“We’ve occupied the building almost three years, and we use it for many things,” Ciresi said. “Council meetings, kids club, Girl Scouts, all kinds of other civic events, and at no cost to the city. I mean, it’s all borne by a handful of supporters.”

The mayor said he hopes to bring the issue before the council again prior to the end of the lease on May 31.

Agreed order keeps Steven Lawson pretrial activities in Nelson County

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An order was issued concerning pretrial activities for the case of one of the Crystal Rogers investigation suspects.

Nelson Circuit Judge Charles Simms III issued an agreed order Wednesday in the case of Commonwealth of Kentucky versus Steven Lawson, under which all pleadings prior to trial will be filed with the Nelson Circuit Court and all pretrial proceedings will be held in Nelson County.

According to the order, a change of venue was approved in October of 2024 to move the trial from Nelson County to Warren County. Per Kentucky law, when a case is transferred the case record is transferred with it and any case filings have to be made in the new venue. The order notes that the prosecution and defense agreed to the order based upon convenience to all parties involved.

Lawson’s trial is scheduled to begin on May 27. During a pretrial conference in February, Lawson’s attorneys said they were still concerned with having enough time to process all of the discovery in the case, and noted that Lawson first got access to the discovery himself when the attorneys were appointed to him in August. Simms said he would permit any requested accommodations to get Lawson to the courthouse in order to review the discovery as needed.

Lawson is next scheduled to appear at a pretrial conference on April 3.