QUICKSIE98.3
The Elizabethtown City Council met for a work session Monday evening.
Helping Hand of Hope Executive Director Hope Burke gave the council the organization’s 2023 impact report. Burke said the organization is asking the city to allot $5,000 to them in the upcoming budget. Burke said Helping Hand of Hope has never asked for financial support from the city before, but demand has been increasing on a month to month basis.
“The people that are coming to us, I know sometimes there is that misunderstanding of ‘oh, they’re just, you know, riding the system’ or ‘oh, they really don’t need this assistance,’ but they truly do,” Burke said “We have seniors that’s rent has increased anywhere from $300 to $500 a month. We have single parents that are working, actually making $20 an hour, and still can’t afford their rent with childcare, food, and everything else like that.”
Elizabethtown Mayor Jeff Gregory told Burke the city appreciates the efforts of the organization and the burden that has taken off the city.
E-Town Natural Gas Department Director Matthew Hobbes gave a department update. Hobbes said the department has been busy with several capital projects. Hobbes said project costs and increased employee pay means the city will likely need to consider a rate increase soon.
“I wouldn’t come saying that we need to raise rates unless the writing was on the wall, and it’s looking like that time is about now where we need to be doing something before you get so low that you can’t comfortably operate, so I think we need to look at our tap fees,” Hobbes said. “I think we need to look at what we’re charging for the gas going through the meters, and what you’re charging for just everyday work.”
Representatives from RSA Financial Advisors gave a presentation to the council on the status of the current market and possible financing solutions for the city, including revenue bond services. Gregory said the city’s contribution to the Buffalo Lake concert venue the city is partnering with the E-Town Tourism and Convention Bureau on will likely be paid using bonds.
The city council and the tourism bureau will meet for a joint meeting Thursday which will be followed by a groundbreaking for the Buffalo Trail Phase One project. After budget meetings start on May 6, the Elizabethtown City Council will next meet in a special meeting on May 13.
Area business and government officials were on hand Monday for the official reopening of the Baptist Health Medical Group Family Medicine Facility in Radcliff.
Baptist Health says the facility, located at 1679 North Wilson Road just outside the Fort Knox Wilson Gate, will provide patients with primary care, behavioral health care, and connections to social services.
Baptist Health Hardin President and CEO Rob Ramey said the facility has been several years in the making, the product of several conversations about how to best serve the community’s healthcare needs.
“Primary care is wonderful,” Ramey said. “We have to have the foundation of primary care for our community, but we need to support that more effectively, so the vision here was how do we add behavioral health for our community as well? How do we add a licensed clinical social worker so that he or she can help patients navigate the complex realities of healthcare and try to find the resources and the services that are available to truly help them improve their health and continue on that journey?”
The project was made possible by the financial support of Abound Credit Union. Abound President and CEO Ray Springsteen said Abound began working with entities such as Baptist Health Hardin and officials like Kentucky Second District Congressman Brett Guthrie on the facility as they saw a natural link between financial health and physical health.
“Whenever you’re looking to have problems to solve, you need great partners,” Springsteen said. “One of the things that I love about the community that I live in is that when we want to try to figure something out, we come together. You need great teams for that. I think that’s exactly what we found with Baptist Health, and certainly with Congressman Guthrie, and finding ways to support this.”
Contact Baptist Health Hardin for more information on the family medicine facility.
One of the suspects charged in the Crystal Rogers investigation is asking to be tried separately from the other suspects.
The defense for Joseph Lawson has filed a Motion for Severance of Co-Defendants or Exclusion of Co-Defendant’s Statements with the Nelson Circuit Court. The motion calls for Lawson to be tried in a separate trial from Steven Lawson and Brooks Houck, or to have out-of-trial testimonials from Houck and Steven Lawson be excluded.
Special Prosecutor Shane Young previously filed a motion to try all three suspects in the same trial. The Motion for Severance states that the introduction of out-of-court statements denies Joseph Lawson’s right to cross-examination and would therefore deny him his right to present a defense. The filing also states concern for the potential for conflicting defenses and strategies between the defendants, which could potentially confuse the jury.
The motion will be discussed during the next pre-trial conference in the case, which is scheduled for June 13. Progress on finding a new venue for the trial will be discussed at a hearing on May 1.
The Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Park is hosting a performance of one of the 16th president’s favorites.
Kentucky Shakespeare will be performing A Midsummer Night’s Dream Thursday, April 25 at 6:30 p.m. The performance will be staged at the bottom of the Memorial Building steps near the flagpole, with visitors seated on the steps.
The historical park says the 80-minute performance celebrates Abraham Lincoln’s love of Shakespeare, which began with pieces of the Bard’s work found in books Lincoln read as a child and continued into his adult years, with Shakespeare’s works included in Lincoln’s personal collection at the White House.
The event is free and open to the public. Visitors are asked to arrive at least five minutes prior to the start of the show and are encouraged to bring blankets, cushions, and bug spray. The park’s visitor’s center and library will be open prior to the performance.
Visit the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historic Park Facebook page for more information and updates.