WQXE NEWS

CASA of the Heartland is continuing to raise awareness for the most vulnerable children in the community with next of their Light the Night 5K Superhero Run/Walk events, to be held at Buttermilk Falls in Brandenburg Friday evening.

CASA of the Heartland Executive Director Michelle Kail says food trucks and vendors will be on hand for the event, and glow and superhero items will be available. Participants are encouraged to “go all out” with the superhero theme.

“The reason that we do the Light the Night Superhero edition is because we know that our CASA volunteers are providing a light in some of the darkest times for the kiddos that we serve, and to us, they’re kind of like our real life community superheroes,” Kail said.

CASA of the Heartland recruits, trains, and supports community volunteers who advocate on behalf of abused, neglected, and dependent children in Breckinridge, Grayson, Hardin, Hart, LaRue, and Meade counties.

“It really is just whatever we need to do to step up and make sure that their needs are being met, and then whatever we can do with the courts to help them navigate that situation to make sure that they have everything that they need and that their needs there are met,” Kail said.

The party kicks off at Buttermilk Falls Friday at 7 p.m. Packet pick-up starts at 7:30, with the race scheduled to begin at 9:03. Find more information and the registration link on the CASA of the Heartland Facebook page or website.

Elizabethtown Mayor Jeff Gregory told the Elizabethtown City Council that capital project spending factors heavily into the proposed budget for fiscal year 2026-2027, and city department heads are planning for “anticipated growth due to continued commercial and residential growth.”

“Continuing with the process of providing competitive wages for our employees, we have included a 3 percent increase for all employees to maintain our competitive edge with other employers,” Gregory said. “Once again, no change in the employee contribution for medical insurance coverage is included in this year’s budget.”

Gregory read the city budget message during Monday’s city council meeting.

The Elizabethtown Police Department’s proposed budget is $16.8 million, and the Elizabethtown Fire Department’s proposed budget is $10.5 million. The city is committing $1.85 million for the Public Works Department to conduct resurfacing projects, soft purchases, and restriping, and the Streets Division has included $10.7 million in street projects.

“These projects include the completion of the Commerce Drive Extension, which will be an important link necessary to support Elizabethtown’s outdoor music venue,” Gregory said. “Other projects include Pair Orchard Road Northwest improvements, the Veterans Way/Towne Drive intersection, sidewalk extensions, and numerous smaller street, curb, and gutter projects.”

Gregory also highlighted projects in the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, the work of the city’s events staff, the expansion of capacity at the city’s wastewater treatment plant, and stormwater improvements.

“Funds have been allocated in this year’s budget for various sewer work including McCollum Avenue, Sunrise Lane, College Street, U.S. 62, Harvard and Yale drives, and miscellaneous smaller projects,” Gregory said. “Funds have also been allocated to prevent inflow and infiltration of our sewer system.”

The budget will go up for adoption on the budget ordinance’s second reading. The budget ordinance can be found on the city website.

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

The first reading was held on the city’s budget for fiscal year 2026-2027.

“The budget contains total funds available of $158,472,681 and total appropriations for expenditures equal to $125,794.26, with an estimated ending fund balance of $32,677,755,” said City Attorney Ken Howard, reading from the ordinance.

The budget will go up for adoption on the ordinance’s second reading.

The first reading was also held on an ordinance annexing 1615 Saint John Road, to be zoned Urban Residential (R-4), along with an ordinance for a text amendment change for historic preservation overlay which would add more properties to the Downtown Historic District, including the Brown-Pusey House.

A municipal order approving a $497,032 bid from Pace Contracting LLC for Phase III of the North Main Street sidewalk improvements project was approved, as was a municipal order  approving an agreement with the City of Radcliff for the creation of the Gaither Station Range for law enforcement firearms training. Elizabethtown Police Chief Jeremy Thompson said the city has been using the range at the Hardin County landfill for about the past 30 years.

“Essentially, the number of law enforcement agencies that utilize that range has grown,” Thompson said. “The calendar that we all share has become a lot more difficult to just manage those times that are best effective for our schedules in E-Town. (Radcliff Police) Chief Cross and I had been in conversations about somehow collaborating on a range.”

During the meeting’s invocation, Council Member Marty Fulkerson honored Elizabethtown Firefighter Ryan Druen, who died at the age of 52 Friday. Elizabethtown Mayor Jeff Gregory asked for continued thoughts and prayers for Druen’s family, friends, and fellow firefighters.

“I know what he’s meant to (Elizabethtown Fire Chief) Mark and the rest of the fire department,” Gregory said. “To be quite frank, they’re sad, and we’re sad because we’ve lost a great teammate, and a friend, somebody that made a real difference in our community, and he will be missed.”

Public visitation for Ryan Druen will be Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. at Central Hardin High School. The Brooks Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

The Elizabethtown City Council will next meet June 8.