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E-Town Council approves 2026-2027 budget, seats for outdoor music venue

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

The council approved the 2026-2027 city budget on the budget ordinance’s second reading. Members of the council expressed their thanks to city department heads for their work on the budget and highlighted projects outlined, including enhancements for parks and recreation. Council Member Tony Bishop said he is happy to see the city working to better connect the community with the completion of the Commerce Drive extension.

“When I first came on the council, that was something that was discussed and it was just a dream in a way, but now we’re at a point where all groups, all of the partnerships that we have between on the state level, the county level, and now all the things we have coming together just to see that road connect our town from one end to the other,” Bishop said.

The council also approved ordinances on their second readings which annexed 1615 Saint John Road, to be zoned Urban Residential (R-4), and amended the borders for the Downtown Elizabethtown Historic Preservation Overlay to include more historic sites including the Brown-Pusey House.

A municipal order was approved accepting the bid from SpecSeats International for the seating at the outdoor music venue. The council rejected the original bidding on the seats, and after project organizers drafted new bid requirements the bid was accepted for $767,300 or $830,300 with cupholders.

Several bids for materials for the city’s Public Works Department were accepted. Public Works Director Don Hill said costs are up but not dramatically.

“If you look at the paving, on the bituminous concrete there was about a 6 percent increase,” Hill said. “Liquid asphalt is down this month. Earlier in the year, it was right around $700 a ton, $710. It’s at $690 per ton. That’s 6 percent of the composition of the bituminous concrete.”

The Elizabethtown City Council will next meet June 22.

Longest Day of Play offers free fun for Breckinridge County families

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Breckinridge County families are invited to come out to the Breckinridge Community Pool this Thursday for the Longest Day of Play.

Breckinridge County Coalition for Change Fiscal Agent Andrea Sheroan says the event is inspired by June 21 traditionally having the most hours of sunlight.

“We took this as a public health initiative to invite people to use the sunlight to play all day and be active, and just kind of feed mind, body, soul,” Sheroan says.

Children and parents will get to swim for free, and the event will feature inflatables, disc golf, crafts, and other activities.

“The library’s out there,” Sheroan says. “We have other community resources that are available, not just for the kiddos, but for family members. Our family resource coordinators in the county of all of our schools play a major role in planning and executing this event. It’s just really a wonderful thing to bring kiddos out and get some exercise.”

The Longest Day of Play runs Thursday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

“There’s no cost and there’s no registration, and it’s a free event for all who reside in Breckinridge County,” Sheroan says.

A flyer for the event can be found on the Breckinridge County Health Department Facebook page.

Voter registration for independent or other sees slight decline in May

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The first decline in independent or other voter registration in more than a year was seen in Kentucky in May.

The Kentucky Secretary of State’s Office says voter registration saw a net increase of 104 voters in the month of May.

According to the Secretary of State’s office, Republican registration in May increased by 3,747 voters. Democratic registration decreased by 3,305 voters, and independent or other registration decreased by 338. Republican registration makes up 48 percent of the state electorate, Democratic registration makes up 41 percent, and independent or other makes up 11 percent.

The Secretary of State’s Office says 4,633 voters were removed from the rolls in February. 3,883 were deceased, 8 moved out of state, and 611 were convicted felons.

The deadline to register to vote in the 2026 general election is October 5. You can register or check your registration status by visiting govote.ky.gov, or by contacting your county clerk’s office.

2025 a record year for tourism in Hardin County

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Elizabethtown Tourism and Convention Bureau Interim Executive Director Krytsa Souleyrette says in a year that the Kentucky tourism industry once again put up record numbers, she is proud that tourism in Hardin County did the same.

“Hardin County continues to deliver record-breaking economic impact numbers every year, and we are so proud of the increases from last year and are looking forward to doing even better next year,” Souleyrette says.

According to a joint release from E-Town Tourism and the Radcliff/Fort Knox Convention and Tourism Commission, from 2024 to 2025 the local tourism industry saw increases in spending, jobs, labor income, and tax dollars.

“In 2025, visitor spending totaled $376.7 million,” Souleyrette says. “State and local taxes generated through tourism was $30.1 million, and labor income generated through tourism was $76.9 million.”

Souleyrette says the numbers show the strength of Hardin County as a destination and the dedication of area tourism partners.

“You know, there is so much for visitors to explore in our area, and we are looking forward to continuing to welcome them to Hardin County and having them explore everything that there is to do in our area,” Souleyrette says.

According to numbers announced last week, the Kentucky tourism industry generated $14.6 billion in spending in 2025, the fourth-straight record-breaking year for the industry.

30-plus years in prison for Bardstown man, 10 years in prison for Bardstown woman on federal drug charges

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A Bardstown man will serve more than three decades in prison, and a Bardstown woman will serve 10 years, after being sentenced last week on federal drug charges.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Kentucky says following his conviction in a September 2025 jury trial, Neal Scott Stone was sentenced to 30 years in prison followed by 10 years of supervised release. Because Stone was on federal supervised release at the time of the offenses, he was sentenced to an additional three-year prison term, with half to be served consecutively, bringing his total combined prison term to 31.5 years. Meanwhile, Keely Logsdon was sentenced to 10 years in prison following six years of supervised release.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says between August of 2022 and June of 2023, Stone and Logsdon “conspired with each other and others to distribute over 400 grams of fentanyl and a quantity of cocaine.” On eight separate locations, Stone and Logsdon distributed the drugs, with Stone obtaining them from the southwest border of the United States and transporting them back to Bardstown.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says there is no parole in the federal system. The case was prosecuted as part of the Homeland Security Task Force. The FBI, DEA, Greater Hardin County Narcotics Task Force, Nelson County Sheriff’s Office, and Kentucky State Police were among the law enforcement agencies which assisted in the investigation.