Miranda H. Lewis
Carter County Times
There is just something special about celebrating a Southern Christmas in a charming little town – something that makes it distinctive and memorable. Enchanting small towns throughout Kentucky take pride in knowing how to create holiday celebrations families will remember for years to come.
Chamber of Commerce President, Crystal Branham, announced downtown Olive Hill will come alive with a Christmas Parade on November 28.
In addition to the parade, the Chamber of Commerce is running a parade theme contest.
Nominations for this year’s Christmas parade theme are being accepted by the Chamber via private message on their Facebook page.
Deadline for submission of entry is Saturday, October 28 and the winner will be announced on Tuesday, October 31.
Mayor Jerry Callihan assured Branham that he and Bruce Palmer, Chief of Police, will take care of road closures and detours for the evening of the parade.
With Breast Cancer Awareness Month underway, Tammy Moore, spoke to the council on the importance of early detection, prevention, and advocacy of women’s health.
In combination with the KYNECT program, Moore has played a big part in organizing a Community Resource Fair to take place on Monday, October 30.
The event will boast a variety of speakers, including State Senator Robin Webb and Representative Patrick Flannery.
Representatives from the American Cancer Society and King’s Daughters Medical Center will be providing education and resources to attendees regarding preventative and therapeutic measures.
Moore asked for representation from the council at the event to show members from the state and surrounding areas that, “we care for our community and what happens to our community members”.
“If I can help just one person, that would be a success,” said an emotional Moore.
Moving forward, a representative from Trane shared a report detailing much anticipated progress in the city’s ongoing Energy Saving Project.
He noted that field manufacturers are scheduled to test instrumentation next week to ensure that equipment is wired properly and assembled appropriately.
He stated that their main goal is to address remaining questions related to sequencing as they await rain and get water reserves to a comfortable level.
During open discussion, a resident voiced concern over road conditions on Parker Memorial.
“As soon as I can get a bid on blacktop, we are going to blacktop the hill,” replied Callihan.
The resident also asked for speed bumps to be installed to slow traffic speed on the road.
Callihan noted that he had previously implemented safety measures on the road in mention to encourage a uniform and low speed, however, they were removed due to multiple complaints from residents.
“I’ll check into it, if not we will install it on the blacktop,” assured Callihan.
Following this discussion, the council passed a resolution to allow Callihan to allocate funding for pavement once a bid is received.
In other action, council heard from FIVCO representatives, Max Hammond, Economic Development Planner, Janie Orcutt, Economic Specialist, and Jasper Ball, Water/Wastewater & GIS Planner.
Hammond spoke to the council regarding economic relief for local communities of the Commonwealth through House Bill 9 (HB 9).
“What everyone needs to understand about HB 9 is that you can’t just make up a list of money and get funding. HB 9 is the match for federal grants. You first must apply for competitive grants and then if you are awarded a federal grant, you can apply for HB 9 funding,” explained Hammond.
Hammond encouraged the council to gather a list of potential projects and offered to help advise them during the grant application process.
“We are trying to influence communities to make transformative changes that will last for generations,” stated Hammond.
“Don’t think small, think about big projects that could transform change,” he persuaded.
Hammond made several recommendations, but a microgrid sparked the most discussion.
“You all could have your own solar power here for the entire city, generating your own electricity,” quipped Hammond.
“Would that take 20 acres?” asked council member Kirk Wilburn.
Hammond explained that there is money allocated for property acquisition within most grants as is construction to upgrade existing structures and build new buildings.
“If we went for a microgrid, could we use land the city already owns as a stepping stone for funding?” continued Wilburn.
A small-scale power grid would give the city the ability to operate independently or collaboratively with other small power grids, allowing them to generate their own electricity.
Hammond said that he recently met with USDA officials, and they agreed that such a setup would be huge to pass within city ordinances.
The council also heard from Ball, who is currently looking at active projects related to water and wastewater with the intention to pursue funding wherever applicable.
“I want to establish an open line of communication,” he encouraged Callihan and the council.
Council member, Chris Bledsoe, read the resolution of the city of Olive Hill accepting the Cleaner Water Grant and approving the grants systems agreement by authorizing the agreement of the city’s annual budget as well as designating a representative to sign all related documents.
Bledsoe made a motion to designate Jackie Logan as the authorized official to sign required documents related to the program. Shane Tackett seconded. Motion carried.
To close out the regular session, council held the second reading of the 2023 property tax ordinance after moving to accept the compensating rate of .226 per $100 of valuation.
