By: Charles Romans
Carter County Times
Olive Hill Tourism held their second meeting at the police department in Olive Hill on Tuesday, July 1, despite still not having the required number of members stipulated by Kentucky Revised Statutes (KRS). The commission heard from local residents who spoke about their desire to build both a skateboard park and a dog park in Olive Hill and petitioned the commission for funding.
Discussion about the proposed dog park centered on security and location. The location discussed was in front of the police department, because there are already benches in place and there is an open, grassy area that could be fenced in. The location would allow space for a long ‘run’ for larger dogs and a shorter run for smaller dogs. The area in question has a water supply and is not being actively used by the city.
Olive Hill city councilman Eric Rayburn attended the tourism meeting, and pointed out that whatever location was ultimately chosen, a means would have to be put in place to manage the urine smell that inevitably accompanies such parks. He did point out that the location near the police department had adequate drainage which would help to eliminate the smell.
Supporters of the proposed dog park pointed out to the commission that many larger cities have dog parks where tourists and day travelers are able to walk and otherwise exercise their animals. The dog park could be a supportive addition to other tourism draws for Olive Hill such as Trail Town and Carter Caves. Local residents, the supporters said, would also be able to use the dog park to walk their own animals.
If the tourism commission decides to fund or otherwise subsidize the project, any area chosen would need to be fenced, as well as have internal fencing to separate the smaller breeds from larger dogs. The cost of the fencing was estimated to be between 6,000 and 9,000 dollars, though no actual bids had been taken.
Renee Parsons from the Business Cultivation Foundation (BCF) in Grayson spoke to the tourism commission about possibly funding local organizations already operating in Olive Hill that have a benefit to tourism. BCF is the grant writer for Carter County, and Parsons gave the commission some insights on how Olive Hill Tourism might apply and qualify for various tourism-based grants. Parsons told the commission that they already had several things of interest to stakeholders.
“One of the first things I heard about when I came to town was Trail Town,” Parsons said. “They (Trail Town) already have tourism-based things going, and they already have stakeholders. The Arts and Heritage Center is another one. It is a convention center, and convention centers are mentioned in your statute no less than eight times,” Parsons continued. “So that is something you can fund.”
Parsons brought to the commission’s attention that the Arts and Heritage Center had already received $80,000 in opioid abatement funds, and are using those funds to extend their music program, their choir program, and have extended their theatre program.
“They had almost 200 people at their variety show the other day,” Parsons said. “And they are doing a lot of other things. You have a convention center,” Parsons reiterated. “It’s the Trail Town Stage, with a big sign out front.”
Tourism commissioner Brittany Rayburn asked Parsons if the presence of the convention center would help the commission to apply for tourism grants, and Parsons confirmed that was the case. Utilization of the convention center would increase the possibility of securing grants, Parsons confirmed.
“The stuff that you already have going that have people behind it only need a little investment to help them reach the next level,” Parsons said. “Then you can take that investment and maximize it, then with that leverage you can apply for new grants.”
In other business, the commission read and approved their bylaws by unanimous vote. The commission also voted to approve the expenditures previously made for Homecoming and the Fourth of July holiday. Those expenditures totaled just over $6,000. The commission determined that there would need to be a work meeting scheduled to discuss their budget for the fiscal year, and that meeting is slated to take place before their next regularly scheduled meeting.
Contact the writer at charles@cartercountytimes.com
