What has become of Wyldwood? (http://www.maysville-online.com/articles/2008/10/19/local_news/815wildwood.txt)
By Marla Toncray, Ledger Independent, October 17, 2008

As the first year anniversary of the announcement of the Wyldwood of Kentucky development approaches, plans for the multimillion dollar project are still on hold.

On Nov. 13, 2007, representatives of the Wyldwood development team held an elaborate presentation at the French Quarter Inn which was attended by local politicians, business organizations and property owners. Steve Presson, president and CEO of Coast Resource Development, Inc. of Coral Springs, Fla., presided over the presentation, during which plans for a $520 million residential and commercial venture on Stonelick Road in eastern Mason County and a hunting preserve on Clarks Run Road were revealed.

As of Friday, there has still been no official word from Wyldwood executives as to when closings will be held on the assemblage of properties involved in the development.

The last contact with Wyldwood Kentucky, LLC spokesperson Ed D'Angelo took place in April 2008, when he answered questions from The Ledger Independent about the continued lending delays for the project.

D'Angelo is the chief negotiator for the funding of the Maysville development.

"We're still trucking along," D'Angelo said in April, "As soon as the financial markets settle down we will be able to progress in these closings. Right now, it's a question of exactly what the project will cost and what return lenders will receive. That's a hard number to pin down right now with the markets bouncing around like they are. Fortunately, we have a project that the financial markets really like. It's a difficult time right now in terms of funding concerns for these larger development projects and we feel fortunate that we have such an extraordinary project. Kentucky is such a beautiful state, probably one of the best kept secrets in this country, this project will really give it a chance to show off. If we didn't have one of the better investment projects going, we would be worried, but we do and we're not."

Since April, attempts to contact D'Angelo or Presson for comment on the project have not been successful. Messages to Presson's e-mail address and telephone number by The Ledger Independent have not been answered.

Jim Barry, a Maysville native and one of the originators of the project, did not return a call to the paper, Friday.

Bill Kachler, owner of Kachler's Real Estate in May's Lick, is handling all the transactions for property closing from a local standpoint. When asked about the status of the project two weeks ago, Kachler said he is confident the project will go through because he has been given no reason to believe otherwise.

Local business owner Kevin McRoberts of McRobert's Furniture said Friday he received letters from Kachler at the beginning of August and as recently as the beginning of October saying the project is "going forward."

McRoberts owns the former White Manor Hotel in downtown Maysville, which is part of the plans for the Wyldwood project. The former hotel was to be renovated to serve as office space for the Wyldwood team as well as a hotel.

McRoberts said the building was not for sale when he was approached with the offer to sell and he agreed to the purchase because of the future development of the building.

When asked if he had received any money from Wyldwood for the building, McRoberts said that was personal, but went on to say "No, we haven't closed anything."

The law firm of Fox, Wood, Wood & Estill is handling only the title searches on the properties and to facilitate the closings of those properties when money is received from Wyldwood.

FWW&E attorney Jackie Sue Wright said Friday her firm's contact has been with Prodenken Investments.

"I'm not authorized by our client to say one way or another," Wright said when asked the status of property closings.

Originally, property closings were to be completed by January 2008; they were delayed to the end of February; and then were delayed a third time to March 2008. The environment of financial markets were cited by Wyldwood spokespersons as to the delays.

The proposed Wyldwood Kentucky Resort Community includes more than 2,000 acres for a hunting preserve with lodge and cabins along Clarks Run Road, a 76-acre marina and RV park on the Ohio River, nearly 2,700 acres for a Hilltop Village property with a host of features located off Stonelick Road and Kentucky 9, and the White Manor Hotel in downtown.

Frankfort's Old State Arsenal will be restored (http://www.kentucky.com/181/story/564760.html)
By Greg Kocher, Herald-Leader, October 23, 2008

FRANKFORT — What's old will become new again at the Kentucky Military History Museum.

Some modern additions to the Old State Arsenal are being removed so it more closely resembles its original appearance when it opened as a munitions warehouse in 1850. The museum has occupied the castlelike building since 1973 to tell the military history of the commonwealth.

Extensive preservation work funded by the Kentucky Department of Military Affairs is being done to the building, which overlooks the Kentucky River near Capitol Avenue Bridge.

The museum has been closed since November. Its artifacts — from military ribbons and medals to cannon tubes — are now in storage at the nearby Thomas D. Clark Center for Kentucky History. (The museum is part of a three-building campus that includes the Center for Kentucky History and the Old State Capitol.)

The installation of a new heating, ventilation and air-conditioning system was finished earlier this year.

The museum's closing allowed for further assessment of what should be done to the building. The resulting study noted that iron bars, installed on the windows sometime between 1925 and 1933, have caused some problems, said Bill Bright, a curator for the Kentucky Historical Society, which operates the museum with the Kentucky National Guard.

"The weight of the iron bars has slowly compressed against the masonry, and the deterioration of the steel has started cracking the brick around the window casings," Bright said.

So workers cut the bars and removed the damaged bricks. The putty in the windows contains asbestos, so that must be removed. Lead paint also has to be removed from the windows, along with asbestos floor tiles.

There will also be restoration work to doors and the removal of a modern chimney. And drywall removed from the interior will allow sunlight to shine into the main gallery once more.

"We've got the opportunity to take the building to an earlier time period," Bright said.

The restoration work is being done by Midwest Maintenance Inc. of Piqua, Ohio. That firm has done work on the Old State Capitol steps in Frankfort and at Fort Sumter National Monument near Charleston, S.C.

"This is one of the smaller jobs we've been on," foreman Steve Wright said.

During the first years of the Civil War, the arsenal employed women who made cartridges, the paper-wrapped cylinders that each held a ball and powder.

The Union soldier would tear open the cartridge with his teeth, pour the powder down the muzzle, remove the ball from the paper and then place it into the muzzle, pushing it down the barrel with a ramrod. Good teeth were as necessary as clear eyesight and coordination in the heat of battle.

During the Civil War, Confederates attacked the arsenal from nearby Frankfort Cemetery.

In 1933, a fire damaged the building. Last year, research showed that not all the interior had been gutted. The roof was destroyed and the second floor was damaged, but the 1850-vintage beams and posts seen on the first floor today survived.

"So just knowing that is original is wonderful," Bright said.

Bright can't say with certainty how much the restoration will cost or when the building will reopen. It's possible that it will remain closed through much of 2009.

However, a new exhibit called Kentucky Treasures: The Military History Collection is scheduled to open in the summer of 2009 at the Clark Center for Kentucky History. That exhibit will display artifacts that were at the military museum plus other items.

This much Bright can say: "The building is a veteran in its own right. It's still serving after 158 years."

Ceremony kicks off construction of Centre science building (http://www.amnews.com/public_html/?module=displaystory&story_id=45036&format=html)
Advocate-Messenger, October 23, 2008

Centre College will ceremoniously mark the beginning of construction on the new science building and the partial renovation of Young Hall at 4 p.m. Friday in front of Young Hall on campus. Members of the Centre and local communities are welcome to attend the groundbreaking ceremony and celebrate the addition to Centre's campus.

The new two-story building, which is set to be completed in 2010, will add 40,000 square feet of space to campus facilities dedicated to instruction and research in the sciences. It will adjoin Young Hall on its north (front) and west sides, extending the architectural themes now found in the exteriors of Crounse and Sutcliffe halls.

The new science building will include:
* Six large classrooms
* Eight teaching labs
* Research labs for eight faculty members
* Several common, collaborative work areas
* Significant space for science on display
* Expansion and renovation of animal facilities

In addition, Young Hall, currently used for science instruction, will be partially renovated. The two-building complex will house the psychology, psychobiology, biology and biochemistry, and molecular biology programs, as well as the synthetic chemists. The physical and analytical chemists and the physics, mathematics and computer science programs will remain in Olin Hall.

Increasing opportunities for undergraduate research, especially student-faculty collaborative research, is a major impetus for constructing the new science center.

This is really good for Centre. About five years ago, most of the campus was outdated and very plain looking. Soon, all of the academic buildings will be completely renovated.

Justice Center: Construction planned to start in spring (http://www.themoreheadnews.com/local/local_story_298114152.html)
By Nicole Back, Morehead News, October 24, 2008

Rowan County and Morehead State University officials have swapped land.

Rowan Judge-Executive Jim Nickell made the announcement Wednesday on Morehead State Public Radio’s news talk show, Front Page.

The county will get the old Cowden Manufacturing Plant in Morehead, where it plans to build its new $12 million justice center. MSU will own the land where Rowan County’s courthouse is currently located.

Nickell said he expects construction on the new courthouse to start next spring, along with a new county office building, which will be located across the street.

“Our plan is to be putting two buildings up at one time at some point in time in the construction,” Nickell said.

The county offices will be located across the street from the judicial center.

“The two buildings will face each other,” Nickell said. “Our plan is for them to mirror each other. The administrative office building will be a single floor versus a second floor on the justice center. They will face towards Norman Wells Avenue with Main Street and First Street being on their sides.”

Nickell said there will be over 200 parking spaces in the lower section across from the post office and old Carr Lumber property areas.

The county wants to take over the old factory in January, Nickell said.

“At that time we hope to have a company in place to demolish the building,” he said. “We’re going to have to restructure that road and of course the building pad and sometime in March or April we’ll have groundbreaking.

Nickell said the decision for Rowan County and MSU to swap land had to be made carefully.

“There’s been several meetings between the county, university officials and the administrative office of the courts,” he said. “There was about five groups to come together to agree for all the set things to fall into place. Without the help of President Andrews and the courts and the fiscal court none of this would have happened. I think everyone has seen this is a step in the right direction for the long term growth of this county and this university and the city.”

Nickell expects both projects to be complete by 2011.

Knox breaks ground on Courthouse annex (http://www.thetimestribune.com/local/local_story_298094333.html)
By Brad Hicks, Times Tribune, October 24, 2008

Soon, Knox Countians in the western part of the county will no longer have to travel to the courthouse in Barbourville to take care of matters such as transferring car titles and paying property tax.

Thursday afternoon, officials broke ground on the new West Knox Courthouse Annex, to be located adjacent to Mitchell Stone on U.S. 25E in Corbin. The location will house a satellite office for the Knox County Sheriff’s Department, the West Knox Ambulance Service and a meeting room for Property Valuation Administrator Bill Oxendine.

Services offered to citizens will include acceptance of deed recordings, absentee voting and car title transfers. Knox County residents can also pay their property taxes at the annex, with a “drive-thru” window for added convenience.

A landing zone for emergency service helicopters will also be located in front of the building.

“What we want to do is provide services for this end of the county, the same services as they offer at the county seat,” said Knox County Judge-Executive J.M. Hall. “It’s going to be a service for all of Knox County.”

The idea for the project began in early 2005, when several magistrates and Knox County Clerk Mike Corey saw the need for an office in the Corbin area. They went to Sen. Robert Stivers to request a $300,000 for the annex.

“We wanted to do something significant for this end of the county,” Magistrate Guilio Cima said.

Knox County secured $750,000 from Frankfort for the annex, but the funding was nearly lost when officials were unable to find a location for the annex.

“It’s been a struggle, but we’re glad to see today come,” Cima said.

Corey said he has heard demand for such an office and wanted to do what he could to make it happen.

“Since I was elected, I’ve heard time and time again we need a service across Gilliam Hill in Corbin, Kentucky,” he said. “My campaign slogan has been ‘Knox County doesn’t end at the top of Gilliam Hill.’”

While he helping secure funding, Stivers deferred credit for the annex to the magistrates who first contacted him.

“I’m a small part in this,” he said. “I appreciate the compliments, but it’s a chain and I’m just a link in the chain... If it weren’t for them, it never would’ve got started.”

Hall hopes to have construction on the site begin within the next month and, weather permitting, have the annex up and running in about two months.

“This is gonna help a lot of people,” Cima said. “It’s gonna help the county.”

Access for disabled a problem at new courthouse (http://www.kentucky.com/181/story/568058.html)
By John Cheves, Herald-Leader, October 24, 2008

CYNTHIANA — Sandy Sageser moved into her new home a year ago, but she didn't update the address on her driver's license because she couldn't get to the circuit court clerk's office in the Harrison County Justice Center.

Severe back and kidney problems force Sageser to use a wheelchair or walker to get around.

Unfortunately for her, the $6-million Justice Center, which opened in 2002 as part of Kentucky's ambitious courts expansion, has just one public door. There are 11 steps in front of it, and no wheelchair ramp.

Instead of a ramp, the Kentucky Administrative Office of the Courts installed a mechanical wheelchair lift. But the lift frequently is broken. When it does work, it's operated by a guard who must be summoned by a buzzer.

Sometimes there is only one guard on duty at the entrance. If so, he either needs to call for another guard to come and help the disabled person, or he has to lock down the entrance while he operates the lift.

As the minutes pass, Sageser said, disabled people are expected to wait patiently outside on the sidewalk, exposed to the weather.

"How are they getting away with this? Isn't there a law?" Sageser asked. "Prisoners get treated better at this courthouse than we do. At least the prisoners can get in."

There is a law — the Americans with Disabilities Act, or ADA — that says disabled people should be able to enter public facilities under their own power.

But as Harrison County shows, the law is not always followed in Kentucky courthouses, even as the AOC has allocated $880 million to build 65 justice centers around the state.

Nobody seems to know how widespread accessibility problems are.

AOC spokeswoman Jamie Ball said the courts agency can only document and address accessibility problems that citizens bring to its attention. This year, that has included complaints about inoperable automatic doors in the Jefferson and Lee county courthouses, Ball said.

The AOC did not know about the Harrison County Justice Center until the Herald-Leader inquired about it, she said.

"Once we learned there was a problem, our ADA coordinator made a site visit and asked the state ADA coordinator to have a facilities specialist look at the lift and provide feedback," Ball wrote in a statement. "Once the AOC receives that feedback, we will address issues with the lift to ensure that it operates properly and consistently within ADA requirements."

A lawmaker who oversees state construction projects, including the justice centers, said there's no excuse for a new building that is not wheelchair accessible.

"I had never heard of this, and I think it's a huge problem," said state Sen. Tom Buford, R-Nicholasville, a member of the legislature's Capital Projects and Bond Oversight Committee.

"We are spending so much on these justice centers, they had better have all the bells and whistles, they had better be fully in compliance with all the laws," Buford said.

Sageser returned to the Justice Center on a recent rainy day, shortly after the Herald-Leader and an AOC official separately visited and asked questions. A guard hurried outside to activate the lift for her.

Call ahead for help

Harrison County officials and residents started to ask questions about the absence of a wheelchair ramp at the Justice Center in 2002, before Codell Construction of Winchester finished building it, following the designs of CMW of Lexington, the architects.

The original county courthouse across the street is largely inaccessible to anyone who can't climb stairs, with toilets in the basement, offices on the second floor and no elevator. It still houses the county government.

Everyone wanted the new courts building to be better, said Bill Wright, a former member of the Harrison County Fiscal Court who had both knees replaced and sometimes has trouble with stairs. Wright wrote letters to county and state officials in 2002, asking about accessibility.

"We wanted them to pour a ramp," Wright said. "The government just kept telling us, 'We have a waiver, we have a waiver!'"

It did have a waiver.

In a May 2002 letter to Harrison County's judge-executive, addressing accessibility concerns, AOC architect James Bauman said a ramp would be "awkward, at the very least." The AOC decided to put the Justice Center in a flood plain, so the first floor was six feet above street level. A ramp either would have to be steep or lengthy to reach that level, Bauman wrote.

"We agree with the granting and acceptance of a waiver to allow the installation of a lift," Bauman wrote.

But the original premise for the lift — that it "will always be available" and "does not require any special knowledge or assistance to operate," which is what CMW agreed to in state records — swiftly was violated.

"We've had a considerable amount of trouble keeping it up and running," Judge-Executive Alex Barnett said. "We've had to go back and forth with the company that installed it, for repairs in the computer boards. We've gotten some comments and complaints about it."

Even when it works, citizens can't use the lift themselves, as the law requires. To prevent children from playing on the lift, the Justice Center's guards rearranged the controls so that only they can operate it — when they are available to do so.

The county has asked disabled visitors to announce themselves ahead of time, so guards can prepare for them. It placed a public notice in the local newspaper: "People with disabilities, under extenuating circumstances... may enter the Harrison County Justice Center by calling the circuit clerk's office one hour prior to arrival."

These rigged arrangements are totally unacceptable for a new public building that cost the taxpayers millions of dollars, said Buford, the state senator who sits on the capital projects panel.

"Not one citizen should be stuck outside these buildings waiting for someone to help them in," Buford said. "Whatever it costs to make the Harrison County entrance fully accessible to everyone at all times, we should do it, and we should take it out of the AOC's budget."

Bids offered on Danville City Hall project (http://www.amnews.com/public_html/?module=displaystory&story_id=45223&format=html)
By Charlie Cox, Advocate-Messenger, October 29, 2008

Dozens of would-be city contractors crowded in the commission chambers Tuesday to see their bids opened by the city of Danville.

The city requested bids on 15 different areas of the proposed municipal facility (carpeting, landscaping, etc.) and received 53.

The lowest bids, when added together, place the cost of the project in the neighborhood of $5.7 million.

Should construction plans be approved by the City Commission next week at a special meeting, construction manager Jim Martin of Codell Construction Co. said Codell will provide an on-site superintendent during the construction to manage the contractors. The company will also station an operations trailer at the location.

City Manager Paul Stansbury, who said he was very happy given the large number of bids and amount of interest generated in the project, welcomed the contractors, while Martin organized some of the late-arriving bids moments before the 2 p.m. deadline.

Martin read the bids aloud and advised the contractors he and his company would be in touch.

"We're going to tally up the bids, check out references and check out people, and then we'll come to the city and tell them what we recommend," said Martin. "What they want to do with that information is up to them."

Codell is scheduled to present to the City Commission at a special meeting on Nov. 6.

"At that point, they'll have to decide to do the project or not," said Martin, reiterating that all he can do until that point is offer recommendations. He also said the city could elect to re-bid portions - or all - of the project, if that's the desire of the commission.

"Until (next) Thursday, this is still just considered a planned project," Stansbury said.

If the commission elects to go forward on the new city hall, they'll be faced with another hefty decision at the Nov. 6 meeting: Relocation.

Stansbury previously projected moving city hall operations to an alternate location during the renovation and construction would save Danville both cash and time.

The city manager estimated the savings to be about $100,000.

If the recommended bids are accepted and the project is approved as planned, Stansbury said staff will make recommendations as to the temporary move.

County to raze historic home (http://www.courierpress.com/news/2008/oct/22/county-to-raze-historic-home/?gleaner=1/)
By Frank Boyett, Gleaner, October 22, 2008

Henderson Fiscal Court has pretty much concluded it must raze the historic Water Street house it has owned the past four years.

Magistrate Hugh McCormick asked the county's intentions during Tuesday's meeting of the court, which prompted Judge-executive Sandy Watkins to say:

"Before we do any demolition I think it would be in our best interests to do an inventory to make sure that if there is something worth salvaging in the house that we ... keep it if somebody will be able to use it. Hopefully, we're going to be able to do something here in the next week or two."

After the meeting Watkins confirmed that fiscal court members have informally concluded the house is past saving.

"There are some structural issues," he said. "It's not cost-effective to try to fix the building. For us to go in and put any more money into it and do the stuff it would take would take several hundred thousand dollars. We put it up for sale. We've tried to do two or three things with it."

"We know the building is in bad disrepair," said McCormick. "I wouldn't feel right about using taxpayers' money to remodel the building at all, with it being in as bad of shape as it is.

"It's too far gone to fix up," said Magistrate Carter Wilkerson. "And the lot's small. The county virtually got what they need off of it -- the five feet off the side and the 12 off the back of it. It helped enlarge the judicial center parking lot," which was the county's primary purpose for buying the building in May of 2004 for $121,000.

McCormick also addressed the idea of hiring someone to inventory the house. "We want to find out if there's anything in the house of historical value -- any architectural mantelpieces, crown moldings or door casings -- anything that's re-usable," he said.

"We want to recycle as much out of that house as we can," Watkins said, including the bricks and timbers. "Just to tear it down and haul it off to the landfill is not what we want to do."

The county's efforts to sell the house have been unsuccessful. "We lost interest in it once people realized there is no rear entrance to the property," McCormick said, noting one side abuts the post office parking lot and the other side has a view of back yards.

"That hurt the value of the property. We think it would be more valuable to our citizens if we could do something more family oriented."

No decision has yet been made on what to do with the lot, Watkins noted, but one idea being kicked around is "something that families could utilize: a picnic area or a resting area or something of that nature. I think we're kind of open to suggestions on that.

"There has been a discussion about a Mothers Day-type theme, a pavilion or something of that nature." One possibility, he said, is selling ceramic tiles that would include the names of donors' mothers. "There would be this mosaic of tile on part of the pavilion. I thought that was a pretty good idea. But there's no definitive answer right now."

According to records at the county clerk's office, the house apparently was built shortly after the lot was bought by French-born merchant Peter Semonin in the summer of 1856.

Whitewater proponents hear from course designer as they seek funds for park (http://www.bgdailynews.com/articles/2008/10/29/news/news4.txt)
By Jim Gaines, The Daily News, October 29, 2008

Although the promise of future local funding for a whitewater course on the Barren River has been removed from the city’s downtown redevelopment plan, backers of that idea are still pushing by small stages, inching closer to a final plan and casting around for money elsewhere.

Tuesday morning they got at least a psychological boost from Risa Shimoda of McLaughlin Whitewater, a major designer of such parks. She came at the invitation of Steve and Debbie Spencer, whitewater enthusiasts and local project supporters - and Shimoda declared the Barren River ripe for development.

“All you need is water, a little bit of gradient and access,” Shimoda said. All of those, plus trails, nearby parking and surrounding development, are already at Bowling Green’s riverfront.

Proposals to build a whitewater course at the riverfront have been around for several years, fitting neatly into larger plans to develop parks on both sides of the river. Land for those parks, and some construction funds, came through a federal earmark obtained by U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and the park is now named for him.

A planning study for a whitewater course was done two years ago in consultation with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. That put the likely cost of a six-drop course near $5 million, said Jim Bullington, a member of the Greenways Commission and supporter of the project. Shorter and cheaper courses also were considered in the study.

The two-year-old estimate is probably still valid, Shimoda said, depending on how much rock has to be moved. That leaves just “one step in between now and starting construction - that’s getting the funding,” she said.

The plan to sell bonds in 2013 to build a whitewater park and other recreation projects downtown was pulled from a recently endorsed expansion of the downtown redevelopment district.

Bullington said McConnell has been asked for more money to build the whitewater park, and those requests will keep coming. Spencer said its backers also would like to see it put back into the downtown redevelopment plan.

The park already controls both sides of the river, so building portage ways and numerous vantage points should be no problem, Bullington said. There’s even the idea of running a water taxi down to Beech Bend, where there’s plenty of parking and thousands of campsites, he said.

A whitewater course would be a nice addition to downtown, “another layer” of attractions for visitors, said Vicki Fitch, executive director of the Bowling Green Area Convention & Visitors Bureau. The bureau has tried to diversify Bowling Green’s tourism appeal, attracting a variety of visitors; that broad flow helps lessen the “super-lows” of tough economic times, she said.

“I’d like to see them be able to find the money to put it all together,” Fitch said.

The first major whitewater park was built in Augsburg, Germany, for the 1972 Munich Olympics, Shimoda said. In 2000, there were 17 courses in the United States, she said. Now there’s probably 150 worldwide, and 50 in the United States, with half of those in Colorado where they’re funded by the state lottery, Shimoda said. Another 25 are probably at about the same stage as Bowling Green’s plan, she said.

Whitewater parks are often viewed as exclusive amusement for a few, but perhaps 90 percent of users aren’t boaters, Shimoda said. The vast majority of people who enjoy such parks do so by watching from the shore, or walking and biking nearby, she said.

Major events can draw thousands of people, and while total economic impact is hard to estimate, it could easily be millions annually, Shimoda said.

Spencer said people in Louisville, Lexington and as far away as West Virginia tell her they’d “be here every weekend.” The point of tourism attractions is to get people into the area, and keep them here longer, thus spending more money locally, she said.

Public meeting held on Wilmore streetscape plan (http://www.jessamineonline.com/public_html/?module=displaystory&story_id=8215&format=html)
By Tyler Young, Jessamine Journal, October 29, 2008

Representatives from the two firms working on the $4 million Wilmore streetscape project were at Wesley Village Tuesday evening to hear from the public about concerns and ideas that they had about the project.

Residents were able to talk one-on-one with project managers and designers from H.W. Lochner and M2D Design and look at maps with some of the possible changes and improvements to the area around Lexington Avenue, and East College and Walnut streets.

“We want to get information from the public about some issues with the project corridor,” Lochner Project Manager Jerry Leslie said. “We just want to hear from the public and their concerns.”

Some of the proposed ideas for improvements included pedestrian access from the north side of College Street, redesigning the Walnut Street entrance into Asbury Theological Seminary, expanded parking and streetscape designs on East College. The idea is to tie the area in with the rest of Wilmore and give it the look and feel of the rest of the town.

“One of the things I mentioned was (the College Street corridor) seems to be the second main entrance into Wilmore, and it doesn’t really look like it when you drive in,” Curt Jackson, who lives on East College Street, said. “When you come over the bridge, you don’t really think you’re in town until you get to Lexington (Avenue).”

Jackson also said he would like to see more pedestrian walkways, especially across College Street.

“There’s always, around colleges, concerns about adequate pedestrian walkways and that type of thing,” he said. “They’re looking at making some improvements. That will be nice, especially putting walkways on both sides of the road.”

Visitors were asked to fill out surveys about their use of the area and show what paths they take around Wilmore regularly.

Tamra Nowitzki, who lives on Gillispie Street just south of College, said she came out to see how the project would improve traffic and sidewalk issues.

“I am very happy with what I’ve seen,” she said. “We were talking about possibly closing Gillispie Street, the first part, because it’s not very functional, and continuing the sidewalks down around on Walnut and fixing those because they’re pretty terrible. The parking lots next to my house would be great.”

Leslie said the project is currently in the conceptual phase.

“Once we compile all of the information that we get from tonight’s meeting, then we’ll go to the drawing board and develop some concepts that address some of these concerns and go from there,” he said.

According to Leslie, construction should begin in about a year.

The project is being paid for mostly by a $3.12 million grant that Asbury Theological Seminary received last year. The grant is an 80-20 match, meaning the seminary will pay up to $781,000 toward the project. The federal money is going through the city of Wilmore via an agreement that Mayor Harold Rainwater signed in December.

Two weeks ago, the Jessamine County-city of Wilmore Planning and Zoning committee heard a proposal from Lanny Spears of the seminary to redo the off-campus residential area north of East College Street and east of Lexington Avenue with townhomes. That proposal also included several walkways and bicycle paths that could tie in with some of the walkways in the streetscape project design, increasing the need to make Walnut Street the focal entrance to the seminary.

Leslie said the designers are taking that development into account with their plans.

River plans could include amphitheater (http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4457149)
By Paul Glasser, State Journal, October 31, 2008

Plans to redevelop the Kentucky River in Frankfort could include an amphitheater, walk and bike trails, restaurants and additional water-borne recreational activities.

More than 80 attended a public meeting at the Capital Plaza Hotel Thursday to provide input on the proposed riverfront development plan. A trio of consultants will take the public comments and formulate a list of priorities.

The consultants will return in January for additional conversations with the riverfront development steering committee. They'll host another public meeting after that and could present a final plan in March or April.

The project is funded by a $150,000 state grant and $116,000 will go to the consultants, including Lexington-based Cultural Resource Analysts, Inc; St. Louis-based Development Strategies; and JJR, Inc. of Wisconsin.

Doug Henley, a fisheries biologist for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife, participated in one of 27 focus groups conducted between Tuesday and Thursday at the hotel.

More than 150 others took part, including business owners, state and local officials, engineers, realtors and developers.

Henley said he was enthused during the focus group and attended the public meeting because he's a concerned resident of Frankfort.

"I wanted to put in my two cents-worth," he said. "I think it has a lot of potential. If done right it could it would be great, personally."

Henley said he was interested in a lot of the ideas discussed during the public meeting, such as connecting the Kentucky River with downtown Frankfort via walking and bike paths.

"Connecting people back to the river, that's what Frankfort is all about really," he said.

Other ideas including promoting tourism by bringing restaurants and performance art down to the river. Magistrate Huston Wells said during a focus group meeting Thursday "there is a huge need in the community for restaurants."

Henley said he was particularly interested in the idea of a water taxi on the Kentucky River to improve transportation in Frankfort. Another idea he supported is a Paul Sawyier tour that would include stops at prominent locations in and around Frankfort that were featured in his paintings.

"That would be neat if you could actually get to where the scenes were painted and see how it is now but also see how it was then," Henley said.

However, there are a lot of obstacles to consider as well including Frankfort's complicated topography the consultants said.

Emergency Management Coordinator Deron Rambo also said it will be difficult to build outside or above the 100-year floodplain. Other concerns include preparing for a hazardous materials event, flooding, tornadoes or other natural disasters, he said.

"More people around the water means more danger," Rambo said. "It's not a bad thing, it's just appropriate to plan for."

Jon Hoffman, a community planner with consultant JJR, said the attitudes in Frankfort toward the Kentucky River are changing. The city was founded on the Kentucky River because it was an important method of transportation, but eventually people began to fear the destructive power of the river, he said.

"It's turning back around to where we started," Hoffman said. "There are businesses on the water now like Buffalo Trace, the Dragon and Jim's Seafood."

However, there are still a lot of issues to address, such as improved access to recreational activities on the water, he said. One possible solution includes rental services for paddleboats, canoes and kayaks.

"If you don't own a boat it's hard to get down to the river," Hoffman said.

The restoration of Green River House (http://www.greenriversun.com/grs/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=278:the-restoration-of-green-river-house&catid=58:green-river-sun-news&Itemid=56)
By Mimi Moore, Green River Sun News, August 28, 2008

(Perhaps the largest private renovation project in Green County is underway in downtown Greensburg, Kentucky. Local residents Sam and Mimi Moore are restoring the historic Green River House and the following article is the first of many installments detailing the restoration effort. The article first appeared in Small Town Living. It is reprinted here with permission. ed.)

I remember that phone call clearly. The rumor was the owner of what used to be “the old hotel on the square” was going to tear down the two historic buildings behind it so the City could park garbage trucks there.

Now first of all, The Old Tavern House, The Green River House or The Green River Hotel (called so depending on the year and the owner), was built circa 1820, and the two old buildings behind it - a large brick kitchen and a limestone house - were built before that. Granted the brick kitchen was in a terrible state of disrepair, but still, it was historic.

Allow me to introduce myself I am Mimi Moore, wife of Sam Moore, who is an attorney by trade but savior of old historic buildings by heart! Well, it didn’t take long for Sam to get on the phone to Willie Milby and ask him to stop the demolition, but he ended up getting an option to purchase the hotel and the outbuildings instead.

Our first and foremost thought was simply to save the historic buildings. But the longer we paid on our note the more we wondered: “What in the world are we going to do with these uninhabited, leaky, old buildings?” Sam had a full time job practicing law. I was a part owner of the Plaid Peacock, a gift shop in Greensburg. We were both on several community committees; we were grandparents; we were active in our church – we certainly did not have time to open a hotel. At one point Sam was considering donating it to our local Renaissance/Main Street Committee (he was president at the time) and allowing it to be a Renaissance project to help revitalize our quaint town square. However, Bob Polsgrove of the Kentucky Trust told Sam about the Tax Incentives Program that offers federal and state tax credit to investors in rehabilitation projects such as ours could be. Thus a couple of years after we bought the property, we really began to dream about what we had and what it could be.

It was then that we realized the Elizabeth Hotel, which shares a common wall with us would have to be purchased also. This hotel was built in 1912 as an annex to Green River House, bringing the number of her guest rooms up to 35.

That was about seven years ago, and now we are full swing into the demolition part and a “little swing” into the restoration part where emergency repairs are necessary. We really are very lucky that the previous owners had renovated primarily with paneling. So far, I believe that we have filled five industrial dumpsters with paneling plus we have given stacks of it away to do-it-yourselfers.

Demolition provides a constant treasure hunt - discovering little gems of history, little hints of what used to be. Behind the paneling, we have found layers of wallpaper, each one telling us stories about the period of time in which they were put up. Some papers resemble William Morris, while other papers are large European-looking scenes. After stripping paneling and then wallpaper around one doorway, we observed a rounded crack above the door. We chipped away plaster to discover a beautiful brick arch laid from over the door to down along the doorway only three feet above the floor! It’s just beautiful. In a few rooms the paneling was removed to reveal chair railing. We have pulled down the dropped ceilings to find crown molding made from plaster. Every time we remove a “renovation” feature, we hold our breath, hoping to discover an old treasure.

So what started out as an attempt to simply save an old brick house with 500 square feet has turned into a project involving the purchase and rehabilitation of 17,000 square-feet. What started out as an attempt to save a little old kitchen from demolition has turned into the development of a dream to restore a historic hotel, restaurant, and tavern that once was the hub of a bustling little town at the gateway to the West.

And speaking of dreams, that is certainly one thing you can say about us: we know how to dream! We know that when you step through the threshold of Green River House, we want you to step back in time. We want you to be a living part of an 1820’s dream . . . from the historically accurate décor of antiques and employee’s clothing to the games in the lobby to the musicians and weekend entertainment.

Now come along as we progress from brown paneling to French woodland scenes on wallpaper, from 1915 oak floors to the wide ash planks of the 1820’s, and from the 1950’s Perma-Stone façade to the 1820’s brick made in the back yard. Come dream with me now for it won’t be long before Green River House will be a reality.

--

The restoration of Green River House continues (http://www.greenriversun.com/grs/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=300:the-restoration-of-green-river-house-continues&catid=58:green-river-sun-news&Itemid=56)
By Mimi Moore, Green River Sun News, September 3, 2008

(Perhaps the largest private renovation project in Green County is underway in downtown Greensburg, Kentucky. Local residents Sam and Mimi Moore are restoring the historic Green River House and the following article is the second part of their effort to restore the old hotel. The article first appeared in Small Town Living. It is reprinted here with permission. ed.)

As I’m standing at the hallway entrance to the largest dining room and only seeing floor beams and wide-open spaces falling to the dirt basement floor, I say a little hesitantly:

“Scott, are you sure we’re going to open in two years?”

Silence.

“No,” he says and my heart falls. Then he grins “ . . . more like 18 months if we keep going like we are now.”

That’s what I love to hear! Scott Newton, our foreman and son-in-law, has a really positive attitude about Green River House. In fact, I think all the major players in this project have fallen in love with the old hotel. David Lyons is our General Contractor and historical guru. I am always embarrassing him because I brag about his knowledge of historical buildings. But we are so thankful that he is in charge, because we know that the work will be done with the highest respect to historical integrity. Roger Oliver is our subcontractor. He also has historical building restoration experience and works on Green River House as if it were his own. Without the knowledge and hands and hearts of these three men, Green River House would remain just a dream.

But back to the dining room floor that isn’t there. I think I explained in Part 1 that we are taking up the 1915 narrow, oak flooring to expose the 1820 wide, ash, tongue and groove flooring. Well, now we have also pulled up the 1820 floors! Each floorboard has been numbered and stored, so that the beams underneath can be leveled. Then the backsides of the floorboards will be planed and returned in the right order. The top sides of the floors will be washed and oiled, the floor will be level, and the beautiful patina of the aged wood will be saved.

This attention to historic restoration is what our purpose with Green River House is all about. We do not want to replace the old with new; we want to restore the old. We respect and treasure each dent, scratch, and mark because each is a vital part of the history of this old place.

To bring you up to date, we are still in the demolition stage. We are still removing! I do not believe our forefathers ever gave a thought to the consequences of their “renovations” as they added wallpaper and paneling and flooring - layer upon layer upon layer! Becky and Jennifer (with a little help from me on my days off) have stripped over 20 rooms and hallways of their wallpapers. Some of the plaster walls had colors underneath where there had been a “wash” applied. Some of the walls had pencil markings on them of numbers or names. Some of the walls were rough plaster and had been finished just for wallpaper. Becky spent many days up on scaffolding in order to reach the wallpapered ceilings. Now with only four rooms left and Jennifer leaving for college, I may be taking more days off to help Becky get finished. I suppose our next job will be removing paint from woodwork . . . ugh.

We are still concerned about the removal of the Perma-Stone from the front of the hotel. David is researching, but if any of you readers have had any experience in removing Perma-Stone from brick, please let us know.

Speaking of removing . . . we could barely stand up straight in the basement, the ceiling beams were so low. So we are removing three feet of dirt from 1,500 square feet of the cellar floors. Now, that’s a lot of dirt! But it must be done, because the elevator will be bringing our guests down to visit the wine and cheese cellars where professionals will conduct educational “tastings.” I can just see the old stonewalls, the cobblestone floors, and the farm tables and Windsor chairs. I’m not sure that the guys who are tilling, digging, filling the buckets, and taking the dirt out to the back yard can see that vision as clearly as I can! But Blake and Mikey, along with Michael, Josh and Tony are working hard to make holes like swimming pools in the cellar. They are very careful to watch for artifacts as they work. So far they have uncovered chards from four different patterns of plates, some large pieces of crockery, a pair of old scissors, a good sized piece from a beautiful old cream pitcher, something that looks like a large bird’s talon, and various other items. When their removal is finished, we will begin to pour footers to stabilize the foundation.

We have also removed the aluminum porch from the front of the Elizabeth Hotel end of the building. Now that was an exciting event.

I just happened to be driving past the front when I looked over at the exact moment the supports had been removed. I saw the backsides of five big men standing with their feet apart, hands over their head, palms open flat like Egyptian goddesses, holding up the porch floor as if they were the carved marble supports! What a Kodak moment! I sped to the end of the street, turned around, drove back, pulled into a parking space, found my camera in my purse . . . only to have missed that perfect picture! Maybe it is just as well we don’t remember that sight.

Something else I don’t want to remember: “Well, you’ve sure got your work cut out for ya!” Sam and I have been told that only a few times . . . but that is too many as far as I’m concerned. Yes, as you can see from the pictures, we do have a lot of work ahead of us . . . but we’ve come a long way, baby! And we’ve done it with the help of several positive, forward thinking people who can see the dream. They can visualize the end product. They can step through the 1820 stone threshold and walk into the hotel lobby and see Green River House in all her glory. Sam and I feel blessed because of that.

City's future wrapped in its past (http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4462568)
By Scott Unger, State Journal, November 7, 2008

Frankfort residents say it is important to maintain the city's rich history, according to recent community forums held by the Frankfort Area Chamber of Commerce.

From July to October, the Chamber met with local groups to discuss what they like about the city, what can be changed to make it better, what it will be like in 20 years and what can be done now to reach long-term goals.

A thriving downtown, more options for recreation and an enhanced riverfront were also popular responses.

Chamber Executive Director Carmen Inman said the group will discuss the responses at its year end retreat to plan for projects in 2009.

Riverfront development and increased partnerships with local businesses could be the focus of the Chamber next year, Inman said.

"A lot more partnerships are going to take place with the chamber," Inman said.

Holding on to the rich history of Frankfort " such as the downtown historic buildings and architecture " was the most frequent response, Inman said.

Frankfort also includes historical buildings and attractions such as the old and new Capitol buildings and the Daniel Boone grave site.

"They really cherish Frankfort history and they wanted to keep that for our future," Inman said about the forums. "They wanted our younger generation to understand that passion for history."

"They just don't want us to forget where we came from."

University of Kentucky Professor Lori Garkovich " who compiled the responses into a summary " said Frankfort's history is what makes it special.

"This is a community rich in its history and there is a value placed on this history which gives the community its unique aspects," Garkovich said in an email.

The natural beauty of the area, legacy of the arts and small town charm were other aspects listed as important to the city.

The integration of downtown and riverfront development was frequently mentioned as a way to improve the city in the short term.

Ideas for the riverfront including an amphitheater, walk and bike trails, restaurants and additional water-borne recreational activities were recently discussed at a public meeting.

A trio of consultants will take the public's ideas, formulate a list of priorities and return for additional discussion in January.

Garkovich said residents want a "livable, shoppable, walkable downtown that is the focus of community events and community life."

"There is a real hunger for the more intimate life that is descriptive of small town main street," Garkovich said.

A continued commitment to education and strong leadership were also mentioned as ways to improve the community now.

"We need bold and courageous leadership throughout our community " people from all walks of life getting involved in Frankfort's public institutions and nonprofit organizations," said one respondent.

Enhancing sustainability through energy efficient public transit, an increased recycling program and the development of walk and bike paths were emphasized to improve the community now and in the future.

More opportunities for recreation " such as an aquatic center " was another common response.
Garkovich said the desire for citizens " especially youth " to stay active is a popular response across the country.

"Every single community that has completed a visioning process wants to increase recreational opportunities for youth," she said.

Frankfort is different from most communities because of the abundance of recreational choices already in place, Garkovich said.

"There were far fewer comments from Frankfort respondents on the needs for recreational and entertainment opportunities for "families" or "people of all ages" and I suspect this is because there are already many such opportunities in Frankfort," Garkovich said.

Inman said more people are concerned about staying active and healthy in today's society.

"I think a lot more people now are really concerned about health and nutrition," she said. "More people are biking and walking and just trying to get (active)."

When asked about the future, many citizens pointed to maintaining the city's current emphasis on the past.

One respondent said growth should be planned to, "maintain our history and our small town atmosphere."

Completing riverfront development to become a focal point for the downtown community and expanding opportunities for small business growth were listed as ways to reach some of the city's goals.

Establishing task forces to design a system of walk and bike trails and strengthen ties between the city and Kentucky State University were also listed as possible ways to make the long term vision of Frankfort a reality.

Water park tabled (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_311232842.html)
Feasibility study: Facility could be profitable
By Carrie Stambaugh, The Independent, November 6, 2008

CATLETTSBURG — County officials have tabled their proposal to construct a water park in Boyd County despite the completion of a feasibility study indicating the park could be profitable.

The Boyd County Fiscal Court said it would put off further discussions about the park until after the first of the year, citing the nation’s economic slowdown.

“This is a large project and you don’t build one during bad times,” said County Judge-executive William “Bud” Stevens.

The market feasibility study was prepared by William L. Haralson & Associates Inc., an Alto, N.M.-based company, and was completed last month.

It recommends the county build a pool area of more than 12,000 square feet with at least four slides. It identified the major market for the park as 3 million residents living within a 100-mile radius of the proposed site, stating 98 percent of expected attendees live outside of Boyd County.

Projected attendance at the park was estimated to be in the range of 62,000 in its assumed first year of operation (2010), with attendance increasing to 74,000 by 2014. Based on those figures, the study recommended the park be designed to hold a minimum of approximately 1,250 at one time.

“The square footage of pools and the number of slides,” according to the study, “can exceed our projections and the scale of the park is only limited by the amount of funding available.”

Using the attendance figures and in-park spending and admission estimates — based on the experience of a similar well-run South Carolina park — the firm projected it could generate $650,000 in revenues during its 2010 operating season. Revenues could jump to $904,000 by 2014, according to the study, if attendance grows at its projected rate.

Operating expenses, however, were estimated at 71 percent of the projected revenue, meaning the county could expect to spend approximately $461,000 the first year, jumping to $640,000 by 2014, for estimated net operating income of $190,000 and $264,000, respectively.

The study also found area school schedules will most likely negatively impact both attendance and staffing at the park. Local schools start in early August, cutting into nearly a month of the proposed park’s operating season of late May through early September.

City breaks ground on project (http://www.amnews.com/public_html/?module=displaystory&story_id=45637&format=html)
By Charlie Cox, Advocate-Messenger, November 11, 2008

Rarely have 10 shovels and a mound of dirt added up to so much.

Late Monday afternoon, as the sun set in the distance and a November wind whistled throughout Main Street, a group of about 30 people gathered to ceremonially break ground on the new city hall renovation and construction project.

City hall workers, police officers and interested residents looked on as Assistant Police chiefs Tony Gray and Tom Bustle, Police Chief Jay Newell, Commissioners Norma Gail Louis, Kevin Caudill, Terry Crowley and Janet Hamner, Mayor Hugh Coomer, Kentucky League of Cities' Garrett Drakeford and architect Sean Matthews donned construction hats and manned shovels to break ground on the project.

After years of proposals and months of heated debate, the City Commission voted 3-2 in a special meeting Thursday to officially award bids and approve the projected cost of the project.

With all of the fees added into the cost, Financial Consultant Chris Bowling said the total price tag will be $7,115,571.

At the same meeting, Construction Manager Jim Martin of Codell Construction said he'd like to get started on the project as soon as possible by breaking ground on Monday.

As the metal shovels pierced the dirt, onlookers applauded the start of the project, which is estimated to have its first portion completed in less than a year.

One of those in the crowd eagerly watching was Tom Broach, the city's code enforcement officer and a retired police officer.

Broach came to Danville as an officer 28 years ago, and the new facility signals a definite change in accommodations, he said.

"I think it's fantastic," Broach said. "They'll have room to stretch out and move around in there. This is something the community can be extremely proud of. I know the officers are. I certainly am.

"It will be really nice for the public to have. I'm happy for them, but I'm more happy for the police department."

I lived in Danville for a few years while I was at Centre. It has advanced so much since the first time I saw it. I'm glad this town is continueing to improve, on and off campus. It definitely has one of the nicest downtowns of a neighboring city of Lexington!

November 12, 2008
City OKs $37.6 million river wall bid: Talks, retooling save nearly $20 million
(Messenger-Inquirer (Owensboro, KY) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Nov. 12--The city of Owensboro awarded a construction contract for its new river wall on Tuesday after the successful bidder shaved nearly $20 million off the proposed cost of the riverfront development project.

Work could begin in six weeks on the $37.6 million project after the city inked the deal with the lowest bidder -- a joint venture between Hall Contracting of Louisville and Richard Goettle Inc. of Cincinnati.

With the start of construction on the long-anticipated river wall project, Mayor Tom Watson said he expects to see more investment in downtown from the private sector after the months of delays the project has seen.

"When we start doing that wall, that will be the biggest encouragement for the private sector to participate," Watson said.

The commission signed off on the city's own investment in the project Tuesday when it committed to spending up to $4 million to help cover a $2.9 million gap in funding for the project.

This last major step before construction of the river wall comes after the city waited nearly 16 months to receive permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and received a first round of bids two months ago that were $10 million higher than expected.

An earlier engineer's estimate placed the cost to build the river wall between the RiverPark Center and the foot of Frederica Street at $30.7 million, and the lowest bid for that portion came in Sept. 3 at $40.8 million.

But through competitive negotiations and "value engineering" over the last several months, the contractors and city staff were able to cut millions from the cost.

Under the contract awarded Tuesday, Hall Contracting and Richard Goettle Inc. will build the wall from the RiverPark Center to Mitch McConnell Plaza, which includes an alternate addition the city had hoped to be able to afford.

The project will put a river wall about 45 feet into the river and expand the area of Smothers Park by two acres. Along with expanding the riverfront, the project will protect the riverbank from erosion.

Under the design guidelines initially offered to contractors, Hall and Goettle had proposed a $55.5 million price tag, but negotiations since the Sept. 3 bid opening have brought that price down significantly.

Through value engineering, contractors were able to propose alternate construction designs or processes that could reduce costs.

Hall and Goettle have access to a proprietary "open cell" design that allows for the use of less steel and less manpower while not compromising quality, City Engineer Joe Schepers said.

That change alone allowed Hall and Goettle to knock about $12.5 million off their proposed bid, according to bid documents.

After the bids came in high, city and project staff also looked at design changes that could help bring down the cost without compromising the overall appearance or intent, Cecil said.

That "shopping list" of changes included the removal of the lowest row of pre-cast concrete panels designed to hang on the wall just above the water line and the first phase of construction needed for the planned boat dock that will connect to the bank by a gangway.

Removing those two elements dropped the project cost by another $5.7 million and brought it within reach of the city.

Schepers said the changes won't be noticed by the average person.

"They will never know," Schepers said.

Including $7.8 million in federal transportation dollars expected to come next year, the city will have $34.7 million in federal funds to cover to the project's costs, and the commission's approval of up to $4 million in city funding on Tuesday will make sure the project is fully funded.

That commitment of up to $4 million will come from the city's Your Community Vision fund that is fed by the one-fourth of the city's occupational tax that is dedicated to capital projects.

Several years ago, the city had set aside an annual appropriation in the fund of more than $500,000 to pay for a recreation complex, but plans for that complex have been put on hold.

That has freed up those dollars, part of which has since been dedicated to the ice arena and about $300,000 of which could be used to fund 20 years of debt service on a $4 million loan to cover the river wall's costs.

Now the contract is signed, work will begin to relocate utilities along Veterans Boulevard and to remove the Charles E. Shelton Freedom Memorial from Smothers Park and place it in storage during construction.

Hall and Goettle are expected to begin construction within six weeks, and the project's completion date has been tentatively set at October 2010.

City Manager Bill Parrish said the start of construction on the project comes at a time when it will offer a needed to boost to the local economy.

Having the construction crews in town means an increase in occupational tax revenues, more patrons for local businesses and more occupied rooms in local hotels, Parrish said.

Parrish also echoed Watson's comments about the wall's construction prompting action from investors and businesses looking at downtown.

"People are going to see that the city commission, the city of Owensboro is serious about downtown," Parrish said. "This is not just talk. This is not just a study. It's going to happen."

To see more of the Messenger-Inquirer, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.messenger-inquirer.com.

Copyright (c) 2008, Messenger-Inquirer, Owensboro, Ky.
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA

^ Very interesting, it was very much under budget. I heard that the riverfront hotel (former Executive Inn) has deteriorated to the point that it is worth only $4 million??? I know that it wasn't in the best of shape prior to its closure only five months ago, but good god.

Union Town Plan advances (http://nky.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20081112/NEWS0103/811120417)
Consulting, development company hiring OK'd
By Amanda Van Benschoten, Cincinnati Enquirer, November 12, 2008

UNION - The Union Town Plan has moved a big step closer toward becoming a reality.

City Commission voted unanimously on Monday to hire Columbus consulting and development firm Pizzuti Solutions, which is charged with getting the Union Town Plan off the ground.

"It's a way of being proactive and not just sitting back and waiting for developers to come to us," said Mayor Don Kirby.

The $47,000 contract has three phases: a market analysis, working with landowners and contacting potential developers. It's expected to take four to five months.

The Union Town Plan was drafted in 2000 as a blueprint for development in and around the city. It calls for a pedestrian-friendly, mixed-use residential, commercial and retail development, the Union Town Center, on about 90 acres in the heart of the city. Pizzuti's job is to determine what types of homes and businesses are feasible there.

"They're familiar with the unique type of new urban development that we're talking about here, and that's one of the things that makes them a good fit for us," Kirby said.

This spring, the Boone County Planning Commission put the project out to bid and interviewed several development firms.

Commission Executive Director Kevin Costello said Pizzuti stood out because of its experience in public-private partnerships, particularly with cities the size of Union.

Kirby said it took several months to finalize the contract and tailor the firm's proposal to the city's needs and price range.

He hopes that by the end of the third phase, "we've identified a developer and we're working on breaking ground," he said. "We're committed to making that happen in the next couple years so that people will start to realize that it's not just a vision, that it's something that's a reality," he said.

Kirby said the city is already talking to two developers who contacted Union Town Plan landowners. He declined to name them, but said they are not from Greater Cincinnati. He said the city would prefer to work with developers from out of the area.

"This is no slight on local developers, but a lot of them don't have experience in this type of development, else you'd be seeing more of it in this area," Kirby said. "We're determined to go nationwide and bring in the best possible fit, regardless of where they're located."

The issue of development figured prominently in the city commission race this month, with some residents expressing frustration at the lack of businesses and services.

"We all completely understand that. We want this to happen sooner rather than later, but we want to do it right," Kirby said. "We don't want to just do it for the sake of doing it."

One major delay has been the planned widening of Mount Zion Road. Much of the Union Town Plan site sits just south of the U.S. 42/Mount Zion intersection.

Kirby said the city can no longer wait for state funding, and officials would continue to work with the state while examining alternatives. Those could include building around the planned road, or having a developer finance part of the widening near U.S. 42.

The City Commission's vote allocates the money to the Boone County Planning Commission, which will hire Pizzuti and work closely with the company.

Costello said he would present the issue to the Planning Commission for a vote at the Nov. 19 meeting. He said Pizzuti could begin work as soon as December and finish by March or April.

The city has the option to hire Pizzuti for a fourth phase of work, which would examine financing options for the Union Town Plan. That phase would cost about $31,000.

Duplicate.

Old Governor's Mansion to be revitalized (http://www.kentucky.com/181/story/595442.html)
By Valarie Honeycutt Spears, Herald-Leader, November 18, 2008

First lady Jane Beshear is scheduled to announce plans on Tuesday to revitalize the Old Governor's Mansion in Frankfort in preparation for the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in 2010.

Former Kentucky first ladies and former residents of the Old Governor's Mansion are scheduled to appear with Beshear at a 10 a.m. press conference at the mansion at 420 High Street in Frankfort, said Gov. Steve Beshear's deputy communication director Jill Midkiff.

Midkiff said Monday afternoon she could not confirm which former first ladies would be in attendance.

The revitalization will be paid for with private or in-kind donations and at no cost to taxpayers, said Valeria Cummings, communications director for the state Finance and Administration Cabinet.

State officials have not said how much the project will cost.

Representatives from the Kentucky Equine Humane Center, a horse rescue facility in Nicholasville; L.V. Harkness & Co., a Lexington home furnishings and gifts store; and the Kentucky Executive Mansions Foundation Inc. will attend the press conference, according to a release from Gov. Beshear's office.

Midkiff would not say what role the Kentucky Equine Humane Center or L.V. Harkness will have in the revitalization.

The revitalization plans will be announced at a meeting of the Historic Properties Advisory Commission.

The Old Governor's Mansion was built in 1798. The building was used as the state's Governor's Mansion until 1914, when the current Governor's Mansion was constructed.

From the mid-1950s until 2002, when the General Assembly decided that then- Lt. Gov. Steve Henry should no longer have housing provided for him, the Old Governor's Mansion was the home of lieutenant governors.

Lieutenant governors now get a $2,500 monthly housing allowance.

The Old Governor's Mansion underwent a nearly $2.3 million restoration that began in 2002.

The Old Governor's mansion is now open to the public for tours two days each week.

The World Equestrian Games at the Kentucky Horse Park in Lexington will be the largest equine sporting event ever held in the United States. Scheduled from Sept. 25 to Oct. 10, 2010, it will be the first time the event will be held outside of Europe.

New life for an old theater (http://www.courierpress.com/news/2008/nov/16/new-life-for-an-old-theater/)
Courier-Press, November 16, 2008

Historical buildings, like the one at 107 E. Second St. in Owensboro, Ky., inspire ghost stories and give the impression that they keep many secrets. Perhaps the best kept secret at this building is the ornate second-floor theater.

"I just fell in love with this building," said Rosemary Conder, who bought the building with her husband, Larry, in September 2007. "It wasn't necessarily a good business purchase. It was an emotional purchase."

The theater, called The Crowne at 107, is on the second floor, and Crowne Gifts, which opened three weeks ago, is on the first floor.

The Conders bought the building, which dates back to the mid-1880s, and the majority of its contents from the estate of Robert "Bob" Puckett, who was president of Progress Printing in Owensboro but traveled extensively, was an eclectic collector and was responsible for preserving and improving the building. Puckett was the one who converted part of the second floor into the personal theater, where he showed movies and threw parties.

Now it is available to be rented out for small parties. There also is a kitchen, a separate bar area and a bedroom suite behind the theater.

The Conders use the name Crowne because they say Puckett's nickname was "The King" and that they found crowns throughout the decor of the building.

"I still feel like he's here," said Rosemary Conder, who before leaving the building each night says "Goodnight, Bob" to the happy ghost she feels is keeping watch over the building.

Owensboro waits to see fate of Executive Inn (http://www.courierpress.com/news/2008/nov/13/owensboro-waits-to-see-fate-of-executive-inn/?gleaner=1/)
By Karen Owen-Phelps, Courier & Press, November 13, 2008

OWENSBORO -- The Owensboro community is waiting to see if anyone makes an offer today to purchase the shuttered Executive Inn Rivermont, a city landmark and regional entertainment and convention center.

Closed since June, the 30-year-old, 600-room hotel on nearly 17 acres near the downtown Ohio River frontage has been on the market since, and the Chicago-based real estate brokerage firm of CB Richard Ellis Hotels previously had described Nov. 14 as the deadline for submitting bids, with any deal to close by the end of the year.

But the brokerage firm and the hotel owner, Marshall Investments of Minneapolis, haven't said much about prospects for a sale. Marshall Investments rejected a proposal earlier this year by Owensboro and Daviess County governments to purchase the property.

After suffering damage from the Sept. 14 windstorm, Fred Reeves, executive director for downtown development for the Owensboro-Daviess County Industrial Development Authority, said the structure is being advertised as a "tear-down."

City and county officials have tried to buy the property on a couple of occasions, "and still would pursue it if the price was right," said Reeves, who has handled negotiations for local government. For now, they are waiting to see what happens after today's deadline. The city and county are not bidding.

When the Executive Inn closed in June, it seemed to be a huge loss for the community. But now some local leaders are saying it may have been for the best.

"It's a shame because it's a big landmark for Owensboro," Mayor Tom Watson said.

The oldest section of the Executive Inn was built by coal baron Bob Green in 1977.

The hotel was the tallest structure in a downtown that rapidly was losing shoppers to outlying malls.

With eventually 600 rooms, the hotel once was Western Kentucky's largest, but it was a "Vegas-style" venue and its restaurants, shops and top-name entertainment didn't encourage guests to visit other attractions downtown. Although Green was willing to subsidize his toy, it was too big to be profitable most of the year, former employees say.

Ownership changed several times in the last several years. The hotel's financial troubles were no secret, said Karen Miller, executive director of the Owensboro-Daviess County Convention & Visitors Center, but "we never believed it was going to close completely."

A fire in the west wing in September 2006 knocked out about half of the hotel's rooms and its indoor pool.

"It already needed a face-lift," said Jan Kinsey, who was assistant general manager when the facility closed. Then the insurance settlement dragged on and on, she said.

Watson said he thinks the operation finally folded when it became obvious the state wasn't going to approve casino gambling for the hotel and Owensboro.

"Psychologically, the impact on the community was almost like the sky was falling in," Reeves said. The June 9 closing left about 200 people out of work with less than three days notice.

The hotel's demise also eliminated about $150,000 from the visitors bureau's budget, which relies totally on a hotel-motel room tax. The agency had to lay off two staffers and is operating about $70,000 in the red, Miller said.

Worst of all, the closing has jeopardized the city's reputation with visitors, Miller and Kinsey said.

Kinsey, now hospitality and sales director for Miller's agency, grabbed as many of the Executive Inn's reservation records as she could before employees were ushered out the door. She started calling many groups and individuals planning to stay there.

In the weeks that followed, "there were a lot of times," Miller said, "they didn't know the Executive Inn had closed until they pulled into the parking lot."

With a mystery writers' festival, a bluegrass music festival and a national softball tournament looming, Kinsey, Miller and other local officials scrambled to find suitable replacement venues for those who had booked the 29,000 square feet of convention space and 33,000-square-foot exhibition center, not to mention the lost hotel rooms.

Guests stayed at a local college, a convent and hotels as far away as Bowling Green, Ky., and Evansville. Events were relocated to museums, churches, even an airport hangar.

"We've tried very hard to maintain our reputation as a great place to visit," Miller said.

The community still lost some events, though, including a large dog show and a truck show because Owensboro didn't have facilities large enough to accommodate them.

Now officials are worried about a possible eyesore downtown at a time when they're trying to revitalize Owensboro's riverfront, including construction of a new $30 million-$40 million river wall that will stretch from the RiverPark Center to the Executive Inn property.

Regarding today's request for bids, Reeves said owners are "Essentially, they're testing the water. They may or may not get those offers. We'll see if they have the price that meets their needs and the party can get financing."

The hotel property is assessed for property taxes at $8.75 million.

"If it's such a great piece of property," Watson said, "it would've sold to somebody two years ago."

Kinsey said the visitors bureau gets calls daily from people who will be visiting town and want to stay in a hotel overlooking the river, something Owensboro lacks right now. Where the Executive Inn stands now is "the center of the postcard" when it comes to river views, she said.

But local officials now are focusing on other downtown sites, some within a block or so of the Executive Inn but closer to the core of downtown. A downtown revitalization master plan expected to include a convention center, hotel and possibly an arena will be unveiled Saturday at Kentucky Wesleyan College.

"I don't think a hotel is going to sustain itself down there without a draw to load it up," Watson said.

Mum is the word on Executive Inn Rivermont (http://www.courierpress.com/news/2008/nov/14/no-headline---15a0xbige-brf/)
By Karen Owen-Phelps, Courier & Press, November 14, 2008

OWENSBORO, Ky. — Local officials don't know the fate of what was once Western Kentucky's largest hotel.

Friday was the deadline to submit bids on the Executive Inn Rivermont in Owensboro, but the brokerage firm marketing the facility declined to release any information.

"I can't comment," said Nate Sahn with CB Richard Ellis Hotels in Chicago. Richard Ellis is handling the sale for Marshall Investments, and he's the only one authorized to talk for the firm. Sahn said Ellis couldn't comment about the bidding process or give a timetable for approving a sale.

Fred Reeves, executive director for downtown development for the Owensboro-Daviess County Industrial Development Authority, said the owners will have to evaluate the offers and "vet them with 15 banks" involved in the hotel's complicated finances.

The Executive Inn shut its doors in June. City and county officials have tried unsuccessfully to buy the hotel, and now officials say their interest is focused elsewhere downtown.

A redevelopment plan expected to include a new convention center, hotel and possibly an arena will be unveiled for the public at 9 a.m. today in the All-American Room in the Jones Gym Building at Kentucky Wesleyan College.

Danville gets $237,000 to enhance Third Street (http://www.amnews.com/public_html/?module=displaystory&story_id=45863&format=html)
By Charlie Cox, Advocate Messenger, November 19, 2008

Julie Wagner wasn't even in town when the good news arrived.

Instead, The Heart of Danville director had to learn over the phone that Danville was awarded $273,000 to complete Phase III of the city's streetscape plan.

The Transportation Enhancement funds will be used to enhance an area of Third Street running between Broadway and Main Street. Wagner said the funds will go toward a number of items, including granite curbs, new street lights and benches if the budget allows.

"Basically, the idea will be to replicate the Burke's Bakery project (on Main Street), and everything in the project like that," Wagner explained.

The renovations could be done as early as next summer.

Wagner, who was instrumental in writing the grant application, said she was thrilled when she received the phone call informing her of the city's success in obtaining the grant.

"This is just a great thing for the city of Danville," she said. "Main Street gets a lot of attention, and that's great, but it's also important to include our side streets in our focus."

TE grants are federal funds allocated by the state each year to fund historic outdoor preservations, scenic highways, and pedestrian and bike ways. They're satisfied in the form of an 80-percent reimbursement. The city of Danville will fund the estimated $327,000 for the Phase III renovations. Upon completion, the city will be reimbursed for 80 percent of the project, or roughly $273,000.

Wagner said bids will be solicited for the work.

Police station contract to be approved (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_330233438.html)
Construction could start Jan. 1
By Carrie Stambaugh, The Independent, November 25, 2008

ASHLAND — Construction on Ashland’s police station could get under way by Jan. 1, according to city officials.

City Manager Steve Corbitt said he expects city commissioners to award the contract for the project at their next regularly scheduled meeting Dec. 4. Financing for the project is also being finalized and is expected to be approved at that meeting, Corbitt said.

He said the contract for construction must be awarded by Dec. 16, when the second round of bids for the project — opened mid-October — expire. Trace Creek Construction, based in Vanceburg, was the apparent low-bidder on the project, submitting a $3.89 million bid.

Corbitt said Trace Creek’s bid has been reviewed by architects. The company will most likely be awarded the contract although final negotiations have not taken place, he said.

Five other companies submitted bids ranging from $4.5 million to $4.15 million. Previous bids opened for the project came in well over the city’s $4.3 million budget, and architects were forced to make numerous changes to the building to shave more than $500,000 of its projected cost.

Ashland Finance Director Tony Grubb said city commissioners will be asked to finance up to $5 million for the project. He said officials plan to borrow the funds instead of bonding them and have been waiting on more favorable interest rates.

“We always look at the best rate, best financing we can get,” he said, “We’ll try to time it the best we can to save the taxpayers money.”

Corbitt and Grubb said they don’t expect the city to borrow $5 million but some additional funds above the construction costs will be needed to finish and furnish the building.

The two-story, 17,000-square-foot building will be constructed at the corner of 17th Street and Greenup Avenue across from the city building.

Architects have estimated construction will take between 10 and 14 months, depending on the weather.

I can't even believe we are talking about demolishing this historic church that dates to 1850! To the church, it is all about money -- especially since they relocated most of their parish to their new Leestown Road campus -- which is HIDEOUS.

Downtown Church may be sold for judicial center project (http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4476166)
By Charlie Pearl and John Zambenini, State Journal, November 30, 2008

The historic downtown Good Shepherd Catholic Church is now being discussed in negotiations between the church and officials trying to find a site for a new $30 million judicial center.

Up until now, prospects for a new site involved only the Good Shepherd property where the school is located adjacent to the church - which dates to 1850.
However, Judge-Executive Ted Collins said Friday "there's a possibility the church itself may become a part of the negotiations.

"My main thought as chairman is that we continue viewing the property excluding the church," said Collins, chairman of the Franklin Project Development Board, which is overseeing the courthouse project.

"I'm not interested in incorporating it into the project."
Collins said there has been an interest in the Good Shepherd property - adjacent to the historic courthouse - "since we first heard the property might be for sale in December 2006.

"The whole time we've had discussions, I've been under the distinct impression the downtown church property included everything with the exception of the church. We proceeded with negotiations and appraisals."

Church may become available
Then recently Collins said he's "heard that some folks in the Good Shepherd parish believe it might be in their best interest to sell all of the downtown property."

Collins said all of the Good Shepherd property, including the church, "is a new possibility that I have not totally digested yet. It would take additional study and consideration from both parties - Good Shepherd and the Project Development Board.

"I'm open-minded to looking at that possibility if our Good Shepherd neighbors are open to the consideration of selling."

The school property includes classrooms, administrative offices and a gymnasium. The Good Shepherd Church steeple is the tallest among downtown Frankfort's prominent structures, including the courthouse and the old Paul Sawyier library.

Good Shepherd's pastor, Rev. Charles Howell, acknowledged at a Saturday evening mass the possibility of a sale of all the church's downtown property including the original Wapping Street church itself.

Howell said during the service Collins told him the county had appraised the Good Shepherd property at $2 million without the church.

The county, Howell said, appraised the property with the church included at $300,000 more, $2.3 million in total.

Howell said Good Shepherd would not release its own appraisal of the property as part of the negotiating process, which he also said has not yet begun.
"There's no money on the table," Howell said Saturday.

Paula Murphy, a downtown resident and Good Shepherd parishioner, attended the school from first to ninth grade and objects to its sale.

"It breaks my heart," Murphy told The State Journal in a phone interview Saturday.

Murphy, whose son is in the eighth grade at Good Shepherd School, lived in England for 20 years.

One of the reasons her family moved downtown when they returned to Kentucky was because the church and school make the neighborhood feel like home, she said.
"I'm just going to be sad because I won't see those school kids running out the door," Murphy said.

"That's where I'd gone to school, I'd basically grown up there," Murphy said. "The thought of the church abandoning the downtown property, it's like ripping the heart out of the downtown community."

When her family returned from abroad, Murphy said, the church had already shifted its mass from the Wapping Street building to its Leestown Road campus.

Murphy said she could see a financial advantage to selling the downtown property, but she doesn't believe it's the way to go in spiritual terms.

"I think we need to keep a Catholic presence in the downtown area," Murphy, who worked in the school's lunchroom for two years, said.

"Where you come from is valuable," she said. "In my view there's no way that building could be torn down."

"I think there would be a statewide outcry," Murphy said of the church "immortalized in Paul Sawyier paintings."
"That would be a travesty," she said.

Mark Dennen, acting executive director of the Kentucky Heritage Council, said Saturday the Project Development Board and the state Administrative of the Courts don't have to comply with any of the city zoning ordinances including the historic protection ordinance.

If federal funds were involved, the heritage council would have to review the project and "give an opinion as to whether there would be any adverse effect," Dennen said. But the same doesn't apply to state-funded projects, he said.

Property becomes top priority
The Good Shepherd property on St. Clair and Wapping streets - excluding the church building - became the top-priority site for the new judicial center in October.

At a public meeting on site selection in August 2007, the Rev. Patrick Stewart, then pastor of Good Shepherd Church, said Good Shepherd "is earnest about wanting to sell its downtown property" so it can build a new school on its Leestown Road church property.

Stewart said it's sad to think about Good Shepherd needing to leave downtown. But he added the new judicial center being built on Good Shepherd property - next to the current Franklin County Courthouse " would help keep the downtown area vibrant.

Stewart also said the time schedules for the new school and judicial center should be about the same.

Last month Project Development Board member Sam McNamara said the $4 million price for the Good Shepherd property was too high when it was initially considered last year, but otherwise he was pleased with it.

The old Model Laundry site behind the Frankfort Convention Center was the board's top choice for almost a year until discussions resumed with Good Shepherd.

Mixed emotions
Don Stosberg, a Good Shepherd parishioner for 42 years who served on the parish council decades ago, said Saturday he's "kind of neutral on the issue" of including the church in the negotiations.

Stosberg said the church, "right in the heart of downtown, has a spiritual history in this community and is important to many."

He said he also understands that "whatever the church gets for the property becomes a down payment on the new school. And of course the church wants to get the best price it can."

Parishioner Lee Colten said Friday he's "not emotionally attached to the church. So it's easy for me to look at it from a financial standpoint because that's a big factor when you look at a new school down the road."

Greg Meyer, a local builder and lifetime member of Good Shepherd, said Friday he's "in favor of selling all the downtown property. I think it will be a positive for the county and the parish.

"There are only so many buildings you can maintain," and having everything on the Leestown Road campus will work better, Meyer said.

^See above for more.

Early design for judicial center released (http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4476160)
By Charlie Pearl, State Journal, November 30, 2008

The Project Development Board has gotten drawings of an addition to the courthouse on St. Clair " currently on Good Shepherd property " that would turn it into the new $30 million judicial center.

At a board meeting Monday architect Rick Kremer with The Louis & Henry Group of Louisville emphasized the exterior look " showing a translucent glass steeple and limestone building " and three-story floor plans "are very, very preliminary. I know it will change. But it's a start."

Last December Kremer asked board members if they preferred a contemporary or traditional design. But before they answered, the architect gave his opinion.

"I think we need to send a message to the citizens of Frankfort, Franklin County and the state for the next 50 to 100 years that we're going to be a very progressive state," he said then.

He said his ideas of progressive, however, "don't mean something that's avant-garde and looks like a space ship landed or something like that."

A contemporary building can respect history, he said, "and it will." But the architecture can also be a symbol for "moving forward and saying something about 2008 and the next 50 or 100 years, as opposed to trying to do a historic reproduction."

The board unanimously agreed with Kremer's contemporary design recommendation then.

Kremer told the board at Monday's meeting he likes an exterior of limestone because that is an important part of Kentucky's history especially in the horse racing and bourbon-making industries.

He said the steeple, at about 105 feet, wouldn't be as tall as the adjacent Good Shepherd Church steeple " the tallest of three prominent steeples on Wapping and St. Clair streets.

Kremer said it would be a little taller than the current courthouse steeple and about the same height as the old federal building and former Paul Sawyier Public Library steeple.

After Monday's meeting District Judge Kathy Mangeot, a board member, said she thinks "the plan is very interesting. It's got a long way to go. It's very preliminary as Mr. Kremer said.

"I kind of like the idea of the steeple. Not being an architect, I have a hard time envisioning how it all fits together. So I will have to step back and look at all these steeples together. But I think it's kind of a neat idea."

In keeping with Kentucky history, Mangeot said she thinks the board should definitely pursue using limestone "if we can."

Mangeot said she's thrilled about the possible Good Shepherd site for the new judicial center "if it can be worked into the existing building so it doesn't look like a big albatross downtown."

Initial plans show a large green space along St. Clair Street with the courthouse addition.

Board member Bryan Hix, an attorney, said he's impressed with the initial drawings.

"The architect has done a good job in coming up with something that preserves the historic integrity of downtown while trying to do something more contemporary," Hix said.

"I like it. I like the use of glass and limestone. I'm not sold on the steeple yet but we'll see. I like the idea of something similar to it."

Circuit Court Clerk Sally Jump, a board member, said, "I think for a preliminary look at whether or not this property would work, it was satisfactory. There are still so many questions to be answered about the floor plans and what happens inside as far as functionality. But I'm sure we will be able to resolve those issues."

Jump said she had not expected to see a steeple.

"That's something that will have to grow on me," she said. "I"ll have to see it in context with the locale and how it relates to the other steeples. I don't have any problem having another one. It was just unexpected."

Franklin County Judge-Executive Ted Collins, chairman of the Project Development Board, also said he likes "the initial concept drawings. I think it will be a great addition to our community."

Collins said the board has got "some preliminary numbers from the appraiser and we will be discussing that with our friends at Good Shepherd. We will have a final report from the appraiser in a few weeks.

"Then we'll start negotiating and see if our numbers are close to what Good Shepherd has in mind."

Good Shepherd was initially asking $4 million for its property.

Preservationist opposes early judicial center plans
Scot Walters " an architect and downtown preservationist, resident and commercial property owner " doesn't like architect Rick Kremer's preliminary drawings for a new $30 million judicial center that will connect to the current Franklin County Court House on St. Clair Street.

"I regretfully feel the current justice center proposal may turn out worse than the new city of Frankfort Public Safety Building with an inappropriate green space on one side and a surface parking lot on the other," said Walters, after attending Monday's Project Development Board meeting.

"This is not being respectful to the historic area where the building is being placed."

When asked about his opposition to green space in the project, Walters said, "Every small green space that gets created in downtown Frankfort's commercial center devalues the importance and prominence of the original town plan with our historic green space at the Old Capitol grounds.

"The streets were laid out for good functional urban development and mixed use, and every inch we do not use to the fullest means more suburban sprawl."

An 1854 downtown map shows development at the corner of St. Clair and Wapping streets, "and (it) was always intended to have a structure framing one of Frankfort's major commercial corridors and vistas with the Old Capitol at the end of the view," Walters said.

Walters has regularly attended meetings on the judicial center since the Project Development Board was organized two years ago to oversee the project.

Regarding site selection for the judicial center, Walters was an early advocate for the Farmer's Market location in River View Park on Wilkinson Boulevard as well as the John C. Watts federal building on Broadway.

Meeting to save downtown Good Shepherd church is Dec. 15 (http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4479306)
By Charlie Pearl, State Journal, December 4, 2008

A group formed to save the 1850 Good Shepherd Catholic Church and 1920s school building will have a public meeting Dec. 15, at 6 p.m. in the Paul Sawyier Public Library.

Around 15 downtown residents, workers and property owners held an organizational meeting Tuesday at the library to discuss the Good Shepherd property " now the number one site for a new $30 million Franklin County Judicial Center.

Until last week, prospects for the judicial center site involved all of the downtown Good Shepherd property except the church building.

But the Rev. Charles Howell, pastor of Good Shepherd Church, acknowledged at masses last weekend the possibility of a sale of all the church's downtown property including the church with its towering steeple.
John Gray, a downtown property owner and preservationist, said Tuesday's meeting was to share information.

"We're wanting to find out what the proposal (regarding the church property) actually is and if it's the right site for the judicial center," Gray said.

"If it is the right site, we want to know what the design will look like."

The group wants to save the church building and the school building from demolition, said Scot Walters, who lives and works downtown. He said he doesn't want to see the old school building torn down for 20 parking spaces.

Walters, who attends all Project Development Board meetings, also was critical of the preliminary drawings " especially the exterior one with a steeple " shown last week by architect Rick Kremer with Louis & Henry Group of Louisville.

"I'm concerned it's going to be one big ugly stepsister trying to slip into Cinderella's slipper," Walters said.
Gray said he doesn't oppose the prospective site next to the courthouse but wants to make sure the "design fits in with the historic character of downtown."

they should turn that church into a pizza place like that one by UK. i took my girl there and it was pretty coo

^See above for more.

Early design for judicial center released (http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4476160)
By Charlie Pearl, State Journal, November 30, 2008

The Project Development Board has gotten drawings of an addition to the courthouse on St. Clair " currently on Good Shepherd property " that would turn it into the new $30 million judicial center.

At a board meeting Monday architect Rick Kremer with The Louis & Henry Group of Louisville emphasized the exterior look " showing a translucent glass steeple and limestone building " and three-story floor plans "are very, very preliminary. I know it will change. But it's a start."

Last December Kremer asked board members if they preferred a contemporary or traditional design. But before they answered, the architect gave his opinion.

"I think we need to send a message to the citizens of Frankfort, Franklin County and the state for the next 50 to 100 years that we're going to be a very progressive state," he said then.

He said his ideas of progressive, however, "don't mean something that's avant-garde and looks like a space ship landed or something like that."

A contemporary building can respect history, he said, "and it will." But the architecture can also be a symbol for "moving forward and saying something about 2008 and the next 50 or 100 years, as opposed to trying to do a historic reproduction."

The board unanimously agreed with Kremer's contemporary design recommendation then.

Kremer told the board at Monday's meeting he likes an exterior of limestone because that is an important part of Kentucky's history especially in the horse racing and bourbon-making industries.

He said the steeple, at about 105 feet, wouldn't be as tall as the adjacent Good Shepherd Church steeple " the tallest of three prominent steeples on Wapping and St. Clair streets.

Kremer said it would be a little taller than the current courthouse steeple and about the same height as the old federal building and former Paul Sawyier Public Library steeple.

After Monday's meeting District Judge Kathy Mangeot, a board member, said she thinks "the plan is very interesting. It's got a long way to go. It's very preliminary as Mr. Kremer said.

"I kind of like the idea of the steeple. Not being an architect, I have a hard time envisioning how it all fits together. So I will have to step back and look at all these steeples together. But I think it's kind of a neat idea."

In keeping with Kentucky history, Mangeot said she thinks the board should definitely pursue using limestone "if we can."

Mangeot said she's thrilled about the possible Good Shepherd site for the new judicial center "if it can be worked into the existing building so it doesn't look like a big albatross downtown."

Initial plans show a large green space along St. Clair Street with the courthouse addition.

Board member Bryan Hix, an attorney, said he's impressed with the initial drawings.

"The architect has done a good job in coming up with something that preserves the historic integrity of downtown while trying to do something more contemporary," Hix said.

"I like it. I like the use of glass and limestone. I'm not sold on the steeple yet but we'll see. I like the idea of something similar to it."

Circuit Court Clerk Sally Jump, a board member, said, "I think for a preliminary look at whether or not this property would work, it was satisfactory. There are still so many questions to be answered about the floor plans and what happens inside as far as functionality. But I'm sure we will be able to resolve those issues."

Jump said she had not expected to see a steeple.

"That's something that will have to grow on me," she said. "I"ll have to see it in context with the locale and how it relates to the other steeples. I don't have any problem having another one. It was just unexpected."

Franklin County Judge-Executive Ted Collins, chairman of the Project Development Board, also said he likes "the initial concept drawings. I think it will be a great addition to our community."

Collins said the board has got "some preliminary numbers from the appraiser and we will be discussing that with our friends at Good Shepherd. We will have a final report from the appraiser in a few weeks.

"Then we'll start negotiating and see if our numbers are close to what Good Shepherd has in mind."

Good Shepherd was initially asking $4 million for its property.

Preservationist opposes early judicial center plans
Scot Walters " an architect and downtown preservationist, resident and commercial property owner " doesn't like architect Rick Kremer's preliminary drawings for a new $30 million judicial center that will connect to the current Franklin County Court House on St. Clair Street.

"I regretfully feel the current justice center proposal may turn out worse than the new city of Frankfort Public Safety Building with an inappropriate green space on one side and a surface parking lot on the other," said Walters, after attending Monday's Project Development Board meeting.

"This is not being respectful to the historic area where the building is being placed."

When asked about his opposition to green space in the project, Walters said, "Every small green space that gets created in downtown Frankfort's commercial center devalues the importance and prominence of the original town plan with our historic green space at the Old Capitol grounds.

"The streets were laid out for good functional urban development and mixed use, and every inch we do not use to the fullest means more suburban sprawl."

An 1854 downtown map shows development at the corner of St. Clair and Wapping streets, "and (it) was always intended to have a structure framing one of Frankfort's major commercial corridors and vistas with the Old Capitol at the end of the view," Walters said.

Walters has regularly attended meetings on the judicial center since the Project Development Board was organized two years ago to oversee the project.

Regarding site selection for the judicial center, Walters was an early advocate for the Farmer's Market location in River View Park on Wilkinson Boulevard as well as the John C. Watts federal building on Broadway.

105 feet is tell for a steeple

See the previous three postings for more information.

Two well-connected firms profit (http://www.kentucky.com/929/story/515966.html)
By Linda B. Blackford, Herald-Leader, September 7, 2008

Since 1998, the state has designated more than $880 million to build 65 courthouses. Of that, more than half of the contracts — without competitive bidding — have gone to two Kentucky firms whose political connections have included a former transportation secretary, state senators and the son of former State Supreme Court Chief Justice Joseph E. Lambert.

Codell Construction of Winchester has served as the construction manager on 38 of 65 projects — nearly 60 percent of all the jobs — while Ross Sinclaire & Associates has done the bond work on more than 68 percent of the projects in the past decade, according to the Administrative Office of the Courts, which oversees the program.

In addition to the 38 new buildings Codell has handled, the company's Web site lists an additional six courthouse renovations or additions, including those in Madison, McLean, Clark and Webster counties and two in Pike County.

Codell sits at a powerful intersection of money, politics and business.

James Codell IV, president of the company, is the son of James Codell III, who was transportation secretary from 1996 to 2003 under Gov. Paul Patton. Since 2000, Codell relatives and employees have given almost $61,000 to county judge-executives and other local officials involved in deciding the contracts for courthouse work, according to state reports on political contributions. That includes about $3,500 to the campaigns of Lambert's wife, Debra Lambert, for family court judge and circuit court judge.

The company also employs state Sen. Johnny Ray Turner, D-Drift, to lobby on its behalf. Turner, who pleaded guilty last year in a vote-fraud case, serves on the powerful Senate Appropriations and Revenue Committee, which approves the state budget as well as local projects.

State legislators can work as lobbyists, but they are not allowed to vote on measures in which they hold a personal interest.

In all, Codell Construction employees have given $193,500 to Kentucky politicians since 2000.

Many large businesses give generously to politicians on both sides of the aisle. In Codell's case, it has been a good investment: Codell officials said they have earned $11 million in courthouse business since 1993, some of it for projects still under construction. (Thirty-seven of the total 65 projects approved since 1998 are under construction or in the design phase.) Codell has received contracts for other projects it has not yet been paid for.

Both Codell and the AOC declined to say how much the company will earn under contracts going forward. But if Codell receives a typical average payment for such jobs, it could earn more than $18 million total on courthouses planned or built since 1998.

The AOC, which is not subject to the state's Open Records Law, said it did not track the exact amounts paid to Ross Sinclaire or Codell.

Under AOC rules, prices for all major contracts are set in advance. Construction management is one of the major contracts that does not require firms to bid for the work.

Instead, each local courthouse committee — a group made up mostly of judicial officials — issues a request for qualifications, allowing companies to present their background and experience. Because Codell has built the most courthouses, it is usually considered to have the best qualifications.

The same is true for Ross Sinclaire, which gets the lion's share of courthouse bond business. While that company's political giving is dwarfed by Codell's, it employs two legislators: state Sen. R.J. Palmer, D-Winchester, a vice president for financial advising and client development; and state Rep. Bob Damron, D-Nicholasville, who wrote the 2000 legislation that codified the AOC's building process.

In addition, for a few months this year, it employed the son of former Chief Justice Lambert, who pushed for new justice centers in every county and sees the program as his greatest legacy.

State Rep. Brent Yonts, D-Greenville, a member of the Budget Review Subcommittee on Justice and Judiciary, says the rules might need to be changed.

"I don't know why these groups are getting most of the business, but it may be something we need to look at," Yonts said. "Philosophically and ethically, the business ought to be open and ought to be bid in any way possible to get the maximum value."

Friends in high places

The Codell Construction Co. started out in heavy construction in 1908, but in past years has moved into construction management, mostly of municipal projects such as schools, jails and justice centers.

In 1996, Patton appointed company scion James Codell III transportation secretary. State ethics laws forbid executive branch officials from owning companies that do business with the state, depending on the business and the office held. Codell resigned from the company, and a spokeswoman said at the time that the company did no state business.

John Hays, an attorney for Codell who responded to the Herald-Leader's written questions, said that at the time, Codell also placed his shares, worth about 33 percent of the company, in a blind trust.

Codell remained transportation secretary throughout Patton's two terms, but the company continued to work on schools and judicial centers.

Although the General Assembly provides the funding to pay off the county bond issues that pay for courthouses, Hays disputed that courthouse work is state business.

"In fact, courthouse projects are local projects that are let by local development boards selected for each project," he said in a written statement. "By giving good service for a fair price, they developed an excellent reputation for managing courthouse construction."

The state's Executive Branch Ethics Commission did not issue an official ruling on the company's continued work for the state because no complaint was ever made, officials in the ethics office said.

Complaints have been lodged in the past about Codell's dominance of judicial center contracts. In 2003, Paducah architect Nick Warren asked then-Attorney General Ben Chandler to investigate the number of contracts awarded to the company.

Chandler's office declined. At the time, Chandler told the Herald-Leader that Warren had not brought enough evidence forward. Warren said he thinks Chandler was influenced by the $7,000 in campaign contributions given by the Codells and their employees in his run for governor — a charge that Chandler, now a member of Congress, flatly denies.

Warren asked for the investigation because he was — and still is — convinced that counties that hired Codell Construction would get road projects funneled their way by Transportation Secretary James Codell III.

Warren cites as an example McCracken County. After hiring Codell to build an exposition center in Paducah in 2000, Warren says, the county got a new overpass to an industrial park.

"I was angry because our general contractors were being cut out of the work," Warren said recently, adding that Codell got a much higher number of contracts "than is normal in our business."

Hays said Codell "categorically denies" these allegations, saying they would have to be based on a "grand conspiracy ... that encompasses numerous individuals."

Politics versus qualifications

Steve Branscum, the head of Branscum Construction, also does construction management. Branscum is a close friend and political ally of former Gov. Ernie Fletcher, and his company has gotten the contracts on three new justice centers.

"We pursue some of the judicial centers, and Codell and others have as well," Branscum said. "I think the facts would show that they've got the most of them."

When asked whether politics was involved in those decisions, Branscum noted that the decisions are made by county leaders and AOC officials. "It's just the procurement process of those projects," he said.

Representatives from Alliance and Messer Construction, two statewide construction firms, did not return calls seeking comment.

AOC facilities director Garlan VanHook expressed amazement that the most experienced company wouldn't get the most contracts.

"They're competing for who is the most qualified and who makes the best impression," he said. "It's qualification-based. Sometimes it's about personal relationships, but they aren't the means to an end."

Former Chief Justice Lambert also defended the process, saying the "use of the project development board has worked well, bringing good, solid input."

Pendleton County Judge-Executive Henry Bertram said his project development board hired Codell because "they had the best credentials. If I've built one courthouse and somebody else has built 10, who will you accept?"

Need for bids?

The other powerful company that gets the vast majority of business is Ross Sinclaire, which advises counties on their bond issues to pay for the new justice centers. In addition, Ross Sinclaire also wins most of the contracts for other bond work in the state, including schools and other municipal projects.

Ross Sinclaire is a full-service securities brokerage and investment banking firm based in Cincinnati, but has 80 employees in 10 states, including Kentucky.

Most of its public bond business in the state is done in its Frankfort office, where it helps local governments get the best deal on bond sales to finance public projects, said Damron, who works for the company, mostly in South Carolina.

The financial adviser is paid through a complicated formula that can give it about 1 percent of the bond total. So the company could make as much as $6 million on judicial projects approved since 1998. AOC officials dispute that number, but would not provide an amount. Ross Sinclaire officials did not return calls for this story.

In February, the Louisville office of Ross Sinclaire hired Joseph P. Lambert Jr., the son of former Chief Justice Lambert, who created and oversaw the courthouse building program. Lambert Jr. no longer works at the firm and declined to comment on a potential conflict of interest for a Herald-Leader article in May.

Chief Justice Lambert resigned in June to join the Senior Judge Program.

Ross Sinclaire is headed by Murray Sinclaire in the firm's Cincinnati office. The firm's other founder, the late Terrell Ross, was a businessman from Fleming County.

The AOC program shows much more diversity in the awarding of contracts for architecture, which are awarded under the same "request for qualifications" process. Of the 65 courthouses built since 1998, two firms got the most judicial center jobs —19 were awarded to CMW and nine to Brandstetter Carroll, both of Lexington. The remaining projects were divided among 14 different architecture firms.

The question is whether state contracts should be given to a variety of firms, said Rep. Kathy Stein, D-Lexington, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee and sits on the Courthouse Facilities Standards Committee.

Changing the 2000 law that lays out the AOC courthouse building process would be up to the legislature.

"It needs to be a competitive process," Stein said. "Kentucky is a small commonwealth, but we need to ensure that the taxpayers get the benefit of every dollar spent on courthouse projects."

i like reading this stuff. you should post about louisville to

I can't even believe we are talking about demolishing this historic church that dates to 1850! To the church, it is all about money -- especially since they relocated most of their parish to their new Leestown Road campus -- which is HIDEOUS.

Downtown Church may be sold for judicial center project (http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4476166)
By Charlie Pearl and John Zambenini, State Journal, November 30, 2008

The historic downtown Good Shepherd Catholic Church is now being discussed in negotiations between the church and officials trying to find a site for a new $30 million judicial center.

Up until now, prospects for a new site involved only the Good Shepherd property where the school is located adjacent to the church - which dates to 1850.
However, Judge-Executive Ted Collins said Friday "there's a possibility the church itself may become a part of the negotiations.

"My main thought as chairman is that we continue viewing the property excluding the church," said Collins, chairman of the Franklin Project Development Board, which is overseeing the courthouse project.

"I'm not interested in incorporating it into the project."
Collins said there has been an interest in the Good Shepherd property - adjacent to the historic courthouse - "since we first heard the property might be for sale in December 2006.

"The whole time we've had discussions, I've been under the distinct impression the downtown church property included everything with the exception of the church. We proceeded with negotiations and appraisals."

Church may become available
Then recently Collins said he's "heard that some folks in the Good Shepherd parish believe it might be in their best interest to sell all of the downtown property."

Collins said all of the Good Shepherd property, including the church, "is a new possibility that I have not totally digested yet. It would take additional study and consideration from both parties - Good Shepherd and the Project Development Board.

"I'm open-minded to looking at that possibility if our Good Shepherd neighbors are open to the consideration of selling."

The school property includes classrooms, administrative offices and a gymnasium. The Good Shepherd Church steeple is the tallest among downtown Frankfort's prominent structures, including the courthouse and the old Paul Sawyier library.

Good Shepherd's pastor, Rev. Charles Howell, acknowledged at a Saturday evening mass the possibility of a sale of all the church's downtown property including the original Wapping Street church itself.

Howell said during the service Collins told him the county had appraised the Good Shepherd property at $2 million without the church.

The county, Howell said, appraised the property with the church included at $300,000 more, $2.3 million in total.

Howell said Good Shepherd would not release its own appraisal of the property as part of the negotiating process, which he also said has not yet begun.
"There's no money on the table," Howell said Saturday.

Paula Murphy, a downtown resident and Good Shepherd parishioner, attended the school from first to ninth grade and objects to its sale.

"It breaks my heart," Murphy told The State Journal in a phone interview Saturday.

Murphy, whose son is in the eighth grade at Good Shepherd School, lived in England for 20 years.

One of the reasons her family moved downtown when they returned to Kentucky was because the church and school make the neighborhood feel like home, she said.
"I'm just going to be sad because I won't see those school kids running out the door," Murphy said.

"That's where I'd gone to school, I'd basically grown up there," Murphy said. "The thought of the church abandoning the downtown property, it's like ripping the heart out of the downtown community."

When her family returned from abroad, Murphy said, the church had already shifted its mass from the Wapping Street building to its Leestown Road campus.

Murphy said she could see a financial advantage to selling the downtown property, but she doesn't believe it's the way to go in spiritual terms.

"I think we need to keep a Catholic presence in the downtown area," Murphy, who worked in the school's lunchroom for two years, said.

"Where you come from is valuable," she said. "In my view there's no way that building could be torn down."

"I think there would be a statewide outcry," Murphy said of the church "immortalized in Paul Sawyier paintings."
"That would be a travesty," she said.

Mark Dennen, acting executive director of the Kentucky Heritage Council, said Saturday the Project Development Board and the state Administrative of the Courts don't have to comply with any of the city zoning ordinances including the historic protection ordinance.

If federal funds were involved, the heritage council would have to review the project and "give an opinion as to whether there would be any adverse effect," Dennen said. But the same doesn't apply to state-funded projects, he said.

Property becomes top priority
The Good Shepherd property on St. Clair and Wapping streets - excluding the church building - became the top-priority site for the new judicial center in October.

At a public meeting on site selection in August 2007, the Rev. Patrick Stewart, then pastor of Good Shepherd Church, said Good Shepherd "is earnest about wanting to sell its downtown property" so it can build a new school on its Leestown Road church property.

Stewart said it's sad to think about Good Shepherd needing to leave downtown. But he added the new judicial center being built on Good Shepherd property - next to the current Franklin County Courthouse " would help keep the downtown area vibrant.

Stewart also said the time schedules for the new school and judicial center should be about the same.

Last month Project Development Board member Sam McNamara said the $4 million price for the Good Shepherd property was too high when it was initially considered last year, but otherwise he was pleased with it.

The old Model Laundry site behind the Frankfort Convention Center was the board's top choice for almost a year until discussions resumed with Good Shepherd.

Mixed emotions
Don Stosberg, a Good Shepherd parishioner for 42 years who served on the parish council decades ago, said Saturday he's "kind of neutral on the issue" of including the church in the negotiations.

Stosberg said the church, "right in the heart of downtown, has a spiritual history in this community and is important to many."

He said he also understands that "whatever the church gets for the property becomes a down payment on the new school. And of course the church wants to get the best price it can."

Parishioner Lee Colten said Friday he's "not emotionally attached to the church. So it's easy for me to look at it from a financial standpoint because that's a big factor when you look at a new school down the road."

Greg Meyer, a local builder and lifetime member of Good Shepherd, said Friday he's "in favor of selling all the downtown property. I think it will be a positive for the county and the parish.

"There are only so many buildings you can maintain," and having everything on the Leestown Road campus will work better, Meyer said.

churches are good for communities

Kyova mall gets shot of life with new contracts (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_341211347.html)
New restaurants help to build confidence for future growth
By Tim Preston, The Independent, December 6, 2008

ASHLAND — With a new sports bar ready to open, another restaurant under construction, a renewed contract for Sears, the former Ace Hardware building soon to be occupied by Dollar Tree and several deals pending for additional businesses, officials at Kyova Mall are feeling confident about the facility’s future.

Motorists along U.S. 60 in Cannonsburg have been slowing down to read the revolving messages on a new high-tech sign inviting shoppers into the mall. And observers agree a line of white horse-park style fencing around the property has also improved the mall’s appearance. Work to bring down an exterior wall near Phoenix Theatre has also commanded attention from shoppers and those passing by as reports of a new American-style pub and restaurant circulate in the community.

Mall owner Johnny Eggleston said residents should be impressed with what they see when construction of Callihan’s American Pub is complete.

“It’s truly going to be something unique to this region,” Eggleston said Friday, explaining the business will feature a two-story design with a mezzanine, spiral staircase and a large enclosed patio.

“It’s going to be done first class. It will be first class in every way and will have a lot of unique features.”

Eggleston said Callihan’s is expected to be ready for business within three to four months, and may remind patrons of Malone’s in Huntington, with menu points comparable to a Friday’s restaurant.

RJ Kahuna’s Sports Bar & Grill, on the other hand, “is close,” Eggleston said, hinting the Caribbean-themed sports bar in the mall space formerly occupied by a barbecue restaurant should be open soon.

“It has been a lot of fun to work on because of the creativity,” Eggleston said. “When you see it I hope and believe you will be very surprised. It is a place that when you walk in, you know you’re going to have fun.”

RJ Kahuna’s owner Tal Callihan said the new restaurant will offer a variety menu, with items ranging from wings and nachos to salads and sandwiches, and a full bar service. The decor includes sports memorabilia as well as an unusual sand-filled bar, computer access for patrons, an area for children and 33 television sets, including six large-screen projection units.

“You’re never going to miss a moment,” said RJ Kahuna’s manager Miranda Watson, one of many staff members Callihan said he recruited from other local restaurants because of their outstanding customer service and food service experience.

On the other side of the highway, at the former Ace Hardware location, soon to be labeled Kyova Square with a new sign, Eggleston said Dollar Tree officials will assume control of the property by the end of December and will develop the store according to their own schedule. Eggleston said 6,400 square feet of space is available at that location.

The mall has also welcomed several new stores to the roster in recent months, with a focus on locally grown small businesses.

“The reality is of course we’ve talked to the nationals,” Eggleston said, speaking of nationwide franchises that tend to locate in larger shopping centers and malls.

“The fact is when you talk to those nationals, they ask, ‘Who’s your local?’ They are all afraid to be the pioneer. It is hard to get the nationals until they recognize the local community supports the property. It is just logical to respect and appreciate the local and regional entrepreneurs.”

Melissa Gail Atkins, who opened Sophia’s in Kyova Mall less than a month ago, said she has done well in her first days and believes the mall will flourish during the weeks and months ahead.

“I think they are trying to get more new businesses in here, and I think it is going to pick up,” Atkins said between serving shoppers. “I’ve already sold out of some merchandise, and I’m scrambling to get more in so I don’t have empty shelves. And we haven’t even hit Christmas yet!”

Cindy Miller at Wilma’s Dress Shop said their customers have been highly pleased with the new location at Kyova.

“We’ve been doing real well and we have a lot of new customers,” Miller said, citing plans for an upcoming fashion show and other events at the mall. After 64 years in business at a shop in Grayson, Miller said many Wilma’s shoppers have expressed their appreciation for the new store’s easy access.

Jennifer Morrison at the new Knot Just Pretzels in the food court at Kyova said her young business is also doing well.

“I think the mall is growing with the restaurants coming in, and especially with Wilma’s already being here,” Morrison said. “It’s getting better every day. You can tell there are more people in here. I keep hearing people say, ‘This mall is so pretty. I don’t know why more people aren’t out here.’ They all want to know if I’m doing well.”

Angel Hicks, owner of Angel’s Cards & Gifts, said she spent several years at another Ashland mall and definitely prefers doing business at Kyova.

“People really like this mall,” Hicks said. “Here we have friendly, help-you type managers, and the rate we pay is not even comparable.”

Kathy Harris at Uniforms Inc. said the mall offers her customers, including staff at area hospitals, doctors’ offices, school cafeterias and veterinary offices, a convenient location to find work apparel.

“I think it is a good location,” Harris said. “I would recommend it to any business owner.”

Kyova mall gets shot of life with new contracts (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_341211347.html)
New restaurants help to build confidence for future growth
By Tim Preston, The Independent, December 6, 2008

ASHLAND — With a new sports bar ready to open, another restaurant under construction, a renewed contract for Sears, the former Ace Hardware building soon to be occupied by Dollar Tree and several deals pending for additional businesses, officials at Kyova Mall are feeling confident about the facility’s future.

Motorists along U.S. 60 in Cannonsburg have been slowing down to read the revolving messages on a new high-tech sign inviting shoppers into the mall. And observers agree a line of white horse-park style fencing around the property has also improved the mall’s appearance. Work to bring down an exterior wall near Phoenix Theatre has also commanded attention from shoppers and those passing by as reports of a new American-style pub and restaurant circulate in the community.

Mall owner Johnny Eggleston said residents should be impressed with what they see when construction of Callihan’s American Pub is complete.

“It’s truly going to be something unique to this region,” Eggleston said Friday, explaining the business will feature a two-story design with a mezzanine, spiral staircase and a large enclosed patio.

“It’s going to be done first class. It will be first class in every way and will have a lot of unique features.”

Eggleston said Callihan’s is expected to be ready for business within three to four months, and may remind patrons of Malone’s in Huntington, with menu points comparable to a Friday’s restaurant.

RJ Kahuna’s Sports Bar & Grill, on the other hand, “is close,” Eggleston said, hinting the Caribbean-themed sports bar in the mall space formerly occupied by a barbecue restaurant should be open soon.

“It has been a lot of fun to work on because of the creativity,” Eggleston said. “When you see it I hope and believe you will be very surprised. It is a place that when you walk in, you know you’re going to have fun.”

RJ Kahuna’s owner Tal Callihan said the new restaurant will offer a variety menu, with items ranging from wings and nachos to salads and sandwiches, and a full bar service. The decor includes sports memorabilia as well as an unusual sand-filled bar, computer access for patrons, an area for children and 33 television sets, including six large-screen projection units.

“You’re never going to miss a moment,” said RJ Kahuna’s manager Miranda Watson, one of many staff members Callihan said he recruited from other local restaurants because of their outstanding customer service and food service experience.

On the other side of the highway, at the former Ace Hardware location, soon to be labeled Kyova Square with a new sign, Eggleston said Dollar Tree officials will assume control of the property by the end of December and will develop the store according to their own schedule. Eggleston said 6,400 square feet of space is available at that location.

The mall has also welcomed several new stores to the roster in recent months, with a focus on locally grown small businesses.

“The reality is of course we’ve talked to the nationals,” Eggleston said, speaking of nationwide franchises that tend to locate in larger shopping centers and malls.

“The fact is when you talk to those nationals, they ask, ‘Who’s your local?’ They are all afraid to be the pioneer. It is hard to get the nationals until they recognize the local community supports the property. It is just logical to respect and appreciate the local and regional entrepreneurs.”

Melissa Gail Atkins, who opened Sophia’s in Kyova Mall less than a month ago, said she has done well in her first days and believes the mall will flourish during the weeks and months ahead.

“I think they are trying to get more new businesses in here, and I think it is going to pick up,” Atkins said between serving shoppers. “I’ve already sold out of some merchandise, and I’m scrambling to get more in so I don’t have empty shelves. And we haven’t even hit Christmas yet!”

Cindy Miller at Wilma’s Dress Shop said their customers have been highly pleased with the new location at Kyova.

“We’ve been doing real well and we have a lot of new customers,” Miller said, citing plans for an upcoming fashion show and other events at the mall. After 64 years in business at a shop in Grayson, Miller said many Wilma’s shoppers have expressed their appreciation for the new store’s easy access.

Jennifer Morrison at the new Knot Just Pretzels in the food court at Kyova said her young business is also doing well.

“I think the mall is growing with the restaurants coming in, and especially with Wilma’s already being here,” Morrison said. “It’s getting better every day. You can tell there are more people in here. I keep hearing people say, ‘This mall is so pretty. I don’t know why more people aren’t out here.’ They all want to know if I’m doing well.”

Angel Hicks, owner of Angel’s Cards & Gifts, said she spent several years at another Ashland mall and definitely prefers doing business at Kyova.

“People really like this mall,” Hicks said. “Here we have friendly, help-you type managers, and the rate we pay is not even comparable.”

Kathy Harris at Uniforms Inc. said the mall offers her customers, including staff at area hospitals, doctors’ offices, school cafeterias and veterinary offices, a convenient location to find work apparel.

“I think it is a good location,” Harris said. “I would recommend it to any business owner.”

Kyova mall gets shot of life with new contracts (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_341211347.html)
New restaurants help to build confidence for future growth
By Tim Preston, The Independent, December 6, 2008

ASHLAND — With a new sports bar ready to open, another restaurant under construction, a renewed contract for Sears, the former Ace Hardware building soon to be occupied by Dollar Tree and several deals pending for additional businesses, officials at Kyova Mall are feeling confident about the facility’s future.

Motorists along U.S. 60 in Cannonsburg have been slowing down to read the revolving messages on a new high-tech sign inviting shoppers into the mall. And observers agree a line of white horse-park style fencing around the property has also improved the mall’s appearance. Work to bring down an exterior wall near Phoenix Theatre has also commanded attention from shoppers and those passing by as reports of a new American-style pub and restaurant circulate in the community.

Mall owner Johnny Eggleston said residents should be impressed with what they see when construction of Callihan’s American Pub is complete.

“It’s truly going to be something unique to this region,” Eggleston said Friday, explaining the business will feature a two-story design with a mezzanine, spiral staircase and a large enclosed patio.

“It’s going to be done first class. It will be first class in every way and will have a lot of unique features.”

Eggleston said Callihan’s is expected to be ready for business within three to four months, and may remind patrons of Malone’s in Huntington, with menu points comparable to a Friday’s restaurant.

RJ Kahuna’s Sports Bar & Grill, on the other hand, “is close,” Eggleston said, hinting the Caribbean-themed sports bar in the mall space formerly occupied by a barbecue restaurant should be open soon.

“It has been a lot of fun to work on because of the creativity,” Eggleston said. “When you see it I hope and believe you will be very surprised. It is a place that when you walk in, you know you’re going to have fun.”

RJ Kahuna’s owner Tal Callihan said the new restaurant will offer a variety menu, with items ranging from wings and nachos to salads and sandwiches, and a full bar service. The decor includes sports memorabilia as well as an unusual sand-filled bar, computer access for patrons, an area for children and 33 television sets, including six large-screen projection units.

“You’re never going to miss a moment,” said RJ Kahuna’s manager Miranda Watson, one of many staff members Callihan said he recruited from other local restaurants because of their outstanding customer service and food service experience.

On the other side of the highway, at the former Ace Hardware location, soon to be labeled Kyova Square with a new sign, Eggleston said Dollar Tree officials will assume control of the property by the end of December and will develop the store according to their own schedule. Eggleston said 6,400 square feet of space is available at that location.

The mall has also welcomed several new stores to the roster in recent months, with a focus on locally grown small businesses.

“The reality is of course we’ve talked to the nationals,” Eggleston said, speaking of nationwide franchises that tend to locate in larger shopping centers and malls.

“The fact is when you talk to those nationals, they ask, ‘Who’s your local?’ They are all afraid to be the pioneer. It is hard to get the nationals until they recognize the local community supports the property. It is just logical to respect and appreciate the local and regional entrepreneurs.”

Melissa Gail Atkins, who opened Sophia’s in Kyova Mall less than a month ago, said she has done well in her first days and believes the mall will flourish during the weeks and months ahead.

“I think they are trying to get more new businesses in here, and I think it is going to pick up,” Atkins said between serving shoppers. “I’ve already sold out of some merchandise, and I’m scrambling to get more in so I don’t have empty shelves. And we haven’t even hit Christmas yet!”

Cindy Miller at Wilma’s Dress Shop said their customers have been highly pleased with the new location at Kyova.

“We’ve been doing real well and we have a lot of new customers,” Miller said, citing plans for an upcoming fashion show and other events at the mall. After 64 years in business at a shop in Grayson, Miller said many Wilma’s shoppers have expressed their appreciation for the new store’s easy access.

Jennifer Morrison at the new Knot Just Pretzels in the food court at Kyova said her young business is also doing well.

“I think the mall is growing with the restaurants coming in, and especially with Wilma’s already being here,” Morrison said. “It’s getting better every day. You can tell there are more people in here. I keep hearing people say, ‘This mall is so pretty. I don’t know why more people aren’t out here.’ They all want to know if I’m doing well.”

Angel Hicks, owner of Angel’s Cards & Gifts, said she spent several years at another Ashland mall and definitely prefers doing business at Kyova.

“People really like this mall,” Hicks said. “Here we have friendly, help-you type managers, and the rate we pay is not even comparable.”

Kathy Harris at Uniforms Inc. said the mall offers her customers, including staff at area hospitals, doctors’ offices, school cafeterias and veterinary offices, a convenient location to find work apparel.

“I think it is a good location,” Harris said. “I would recommend it to any business owner.”

coo... ashland needs a first class pub like that

"Start regulating" to what people can do with their property?

Oh, give me a break Devins. When you have cities that fail to regulate anything and end up with trailer homes in historic districts, junk cars piling up on lawns, haphazard development with no planning or zoning, and a lack of coordination within the city, then you need to realize that regulation is the essence of historic preservation.

Especially when a city such as Perryville features many residences and properties on the National Register of Historic Places. And when a city such as Perryville lies adjacent to the Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site (http://www.americanbyways.com/index.php?catid=67).

Many of the buildings along Merchants Row are in bad condition and need immediate repair. As the city does not want to dedicate funds towards their rehabilitation, then the option of historic tax credits and other funding measures needs to be implemented.

Historic Preservation Ordinance on hold for new Perryville council after second reading (http://www.amnews.com/public_html/?module=displaystory&story_id=46236&format=html)
By Jonathan Schwab, Advocate Messenger, December 6, 2008

PERRYVILLE - The Historic Preservation ordinance dominated discussion Thursday at the Perryville City Council meeting, but the council voted 4-1 to table the topic until next year when the new council will be in session.

Council members Julie Clay and Dawn Hastings opposed tabling the ordinance after its second reading. Clay urged the council to consider limiting the ordinance to preserving and restoring Merchants Row. Councilwoman Georgeanne Edwards did not attend the meeting because of a family emergency.

The ordinance, which has been in the works for more than a year, requires a five-member commission to designate historic sites and districts within the city. The current draft of the ordinance does not designate any areas or buildings as historic.

About 25 members of the public attended the meeting, including incoming City Council members, and nearly all of them opposed passing the ordinance as is.

One of the most vocal citizens was Janet Reynolds, who called the ordinance "very demanding." Reynolds said it infringes upon a homeowner's rights.

"If you have a house that's in the historic district, that's on the national register," Reynolds said. "I think that if someone owns the property, they should have the right to do with that property whatever they want to as long as they do not devalue that."

Clay told Reynolds, "Part of the problem that we've had so many starts and stops on the preservation of this row for the 68 years that you've lived here is because the majority of money the (Perryville) Enhancement Project has been able to secure has been for the purchase of battlefield land only, not buildings."

The back-and-forth conversation continued, before Reynolds told the crowd, "If you've got a historical house and you want to do something with it, the Historic Preservation Commission won't let you. How would you feel about it? I wouldn't like it a bit."

'When people don't want something, then the city must listen to them'

Clay said voting for the ordinance would by no means be the final straw for this discussion.

"We can amend it," she said. "The goal is intended not to be punitive and not to tell people what they can and cannot do with their grant money, but in order to get more grant money we have to have a historic preservation ordinance."

J.D. Devins followed Reynolds in opposing the ordinance, saying he has spoken to about 50 Perryville residents who agree with him on this matter.

"When you start regulating people in your town, you start having more and more power," Devins said. "When people don't want something, then the city must listen to them."

Mayor Anne Sleet suggested holding a community meeting in January where more members of the public are given the opportunity to speak on the matter.

"Start regulating" to what people can do with their property?

Oh, give me a break Devins. When you have cities that fail to regulate anything and end up with trailer homes in historic districts, junk cars piling up on lawns, haphazard development with no planning or zoning, and a lack of coordination within the city, then you need to realize that regulation is the essence of historic preservation.

Especially when a city such as Perryville features many residences and properties on the National Register of Historic Places. And when a city such as Perryville lies adjacent to the Perryville Battlefield State Historic Site (http://www.americanbyways.com/index.php?catid=67).

Many of the buildings along Merchants Row are in bad condition and need immediate repair. As the city does not want to dedicate funds towards their rehabilitation, then the option of historic tax credits and other funding measures needs to be implemented.

Historic Preservation Ordinance on hold for new Perryville council after second reading (http://www.amnews.com/public_html/?module=displaystory&story_id=46236&format=html)
By Jonathan Schwab, Advocate Messenger, December 6, 2008

PERRYVILLE - The Historic Preservation ordinance dominated discussion Thursday at the Perryville City Council meeting, but the council voted 4-1 to table the topic until next year when the new council will be in session.

Council members Julie Clay and Dawn Hastings opposed tabling the ordinance after its second reading. Clay urged the council to consider limiting the ordinance to preserving and restoring Merchants Row. Councilwoman Georgeanne Edwards did not attend the meeting because of a family emergency.

The ordinance, which has been in the works for more than a year, requires a five-member commission to designate historic sites and districts within the city. The current draft of the ordinance does not designate any areas or buildings as historic.

About 25 members of the public attended the meeting, including incoming City Council members, and nearly all of them opposed passing the ordinance as is.

One of the most vocal citizens was Janet Reynolds, who called the ordinance "very demanding." Reynolds said it infringes upon a homeowner's rights.

"If you have a house that's in the historic district, that's on the national register," Reynolds said. "I think that if someone owns the property, they should have the right to do with that property whatever they want to as long as they do not devalue that."

Clay told Reynolds, "Part of the problem that we've had so many starts and stops on the preservation of this row for the 68 years that you've lived here is because the majority of money the (Perryville) Enhancement Project has been able to secure has been for the purchase of battlefield land only, not buildings."

The back-and-forth conversation continued, before Reynolds told the crowd, "If you've got a historical house and you want to do something with it, the Historic Preservation Commission won't let you. How would you feel about it? I wouldn't like it a bit."

'When people don't want something, then the city must listen to them'

Clay said voting for the ordinance would by no means be the final straw for this discussion.

"We can amend it," she said. "The goal is intended not to be punitive and not to tell people what they can and cannot do with their grant money, but in order to get more grant money we have to have a historic preservation ordinance."

J.D. Devins followed Reynolds in opposing the ordinance, saying he has spoken to about 50 Perryville residents who agree with him on this matter.

"When you start regulating people in your town, you start having more and more power," Devins said. "When people don't want something, then the city must listen to them."

Mayor Anne Sleet suggested holding a community meeting in January where more members of the public are given the opportunity to speak on the matter.

yeah devin, give break, people should be able to do what they want on their own privat property

Restrooms, riverwall in limbo (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_346230259.html)
By Carrie Stambaugh, The Independent, December 11, 2008

ASHLAND — The planned restrooms and the small riverwall could be eliminated from phase one of Ashland’s Veterans Riverfront Park to get costs within the city’s roughly $9 million construction budget.

Officials also now plan to start construction immediately if bids come back within budget even though it will force Summer Motion to relocate all of its 2009 activities to Central Park.

The initial bids for phase one of the riverfront project, opened in August, ranged from $13.5 to $17.5 million. Engineers told city officials that they estimate the restroom facilities to cost approximately $1.5 million and the small riverwall $3 million to construct.

Ashland commissioners made both decisions on the advice of officials with engineering firm KZF Design. They voted Thursday to rebid the project as soon as possible with the restrooms and the smaller portion of the riverwall as additional alternatives to be constructed only if the budget allows.

The project could be put out for the second round of bids as early as mid-January with estimates due back before the end of February, according to KZF officials.

The commission made the decision hesitantly, again stressing to engineers the restroom facilities were a priority. They first tried to find other cost-saving methods including changing building materials, eliminating a portion of a retaining wall from the project and using city workers to construct additional portions of the project.

Commissioners demanded the restrooms be included in phase one last March despite engineers’ warnings at that time they could push the cost of the project higher and require a shortening of the riverwall.

This time, David Tomley, KZF engineer, and William Wright, KZF project manager, convinced commissioners to follow their suggestions. They argued bidding the restrooms and riverwall as added alternatives could make the biggest difference in the overall cost. The pair also told commissioners once the bid packages are submitted, the city could better negotiate with contractors on the restrooms construction because a scheduled list of expenses would be included.

City Manager Steve Corbitt also encouraged that move. He said later he remains “cautiously optimistic” that bids will be low enough to do the restroom but added, “I don’t think there is any chance we’ll do the bulkhead.”

Tomley and Wright also suggested the city move forward with construction as soon as possible in order to realize the most cost savings on construction.

Because the price of steel, concrete and other materials have fluctuated byas much as 20 percent in recent months, bidders may have to inflate their estimates if they know they won’t be purchasing materials for several months, they said.

If a contract is awarded in February, construction could start in March and would be in full swing during the July Summer Motion event. Commissioners agreed the festival should be asked to move the location of its concerts for one year. Previously, commissioners had tried to accommodate the annual festival and delay construction until after its conclusion.

Summer Motion President Chuck Charles said Wednesday he had anticipated that request. As part of the festival’s annual request to use city property for the events, which commissioners approved earlier this month, he included a request to use Central Park for all the concerts if the riverfront was unavailable.

'Protection of Old Washington' focus of upcoming meeting (http://www.maysville-online.com/articles/2008/12/11/local_news/646oldwashington.txt)
By Barbara Goldman, Ledger Independent, December 11, 2008

A public hearing will be held next week during which proposed expansion of the Washington Historic District will be the topic for discussion.

The Maysville-Washington Board of Architectural Review will be conducting two separate public hearings on Tuesday, Dec. 16, at 5:30 p.m. at the Old Church Museum located at 2202 Old Main Street in Washington.

The hearings are required by state law, and are to be conducted to gather public input on potential changes to the official Maysville Land Use Map and Maysville-Mason County Land Use Ordinance.

The first hearing is an application from the board to expand the Old Washington Historic Overlay District to match the federally acknowledged National Register of Historic Places’s Historic District for Washington.

According to Maysville Zoning Administrator Matt Wallingford, one of the purposes of the meeting is to inform property owners why this is being proposed.

Wallingford said one of the goals of the Maysville-Mason County Comprehensive Plan is to protect "old" Washington from insensitive uses and development. This plan serves as a guide to address land use issues in the city and county, and to provide for goals, strategies and recommendations for solving such issues.

Another concern arose from several public meetings conducted by Old Washington Incorporated in regard to Old Washington’s proximity to the proposed bypass and the anticipated future increase in development pressures, Wallingford said.

Several historic properties, including Marshall House, George Wood House and Cedar Hill, are currently unprotected. According to Wallingford, expanding the district can possibly preserve greenspace by protecting the original founder’s vision of out-lot settlement. Expansion of the district also incorporates a comprehensive policy, replacing instead of trying to "piecemeal" attempts at protecting Washington from fighting inappropriate development.

Wallingford said citizens within the district who are wondering how the change would affect them should know there will not be an increase in property taxes.

"This is a common misconception," said Wallingford. "On the flip side, it has been proven time and time again that properties included as part of a historic district show increased property values, commercial revitalization, business investments and increased tourism."

According to Wallingford, a 2000 study of homes in Columbia and Beauport, S.C., showed a 26 percent and 21 percent, respective, increase in property sales versus the overall market. A 2003 study of property values assessed in Lexington's historic districts added a 19 percent to 31 percent increase to the value of the residence. There are also federal and state tax advantages for rehabilitation and locally available restoration information.

Once a property is included within the district, any modifications made to a structure which results in a visible change must be approved by the board. General maintenance, repairs and painting are not subject to the board, according to Wallingford.

Wallingford said as an example a property owner who wants to replace clapboard siding with vinyl siding would need approval from the board; as would a person wanting to erect a storage building or sign.

These processes are included as part of the Washington Historic District Ordinance, which will be the subject of the second public hearing.

"The citizens of Maysville and Washington take great pride in the architectural and historical significance of their city, and have worked hard to protect and preserve its heritage," said Wallingford.

Anyone with questions regarding the proposed expansion should call Wallingford at the Maysville Municipal Building at 606-564-2504.

'Protection of Old Washington' focus of upcoming meeting (http://www.maysville-online.com/articles/2008/12/11/local_news/646oldwashington.txt)
By Barbara Goldman, Ledger Independent, December 11, 2008

A public hearing will be held next week during which proposed expansion of the Washington Historic District will be the topic for discussion.

The Maysville-Washington Board of Architectural Review will be conducting two separate public hearings on Tuesday, Dec. 16, at 5:30 p.m. at the Old Church Museum located at 2202 Old Main Street in Washington.

The hearings are required by state law, and are to be conducted to gather public input on potential changes to the official Maysville Land Use Map and Maysville-Mason County Land Use Ordinance.

The first hearing is an application from the board to expand the Old Washington Historic Overlay District to match the federally acknowledged National Register of Historic Places’s Historic District for Washington.

According to Maysville Zoning Administrator Matt Wallingford, one of the purposes of the meeting is to inform property owners why this is being proposed.

Wallingford said one of the goals of the Maysville-Mason County Comprehensive Plan is to protect "old" Washington from insensitive uses and development. This plan serves as a guide to address land use issues in the city and county, and to provide for goals, strategies and recommendations for solving such issues.

Another concern arose from several public meetings conducted by Old Washington Incorporated in regard to Old Washington’s proximity to the proposed bypass and the anticipated future increase in development pressures, Wallingford said.

Several historic properties, including Marshall House, George Wood House and Cedar Hill, are currently unprotected. According to Wallingford, expanding the district can possibly preserve greenspace by protecting the original founder’s vision of out-lot settlement. Expansion of the district also incorporates a comprehensive policy, replacing instead of trying to "piecemeal" attempts at protecting Washington from fighting inappropriate development.

Wallingford said citizens within the district who are wondering how the change would affect them should know there will not be an increase in property taxes.

"This is a common misconception," said Wallingford. "On the flip side, it has been proven time and time again that properties included as part of a historic district show increased property values, commercial revitalization, business investments and increased tourism."

According to Wallingford, a 2000 study of homes in Columbia and Beauport, S.C., showed a 26 percent and 21 percent, respective, increase in property sales versus the overall market. A 2003 study of property values assessed in Lexington's historic districts added a 19 percent to 31 percent increase to the value of the residence. There are also federal and state tax advantages for rehabilitation and locally available restoration information.

Once a property is included within the district, any modifications made to a structure which results in a visible change must be approved by the board. General maintenance, repairs and painting are not subject to the board, according to Wallingford.

Wallingford said as an example a property owner who wants to replace clapboard siding with vinyl siding would need approval from the board; as would a person wanting to erect a storage building or sign.

These processes are included as part of the Washington Historic District Ordinance, which will be the subject of the second public hearing.

"The citizens of Maysville and Washington take great pride in the architectural and historical significance of their city, and have worked hard to protect and preserve its heritage," said Wallingford.

Anyone with questions regarding the proposed expansion should call Wallingford at the Maysville Municipal Building at 606-564-2504.

property taxes will go up big time

Thank you for your very insightful commentary.

The school district has already purchased a 140 acre tract along Kentucky 60 West of Paducah for the new building:cheers:

http://www.kfvs12.com/Global/story.asp?S=9396275

Franklin debates razing church (http://www.kentucky.com/181/story/634106.html)
Verdict on historic church needed before new courthouse built
By Ryan Alessi, Herald-Leader, December 21, 2008

As Franklin County moves toward constructing a $30 million judicial center, the fate of a nearby 158-year-old church has touched off intense community debate.

County officials, who have been wrestling with where to place the new structure, have returned their focus to Good Shepherd Catholic Church's property behind the old county courthouse.



They are set to negotiate with church officials Monday afternoon before a formal meeting of the courthouse project development board at 4 p.m.

County Judge-Executive Ted Collins has proclaimed in public meetings that he wants to preserve the church, but some in the community are concerned that it will become the latest historic casualty of the Kentucky court system's $880 million effort to replace courthouses across the state.

"If you really want to protect that property, you need to keep it in private hands," Good Shepherd parishioner Tom Richardson said of the church. "I would rather see it stay in the hands of the church."

The church is used for Mass during the week, but Good Shepherd's Saturday and Sunday services are held at its new building on Lees-town Road, making the old structure potentially expendable.

"The die was cast when they made the decision to build the new church on the east side," said Don Stosberg, another parishioner. "The church doesn't have enough money to maintain two campuses."

The church and its adjacent Good Shepherd School sit on Wapping Street in historic downtown Frankfort, just around the corner from the county courthouse that judges and officials say they outgrew long ago. The church, with its distinctive steeple, has been a signature of Frankfort's modest skyline and a keystone building in the historic district near the Kentucky River.

The steeple is depicted in several works of 19th-century artist Paul Sawyier, who lived in Frankfort.

Collins, who also chairs the project development board, said the county "will do whatever necessary to preserve the church if we become the owner of it" — a pledge he also made to more than 80 people in a community meeting Thursday.

He told the Herald-Leader he's confident the property can accommodate a 101,200-square-foot judicial center, as the court system specs require, without destroying the church.

"Absolutely, we can build on that property without taking down the church," Collins said. "We can build around the church. We can negotiate to buy the property without the church. That's my preference."

Collins said it's unlikely any deal for the building between the church and county will be struck Monday, let alone approved by the board. He said board members, who include county and court officials as well as Frankfort residents, first must see whether the Good Shepherd property can accommodate the Administrative Office of the Courts' requirements for an expanded and upgraded courthouse.

Architect J. Richard Kremer, president of the Louisville firm Louis & Henry, is expected to present his latest sketches to the board on Monday. County officials don't expect the church building to be incorporated into the project, but want any new building to mesh aesthetically with the historic area.

"He's trying to be very respectful to the 1835 courthouse and the 1850 Catholic Church," Collins said of the architect. "We want it to fit in well and be something special."

The right site?

The new Franklin County judicial center has been in the AOC's construction queue since 2006. It's one of 70 county courthouse projects in the works or authorized since the AOC launched its construction blitz in 1998.

In a series of stories published in September, the Herald-Leader reported that historic buildings have had to make way for new courthouses across the state.

The Good Shepherd property was an early option for the new courthouse but church and county officials never agreed on a purchase price, Collins said. Eventually, the county looked elsewhere, finding a possible match with a newly razed plot near the Frankfort Convention Center once owned by Model Laundry.

This fall, new Supreme Court Chief Justice John D. Minton Jr. briefly shelved the project after former Gov. Julian Carroll, a Frankfort lawyer and state senator, expressed concerns.

Carroll, who represents a group that wants to renovate the old courthouse, told the Herald-Leader in September that building a new structure might not be the best use of public funds "with the state and county governments hurting so direly for funds."

Carroll, who didn't return a call Friday from the Herald-Leader, also objected to constructing a judicial center at the Model Laundry site two blocks away from the old courthouse.

As a result, Good Shepherd leaders contacted Collins to restart negotiations. By October, Minton authorized the project board to resume so that it could consider the Good Shepherd site, said Garlan VanHook, AOC's facilities director.

Collins confirmed that negotiations for the property have been "in the ballpark" of $2 million. Of the $29.1 million project budget, $1.6 million has been allotted for buying property. Collins said that has "some flexibility to go up."

Bring in the new

Even if the church and county agree on a price, it won't be a done deal until the architects can prove they can mesh AOC's modern requirements — such as security features and stories that measure 17 feet from floor to floor — with the historic colonial style of the courthouse, church and other nearby buildings.

"There are inherent difficulties in marrying these two," VanHook said. "I find the concept interesting, but I believe there are significant limitations of the end product. That's why we're hopeful that Rick (Kremer) finds a solution."

Some Frankfort residents remain skeptical that a new courthouse could blend with its surroundings.

"Even when it's two stories, you're talking about being 35 feet high. And at three stories it starts to dwarf the historical courthouse," said Frankfort resident Scot Walters, who works for the Kentucky Heritage Council.

Walters said he hopes some organization — perhaps the county government — will take legal steps, such as prevention easements, to preserve the church.

Still, not all parishioners are automatically opposed to seeing the old church taken down.

Stosberg said he's open to demolition, considering the foundation needs repairs and it costs about $30,000 a year to keep the building up. But he'd like to see the organ, glass windows and historic steeple saved somehow.

"I consider myself a preservationist," Stosberg said. "But I don't think being a preservationist means preserving every building that's old. Sometimes I think you have to bless a building and send it on its way, like we do as people."

Collins wants to save downtown church (http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4490205)
By Charlie Pearl, State Journal, December 19, 2008

Ted Collins told an audience Thursday of a hundred, including about 75 from Good Shepherd Church, that no one on Fiscal Court or the judicial center board "wants to do anything but preserve" the downtown church.

Collins, Franklin County judge-executive, told the gathering he's never heard a public official say anything about demolishing the church to make space for a new $30 million judicial center.

Collins wore a navy tie depicting downtown's three most prominent historic spires as he spoke. He referred to a letter to the parish from the Rev. Charles Howell, Good Shepherd pastor, in last weekend's church bulletin.

In the letter, Howell said, " I can confirm that both Judge Collins and I adamantly want the downtown worship site preserved on Wapping Street.

" No intentions of having the Wapping Street worship site demolished have ever been proposed by Judge Collins or Good Shepherd in any of the possibilities being discussed, whether the downtown worship site is purchased by the county or not."

Howell said he feels assured Collins "would hold true to his intent to preserve" the church, "as best he could, if the county did purchase it." The church "is a beautiful piece of communal and architectural history that speaks volumes to parishioners, citizens and visitors."

Despite intentions, downtown preservationist and property owner John Gray said later in Thursday's meeting the only way to guarantee preservation of the church is for Good Shepherd to put it in a deed restriction.

Then the county, or any other buyer of the property, would have to accept that restriction, Gray said.

The meeting in the community room of Paul Sawyier Public Library was to "share information" about the Good Shepherd property " now the number one site for the judicial center, Gray said.

Gray was the main spokesman for a group of downtown residents, workers and property owners wanting to save the 1850 church and 1920s school building.
Parishioner Barbara Sauter, who was in the audience, said, "Good Shepherd needs to have an open forum and advertise it."

After the meeting Sauter said those wanting to speak could register to get on an agenda and then the church decision makers should listen to their opinions.

"This is such a huge decision for our parish," and the decision should be made by the whole parish rather than by a few committee members, said Sauter, a city employee.

"I personally think it would be wonderful to keep the courthouse in the downtown area. But I want that church preserved at all costs."
She said she has been a parishioner since 1977 and her children went to Good Shepherd School, "but I don't have the emotional ties to the school as other people do."

Sauter said she would hate to see the school torn down for a parking lot, "but I understand there is going to have to be an area for parking."
Gray said the group wants to make sure the "design fits in with the historic character of downtown."

The preservation group criticized architect Rick Kremer's preliminary drawings of the judicial center with a steeple.

"The proposed spire is totally unacceptable because it intrudes on the three existing historical spires in a negative and incompatible way," Gray said.

"The architect is proposing a stand-alone building which happens to be attached to the historic courthouse, rather than proposing an addition that respects the scale, height, massing of the parent building."

Gray said the new building "will compete for attention with the historic courthouse rather than being subservient to it as it should be."

After preliminary drawings were shown at a recent Project Development Board meeting, Gray said Kremer " with Louis & Henry Group of Louisville " met with the group and has made some changes.

According to Gray, Kremer has agreed to reduce the height of the building from 3 stories to 2; to reduce the height of the tower; and to make the building "more simple and understated, which greatly enhances all of the existing historic architecture" in the surrounding area.

The Project Development Board " in charge of the judicial center project " will meet 4 p.m. Monday in the third floor conference of the courthouse annex, 315. W. Main St.

Gray encouraged those in the audience to e-mail their opinions regarding the Good Shepherd property to PDB members before the meeting.

Gray said the board meetings are open to the public but attendance has been sparse. Most of what the board hears is from Kremer, Gray said.

Collins, PBD chairman, said later he is "always open to hear from people who have opinions on a major project in the community."

City development authority in works (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_355225613.html)
Group would utilize new state financing tool
By Carrie Stambaugh, The Independent, December 20, 2008

ASHLAND — A development district that could use new state tax increment financing legislation to fund projects is being considered by officials to jump start economic development downtown.

Tax Increment Financing, or TIF, is a development tool that allows local governments to capture future increases in property and other taxes generated by new development within a designated area. Local governments can borrow against the increase in tax revenues in order to finance public improvements aimed at attracting additional private investment.

Ashland Economic Development Director Chris Pullem, Ashland Alliance President Jim Purgerson and Main Street Director Danny Craig have all discussed the potential program recently.

Pullem said he is in the process of working with local and Louisville-based attorneys to create a proposal for approval by the Ashland Board of Commissioners. “It’s an opportunity to use development for more development,” he said.

Pullem said he expects to present the proposal to officials by the second January meeting. He said he wanted newly elected Mayor Tom Kelley and commissioner Marty Gute to have be seated before he asked for approval.

HB 549, passed during the 2007 session of the General Assembly, established a new statewide TIF program that makes the financing option with state participation available to all cities and counties. Previous legislation made state participation available only in Jefferson County.

Under the program a TIF Development Area of up to three square miles would be designated and a semi-autonomous Downtown Development Authority created.

To qualify for the TIF program the development area must meet two of seven conditions relating to deterioration and blight and city officials must be able to prove development would not occur without public investment and that the benefits outweigh the public costs of the project.

Purgerson said the new TIF legislation is one of few tools local officials in Kentucky have to use in their efforts to attract investment and spur development.

Kentucky constitutionally prohibits property tax abatement of any kind, which is a popular tool used in other states to spur development, he said.

The issue is tied to the fact that there are few ways for counties and municipalities to raise revenues in Kentucky, he said. In fact there is so much state control over revenue streams, Purgerson said, that cities often “have to go to Frankfort with their hat in their hand to beg for money.”

He said since the new TIF legislation was enacted cities including Lexington, Owensboro and Bowling Green are working to develop TIF programs.

Pullem was hesitant to discuss potential projects in Ashland before educating commissioners and the general public on TIF. He said additional details would be available soon, however.

Purgerson said the Ashland Community and Technical College’s $10 million plan to develop the upper floors of the Parson’s building to house its nursing program would be a good first TIF project.

“Once the development is completed, the resulting incremental taxes could be used to do Streetscape all around that block and area ... and do some additional things. I think it’s a very good use, a dedicated use of increased funds for the public good from a private project,” he said.

This is the former Ashland Oil headquarters at Winchester Avenue and 14th Street.

G.B. Johnson building deal in works (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_353214734.html)
Real estate developer has reportedly entered into 60-day contract
By Carrie Stambaugh, The Independent, December 18, 2008

ASHLAND — The ailing G.B. Johnson building in Ashland’s downtown may soon have a new owner.

Ashland businessman and real estate developer John Christie has reportedly entered into a 60-day contract to purchase the seven-story building at 1401 Winchester Ave. from the Kentucky Appalachian Foundation for $1 plus an assumption of debt said to be around $500,000.

Christie was out of town Wednesday and could not be reached for comment but Judy James, a spokeswoman for Christie, confirmed he was considering purchasing the building but said no additional information would be available for several weeks.

KAF President Kevin Harrison confirmed this week that the organization’s board of directors had approved an offer but was not at liberty to discuss it. Harrison — whose business Choices and Changes Youth Services is a tenant of the building — was appointed president of the foundation last year.

Harrison and a five other individuals who work for a variety of tenants in the building replaced the former KAF Board after they all stepped down last September. At the time, outstanding debt with utility companies and a dwindling number of tenants nearly forced the building into condemnation proceedings with the city of Ashland.

New board members took over the foundation in an effort to turn it around and make needed improvements to the building. The situation, however, has remained difficult throughout the last year and this fall its utility bills again became unmanageable and the KAF was forced to strike deals with the city of Ashland and Columbia Gas to maintain utilities.

WLGC Radio’s business manager Bobby Hall and KAF board member also confirmed a deal was in the works Tuesday but also said he could not discuss it.

He did indicate that the potential deal would allow the radio station to continue operating at its current location. “We have no intentions of leaving,” he said. “We’re just a tenant who is happy to be in Ashland and hope to be here for years to come.”

Hall said he was “pretty optimistic with the procedures that are taking place right now.”

Ashland Economic Development Director Chris Pullem, who has been working with the KAF board for more than a year to address some of the building’s challenges, praised the development.

Although he also couldn’t discuss specifics about the contract, Pullem said he hopes the building’s new owner would continue allowing the Ashland Community and Technical College Entrepreneur Center to operate in the building.

“We’re happy that they seem to be gaining ground and they have some momentum going right now and we’re excited that potentially that building will remain a contributing part of our downtown,” Pullem said. “We hope it has a long life and that it can grow local business and we’re excited about its potential.”

Larry Ferguson, director of business and industry services at ACTC, said it is his understanding the center will be able to remain in the building. He said the entrepreneur center currently houses six small business incubators.

“We’re dedicated to remaining in that building I hope that a new owner would address some of the challenges we’ve have,” he said.

Pullem, along with Harrison and Hall, all said they could not address questions about how the deal would affect more than $500,000 in state and federal grant obligations the KAF has.

Pullem said the City of Ashland’s parking lot located directly across the street from the G.B. Johnson building and used by its tenants is not up for sale and will be retained by the city.

New plans presented for Frankfort courthouse (http://www.kentucky.com/181/story/635630.html)
By Beth Musgrave, Herald-Leader, December 22, 2008

FRANKFORT — The community got its first look Monday at revised architectural plans for the renovation of Frankfort's downtown courthouse that include Good Shepherd Catholic Church.

The $30 million project includes incorporating the Wapping Street church's sanctuary by converting it into two courtrooms. Historic preservationists had asked that the downtown Catholic Church be preserved in any potential renovation of the existing 1835 courthouse and its annex.

Franklin County has been working to get a new courthouse since 2006, but has run into several stumbling blocks.

Franklin County Judge-Executive Ted Collins, who heads the board overseeing the new courthouse project, said county officials and Good Shepherd church leaders met Monday to begin negotiations on the sale of the property. It's still not clear whether the county can purchase the mostly-vacant property.

Collins said the board is a long way from deciding whether it will choose to renovate the current courthouse or pick another site to build a new judicial center.

Second drawing answers several concerns (http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4492499)
By Charlie Pearl, State Journal, December 23, 2008

Preservationist and Wapping Street resident Robert Polsgrove liked the architect's second round of drawings for the new $30 million judicial center on Good Shepherd property next to the old courthouse.

After last month's Project Development Board meeting preservationists criticized Rick Kremer's first drawings.

But Kremer " with Louis & Henry Group of Louisville " has met several times with preservationists and exchanged e-mails.

After seeing the new drawings at Monday's regular monthly board meeting, Polsgrove said, "I'm very happy we have a sense we're being heard. I think it's a brilliant design. I think it deals with every concern I had except for the Good Shepherd School."

Monday's exterior drawing is a front view of the new addition connecting to the historic courthouse from St. Clair Street. No drawing from Wapping Street " where the school is " has been done yet.

The new addition from St. Clair shows a clear glass mixed with a filtered-light glass for the faade, and the same glass faade is used on the existing courthouse annex.

"The idea is it's a neutral palette that allows all of the various architecture styles " not just the church and old courthouse " to sort of stand out and contrast against that neutral palette," Kremer said after the meeting.
"It's a polite neighbor but it also has it's own presence and that's a difficult thing to do."

The glass tower " just a stairway inside " also was changed considerably in the new drawing. It's now one foot lower than the existing courthouse tower and quite a bit lower than the church steeple. If the old Good Shepherd Church is included in the proposed sale of the property, Kremer showed how it could be used as a district courtroom.

Board member Sam McNamara said after the meeting he is "very much opposed" to including the church in the deal if the downtown Good Shepherd property is purchased for the courthouse addition.

"Leave the church sanctuary alone, that's my opinion," said McNamara, a retired Franklin Circuit Court judge. "I think the cost of making the church work as an additional courtroom and the functionality would be very bad."

McNamara also said he also doesn't like the tower.

Kremer said the new drawings are still preliminary and could change some. Quite a few changes were made from the first exterior drawing shown at November's Project Development Board meeting.

Kremer said he was pleased with most of the public comments made Monday.
About 24 signed up to speak after the meeting was moved from the third-floor conference room of the courthouse annex to a district courtroom to accommodate the public. About 50 attended the meeting.

Judy Lee, a retired schoolteacher who spoke, said the proposed site is "about the most historic part of Frankfort," and the addition needs to blend with the other historic buildings. Brick and limestone should be used rather than glass, she said.

After the meeting she said the glass exterior "looks like a factory. I don't like any of it. And I don't think we need a steeple. I think it's wasted space and just something else to heat and air condition."

She said if the new building must have a glass faade it should go on the old Model Laundry site " behind the Frankfort Convention Center " near the contemporary-designed Transportation Cabinet building.

The Model Laundry site was the board's previous number-one site before the Good Shepherd property became the top choice in October.

Franklin County Judge-Executive Ted Collins, chairman of the board, said negotiations with the church are still underway.

Several county and church leaders met Monday before the board meeting, and then a lengthy closed session was held to discuss property acquisition at the end of Monday's board meeting.

The board's appraisal was $2.3 million for all the Good Shepherd property and $2 million if the church is excluded.

"We started a dialogue with Good Shepherd and we're reviewing each others appraisals," Collins said. "Are we close? It's too early to say."

When asked what he thought about Monday's drawings, Collins said, "I haven't had a chance to take it all in and analyze it. I've been focusing on negotiations. I think Rick Kremer is a very imaginative person. Every drawing he brings has a lot of good ideas in it. The last concept he brought was interesting and I liked it. And I like some things about this one.

"But it doesn't matter which drawing I like or even the Project Development Board likes unless we can come to an agreement with the Good Shepherd folks on the price of their property. We have a tendency sometimes to put the cart before the horse."

City increasing tax to pressure owners of blighted properties (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_364220941.html)
By Carrie Stambaugh, The Independent, December 29, 2008

ASHLAND — City officials have raised the property taxes on two blighted downtown properties in an effort to encourage the owners to take action.

Almost a year after the Ashland Board of City Commissioners issued an ultimatum to Perry and Susan Madden to come up with a plan for the property, the corner of 17th Street and Winchester Avenue remains fenced off and inactive.

According to Mike Miller, acting director of planning and community development, the code enforcement board voted Dec. 9 to classify the six-story former Sears building and its neighboring vacant lot — once the site of a JC Penney store — as blighted and abandoned property. He said the vote allows the city, under terms of a 2007 ordinance, to increase the ad valorem property tax rate on the properties by fourfold.

According to City Attorney Richard “Sonny” Martin, the ordinance requires the city to notify the county property valuation administrator of the classification before Jan. 1. The Maddens must be notified by March 1 and have the right to appeal the decision before April 1, he said. The increased taxes would be due on the building in June, he said.

The building was condemned last May after city officials asked the Maddens to come up with a plan for the property by March 1 and the deadline passed without a presentation of plans or an appearance by the Maddens before the commission to discuss the property.

To date, the Maddens have paid only a $75 fine as a result of the condemnation, but Miller said the couple will receive a second notice of violation and $150 fine this month.

The Maddens had planned to refurbish and convert the former Sears building into housing and retail space and build a 40-unit senior housing complex next door where the JC Penney store was razed in 2006.

Perry Madden did not immediately return calls seeking comment on Monday.

City officials say beyond the fines and property tax increases, they can do very little.

Estimates to demolish the former Sears building stand at more than $270,000, said City Manager Steve Corbitt. He told commissioners last week, “We’re doing what is within our ability” to urge progress on the property.

Acting Mayor Kevin Gunderson said last week more aggressive action needs to be taken.

“Short of court, I’m not certain (what), but I’m willing to go to court,” Gunderson said. “That building is an eyesore for downtown and it needs to be demolished and not left in its deplorable condition.”

Razing the building at its own expense is not a current option for the city, he said.

Traffic signals being removed around Circus Square (http://www.bgdailynews.com/articles/2009/01/08/news/news3.txt)
Three intersections near Circus Square will get stop signs to aid pedestrians
By Justin Story, The Daily News, January 8, 2009

Traffic signals will be removed at three downtown intersections around Circus Square Park in a move designed to increase pedestrian safety in the area.

Signals at State Street and Sixth Avenue, College Street and Sixth Avenue, and State Street and Seventh Avenue are targeted for removal by the state Department of Transportation. Beginning at 10 a.m. Tuesday, the signals will be changed to flashing mode and the intersections will become all-way stops. Ninety days afterward, the signals will be replaced with stop signs.

Keirsten Jaggers, spokeswoman for the Department of Highways in Bowling Green, said that city officials recently approached the state about making those intersections safer for vehicles and pedestrians.

With the opening of Circus Square last year and additional redevelopment, the city expects greater foot traffic downtown.

“Over the years, a lot of passenger traffic that had been concentrated on the downtown streets has moved out to the (U.S. 31-W) By-Pass and (U.S. 68/Ky.80),” Jaggers said.

With the intersections changing from signaled to all-stop, Jaggers said every vehicle would have to stop, thereby slowing down traffic around Circus Square and creating a safer environment for pedestrians.

City public works director Emmett Wood said that city officials also factored in the safety of people walking the city’s Heritage Trail, which extends from Fountain Square Park to RiverWalk Park and passes through Circus Square and Lee Square parks.

“People walking the Heritage Trail and crossing State and College streets found that the safest thing to do was to leave the trail, go out to the corners and cross over before getting back on the trail,” Wood said.

The city took its concern to the state highway department, which Jaggers said conducted traffic studies at the three intersections and determined that there was not enough vehicle traffic to justify a signal at any of them.

Last year, signals were also removed at College Street and Seventh Avenue, and along 13th Avenue at the State Street and Center Street intersections, due to low traffic counts.

“It’s ironic because you would think signals would make streets safer and control traffic better, and it’s true if (pedestrians) are stopping at corners to cross the street,” Wood said. “But when more people are wanting to cross mid-block, it’s safer to have all-stop intersections where all vehicles have to come to a complete stop.”

Jaggers said message boards advising drivers of the change will soon be installed at each intersection.

City OKs major riverfront contract (http://www.courierpress.com/news/2008/dec/23/city-oks-major-riverfront-contract/?gleaner=1/)
By Frank Boyett, The Gleaner, December 23, 2008

The Henderson City Commission approved a major contract for the next round of riverfront improvements during its regular meeting Tuesday.

Stantec Consulting Services Inc. of Louisville was hired, at a cost of $359,500, to do the environmental and archaeological assessments for the riverfront work, as well as design and construction inspection services.

The five proposed projects include the River Walk extension between 12th and Seventh streets, a new tennis court complex, riverbank stabilization behind the tennis courts, riverfront restrooms and building a sidewalk between Red Banks Park and Sunset Park.

“It sure is nice to be at this point,” said Commissioner Jim White.

One issue that came up was whether the Henderson Tennis Club was going to get its wish for a new concession stand/restroom facility fulfilled.

“It is our intent to honor that proposed design” provided by the tennis club, Assistant City Manager Buzzy Newman said, but “in this first phase the concession stand and restrooms are not part of this project.”

“They (tennis club members) are out and about lobbying for inclusion of restrooms and concession stand,” said Commissioner Mike Farmer.

Newman agreed, and noted that if other projects cost less than anticipated then “we can add additional projects to this contract and proceed.”

At any rate, he said, “We will make sure the infrastructure is in place to accommodate a future concession stand so any work we do now will not have to be re-done at a later date.

“The intent right now is to push and get these projects going, identify where we are financially, and then come back to the commission at that time and make additional recommendations ... on any other projects we can afford at that time.”

Newman said the city has until September 2010 to spend the entire $8.6 million federal grant, which U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell obtained through an earmark.

Ann Davis Gallery building sold (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_012231655.html)
Space to become salon, spa set to open by April 27
By Lee Ward, The Independent, January 12, 2009

ASHLAND — The building that housed the Ann Davis Gallery has been sold and will soon be home to a new business.

Zoe Brewer sold the building at 1516 Winchester Ave. to Sara Lintner for the price she paid for it — $180,000. The sale closed Friday.

Lintel, of Ironton, plans to open a salon and spa called L Style and will offer all hair care services for men and women, including cuts, color, highlights, perms and scalp treatments, as well as manicures, pedicures, facials, makeup design and application, waxing and massage. She also will have products for sale and said she hopes eventually to have space to offer bridal parties.

For those clients who request it, she said L Style will have valet parking.

“We will offer world-class service for the same amount they pay now,” Lintner said. “It’s just going to be super nice.”

The salon and spa, which she said will be open no later than April 27, will employ 10.

Lintner said L Style will participate in the art community just as the Ann Davis Gallery did.

Lintner said she will work with local artists to keep their works on the walls. The salon will be open during First Fridays and will accept walk-ins for the services they offer, but patrons of the arts also are welcome to come in and browse the art work on the wall, even purchase pieces they like.

The Potter’s Loft in the upstairs of the building will continue to operate as it has, she said, with instructor Bill Meadows teaching classes.

For the past three years, Brewer operated the Ann Davis Gallery in the building. Before that, the Ashland Area Art Gallery called it home and, before that, it housed the Delmar Shop.

Brewer said her decision to sell the building was, in part, an economic one. Her plan was to sell the building when she retires in two years at 60. She had hoped to sell the gallery to Morehead State University but “that turned out to not be feasible.”

The business next door, Traditional Creations, had a going out of business sale last year shortly after Christmas, Brewer said.

“That took everybody by surprise,” she said. “I told (owner) Sherry Wolfe if anyone’s interested in your building and wants more space, let me know, and it went from there.”

Brewer’s original intent for the gallery was to give a space for art students and instructors to show their work, in particular, instructors who were retired or nearing retirement and wanted to continue their art career.

The gallery turned into more, however, providing Brewer with some very gratifying experiences.

“A Girl Scout troop went through the gallery and earned a badge from their visit,” she recounted. “We had a fundraiser for Hospice and we continued the Ashland Area Art Gallery’s showing of the Kentucky Watercolor Show exhibit.”

The gallery also interacted with the community when MSU art professor Steve Tirone exhibited there and presented a pottery demonstration.

“The gallery also served as an avenue for music,” she said, citing a series of concerts by local musician Rob McNurlin at the gallery.

She also recalled a lunch series called Brown Bag Bohmenian, which included educational art experiences over lunch that allowed her to “reconnect with many old friends and to meet so many new people.”

Exhibits honoring the late artists Jim Greenslate and Todd Walker, as well as a show of MSU faculty’s art, were among highlights, too, Brewer said.

Perhaps her fondest memory of the gallery was an exhibit by Ruby Queen, who was her mother’s best friend.

“It was very gratifying, showing Ruby Queen’s work,” she said, adding Queen had recently been through the deaths of several family members and friends, including Brewer’s mother. “She had never seen all of her work together in one place. ... she sent me a note that said it was the happiest day of her life.”

Brewer said she will remain involved in Ashland’s arts scene.

“I enjoy and look forward to supporting the arts downtown,” she said.

Party at Katie’s Corner (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_012233836.html)
Owners converting second floor into bar and night club
By Carrie Stambaugh, The Independent, January 12, 2009

ASHLAND — At a time when most businesses are re-evaluating expansion plans, Bob and Nancy Tilton are forging ahead with theirs.

The couple, who own and operate Katie’s Corner on the corner of Greenup Avenue and 15th Street in downtown Ashland, are working to convert the now vacant second floor of their building into a bar and night club. The restaurant will also expand its menu to accommodate the new business and plans to sell alcohol on both floors.

“If somebody doesn’t do something in this town it’s going to go away,” Bob Tilton said Monday during a tour of the lounge’s construction.

The Tiltons bought the four-story building in 1996 and opened their restaurant on the ground floor in May 1998. Last year they temporarily leased the restaurant to another owner who had intended to purchase it but ultimately decided against it. They reopened Katie’s Corner in October.

Bob Tilton said they have tossed around the idea for the upper floor lounge for several years but work didn’t begin on the project until recently. Bob said the restaurant has already received its state liquor license and plans to apply for a license from the City of Ashland soon. The lounge will most likely not open its doors until February but the Tiltons plan to serve alcohol in the restaurant as soon as possible.

The Tiltons don’t know what they are going to call the lounge and Nancy Tilton said they may hold a contest to choose.

Although its name is still up in the air, Nancy Tilton said the bar will have a western theme. In fact, the wagon wheels that will eventually serve as light fixtures are already stacked in a corner.

In addition to a full bar, patrons of the lounge will also be able to play billiards and darts as well as listen to live bands and dance. Sporting events will also be broadcast on one of the big or projection screen televisions that the Tiltons also plan to install.

Nancy Tilton said they plan to audition for bands and may have a karaoke night as well as a night geared toward motorcyclists. She said the establishment will offer entertainment currently only being offered by private clubs in the area.

Hours for the establishment are still being discussed, but Bob Tilton said he expects the lounge to be open six days a week beginning around 4 p.m. or so.

Patrons will be able to order from the Katie’s Corner menu and, if the project is successful, Bob Tilton said there is the potential to expand the second floor operations to include a small kitchen. The Tiltons said they also hope to continue developing the remaining two floors of the building, potentially adding residential housing to the top floor.

Bob Tilton said they hope not only to boost their own business but all of downtown. He said he hopes other businesses will follow suit in order to breathe some much-needed life into downtown.

“Competition doesn’t bother me at all,” he said. “The more places there are to go the more people come.”

Bob Tilton said the closure of other late night downtown businesses, including the former Rumor’s Lounge and Legends in the Ashland Plaza Hotel last year and the Boston Beanery this fall, have hurt their business. “We used to do well seven nights a week, but when the bars went away we just died,” he said.

The Tiltons said they plan to hire approximately eight to 10 new workers for the lounge. Heather Hamilton will be the club’s manager and applications are available at Katie’s Corner downstairs.

Riverfront development proposals envision broad range of prospects (http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4507843)
By Charlie Pearl, State Journal, January 18, 2009

The proposals that emerged last week at a public meeting envision a broad range of prospects for the four miles of the Kentucky River in Frankfort that is largely barren of development.

It will be March before the ideas crystallize into an overall plan. But what was generated last week will give consultants plenty to work with. Broadly outlined they would:

>Recruit mixed-use commercial and residential development along the busy Wilkinson Boulevard corridor and the Capital Avenue-Second Street area.

>Create an environmental education area and more recreational opportunities in Capital View Park and on Lawrenceburg Road between the East-West Connector and Capitol garage.

>Link parks, downtown, Kentucky State University, the dam and Buffalo Trace distillery area with bike and pedestrian paths.

That's some of what was heard Thursday at the meeting on a riverfront development plan that's being created for Frankfort by consultants from Madison, Wis.
About 90 attended the meeting - a follow-up to an October 2008 public planning meeting - in the Capital Plaza Hotel ballroom.

The study is funded by a $150,000 state grant and $116,000 will go to consultants.

Many seemed pleased with the work of consultants - JJR from Wisconsin in conjunction with St. Louis-based Development Strategies and Cultural Resource Analysts Inc. of Lexington.

"I think they're on the right track," said Nash Cox, a Wapping Street resident. "I think they have some wonderful ideas. It's a long-term plan but we need to prioritize at this point."

What is her priority?

"It's hard to say," Cox said. "I think the whole area of Lawrenceburg Road and Capital View Park is so open for some kind of recreational development. Perhaps that part might be the easiest because the city and state own that property.

"One specific idea that excited my imagination was the pedway/bike bridge from South Frankfort to Capital View Park. This would open up possibilities for people living in Frankfort who could enjoy the park without having to drive there. As the consultants said, it could also become a focal point, a unique Frankfort image."

A pedestrian bridge also is suggested below the dam near Buffalo Trace.

Cox said Wilkinson Boulevard "is a great place for mixed-use development but it has to be done carefully. It needs to be very carefully zoned. We have to have a code that is going to protect whatever goes in there. (A consultant) said the best developers come where it is very clear what is expected. Frankfort has to get its act together first."

JJR's report says, "Many major retail chains seek out corridors that have at least 20,000 vehicles per day passing by the site. Wilkinson Boulevard is the only such street in the study area."

JJR's Ed Freer said Frankfort has the river - "the amenities, the assets. You call the game. You establish the rules. The best developers go where there is clarity."

Phyllis Liebman, owner of Miss P's Kids shop downtown, said she likes the direction the plan is going.

"The consultants appear to be thoughtful," Liebman said.

"They're looking at all the things they're supposed to be looking at, including the environment. I like the way they have done it in segments, trying to connect one end (of town) to the other.

"I think they have a deep respect for flooding issues. They showed us good development in several cities from the Ohio River to the Mississippi. I'm pleased so far."

Does she have an early priority?

"I'm always excited if there is something for the kids, so the environmental science lab on the river proposal is appealing to me," Liebman said.

"I like it because it's a way to start linking our local schools with Kentucky State."

Frankfort Tourism Director Joy Jeffries said earlier in the week a floating science lab "will be a pretty early success for the riverfront development." She said KSU President Mary Sias suggested the idea.

In a Power Point presentation Thursday, Freer showed pictures of a science barge and greenhouse in New York City. In 2007 more than 3,000 school children and 6,000 adults visited the NYC science barge, he said.

A similar barge in Frankfort along with an environmental center in Capital View Park could be a great attraction, Freer said. Lawrenceburg Road - rather than being a backdoor to the Capitol - could become a destination for the community and tourists, he said.

On his first trip to Frankfort and boat ride last October, Freer said he "couldn't believe all the birds I saw (along the Kentucky River). It was phenomenal."

He said Capital View Park - with "tremendous amenities and programs" - could be enhanced with more picnic shelters and trails. "One challenge might be to create an environmental center completely off the grid."

Mike Bomford, a KSU researcher and organizer of Walk/Bike Frankfort, said the consultants "have clearly done their research, their homework. They've learned an awful lot about Frankfort for folks who don't live here.

"They've got a lot of good ideas " big picture kinds of ideas. I don't know what proportion of them will ever come true but it's great to dream."

Sally Clay Lanham, a local artist, said the ideas "are very constructive and well thought out. I like joining everything with walking and biking trails and pedestrian bridges, and using areas that have been an eyesore for years."

State Rep. Carl Rollins said, "If you don't plan well, you don't get a good end product."

Rollins said the state has to be a major partner in anything that happens in Frankfort.

Riverfront development is going to be long-term, Rollins said.

"I know there are infrastructure concerns and Frankfort needs to address those with the state's help because we are so much an integral part of the city," Rollins said.

"These are tough economic times but they're going to get better."

A few other ideas at the meeting included an amphitheater in River View Park; a restaurant/residential development at Capital Avenue and Second Street with parking on the ground level; docks and rental services for canoes, kayaks and paddleboats, fishing piers and a water taxi.

After the meeting Rodney Simpson, chairman of the Kentucky Riverfront Development Steering Committee, said the consultants would return in March with a more-detailed plan.

"They're going back to Wisconsin and start putting together a more firm picture of what the public would like to see and thoughts from the steering committee," he said.

"When the consultants return, it will be a more finished set of plans, but not totally complete.

Simpson said JJR and the steering committee also will have a "roundtable meeting with local and out-of-town developers. We need some private money involved in this. It can't all be carried by public money."

Sounds like a good plan, Frankfort has a very nice downtown. Good job for printing all this info, I know it can't be easy finding all these articles.

Grand renovations 65 percent finished (http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4517707)
By Charlie Pearl, State Journal, February 2, 2009

The $5 million Grand Theatre renovation is 65 percent complete and the public is invited to see the progress at an open house Thursday.

The event - 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. - will include tours of the 20,000 square-foot facility, entertainment by popular Frankfort teen singer/songwriter Jeri Katherine Howell and her band, and refreshments.

The downtown theater at 308 St. Clair is scheduled to reopen in the summer to announce the entertainment schedule and begin selling season tickets. The first season of entertainment will start in late September and continue through May 2010.

The visual and performing arts center will have 414 seats with about 150 in the balcony.

A similar open house was held last winter and around 100 attended including several state legislators. The General Assembly has been invited again this year.

"We plan to have at least 10 events in our first season," says Bill Cull, president of Save the Grand Theatre Inc.

Half of the events will be outside entertainment and the other half "will be partnerships with local arts organizations and entertainment," Cull says.

"We also plan to show critically acclaimed films that do not come to other Frankfort theaters."

Frankfort musician Joanna Hay, chairwoman of the Grand Theatre program committee, says, "We're working on a variety of programs and narrowing down the list. We still have a way to go and suggestions have been phenomenal.

"We want to bring in some big acts that we can afford from around the country as well as local and regional offerings. We also want to do some tie-ins with the Kentucky Book Fair like we did when Oscar-winning actress Patricia Neal came here in 2006."

Cull says, "All of our plans are contingent upon the support of the community. We value the community's comments and are interested in entertainment suggestions."

Suggestions can be e-mailed to savethegrand@aol.com. Cull says an entertainment survey will be available online later at www.savethegrand.org.

As a fundraiser, the board is selling $200 brass plaques for the theater seats. Sponsors can put their names on the plaques, "or a loved one's name," Cull says. Sponsorship forms can be downloaded from the Grand's Web site.

Sponsors for events are also needed, Cull says.

"We are asking businesses who are interested in sponsoring our entire season to make a cash contribution to allow us to book entertainment," Cull says.

"They will receive credit in all our marketing and advertising materials.

"Because we are a new facility we will need to make substantial booking deposits for any entertainment that comes from the outside entertainment world into Frankfort. We also are interested in businesses or persons who may be interested in sponsoring specific events."

Those interested should call Cull at 226-4157 or 330-4170, or e-mail him at BillCull@aol.com.

Volunteers are also needed for ushers, the concession area and cleanup, Cull says.

"Jim Pierce, chairman of the technical committee, is developing an organization of technically skilled volunteers to operate sound, lighting and film projection equipment," Cull says.

For more information e-mail Pierce at jimpierce6@yahoo.com.

In 2006 the state budgeted $488,000 to help restore the old St. Clair Street movie house. State funding helped the board purchase the two-story Hendrick House on West Main Street, adjacent to the old theatre building, and pay for design work.

The 3,400-square-foot Hendrick House will provide back-of-house space including dressing rooms, practice facilities, offices and storage for the theater.

Also in 2006, Franklin County Fiscal Court approved an additional 2 percent transient room tax on all hotels to provide $3.4 million for the renovation.

"The board and supporting committees are working diligently to make the theater a success," Cull says. "We are on our own with regard to operations and must raise almost $100,000 to keep the lights on.

"This will be a considerable task that is complicated by the world economic recession but one to which we are committed to not only surviving but prevailing."

He says bringing an arts center to the capital will improve tourism and the quality of life for the community.

At the open house there will be some construction clutter, Cull says.

The performance stage hasn't been built yet - and will be one of the last projects - because its location by the Main Street entrance is the only way to access the theater with construction materials and large equipment.

But those attending the open house will "get a feel for the intimacy of the Grand Theatre and see how all 414 seats will be good ones to witness music, theater, dance and film," Cull says.

"They can see the sound and lighting control room and how the sloped theater will accommodate about 260 seats on the first floor. They can go up the grand staircase to the balcony, and see the area where art exhibits and receptions will be held on the second floor."

Some of the artwork on the original plaster of the old vaudeville house and theatre has been preserved and blends nicely with the "curve-line construction of the concession area and corridor to the theater," Cull says.

Owensboro's Executive Inn to be demolished (http://www.courierpress.com/news/2009/feb/25/owensboro-commission-approves-purchase-executive-i/?partner=RSS)
The Gleaner, February 25, 2009

OWENSBORO, Ky. — Owensboro city officials have approved the $5 million purchase of the 550-room Executive Inn riverfront hotel that is headed for demolition.

The City Commission approved the purchase from Marshall Investments by a 4-1 margin on Tuesday.

Mayor Ron Payne says the acquisition will give a boost to the city’s riverfront. He says the hotel’s Expo Center will be reopened for convention business until a new event center is built.

Demolishing the hotel is estimated to cost $2 million. Payne did not say when that would happen.

Commissioner Candance Castlen Brake says city action was needed because the hotel’s owners had let the facility decline and fail.

City, county officials make pitch for donation of State Office Building (http://www.messenger-inquirer.com/articles/2009/02/27/news/local/14403471.txt)
By Owen Covington, Messenger-Inquirer, February 27, 2009

FRANKFORT -- Owensboro and Daviess County officials said Thursday they hope to know in the near future whether the state will be willing to donate the State Office Building in downtown Owensboro for use in the community's broad redevelopment plan.

Owensboro Mayor Ron Payne and Daviess County Judge-Executive Reid Haire said following Thursday meetings in the Capitol with Gov. Steve Beshear and other state officials about their request for the building and about the U.S. 60 bypass extension project that both projects were well-received.

"He was very receptive to both of these projects," Payne said following the meeting with Beshear. "I feel good about our meeting with him."

Beshear spokeswoman Jill Midkiff said after the meeting that the governor is looking forward to working with local officials on the proposal.

"He appreciates their leadership on this issue, supports the proposal and looks forward to working with them to hopefully make this initiative a reality," Midkiff said.

The city and county adopted a downtown master plan earlier this year that includes the use of the land currently occupied by the State Office Building at the northeast corner of Frederica and West Second streets.

The plan calls for that land to be used for a 60,000-square-foot indoor events center built and owned by local government and a 250-room hotel to be built by a private developer.

The public portion of the downtown development plan carries a price tag of close to $80 million that will be paid for by an increase in the city and county insurance premium tax rates recently approved by the city and county governments.

Having that local investment portion already a part of the plan went a long way to encourage state involvement in the project, Haire said.

"So many come up here just asking for a handout," Haire said. "It doesn't put the entire burden on the state elected officials."

Downtown Development Director Fred Reeves said several officials complimented city and county government for taking the initiative to pass the insurance premium tax increase to move the project forward instead of just waiting for funding.

"They thought it was really a high mark for us to do that," Reeves said.

The 34-year-old State Office Building houses more than 100 employees, and Reeves has said that the building is not full.

In 2006, the state put a $4.2 million price tag on the building and property, but the city and county are hoping that the state will part without payment.

At least a portion of the property would return to the tax rolls once the hotel is built, and Haire and Payne said they are considering offering the property to a developer for free as an incentive.

"You would hope that we can attract a very, very nice hotel to this community," Payne said. "That's our goal. That's what we're trying to do."

State officials said they would need to look at overall cost of donating the property and relocating the offices and workers currently housed there, Haire said.

"We would dearly love to begin moving on a new hotel by the first of 2010," Haire said.

Payne, Haire, Reeves and Greater Owensboro Economic Development Corp. President Nick Brake also met with Transportation Secretary Joe Prather to talk about the bypass extension project.

The project calls for the bypass to be extended from Kentucky 54 to U.S. 60 near the Hawesway truck plaza, and local officials are hoping the project will qualify for funding under the federal economic stimulus package.

The House and Senate are currently working on the state's road plan that will specify how road and bridge projects will be funded and how the estimated $421 million in stimulus money for transportation projects will be allocated.

That plan is expected to be presented in the next several days and enacted quickly thereafter.

Efforts to push for funding for the project have included an e-mail campaign by the Greater Owensboro Chamber of Commerce that sent more than 5,000 e-mails about the project to state officials during the last week.

Brake said he has also met with federal officials, including staff in the offices of U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning, U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell and U.S. Rep. Brett Guthrie to push for funding for the bypass extension and other local projects.

"Owensboro is presenting a very strong, unified message to both the state and federal government about what our priorities are and where we're headed," Brake said. "They know what we need. They know what our emphasis is."

Officials: Judicial center project OK (http://www.somerset-kentucky.com/local/local_story_057192241.html)
By Heather Pyles, Commonwealth Journal, February 26, 2009

Somerset — Officials involved with the construction of the Pulaski County Judicial Center are assuring local residents that the project is legal as the state moves to launch a comprehensive audit of its court facilities construction program in response to recent questions about the court system’s bonding practices.

“Our construction project is different than those projects described,” said County Attorney Bill Thompson in regard to reports that several judicial projects were not bonded out at 100 percent as required by state law. “That has little to do with us.”

Pay and performance bonds are issued by an insurance company or a bank to guarantee satisfactory completion of a construction project by a contractor. The client is reimbursed for any monetary loss up to the amount of the bond if the contractor fails to construct the building according to specifications of the construction project.

“Our project is not 5 percent bonded. We are 100 percent bonded,” Thompson said. “We’re in as good a shape as we can be in that regard.”

The general contractor for the project is D.W. Wilburn, Inc., a construction company based in Lexington.

“It doesn’t pertain to us and everything here is good to go,” said Pulaski County Judge-executive Barty Bullock, who serves as chair on the judicial board.

The audit, which was ordered by Chief Justice of Kentucky John D. Minton Jr. on Thursday, came after the sudden resignation of Garlan VanHook, the executive officer of the Department of Facilities for the Kentucky Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC).

The Department of Facilities is responsible for overseeing construction, maintenance and operations for court facilities all Kentucky counties, leasing space for court-related programs, providing furnishings to court facilities and managing the Judicial Inventory Control System, according to the AOC.

VanHook served as AOC representative on Pulaski County’s judicial board to assist in overseeing the construction of the $22.4 million facility that will house circuit, district and family courts, judges’ offices, the circuit clerk’s office, probation and parole services and other court-related services.

The judicial center is expected to be completed by 2010, according to the AOC.

His resignation from the AOC will leave a vacant seat on the board to be filled by appointment by Minton.

Chief Architect with the judicial center project Hugh Bennett, of Bennett Rosser International, said VanHook’s absence will be felt by the board.

“I have never met a man more conscientious, with more integrity and with more honesty than Mr. VanHook,” Bennett said. “ In every way he tried to do the right thing.”

VanHook, who was appointed to his position with the AOC in 2000, resigned after questions were raised about a job his brother received at a construction firm that has built a majority of new courthouses recently. The possibility that VanHook failed to make sure courthouse projects were fully insured, or bonded, was also brough up, according to other media outlets.

Those allegations have not been validated.

Bennett said the board will find it difficult to replace VanHook with someone with as dedication to the project as what VanHook expressed.

“He will be sorely missed,” Bennett said.

Judicial board member Circuit Judge Jeffrey Burdette also expressed his disappointment that VanHook would no longer be serving on the board.

“The loss of Garlan VanHook is going to have a profound effect on all of us ... ,” Burdette said. “He’s the most honorable and respectable person that a person can ever work with.”

Bullock said VanHook had a meticulous eye and that he made efforts to ensure that the project was undertaken correctly.

“He (VanHook) is a good guy and very precise,” Bullock said. “He wants to make sure everything’s done right.”

According to the AOC, VanHook helped implement the Facilities Management System in 2000 to “objectively set priorities for court facility needs in Kentucky.

“VanHook was instrumental in overseeing 70 new judicial centers that have been completed, authorized or begun during his tenure,” continued the press release from the AOC.

Bullock said the judicial project will continue to move forward while the county awaits a replacement for VanHook.

VanHook will return to private practice with VanHook Architectural Services in Stanford, Ky.

Garage complex to come in stages (http://www.bgdailynews.com/articles/2009/02/27/news/news2.txt)
Construction, expected to take six months, to begin in a week
By Jim Gaines, The Daily News, February 27, 2009

The few remaining businesses edging the one-block site for a new downtown parking garage are slated to move out to make way for construction, but a downsized and cheaper garage means they can hang on while new homes are built even as the garage goes up behind them.

Developers had planned an 821-space garage hidden from view by enveloping commercial and residential space, with that shield serving as a major selling point in development plan approval. The garage got cut back to 430 spaces when bonds for the project couldn’t be sold. A new financing package still calls for that commercial and residential curtain - but not anytime soon. For now, only the garage will be built.

David Butler of master developer Alliance Corp. estimates it will take about six months to build the garage, with construction starting within a week. Since the garage itself will only occupy the center of the block, builders can start on the Seventh Avenue side and move toward Eighth Avenue while waiting for remaining businesses to leave, he said. If necessary, they can work around the few whose new offices aren’t finished, according to Butler.

That means, however, that the exposed garage will sit exposed for some time. Plans for the commercial and residential space aren’t even complete, and actual construction would take about another year, Butler said.

Alliance now owns the former Kirtley Furniture buildings across College Street from the garage site, and should start tearing it down next week, he said. In about four months, that should become the new home for some relocated businesses, Butler said.

“We’ll start building back with a new structure for the Country Peddler and Harold’s TV,” he said.

Plans call for three connected buildings on the Kirtley site, according to Pipes Gaines, owner of the Country Peddler and owner and publisher of the Daily News. The Country Peddler is slated to occupy the bottom floor of the two-story building nearest Eighth Avenue, he said. Apartments are to be built upstairs from the Country Peddler and above the central two-story building, which Gaines believes has no designated tenant.

“I presume they will try to find somebody to sell that to,” he said.

As Butler confirmed, Gaines said the Country Peddler’s new office should take about four months to complete.

“The Peddler will not move until there is a certificate of occupancy, and then they’ll have a certain number of days to move at that point,” Gaines said.

Harold Jones of Harold’s TV expects to move directly across College Street to a new one-story building in the same set as the Country Peddler office. He’s also waiting on construction before moving out of his longtime location.

“They’ve told us they anticipate us being here four or five months,” Jones said.

D.J.’s Auto Upholstery on College Street will be moving to a brand-new building at 2462 Russellville Road - but not for a few months.

“July or August, we will be moving,” said business owner Terry Tarrance.

They’ll have 30 days to move once given notice that the new building is ready, but until then Tarrance plans to hang banners on the current location to let customers know they’re still around, he said.

Attorney Phillip Grogan, whose office sits on the corner of Eighth Avenue and College Street, said he’s talking with developers’ attorney Kevin Brooks about a new location now, but was surprised to find that his office had been bought so fast.

“I wasn’t aware until Tuesday that it was sold,” Grogan said.

He still has a one-year lease, but is willing to move so long as he gets an equivalent location - thus far, he just doesn’t know where or when. Developers have told him, however, that his building won’t have to be demolished before the adjacent Country Peddler office is, which may give him a few months, Grogan said.

Tom Eblen: As Kentucky's first Transition Town, Berea looks ahead (http://www.kentucky.com/181/story/721338.html)
By Tom Eblen, Herald-Leader Columnist, March 10, 2009

BEREA — What if the energy supplies, food systems and other foundations of our modern economy and lifestyle suddenly changed? How would your community cope?

It's a notion more of us have been thinking about during the past year. We saw gasoline spike to $4 a gallon last summer, then watched our consumption-driven economy slide into a deep recession.

Berea is one of nearly 150 communities around the world participating in a project called Transition Town. It is a citizen-driven effort to develop local strategies for coping with inevitable change in energy supplies and economic conditions that are no longer sustainable or good for the planet.

The Transition Town movement was started in 2004 by Ron Hopkins, an environmental educator in Totnes, England. Most Transition Towns are in the United Kingdom and Ireland, although the movement has spread to every inhabited continent except Africa. In addition to Berea, 17 other U.S. communities have signed on, including Los Angeles, Denver and Boulder, Colo.

"The next 20 years are going to be completely unlike the last 20 years," predicted Richard Olson, director of Sustainable and Environmental Studies at Berea College and a leader in Berea's Transition Town effort. "But what they are largely depends on the actions we take."

Here's why things will be different: The world's population of 6.7 billion will grow by nearly one-third over the next 40 years amid increasing worldwide demand for dwindling supplies of fossil fuels. Fisheries are diminishing, as are forests and fresh water supplies. Climate patterns are rapidly shifting.

Decades-old economic structures, lifestyles and food-supply systems based on an endless supply of cheap oil, natural gas and coal must change. "We're going to be using less energy — and soon — so why don't we plan for it?" Olson said.

These changes may seem like doom and gloom, but the solutions to them don't have to be. In fact, Olson said, smart strategies could create stronger communities, more healthy lifestyles and happier people. "A future with less oil could be better," he said.

Transition Town Berea, an outgrowth of an organization called Sustainable Berea, has citizens groups looking at ways the Madison County town can be less vulnerable to global changes. It's a good model other Kentucky towns should consider.

For example, how could a community increase its ability to feed itself if high energy costs made it no longer practical to truck in produce from California, poultry from Georgia and grain from Iowa? How could more support for local farmers result in healthier, better-tasting food that is less vulnerable to contamination like we've seen in the recent peanut scare?

Citizen groups in Berea have come up with a variety of ideas, many of which hark back two or three generations to what our conservative ancestors would have considered simple, common-sense steps.

Among them: Teach interested residents to grow gardens, put up food, plant berry bushes and fruit trees. Promote the local farmers market, the use of local food in Berea restaurants and facilitate creation of local certified kitchens and food-processing businesses.

Provide home energy-use audits and low-interest weatherization loans to promote less energy use and save people money. Partner with local builders to promote "green" construction methods and consider future energy needs in zoning and land-use decisions.

Better connect the town with walking paths and bike trails, organize car pools and convert the municipally owned utility to a "smart grid" that could gradually integrate more decentralized sources of renewable energy. Support and promote locally owned businesses, and set up internship programs at them for local high school and college students.

To challenge the community, Transition Town Berea has adopted some ambitious goals around the slogan "50 by 25." By 2025, the group would like Berea to use half as much electricity, and have half of it come from renewable sources. It also would like to see half of local food grown locally.

More than 60 people jammed into a room at Berea College last month to see Olson's presentation on Transition Town strategies. It was heartening to Berea Mayor Steve Connelly among them. Too often, political leaders are so focused on the next election that they're afraid to think long-term.

Connelly said the Transition Town group's goals for Berea are ambitious, but worth striving for. "You can't argue that there's a lot of truth in what's being said," he noted afterward. "We have to change. It's truly in our best interest."

Change is inevitable. How will your community survive, and thrive?

Ground broken for new Ashland police building (http://www.herald-dispatch.com/news/x1898609412/Ground-broken-for-new-Ashland-police-building)
By David E. Malloy, Herald-Dispatch, March 06, 2009

ASHLAND -- For the first time in the city's history, the Ashland Police Department will have a home of its own.

Ground was broken Thursday evening for a $3.89 million, two-story, free-standing building at 201 17th St., across the street from the Ashland city building.

"It's time it happened," Mayor Tom Kelley said. The city first started with a town marshal more than 150 years ago, he said. "It shows we're interested in the downtown."

"Right now, the police department is all over the place," Kelley said.

Currently the Ashland police department is located on the first, second and fifth floors of the city building and in the basement of that building. "We have half the basement, half the first floor, half the second floor and three-fourths of the fifth floor," he said.

The city is borrowing the money from the Kentucky Municipal League at an interest rate of 3.67 percent, said Kelley, who served as the city's 12th police chief before being elected mayor last year.

"The work areas will be a lot closer in the new building," Police Chief Rob Ratliff said. "I think it will bring everyone closer together. I'm looking forward to it."

The building, which will be more than 17,000 square feet, will front on 17th Street. The property formerly was used as a parking lot.

The department has 48 sworn officers and seven support personnel.

Work on the project could start next week and be finished before the end of the year, Ratliff said.

RiverPark Center to receive $118,000 (http://www.messenger-inquirer.com/articles/2009/03/14/news/local/14487036.txt)
By Beth Wilberding, Messenger-Inquirer, Friday, March 13, 2009

The RiverPark Center will be receiving more than $100,000 from the federal spending bill that was passed earlier this week.

The performing arts facility has received an earmark of $118,750 that will be used for maintenance or renovations at the RiverPark Center.

The RiverPark Center's funds are part of economic development initiatives, said Roxi Witt, general manager of the performing arts facility.

"We were thrilled, and it has longer-term benefits to us than just the $118,000," she said. "It's one of those things that says to donors, the federal government sees value in our operation and sees we are a player in the economic development of the region."

Former U.S. Rep. Ron Lewis took notice of the RiverPark Center because of what it has been doing in terms of creating jobs through building touring Broadway shows, the International Mystery Writers Festival and Winter Wonderland, along with the economic impact the RiverPark Center has had on the community, Witt said.

He selected the facility as "a very important institution within his district (and) worthy of consideration for federal funding," she said.

Witt and Zev Buffman, president and CEO of the RiverPark Center, then went to Washington, D.C., in January 2008 to meet with Lewis, U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell and the office of U.S. Sen. Jim Bunning about funding.

"We were delighted that they saw value in our request," Witt said.

The RiverPark Center has also worked with U.S. Rep. Brett Guthrie, who was elected last November to the 2nd Congressional District seat formerly held by Lewis.

Witt described Guthrie as being "supportive and a friend of the center."

RiverPark Center officials knew some funding for the performing arts center had received confirmation from both the U.S. House and Senate in the last couple of weeks.

They had to wait for President Barack Obama to sign the federal spending bill Wednesday before they knew they would be receiving the funds.

"We just kept our fingers crossed," Witt said. "About two weeks ago, we found out it was in the budget bill."

Nate Hodson, communications director for Guthrie's office, said the congressman was pleased the RiverPark Center was able to receive the funds.

"They are doing a fantastic job there. ... We look forward to working with them on future projects down the road," Hodson said.

RiverPark Center officials aren't sure when they will receive the funding or what the process for using the funds will be.

The RiverPark Center has several projects it could use the funding for, and the performing arts center's facilities committee will meet to discuss how to use the funds.

"What we've got to do is look at the list of what our most urgent needs (are) and how much money we have and what we can afford to do," Witt said.

Riverfront construction ramping up (http://www.messenger-inquirer.com/articles/2009/03/14/news/local/14485466.txt)
By Keith Lawrence, Messenger-Inquirer, March 13, 2009

The Owensboro riverfront looks pretty ragged now.

The big 19th-century trees that towered over Smothers Park are gone, along with the gazebo, the big fountain, the overlook, the playground equipment and even the grass.

It will be late next year -- maybe even 2011 -- before the $40 million riverfront development project is completed.

But Tony Cecil, city operations manager, says construction fans will have plenty to watch this year.

There was already a beehive of activity on the riverfront Thursday, with dozens of workers and plenty of heavy equipment working on land. But heavier equipment is on the way.

By summer, construction will also be under way in the river.

Ted Lolley, project manager, said a coffer dam will be built near the foot of Frederica Street to hold back the river roughly 15 feet from the shore.

That's so crews can build a 74-foot diameter overlook that will align with Frederica, but be farther out in the river than the current bank.

"We'll be extending the riverbank about 75 feet farther north than it is now," Lolley said. "We'll more than double the land area along the river."

Up to 60 workers at a time should be on the job through the end of the year, Cecil said.

The first phases of construction will see the creation of the street-level overlook at the foot of Frederica Street, the driving of steel sheet piles for the riverwall into the riverbed starting just west of the gazebo in McConnell Plaza, and the construction of a second overlook on the river at the foot of St. Ann Street.

A third overlook will be built at the foot of Allen Street.

Lolley said the steel sheet piles are being delivered to the Kinder Morgan Terminal in eastern Daviess County and will be shipped by barge to the downtown riverfront.

All the piling will be driven into the riverbed this year, he said.

"Originally plans called for McConnell Plaza to be closed during the first phase of construction," Cecil said.

But, with the city buying the Executive Inn Rivermont, work crews should have access to the riverbank through that property and not need to close McConnell Plaza, he said.

"Maybe we can keep McConnell Plaza open for the duration," Cecil said.

Roughly 700 acres of northern Owensboro drains down the old boat ramp area between Frederica and St. Ann streets, he said. And the city has to make sure that the work doesn't interfere with that drainage.

That section of the riverfront was cut down roughly six feet in the late 1800s.

The new riverwall, which will be built of steel with precast concrete panels overlaying the steel, will rise from the riverbed to a level about 6 inches to a foot lower than Veterans Boulevard in that section, Cecil said. In other places, it will be at approximately the same level as the top of the bank.

The space between the wall and the bank will be filled with dirt, adding several acres to Smothers Park and the Veterans of Foreign Wars property.

The land being added will feature a promenade that will let people walk along the edge of the riverbank, Lolley said.

The riverwall project is designed to prevent further erosion, which has taken nearly 30 feet off the riverbank in the past century.

"It's about stabilizing the ground motion in this part of town," Lolley said. "It's not really about the park. That's just part of it."

Cecil said the "signature fountain," which will feature a series of pools with jets of water shooting into the air, should be completed during the 2010 construction season.

It's scheduled to be built as part of the plaza overlook between Frederica and St. Ann.

That plaza, which will start at street level, will also feature a cascading waterfall.

Cecil said the city will use money from the insurance tax increase to pay for the fountain. "But we're still looking for sponsors to help reduce the costs," he said.

Lolley said a fountain is planned for Smothers Park that will freeze during cold weather and create ice sculptures that grow as the water continues to meet the cold air.

"It's quite a project," he said.

City to see additional stimulus funds (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_071233800.html)
Corbitt confident Ashland will receive more in coming weeks
By Carrie Stambaugh, The Independent, March 12, 2009

ASHLAND — The City of Ashland was notified this week it will be receiving $300,000 in additional funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for two projects.

The announcement is the second of its kind this month and brings the total amount received to date from the stimulus package to just more than $500,000. City Manager Steve Corbitt is confident the city will receive more funds in the coming weeks.

Corbitt said the city has submitted requests to federal and state legislatures for projects totaling approximately $30 million.

Requests include:

—$16 million for the second phase of the Ashland Veterans Riverfront Park

—$8 million for four combined sewer overflow projects

—$500,000 to furnish the new Ashland Police Station

—$500,000 for sewer upgrades on 39th Street

—$900,000 to renovate Judd Plaza and $1.5 million to complete Streetscape projects on the 1600, 1700 and 1200 block of Winchester Avenue.

Corbitt said the city was notified this week it will receive $180,300 of stimulus money for upgrades to the Ashland Bus System. The funds have a 180-day threshold for spending.

According to officials, $13,500 will be spent for a diagnostic bus engine and transmission computer equipment scanner for the central garage, $2,100 for portable two-way radio upgrades. Eight automated external defibrillators will also be purchased for the buses and the Transportation Center.

Upgrades to the city’s paratransit computer software are planned at a cost of $68,400.

Ashland’s Mass Transit Manager Mike Rogers said the paratransit upgrades will allow the system to use maps and geographic information systems to determine the most efficient route for trips, optimize daily schedules in order to increase vehicle efficiency and capacity, estimate vehicle mileage and travel times, and provide driving directions. An additional $83,500 will be used to install GPS technology along with mobile data computers and software in buses to allow them to communicate with paratransit vehicles.

Rogers said the upgrades were all planned for the future but can be accelerated now.

He said bus ridership has consistently grown throughout the last several years and is expected to spike through warmer weather this spring and summer.

Officials have also received preliminary confirmation from Rep. Geoff Davis’ office that Ashland Main Street will get $150,000 for facade repairs to the C.H. Parsons, which houses the Highlands Museum and Discovery Center on the first two floors. The building’s upper floors will also one day house Ashland Community and Technical College’s nursing program.

City officials seemed surprised by the recipient of those funds on Thursday.

Corbitt said he believed Ashland Main Street had applied for money for the facade repairs in 2007 but Economic Development Director Chris Pullem said he believed ACTC had applied for the funds in cooperation with the city. Either way, officials said they were glad to have them.

Planned repairs to the Parsons building include: repointing brick, cleaning the marble and granite veneer and the replacement door hardware and replacing vent window openings with lures.

Previously, the city was notified it will receive $184,000 in additional community development block grant funds from the stimulus package. Corbitt said the city has decided to spend that money making repairs to sidewalks and retaining walls in the Pollard Mills neighborhood.

Riverfront contracts awarded (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_079000214.html)
Construction to begin in late spring
By Carrie Stambaugh, The Independent, March 20, 2009

ASHLAND — Construction of Ashland Veterans Riverfront Park will start within the next three months.

City officials have awarded Smith Contractors Inc. of Lawrenceburg a $6.2 million contract to build most of the first phase of the park. City commissioners also approved a $2.1 million contract with the L.B. Foster Co. to purchase steel sheet piling to be used for the reclamation portion of the project.

The city did not award a contract to build the proposed restrooms but they are still expected to be built during the initial phase, according to City Manager Steve Corbitt. He said the city is continuing to work with the contractor and KZF Design engineers to modify plans to garner additional cost savings.

The latest round of bids on the bathrooms estimated construction cost at more than $2 million, he said. The city has just $1 million left for their construction.

He said the city has already identified several cost saving items including the replacement of $400,000 in granite pavers with stamped concrete. Further cost saving measures such as postponing purchase of a large canvas canopy for the parks entryway, will also be used to save cash.

Phase one will take place on the eastern most portion of the park property between the river and the railroad tracks. It includes reclamation of dozens of feet of property now underwater along with construction of the largest of four river walls that will double as a boat dock and stage. Extensive contouring and construction of an earthen mound, which will contain restroom facilities are also included.

Corbitt said although construction will not begin until late May or early June the riverfront property itself may be closed off in late April. He said it’s the city’s intention to keep the boat ramp open as long as possible but the contractors will need to store the steel and equipment at the site weeks before actual work begins.

The city’s order of more than 100 tons of specialized steel is expected to be rolled on April 15 for delivery in May, according to Corbitt.

He said the city decided to purchase the steel itself instead of having the contractor do it as part of the efforts to lower construction costs.

According to city Finance Director Tony Grubb, the city will save $145,000 in sales taxes by purchasing the specialized steel itself.

Corbitt said he expects to see steel being driven into the riverbed by June 1. Construction time is estimated at nearly 18 months, but river levels and weather will be major factors, Corbitt said.

Ashland’s signature Independence Day festival Summer Motion will temporarily be relocated to Ashland’s Central Park during construction.

Owensboro acquires former hotel property (http://www.kentucky.com/181/story/741284.html)
Herald-Leader, March 27, 2009

OWENSBORO, Ky. -- A shuttered riverfront hotel once a centerpiece of downtown but now destined for demolition was acquired for $5 million Friday by this western Kentucky city.

Mayor Ron Payne signed the deed to the former 550-room Executive Inn Rivermont property, calling it another "milestone" in the city's plans to revitalize downtown.

The hotel closed in 2008, and the city acquired the property from Marshall Investments.

Payne called the purchase price for the 17-acre property along the Ohio River a "real bargain."

The city plans to sell contents in the former hotel, then clear the property. Payne said a marina might go in along part of the property, with condominiums another possibility elsewhere on the tract.

As part of the downtown redevelopment, a new convention center is planned near the hotel property.

The abrupt closure of the hotel - once western Kentucky's largest - left many worried about the future.

The hotel had been a venue for nationally known music acts such as Loretta Lynn and the Oak Ridge Boys. The hotel also had helped the city draw big shows and tournaments, some of which moved to other cities when it closed.

Estimates begin rolling in for upgrades to old courthouse (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_098224158.html)
By Carrie Stambaugh, The Independent, April 8, 2009

CATLETTSBURG — The new Boyd County Justice Center nearing completion is quickly becoming the new jewel of Catlettsburg.

But across the street, the old Boyd County Courthouse is slowly falling into despair.

The 77-year-old building has a laundry list of repairs needed to bring it up to date including asbestos removal, a roof, heating and cooling system, insulation, phone and other communication line upgrades, electrical upgrades, an emergency backup system and a new ADA-accessible elevator.

No complete estimate exists for all the upgrades but the roof and new heating/cooling system are expected to cost more than $1.8 million, according to an estimate compiled by Versailles-based architects Campbell and Associates, PLLC. New phone and communication lines are currently being installed at a cost of approximately $30,000, according to officials, and bids will soon be let on the needed electrical upgrades.

Nickie Smith, county community and economic development director, said she is working on a federal grant available for local governments to utilize green technologies for upgrades including the installation of a geothermal heating and cooling system and a new energy-efficient roof.

Whether the county is successful or not at getting the grant, officials said they plan to move forward with many of the upgrades.

“They are way overdue. Everything is worn out,” said Judge-Executive William “Bud” Stevens.

Gordon Campbell, president and CEO of Campbell and Associates, said Tuesday a geothermal system and energy-efficient roof will pay for itself quickly through utility bill savings. A geothermal system will cost approximately $900,000 to install but the extra cost over a traditional unit will be recouped within six to 12 years depending on the type of well that can be built, he said.

“A geothermal system is 50 percent more efficient than the system you’ve got now,” Campbell said.

The current boiler/chiller system in the courthouse dates back to the 1950s and only one of two boilers work, Stevens said.

The new Energy Star insulated roof will cost an estimated $276,000, according to Campbell’s estimate. The roof, which is also nearing the end of its lifetime, Campbell said, is a necessity if the heating and cooling system is upgraded.

“It doesn’t make any sense to put in an energy-efficient system if you’re not going to keep the heat in,” he said.

Other upgrades such as a handicap accessible elevator are also needed to bring the building up to current standards, he said. The building has six distinct levels but only two are accessible via the small 1960s-era elevator, which is too narrow to accommodate a modern wheelchair, Campbell said.

A new elevator would be installed across the hall from the old one and have LED lighting and high efficiency controls that allow the elevator to hibernate when not in use. The elevator and installation would cost approximately $198,000, according to the estimate.

Design work for the upgrades can be completed within the next 45 to 60 days, but it is unclear how long it would take the county to secure grant funding.

Installation of the geothermal system and the new roof could take approximately six months, but Campbell said the work will be spread out in such a way to be as minimally invasive to operations at the courthouse.

Bye-bye Big E (http://www.courierpress.com/news/2009/apr/16/bye-bye-big-e/?partner=RSS)
By Chuck Stinnett, Courier-Press, April 16, 2009

OWENSBORO -- Walk into the former Executive Inn Rivermont and you can still see a glimmer of what made it the pride of this city when it opened in 1977.

There are the chandeliers under the front portico where bellhops once unloaded guests' luggage. The seven-story atrium with the roof made of skylights. Live trees growing in the lobby.

There are still several tiers of booths facing the big stage in the Vegas-style Showroom Lounge, where famous acts once performed. But the stage has long since been silent.

In the Capital Steak and Seafood House fine-dining restaurant overlooking the Ohio River, some tables are set with linen, china and napkins. But the green leather chairs are empty, and the only thing stirring in the kitchen is a mouse skittering behind a bag of stale nachos.

Look closer and you find more chinks in the armor.

It's more than the leaves on the lobby floor, left when the trees that died from neglect after the 600-room hotel closed in June 2008. It's more than beds left unmade since the last guests checked out 10 months ago.

Skylights have begun crashing to the floor. The floor itself is buckling back in the kitchen, which Owensboro engineer Ted Lolley said is built on fill that is sinking along the riverbank.

Inch-wide cracks can be found in concrete floors, cement block walls and the brick veneer outside the building. One wall is separating from the floor.

Mold is growing on the floor of the exposition center and up the walls in the darkened Time Out Bar. "The roof has leaks all over the place," Lolley, who assisted with structural repairs at the hotel in years past, said. "When you get water through the building you get mold through the building."

"Just about every area needs to be re-roofed," he said.

The rooms in an entire wing of the hotel sit empty and gutted following a fire nearly three years ago. Cracks are forming in the brick veneer of the original tower.

In short, it's a long way from the ambitious hotel and entertainment facility that Vincennes, Ind., businessman Bob Green built and subsidized with profits from his coal mines and highway construction company.

It has suffered from neglect at the hands of two of its four owners, compounded by some severe windstorms and the remnants last September of Hurricane Ike, Lolley said.

"I can remember, when this place first opened, just the feeling of grandeur when you walked in," Owensboro Mayor Ron Payne said during a media tour of the relic on Thursday to show the extent of the damage.

"It was a tremendous asset to the community of Owensboro when it opened. But like so many things, we move on," Payne said. "That's what's going on. It is coming down."

The city of Owensboro purchased the former hotel and 17-acre riverfront site from the property's mortgage holder last month for $5 million and plans to demolish the former landmark late this summer.

City officials are hoping that someday, a smaller, more efficient hotel, such as a Hilton Garden Inn-style facility with a courtyard and about 225 rooms, can be developed on the site.

Recreational and retail developments also are a possibility. For example, the mayor said, "I'm convinced we need a modern marina."

The 17-acre riverfront property "is a tremendous site," Payne said.

"We want it to really be something where people come and say, 'Wow,' " he said.

Some Owensboro residents want the city to repair and reopen Executive Inn Rivermont; others want at least the exposition building to be left standing for conventions and trade shows.

City officials said neither idea is practical.

"Several major hotel chains have looked at the facility" and aren't interested in operating the property, Payne said.

Engineer Lolley said stabilizing the ground beneath the kitchen floors; repairing elevators; making major electrical and plumbing repairs; replacing much of the heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, re-roofing and making other needed repairs would cost "many times than what they paid for it."

The exposition hall is a separate building that some citizens think should be left in place. The structure is a recycled building that was formerly used at 1982 World's Fair at Knoxville, Lolley said.

"The convention facility is kind of Band-Aided together," Payne said. "We need a new, modern facility" next to a new hotel.

Lolley estimated the cost of readying the expo center to be a stand-alone facility at nearly $1 million, and City Manager Bill Parrish estimates the city would lose $420,000 per year operating the center.

Instead, the city has advertised for proposals for liquidating the contents of the former hotel, from pictures and furniture to commodes and doors.

"We're going to sell everything in here, wall-to-wall," city Operations Manager Tony Cecil said. The city will open bids from liquidators or auction companies on May 20, and private citizens may have an opportunity to buy a little piece of the Rivermont.

By August 2010, Parrish said, "the hotel will be down," and The Big E will be The Big Memory.

Downtown hot for apartments (http://www.courierpress.com/news/2009/apr/18/downtown-hot-for-apartments/?partner=RSS)
By Chuck Stinnett, Gleaner, April 18, 2009

Downtown apartments are hot. Demand is so great that the Downtown Henderson Project has a waiting list of would-be tenants, and more units are being developed.

"Right now we're at capacity. Everything is filled as far as I know," DHP Director Julie Turnipseed said.

The DHP has identified 42 rental apartments in the central business district, not counting owner-occupied units. Most are located on upper stories above stores or offices.

They're a throwback to the days when the ground floors of downtown buildings were occupied by storefronts or restaurants, with offices and apartments on the second or third floors. Many went vacant as people moved toward the suburbs, but they're popular once again.

"People really love living downtown," Turnipseed said. "There's the convenience of downtown, the shopping, the festivals, the restaurants, the events, the charm of downtown."

"We have the gamut, from $250 per month all the way up to $700," she said. "We have small spaces, large spaces, spaces renovated (with drop ceilings and carpet), some restored (with repaired plaster and existing windows and walls) and lofts with two brick walls."

In addition, "There are other spaces that could be" living spaces, Turnipseed said.

For example, the grandchildren of the late Emily Quinn Bennett are considering redeveloping four apartments above the E.M. Ford Insurance office and the Dollar General store, according to Gary Shoulders, who manages the property for the family.

And Bobby Cornbleet recently won approval from the Henderson City-County Planning Commission to build a six-apartment structure on an empty lot on 319 N. Elm St.

"We just feel like the downtown area needs to be revitalized and we hope this helps," said his daughter, Vera Beth Cornbleet, who herself lives near downtown. "We just feel this will be a good addition to the downtown area."

"That's exciting because it means we're getting in-fill," Turnipseed said.

Run for the roses

You may not be able to live downtown, but you can visit, and that's what the DHP is hoping you'll do for a while on Derby Day. (As good Kentuckians, you know that falls on the first Saturday of May, which will be May 2 this year.)

The DHP and the Think Henderson campaign will sponsor a Derby Day Family Treasure Hunt from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. that day. Similar to the 2007 Mother/Daughter Treasure Hunt that drew more than 100 residents, it's intended as an entertaining way to introduce area residents to the range of merchandise and gift selections at downtown stores.

Family members or friends are encouraged to participate together, going from store to store to learn about Henderson's history through the clues (developed by Henderson County Schools) they will pick up. Fourteen downtown shops will participate.

Treasure hunters can come by the DHP office at 131 N. Main St. between 10 a.m. and noon on Derby Day to pick up the first clue. The treasure hunt will conclude at the gazebo in Central Park for lemonade and cookies. A drawing for a $100 gift certificate from the DHP and Think Henderson will take place at 2:30 p.m.

It being on Derby Day, participants are also encourage to participate in a Derby hat contest, with a $25 Henderson Chamber of Commerce gift certificate going to the winner.

Participants also are urged to have lunch downtown during the hunt. Open that day will be En El Rio and Big Daddy's on Water Street; Wolf's Tavern and the Downtown Diner on First Street; Tootie's Pizza on Second Street; Diamond Delights on Main Street; and Bridgeview Coffee at Second and Green.

Organizers emphasize that the treasure hunt isn't a race and isn't timed and request that hunters be considerate of store customers and permit them to be assisted first by shop owners or clerks.

Thinking local

Turnipseed and Henderson Chamber of Commerce President Brad Schneider spent part of Friday passing out Think Henderson emery boards at the Tri-Fest. But Turnipseed has been passing something else out, too, to businesses -- fliers about The 350 Project.

"The 350 Project is where you pick three locally owned businesses that you don't want to go away and spend $50 in those businesses a month to keep those businesses going," she said. "People can spend $15 (apiece) in three businesses, easily."

The fliers highlight the financial benefits of shopping locally.

Renovation of Frankfort's Grand Theatre to be completed in July (http://www.kentucky.com/181/story/798008.html)
By Shawntaye Hopkins, Herald-Leader, May 17, 2009

FRANKFORT — Exposed brick and a rugged concrete wall in an area that will be used as a concession for popcorn, candy and wine suggests the historic Grand Theatre is far from completion.

But once the sawdust is swept away and exposed wires are hidden, the wall will remain.

"We wanted to preserve and display some of the historic fabric," said Bill Cull, president of Save the Grand Inc., a non-profit created in 2002 to help restore the downtown Frankfort theatre. "People in the community love seeing the reflection of history."

A $5 million project to renovate the Grand Theatre, located at 308 St. Clair St., is expected to be complete by the end of July, and a grand opening will take place in September, Cull said.

[See the URL for the rest of the article.]

What a waste of money...

Plan to move Martin bogs down (http://www.kentucky.com/181/story/798758.html)
REPEATED FLOODING STRAINS COAL TOWN
By Dori Hjalmarson and Bill Estep, Herald-Leader, May 17, 2009

MARTIN — Five years ago, the federal government pledged $97 million to help this declining coal town move to higher ground to avoid its repeated flooding after heavy rains washed over the nearby banks of Beaver Creek.

But the project is two or three years behind schedule, Army Corps of Engineers officials say. Although one-third of the planned cost has been spent on earth-moving, design and planning, no buildings have been moved yet, and many were filled with five feet of muddy water from last weekend's flash floods.

In fact, the only thing that has been moved in Martin is a wedge of hillside that was carved out near the center of town. A retaining wall was built around it.

[See the URL for the rest of the article.]

Another obstacle arises in riverfront construction (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_138225447.html)
Permit bars construction in Ohio River until July 1
By Carrie Stambaugh, The Independent, May 18, 2009

ASHLAND — The planned start of construction on Ashland’s Veterans Riverfront Park is weeks away, but the project could face another delay.

An environmental regulation in the City of Ashland’s permit to reclaim land now in the Ohio River could delay work until after the end of the warm water fish spawning season.

City Manager Steve Corbitt said the city has requested a waiver from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which outlined the regulation in the permit issued in March 2008. As it now stands, the city would be barred from starting construction until July 1.

Corbitt said he has asked the Corps to allow work to begin in June. He called the latest potential delay in construction “a little glitch.” Reclamation work is the most complex part of the project and must be started first, Corbitt said.

Peggy Noel, a spokeswoman for the Corps in Huntington, confirmed the city had requested a waiver. She said that particular environmental requirement is placed in all permits for in-water construction at the request of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Noel said the two agencies were working together to review Ashland’s request.

“We expect to have a decision on the waiver any day. Once that decision is made, we will contact the City of Ashland,” she said.

Warm water fish spawning season is April 1 to June 30 each year.

Fish and Wildlife spokesman Mark Marraccini said the season is almost over but he could not speculate whether the waiver would be granted or not.

He said the requirement is intended to protect all species of fish that spawn during that season.

“It’s a fisheries conservation issue,” Marraccini said. “It’s for the good of everybody.

“You’re talking about a whole year’s worth of fish there. Sometimes waiting just a few days or a few weeks can make the difference in a whole fishery,” he said.

Preparations for construction are being made despite the potential that the start date could be moved back a month, Corbitt said.

Smith Contractors Inc. of Lawrenceburg was awarded a $6.2 million contract by the city to build the first phase of the park. The company plans to begin moving equipment and trailers to the site within the next week to prepare for construction, Corbitt said.

He said the city expects to have its $2.1 million order of steel delivered within the next two weeks. Meetings between all the parties working on the project are also scheduled next week, Corbitt said.

Construction of phase one, which will take place on the eastern most section of the park property between the river and the railroad tracks, could take up to 18 months.

Phase one includes the reclamation and construction of the first river wall that will double as a boat dock and boat ramp. Extensive contouring and grading of the new and existing riverfront land, including construction of the first earth mound — that will hold the restroom facilities — will also be completed.

Frankfort's Grand will embrace the past with modern twist (http://www.kentucky.com/news/state/story/798008.html)
By Shawntaye Hopkins, Herald-Leader, May 18, 2009

FRANKFORT — Exposed brick and a rugged concrete wall in an area that will be used as a concession for popcorn, candy and wine suggest that the historical Grand Theatre is far from completion.

But once the sawdust is swept away and exposed wires are hidden, the wall will remain.

"We wanted to preserve and display some of the historic fabric," said Bill Cull, president of Save the Grand Inc., a non-profit created in 2002 to help restore the downtown Frankfort theater. "People in the community love seeing the reflection of history."

A $5 million project to renovate the Grand Theatre, 308 St. Clair St., is expected to be complete by the end of July, and there will be a grand opening in September, Cull said.

The theater was built in 1911 as a 135-seat vaudeville house. In 1941, it was turned into a modern, 680-seat movie theater. It closed in the mid-1960s and has served as office and commercial space for a variety of businesses.

There was some talk about renovating the Grand in 1983 after a study that suggested that more evening entertainment was needed in the area. Organizers of that effort, including Cull, were unable to raise enough money for the renovations.

But the idea has finally come to fruition. The project is expected to revitalize downtown and keep people from having to travel to Louisville and Lexington for entertainment,

See the URL for the rest of the article.

--

Frankfort's old theater restored (http://www.kentucky.com/471/story/806591.html)
By Shawntaye Hopkins, Herald-Leader, May 24, 2009

FRANKFORT, Ky. -- Exposed brick and a rugged concrete wall in an area that will be used as a concession for popcorn, candy and wine suggest that the historical Grand Theatre is far from completion.

But once the sawdust is swept away and exposed wires are hidden, the wall will remain.

"We wanted to preserve and display some of the historic fabric," said Bill Cull, president of Save the Grand Inc., a nonprofit created in 2002 to help restore the downtown Frankfort theater. "People in the community love seeing the reflection of history."

A $5 million project to renovate the Grand Theatre, 308 St. Clair St., is expected to be complete by the end of July, and there will be a grand opening in September, Cull said.

The theater was built in 1911 as a 135-seat vaudeville house. In 1941, it was turned into a modern, 680-seat movie theater. It closed in the mid-1960s and has served as office and commercial space for a variety of businesses.

There was some talk about renovating the Grand in 1983 after a study that suggested that more evening entertainment was needed in the area. Organizers of that effort, including Cull, were unable to raise enough money for the renovations.

But the idea has finally come to fruition. The project is expected to revitalize downtown and keep people from having to travel to Louisville and Lexington for entertainment.

Frankfort Mayor Gippy Graham said the community will embrace the theater when it opens this fall.

"I'm very excited," Graham said. "I just think it's going to have a big impact on attracting people and getting more people downtown."

See the URL for the rest of the article.

Judicial center dedicated (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_198234957.html)
$20M facility has been in use for month
By Kenneth Hart, The Independent, July 17, 2009

CATLETTSBURG — When it comes to courthouses, Boyd County’s have long been on the leading edge of technology, Kentucky’s chief supreme court said Friday.

The county’s old courthouse, which went into service in 1909, was the first court facility in the commonwealth to be equipped with air conditioning, said John D. Minton Jr., the keynote speaker at the dedication ceremony for Boyd’s sparkling new 64,000-square foot judicial center.

Click the link above for the rest of the article.

Morehead State University to break ground on new wellness center (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_221204516.html)
The Independent, August 9, 2009

MOREHEAD — Morehead State University will break ground Tuesday on a $24 million campus recreation and wellness center.

“This will be a wonderful, long-awaited day for our students and we are excited to see construction begin,” said MSU President Wayne D. Andrews. “The project was delayed slightly but it will have a happy ending.”

MSU officials, members of the Board of Regents, local legislators and several current and past student leaders will be involved in the 1 p.m. ceremony on the north edge of the campus near Eagle Lake. The public is invited.

Discussion about such a project began in 2005 after President Andrews took office. A committee visited recreation centers at other institutions and recommended that MSU build its own facility as soon as possible.

A poll revealed that MSU students would be willing to pay higher fees to finance such a facility. It was authorized by the General Assembly in early 2006 to be built with institutional bonds.

President Andrews took the project back to the General Assembly in the 2008 session and it was authorized a second time. A new governor, Steve Beshear, approved the measure and an architectural firm was hired to develop plans.

In June, the project was offered for bid and the winning proposal came in millions of dollars under the original cost estimate. The lower-than-expected bid will allow MSU to include more features in the 100,000 square foot facility and also pay smaller debt service payments each year.

To be built on the east side of the valley fronting Eagle Lake, the facility will occupy part of the former sites of Lakewood Terrace, an apartment complex for students and employees, and Regents Hall, a four-story residence hall. Regents and Wilson Hall, located adjacently, were demolished earlier this year. Both had been out of service as residence halls since 2007. Regents Hall had temporarily housed the Space Science Center which moved to its own $16.6 million facility in June.

The center will feature a three-court gymnasium and fitness area with cardio and weight machines and free weights. The second floor will include two racquet ball courts, multi-purpose rooms, running track, a wellness lab, running and cardio balcony, game room and lounge. The aquatics area will consist of a six-lane, 25-yard pool with outdoor sun deck.

The project should be completed in approximately 18 months. The recreation and wellness center was designed by Hastings and Chivetta of St. Louis, Mo., and will be built by Dugan & Meyers Construction Co. of Cincinnati.

Historic church building may be demolished (http://www.courierpress.com/news/2009/aug/10/church-building/?partner=RSS)
By Chuck Stinnett, Gleaner, August 10, 2009

An historic church at Washington and South Green streets is likely to be torn down, the businessman who purchased it in June acknowledged Monday.

The Brae LLC, a company controlled by Brad Hazelwood, obtained permits from the city last month for the demolition of the former Haven Pentecostal Church and an adjacent building at 34 and 36 S. Green St.

"I don't know when I'll tear it down," Hazelwood, who also is president of Hazex Construction Co., said. "I think I will. I don't think the church has much value.

"I think it will be a more valuable piece of property without the buildings," he said.

Hazelwood said he doesn't have a tenant or buyer for the property yet.

He indicated that he plans to demolish the buildings when his crews have a lull in their work schedules. "It could be two months," he said.

The rear portion of the church building was built in 1854, making it the oldest church building in Henderson, according to research by Gleaner reporter and local historian Frank Boyett. The portion on the front of the building was added 80 years ago during its lengthy tenure as the home of First Christian Church.

The building hasn't been used for church services since Haven Pentecostal relocated to a new building in the mid-1990s, and the property had been for sale for years.

The small brick building next door once housed the city school superintendent's office.

Other building permit activity in July was modest. The city and county issued one permit each for a new single-family home, and the city issued permits for a pair of multi-family buildings.

The two permits for houses last month, compared with nine in July 2008.

Combined, the city and county issued permits for just over $1 million of construction activity. That compares with nearly $2 million in July 2008.

Ashland 'eyesore' could be removed (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_223233544.html)
City preparing to demolish former Sears building
By CARRIE STAMBAUGH, The Independent, August 11, 2009

ASHLAND — The corner of 17th Street and Winchester Avenue may soon undergo a dramatic change.

City officials are preparing to demolish the former Sears building, which has been condemned for more than a year and vacant for more than a decade. Bid packages for its demolition are expected to go out next week and officials say the building could be torn down within two or three months.

Russell businessman Perry Madden and his wife, Susan, own the entire 1700 block of buildings facing Winchester Avenue, including the former Sears building, the Henry Clay House and the vacant lot in between. The pair had planned to convert the Sears building and the vacant lot into a housing complex for seniors.

The couple secured federal tax credits to complete the work several years ago but the project never came to fruition. The Maddens have refused to comment publicly about the situation despite numerous attempts by The Independent.

Perry Madden did not immediately return a call seeking comment on Tuesday.

City Manager Steve Corbitt and Director of Planning and Community Development Mike Miller said they last met with Perry Madden this spring. At that time the couple still intended to refurbish the building but to date there has been no evidence of work commencing there, according to Corbitt and Miller.

“It's been an eyesore for a long time. We have been trying to get movement on it and we haven’t seemed to be able to find a buyer or find a project that works for that,” said Miller.

Corbitt said the city “bent over backwards” supporting the original project and has put a lot of other time and effort into working with the Maddens to see change on the block, but to no avail.

“We feel like we’ve gone as far as we can go,” Miller said.

Both Miller and Corbitt expressed hope that some refurbishment work will begin and the city will not have to knock down the structure.

“What we hope is, due to the condemnation notice and notice of demolition, that they put the building back into occupiable shape and put people in it,” said Corbitt.

“Second best is we tear it down and someone purchases it and the city recoups its money. If the building is not going to be repaired or made serviceable the city will demolish it,” he said. “We don’t want a vacant lot over there more than anyone else but we’ve had multiple comments that it’s the largest eyesore downtown. Once we take it down, a lot of people think a vacant piece of property is more attractive than a condemned building.”

City officials have budgeted $235,000 for the demolition. If the city knocks down the structure, it will place a lien on the property for the cost.

In the past officials have said they did not want to demolish the building because it could take years to get the money back and may make the property less attractive for new investment.

The Maddens, or any other individual with an interest in the property, will have an opportunity to stop the city from demolishing the structure by securing a court-ordered injunction.

$20M I-64 project to begin soon (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_232230317.html)
Improvements aimed at roadway longevity
By CARRIE STAMBAUGH, The Independent, August 20, 2009

ASHLAND — A $20.1 million rehabilitation project on an eight-mile stretch of Interstate 64 in Boyd County will focus on repairing and improving the ridability and safety of the roadway to ensure its longevity.

Work on the project is expected to begin in the next several weeks, according to Allen Blair, a spokesman with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s Highway District 9.

“This $20 million project will provide a lot of improvements that will safeguard the highway for decades to come,” said Blair. “That includes not only a new surface but better ditching and drainage and shoring up the embankments where they show signs of weakness and failure.”

Mountain Enterprises was awarded the $20 million contract for the road improvements, which will take place through next summer.

The work will take place between just east of Coalton to the U.S. 23 interchange just before the state line bridge that spans the Big Sandy River. West Virginia owns the span and no work will be performed on that bridge as part of this project, Blair said.

The eight-mile section of roadway is the last stretch of I-64 in the district, which stretches from Bath County to the West Virginia state line, to be rehabilitated, he said. The entire stretch will be resurfaced but that portion of the project won’t begin until next year, Blair said.

Repairs to four slips along the roadway — two on the eastbound side and two on the westbound side — along with drainage and ditching improvements will be completed first.

“The contractor plans to begin late next week moving in equipment and then it’s likely by the first week of September you’ll see traffic control barrels going up on the road as work begins,” Blair said.

Rehabilitation on the slips and drainage is expected to start in the next few weeks.

Work on the underside of several overpasses near the stateline and U.S. 23 interchange will also begin in the next few weeks but the work will not affect traffic, according to Blair.

Once contractors reach the resurfacing portion of the contract next spring, traffic patterns will be more greatly affected, he said.

“I-64 is a very important artery for economics, travel and tourism and that section of highway we realize is a very big commuter route. We want to make sure it stays in great shape, and one way to do it is to make sure we have a good surface and that there isn’t anything that threatens the roadway,” Blair said. “This will ensure it remains a good highway for decades to come.”

In addition to the $20.1 million project in Boyd County, transportation officials also announced this week they have awarded contracts for an additional $4 million in improvements within District 9.

Maddens petition demolition (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_240235354.html)
Restraining order sought for former Sears building
By CARRIE STAMBAUGH, The Independent, August 29, 2009

ASHLAND — The owners of the former Sears building have asked a judge to issue a restraining order to prevent the City of Ashland from demolishing it.

Perry and Susan Madden filed a petition seeking the order in Boyd Circuit Court last week. Circuit Judge C. David Hagerman was scheduled to hear the matter during his motion hour Friday but it was postponed until Thursday.

City officials say there is no need for a restraining order as “demolition is not imminent,” according to the city’s response written by City Attorney Richard “Sonny” Martin.

“The city is in the process of getting bids for a contract to proceed with demolition. No bids have been received and no contract has been entered,” he wrote.

The former Sears building, at the corner of 17th Street and Winchester Avenue, has been vacant for several years. The Maddens had planned to convert the building into retail space and housing but the project never materialized.

Ashland code enforcement officials condemned the building last year and it was later classified as a blighted and abandoned property, raising the property tax rate fourfold.

The Maddens claim in their petition that they were never given an opportunity to have a hearing on the building before the city began action to demolish it. If the structure is razed, they claim in the suit, they will suffer “immediate and irreparable injury, loss and damage” to their property in addition to having a lien placed against it for the demolition costs.

In addition to the restraining order, the couple is asking the court order the city “to conduct an appropriate hearing and afford it due process regarding the razing and removal of the structure.”

The Maddens claim they have “no idea” who declared the structure to be “unsafe, a fire hazard, a public nuisance and unfit for human occupancy or use.” According to an affidavit given by Perry Madden, he said to the best of his knowledge “no representative of the City of Ashland has ever even been inside the building.”

City officials deny that the Maddens were not given ample opportunity to make their case against demolition of the structure.

“The affidavit of Perry J. Madden does not mention the lengthy process that has been ongoing on this matter for over a year,” Martin wrote in the city’s response.

According to court documents, the Maddens were notified of the city’s intent to order demolition of the structure in May 2008. A month later, Perry Madden requested a 90-day extension, which was granted.

On Nov. 21, the Maddens were again served with a notice of violation for the condition of the building and were advised they had seven days to appeal in writing to the city’s code enforcement board.

“No such appeal was taken,” Martin wrote in the city’s response. The Maddens were issued a second notice of violation on Jan. 13 and again no appeal was taken, he wrote.

“City inspectors have also visited and inspected the property on a number occasions over the past year,” he wrote. “

The Maddens were notified via certified mail Aug. 19 that the building was “scheduled for demolition,” according to a copy of the letter sent to the couple.

Ashland’s Director of Planning and Community Development Mike Miller is named in the suit along with Ashland Mayor Tom Kelley and Commissioners Larry Brown, Marty Gute, Kevin Gunderson and Cheryl Spriggs. Miller said Friday officials were not surprised by the suit.

“That is to be expected,” he said.

Miller said the city has still “not received anything from the property owners of any intent to do anything with the building as of yet.” He said the city maintains its position that they would rather see something done with the structure than have it demolished.

“I think that is what anyone would want in the end is to see something done with the building,” he said.

Perry Madden did not immediately respond to calls seeking comment on Friday.

Bids for the demolition of the structure are currently being sought and are expected to be opened Sept. 10. Estimates for the demolition of the building range between $200,000 and $300,000.

Franklin courthouse plan will save church, old courthouse (http://www.kentucky.com/latest_news/story/988286.html)
By Linda B. Blackford, Herald-Leader, October 22, 2009

FRANKFORT—A new courthouse project that was almost derailed by community anger over the fate of Frankfort's old courthouse and its Good Shepherd Catholic Church now appears to be sailing forward as a model of compromise.

"We've had a lot of public input and now a lot of support for this particular design," Franklin County Judge Executive Ted Collins said of the $30-million proposal that literally embraces the 1835 courthouse designed by Gideon Shyrock, who also designed the old State Capitol a few blocks away.

Dining downtown (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_305232425.html)
Longtime eatery invests in community
Tim Preston, The Independent, November 1, 2009

Ashland — Doing business in downtown districts and investing in the community are serious commitments for the people at CJ Maggie’s American Grill.

Kirk Street case begins in Boyd (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_316224016.html)
Attorneys present arguments in suit
By Kenneth Hart, The Independent, November 12, 2009

CATLETTSBURG — A judge on Thursday heard oral arguments in a lawsuit involving Ashland’s zoning board and its decision to deny a permit for a controversial housing development on Kirk Street.

Developer Richard “Gene” Meyers, his company, Terrace Park Townhomes Ltd.; and Mark E. Dempsey, Paula E. Dempsey and Paul G. Hughes, the owners of the property on which the housing complex would be located, are suing the city of Ashland and its board of zone adjustment over the board’s July 21 decision to not grant a conditional use permit for development.

Midway plans to build $5 million classroom building (http://www.kentucky.com/latest_news/story/1017148.html)
By Greg Kocher, Herald-Leader, November 12, 2009

MIDWAY — Midway College plans to build a $5 million classroom building, and has reached an agreement with a faith-based provider to put a new nursing home/assisted-living center on the school's Woodford County campus.

Good Shepherd School leaving downtown next summer (http://www.state-journal.com/news/article/4710951)
By Katheran Wasson, State Journal, November 15, 2009

Good Shepherd School will pack up and leave downtown Frankfort early next summer, moving its 187 students and 40 staff to make way for construction of a new judicial center.

But church and school leaders say that vacating the building that has been home since 1922 won’t change their mission.

Police: It’s starting to come together (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_323232430.html)
New station on schedule to be complete in December
By CARRIE STAMBAUGH, The Independent, November 19, 2009

ASHLAND — The new Ashland Police Station is expected to be completed on schedule by the end of December but it will not be fully operational until 2010.

City officials took action Thursday to revise the traffic laws in place for the alley next to the police station in preparation for the opening.

Open house set for new Campbell building (http://nky.cincinnati.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20091203/NEWS0103/912030342)
By Kevin Kelly, Cincinnati Enquirer, December 3, 2009

NEWPORT - The public is invited to stop by the new Campbell County Administration Building and Health Center for an open house next week.

The event is scheduled for 4-7 p.m. Wednesday. At 5 p.m., county officials and others involved with the $13.5 million project will hold a small ceremony in the Fiscal Court chambers. Provided it arrives in time, a plaque commemorating the building's construction will be unveiled and placed in the vestibule area.

Judge reverses BZA’s Kirk Street decision (http://www.dailyindependent.com/local/local_story_336162827.html)
By KENNETH HART, The Independent, December 2, 2009

Ashland — A judge has reversed the Ashland Board of Zoning Adjustment’s decision to deny a conditional use permit for a controversial housing development on Kirk Street.

In a 10-page ruling handed down Wednesday, Boyd Circuit Judge C. David Hagerman wrote that the BZA’s July 21 denial of a permit for the 48-unit townhouse project was “clearly unreasonable” based on evidence that was presented to the board by the developers and by city staff.

NOTE:

I've unstickied the few development threads that have been quiet for over a year. If you would like to update this thread regularly and see it re-stickied, please pm me! Thank you. :)

desertpunk