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| Aquaculturist Steve Mims fed his largemouth bass after the City Council meeting Monday evening. (Photo by Al Cross) |
After a closed session so they could talk about the still-secret appraisal of the property, council members punted, tabling the issue. They could consider the bids again, or advertise for new bids.
The high bid of $20,000 came from Buchanan Contracting, a Mount Sterling company that the Woodford County Economic Development Authority recently hired to do maintenance and reconstruction work on the Midway Station industrial park.
The other bid, $13,100, came from Advancing Sustainable Aquaculture Performance for Fish, a company owned by retired Kentucky State University professor Steve Mims, who has leased the facility for the last four years.
Council Member John Holloway said both bids were below the appraised value of the property, but after Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said the appraisal shouldn't be discussed publicly, the council met privately for six minutes in a back room to discuss the bids. That is allowable under an exception to the state Open Meetings Act, which allows closed sessions "when publicity would be likely to affect the value" of the property being sold.
After the closed session, Vandegrift said the discussion was about what the property is worth, and Council Member Bruce Southworth moved to table the issue. The council agreed unanimously.
Before the closed session, Mims told the council that he started the small-scale fish farm because most fish supplied to Kentucky come from out of state and the state needs local suppliers. He also is promoting a hybrid bass and paddlefish, sometimes called spoonbills, whose eggs are a competitor to caviar, the eggs of sturgeon. He said ASAP Fish one of only two paddlefish hatcheries in the nation.
Sims said he got grants for a liner that stopped leaks in the plant's 160,000-gallon tank, has put more than $20,000 into the plant's pumps, plumbing and electrical wiring; and has received informal approval to take water from Lee Branch instead of the new treatment plant across Leestown Road.
Under its lease, ASAP Fish pays the city 5 percent of its gross revenue. Vandegrift said after the meeting that last year's payment was about $800, indicating revenues of $16,000. Sims acknowledged that he has a small operation, and said he has tried to focus on the "highest-value species."
"I'd really like to keep it," Mims said. "I bid what I thought I could, based on how much money I've put into the place." He said he would continue educational programs for students and businesses, and presented letters from state Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles and county extension agent Adam Probst endorsing his efforts to buy the property. No one from Buchanan Contracting spoke.
Holloway said the property "looks really unkempt and awful." Mims said city workers dumped some old equipment on the property, and "I didn't feel like it was my job to have the place manicured."
On another type of bid issue, the council accepted a bid of $30,856 from Paramount Roofing of Frankfort to put a new roof on the maintenance building at the Midway Cemetery. Vandegrift said the delayed project is to be completed by June 30.
Wickey Pole Buildings of Owingsville had a slightly lower bid of $30,500, but Council Member Sara Hicks, chair of the Cemetery and City Property Committee, said Paramount would remove the old roof, install insulation and batting, and remove trash, work that under the Wickey bid would have to be done by city employees.
Budget workshop: Vandegrift announced the was calling a special council meeting for 5:30 p.m. Thursday to hold a workshop on the budget he has proposed for the fiscal year beginning July 1. He said the council might take action on line items.
Cemetery ordinance passed: The council enacted the new cemetery ordinance, which raises fees slightly to help restore the city's two historically African American cemeteries. Vandegrift said the increases still leave Midway competitive with Versailles and cheaper than Lexington.
Midway Station zoning: The council held first reading of an ordinance to rezone the remaining professional-office and residential property in Midway Station to industrial or commercial.
Events: The council approved a permit allowing closure of the north side of East Main Street for the Midsummer Nights in Midway series to be held by Midway Renaissance, and for the block party planned this Saturday by the Midway Business Association.
MBA President Cortney Neikirk said the event would have nine booths, including two food booths that won't compete with local restaurants. She said retailers in Midway are "struggling" due to competition from online vendors, so "We're trying to get as many people to see what we've got her in town."
The summer events have been held on Fridays, but this year the July event will be on a Saturday, July 27, because a historic steam engine will be spending the day in town as part of its trip from the Kentucky Railway Museum in New Haven to the railyard in Ravenna, where it will be restored by the Kentucky Steam Heritage Corp.
July 27 will be promoted as Heritage Day, running from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The locomotive, ona flatbed railcar, is scheduled to be in Midway from 10:15 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. for viewing and tours. Debra Shockley of Renaissance said 300 to 400 steam-engine enthusiasts are expected, and the 1950s model of Midway, which is being restored, will be unveiled that day.
Vandegrift, who expressed concern at the last meeting about "event fatigue," suggested that Renaissance work with the MBA on its plan for pop-up markets featuring local artists and crafters. Shockley said she would discuss that with Neikirk, who by that time had left the meeting.
Woman's Club building: After some discussion, the council approved a quitclaim deed disavowing any interest in the Midway Woman's Club building at 230 S. Gratz St., to clear the way for the club to sell it. The woman who donated the house to the club in 1952 for use as a "community house" said that if the club disbanded or failed to maintain the property, it would become city property.
Club members said they are spending too much on maintenance, limiting their charitable activities. Their attorney, Jim Rouse, said proceeds of the sale would go to those activities, under the oversight of Woodford Circuit Court.
Citizen complaint: At the start of the meeting, Vandegrift had a lively discussion with Dickie Jones, who wanted more police focus on speeders in front of his home at 6832 Midway Road, and a sidewalk on the road. He said a radar speed sign at the site hadn't slowed down traffic, but Vandegrift said that was not so. The mayor said any sidewalk would have to be built by the state, since the road is US 62.
Combs also asked if the city was going to have a committee to deal with blighted property. Vandegrift replied, "Yes, when we pass the blighted-property ordinance," something the mayor has been trying to do for almost two years. The full discussion can be seen on the Midway Government Streaming Meetings page on Facebook.
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