Property valuations rise 14.4% as payroll-tax revenue is steady, so mayor proposes cutting property-tax rates

UPDATE, Monday, Aug. 24: The council heard first reading of the ordinance.

Property valuations in Midway are up substantially, and Mayor Grayson Vandegrift is recommending that the City Council reduce tax rates so the city will get about the same amount of tax revenue and property owners will collectively pay about the same amount of taxes.

Vandegrift has called a special council meeting for Monday to give first reading to the tax ordinance so the council can give it second reading and enact it at the regular meeting Sept. 8, "to get our tax preparations out on time," he told the council in an email. "The state was behind in sending the compensating rates."

Each year, the Revenue Cabinet looks at assessments made by property valuation administrators and calculates for each taxing authority a compensating rate, one that would give it about the same amount of property-tax revenue as the current year, which Vandegrift has proposed. (It also calculates what rate would raise revenue by 4 percent, the most that a taxing authority can get without being subject to a petition for a referendum on the rate.)

The valuation of real estate in Midway went up 14.7%, to $135 million, from $117.7 million. Personal-property valuations were $5.35 million, up from $5 million. The total valuation rose 14.4%.

Vandegrift was aware of the increases in July, when he named Council Member Logan Nance, Fiscal Court Magistrate Liles Taylor of Midway and Midway Business Association President Cortney Neikirk to a committee to study the possibility of tax rebates due to rising valuations.

He said then that valuations are rising because housing demand exceeds supply, and valuations in the city weren't closely scrutinized for four years before its housing market "really took off." He said Property Valuation Administrator Judy Bobbitt told him she divides the county into quadrants that are reviewed every four years and assessed at fair market value, mainly on comparable sales in the area.

The mayor also said in July that rates could be reduced, “but we’ve already cut them 30% and I don't want to hamstring ourselves or future leaders from being able to raise them if the revenue is needed."

His thinking has changed. He has proposed compensating rates of 6.2 cents per $100 on real property, down from 7 cents, and 6.4 cents on personal property, down from 7.5 cents.

He said in his email that there is an argument that cities shouldn't cut property-tax rates because "you can never get that revenue back," but he said that does not applies to cities like Midway, which rely mainly on occupational taxes on wages and net profits.

He said City Clerk-Treasurer Cindy Foster told him that occupational-tax income in the second quarter was virtually the same as in 2019, though "we expected to take our worst hit due to the pandemic."

Vandegrift said the coronavirus will continue to be unpredictable, but "Our numbers and the new businesses we're bringing in, along with the construction crews building new facilities, gives me great confidence that we will exceed our revenue projections for this fiscal year. Other revenues are holding steady as well, but occupational tax butters our bread."

He added, "I believe these rate cuts are appropriate since individual families and businesses are struggling. Anything we can do to ease their tax burden, not add to it, seems prudent and necessary."

He said his proposal amounts to a 12% tax cut on real estate and a 15% cut on personal property, "but as you can see from the calculations, it will overall still generate the same amount of revenue for the city."

The meeting will be held via Zoom at 5 p.m. and will be on the Facebook page Midway Streaming Government Meetings.

Council accepts mayor's plan to use surplus to finish sewer repairs by replacing main line to treatment plant

Green lines show sewers that are part of the video-and-cleanout project.

By Heston Bates, Taylor Beavers, Jordan Brown and Gage O'Dell

University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

The Midway City Council went along Monday with Mayor Grayson Vandegrift’s plan to finish repairs to the sewer system though the cost is expected to exceed their original estimate.

Vandegrift noted that the original budget of $200,000 for a project to video and clean out sewers on the east side of town was cut back to $150,000 due to COVID-19’s expected effect on occupational-tax revenue, but he said the revenue picture is better now.

When the pipes were cleaned out, they were in better condition in many areas than was previously thought and since then there have not been any spills, but the main line near the plant has “entire gaps of sewer missing” and is causing backups upstream, he said.

Vandegrift said it is likely that the cost will be closer to the original budget. “I don’t think we can blink at this,” he said. “The project is too big not to move forward with.”

The council agreed. Council Member Logan Nance, often a fiscal conservative, agreed with Vandegrift. “That’s what surpluses are for, to help with projects like this,” he said. “This is only going to make things better down the road.”

Some other council members said likewise, so the project will be advertised for bids and the council may pick a bidder Sept. 8.

The mayor hired Buchanan Contracting to video and clean out the sewer system. He said sewage overflows from manholes during heavy rains have stopped, but the condition of the main line causes blockages upstream.

“This will be the city’s biggest public works project in over 50 years,” Vandegrift said. He estimated that the work will begin in late fall or early winter, depending on approval by the state Division of Water.

University students return: Addressing possible concerns about the influx of Midway University students for the start of the fall semester, Vandegrift went over the school’s plans and voiced confidence in them. “If a university can pull this off, it’s going to be Midway,” he said.

He said capacities in classes are limited and students are required to complete a negative coronavirus screening within one week of returning. He said students cannot be confined to campus because many have jobs, but if tested positive, a dorm is available for quarantine if the student is not able to leave campus.

“We are going to continue to communicate with them whether there’s cases or not, as it certainly is an issue that can affect public health,” said Vandegrift. He noted that Midway only has two of the reported 187 coronavirus cases in Woodford County, but expressed concern because most of the recent cases have been people younger than 40.

Vandegrift said  contact tracing will be the key to preventing covid-19 not only on campus but in the community. He praised the university’s quick response to the virus in the spring, saying the closure of the campus helped it better prepare for this semester.

Rentch property is labeled "private property" on map.

A piece of the park: The mayor told the council that Helen Rentch is willing to donate the part of her property that is being used as part of Walter Bradley Park back to the city, if they can agree that her part will not be developed and if the city ever abandons it, it will revert to Rentch or her estate.

Council Member John Holloway, the unpaid park manager, said “virtually all of that property” is in the floodway of Lee Branch, meaning it can’t be developed.  “Helen has been just extremely gracious to let us use her property the way that we have been,” he said.

In its only official action of the meeting, the council approved a permit for the “Turn the Town Purple” parade scheduled for 11 a.m. Sept. 10 by The Homeplace at Midway to raise awareness for Alzheimer’s disease. Representatives from The Homeplace at Midway will be driving through town with purple-adorned vehicles, purple being the signature color of the Alzheimers’ Association.

The event will not seek public participation due to the pandemic. The caravan will start at the Homeplace, go down Stephens Street to Winter Street, turning around at Main Street to head back to the Homeplace.

In the roundtable at the end of the meeting, Council Member Stacy Thurman asked Vandegrift about the progress of the city's new Code Enforcement Board. The mayor said the board, three members and an alternate, has been meeting via Zoom (as the council does) to develop a list of abandoned properties for the council's consideration after Jan. 1. Property that the council declares abandoned can be taxed at about 10 times the normal real-estate tax rate.

Vandegrift said he is still having difficulty hiring a code enforcement officer, partly because of the pandemic. He said the task is "a little bit more challenging than it was six months ago," when the board was appointed. Jim Starks, whom the council appointed to a three-year term, is the board chair.

Mayor announces distillery, RV resort park planned for Mitchell farm at northwest corner of I-64 interchange

City limits in pink; urban service boundary is line above “Proj A.”

UPDATE, July 15: The conditional-use permit process for the RV resort is not expected to begin until September, and will start with the Agricultural Advisory Review Committee, Planning Director Pattie Wilson told the Messenger.

Midway Mayor Grayson Vandegrift sent this in an email to the City Council and news media today.

By Grayson Vandegrift

     I’d like to give you an overview of two new projects that are currently under option on the “Mitchell Farm,” also known as Elkwood, on the western side of 341, across from Midway Station. As you know, industrial and agricultural land has been for sale for quite a long time.

     All of this is preliminary, and by no means are they final, but there are two projects scheduled to close on land purchases in October. For now we’ll call them “Project A” and “Project B.”
     Project A is a small, local distillery that wishes to relocate from Lexington. Their facility would be built near our wastewater facility, within the Urban Service Boundary, but currently just outside the city limits. It is on industrial land and requires no rezoning (see picture).
     Project B would be, in short, called an RV resort, but it could offer much more to the citizens of Midway (see below). After speaking with the brokers involved in the investment, I was assured the RV campsites would be far from KY 341 and out of view. The resort would feature a horseback riding equine pasture on the front end, facing 341. On the rest of the land, which straddles parts of northern Woodford and southern Scott counties, they plan to offer a swimming pool, a swimming pond, a fishing pond, a lazy river, access to Elkhorn Creek, and much more which you can see from the preliminary sketch of the resort.
     While this is an RV campground that would certainly boost tourism for downtown Midway, I was pleased to learn it will also be open for the public to purchases passes for usage. It is on agricultural land and does not need to be rezoned, but the Board of Adjustments of Planning and Zoning will need to grant a conditional use permit. Current zoning laws do permit this type of use on agricultural land so long as that permit is issued. The investors are scheduled to go before the Board of Adjustments on Wednesday.
     Both Projects A and B wish to be on city water and sewer, which we have the capacity for, and which would help us keep our rates in check, if not help us lower them more in the future. This would require us to annex these lands into the city, effectively bringing the city limits to the Scott County line on the western side of 341.

     Project A has been trying to get its distillery moved to Midway for two years, and Project B is likewise struck by our charm, quaintness, and vibrancy. Both would bring jobs and tourism to town. I do not have a total job count for either project at this time.
     Project B will be presenting to the council in an upcoming meeting, and Project A will likely do the same once they get a few more things in place.
     As always, I want you to be able to see this, chew on this, and ask questions. Neither is a sure thing, and public input will be extremely valuable and will be heard going forward. Both projects fit our modus operandi of developing north of Leestown Road around the interstate, and neither requires rezoning. If you have any questions just let me know, you’ll have plenty of time for more questions as the process moves forward.
     I think it’s important to note: The land owners are eager to sell, and the buyers eager to develop. Regardless of how anyone may feel about any of this, if it’s going to happen, I want to bring it in to the city so we can benefit from the tax revenue and the relative distance from our residential centers and the separation provided by a highway and an interstate.

Here's the developer's description of the land use plan:

The Bluegrass RV Resort is nestled in the heart of Central Kentucky along I-64 on the northern edge of Midway, a quaint city with great restaurants, friendly charm and historic equestrian and bourbon industries. Guests will enter the property with views of the entry pond and equestrian pasture beyond. After a peaceful scenic drive, guests will arrive at the clubhouse, where they can relax and receive guided access to their site when ready. This property is home to a luxury RV club resort, family RV campsites and short-term cottage rentals. RV sites provide opportunities for both family sites and adult sites. Amenities include a clubhouse with bourbon tasting and educational tours; the tables with horse riding and a horse rescue; aquatic park with a lazy river, slides, splash pad, and pond swimming; amphitheater; country store; kayak and tub rental; and an adult recreational center with a pool and swim-up bar, fire-pit, and hammock retreat.

Council OKs $75,000 in federal relief money for grants to businesses; mayor exploring options to fight speeding

Green lines show sewers involved in cleaning and renovation project; red outlines big main targeted for replacement.

By Aaron Gershon
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

The Midway City Council voted 4-0 Monday evening for a grant program to provide federal covid-19 relief funding to local businesses. 

This program will “keep them afloat, make up for lost revenue, pay their employees, purchase their goods, pay their bills, or keep their lights and water on,” Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said.

The council voted to appropriate $75,000 from the city’s $129,000 relief allocation to fuel the grant program. Vandegrift said the city has another $53,000 in pandemic-related expenses that the allocation will cover.

The $75,000 will be split evenly between businesses approved by a three-member council committee. “If 30 businesses apply and were granted this money, you divide it evenly, which would mean each business would get $2,500,” the mayor said.

Vandegrift and Council Members John Holloway and Stacy Thurman, members of an ad hoc committee, debated and worked out most of the details at a meeting last week.

“I think that we simplified it and mainstreamed it enough where we’re still showing some guidelines and that this is a serious application,” Thurman said. “But we give them enough credit that they’re going to be honest . . . with the money in the best way that they can to stay open.”

The application asks what costs or losses were suffered due to closure related to the pandemic. Vandegrift said city attorney Sharon Gold added a final section in which applicants agree to cooperate with any audit, certify that the information they give is correct to the best of their knowledge, and acknowledge that a false statement may require them to return the money.

Grantees must have a physical location in Midway, have been forced to limit activities due to the pandemic, and must not owe taxes to the city. No grant can exceed the amount of the funds business lost. The application asks what the money will be used for, and requires recipients to report by Dec. 30 how they used it.

The application also asks, “Is it your intention to continue operating your business in the City of Midway for the next six months?” Vandegrift said Versailles is requiring its recipients to stay open for a year; he asked, “How can you guarantee that?”

Council Member Sara Hicks said, “We’re just asking them to act in good faith.” For more details of the program and the application form, see the council meeting packet, downloadable here.

The plan is for the applications to be posted as soon as Tuesday and have the program launch on July 8, “time is of the essence,” Vandegrift said. All applications must be turned in by July 17 and can be picked up and turned in either online or at city hall.

As soon as the committee of Holloway, Thurman and Hicks reviews and approves applications, the mayor said, he will instruct Foster to begin writing checks. 

The three voted for the program along with Council Member Logan Nance. Vandegrift said Council Member Kaye Nita Gallagher was ill, and Council Member Bruce Southworth was absent because his mother, Ann Southworth of Georgetown, died unexpectedly; services are Tuesday in Georgetown.

Last month, Nance, Gallagher and Southworth made the 3-2 majority (Thurman had left for a work obligation) that voted informally for a second and third round of a voucher program that allowed residents to use $50 in “Midway Bucks” at local businesses, which the businesses turned in for cash.

The program was popular, but the state Department for Local Government said the federal relief bill didn't allow the city to be reimbursed for it, and 19 business people signed an open letter warning that some of them could close without help, so the council chose the grant program, which is specifically authorized by the relief bill.

Vandegrift noted that the council funded the program with $40,000 in unspent economic-development funds before the relief bill passed. He said only $27,000 in vouchers were redeemed by the end of the program on June 30, but he and the council praised the program.

Nance said, "I think a lot of people felt kind of helpless and wanted to help but didn't really did not know how, and I think the voucher program gave them a way to say, you know, I have this little bit of money that I can use to invest and I can support a business I appreciate. With everything going on right now that separates us, I feel like this was a really good way to connect us to come together and do something."

Vandegrift added the voucher program was one of his proudest accomplishments as mayor but feels the grant program will help give businesses a much needed “shot in the arm.” In originally proposing the grant program, he said retailers didn’t benefit from it as much as restaurants.

Nance said, “I definitely think this is going to be a great way to help our businesses.”

In other business Monday, the council:

● Heard Vandegrift say he wants to try rumble strips or speed tables (slightly elevated sections of a street) “on a bunch of streets” to reduce speeding, which he said is the main complaint he gets from residents. “I feel like we have to change the tactics here or lose the game,” he said, adding that he would check cost, probably refer the issue to a committee, and “I’m not saying we’ll vote on anything anytime soon.”
● Heard the mayor say that the next step in the city’s sewer work should be replacement of a 10-inch main leading to the treatment plant with a 15-inch main. He said sediment in the line in causing problems upstream, but cleaning of those lines has stopped manholes from overflowing during heavy rains.
● Heard Vandegrift say he would swear in and update the city’s new Code Enforcement Board on Thursday, even though the city still hasn’t named a code enforcement officer. He said that has been delayed by the pandemic.
● Appointed Michael Hunter to the county board overseeing the 911 dispatch system and its funding. Hunter, a Midway native and resident, is a former Woodford County EMT and 911 dispatcher who knows the system, Vandegrift said.
● Debated returning one block of Johnson Street to one-way. Holloway, who lives off the street, said one way or the other would make it difficult for residents to get into their driveways. The council agreed that residents need to be consulted.

● Approved encroachment permit for a new entrance for White Dog Trading Co. in Midway Station to separate the bourbon-warehousing firm’s office and truck traffic. “We just feel it’s a safety issue,” White Dog consulting engineer Matt Carter said.
● Approved an encroachment permit for Tom and Mur Greathouse to park their pumpkin-sales wagon in a space at 112 S. Gratz St. this fall, as they did last fall.
● Agreed to waive the sewer tap-on fee for 230 S. Gratz, the former home of the Midway Woman’s Club. Vandegrift reported that the new property owners discovered their sewer had never been hooked to a city main though the Woman’s Club had paid sewer charges for decades.

City won't be reimbursed for vouchers, so mayor says council should consider an even bigger grant plan

The vouchers must be spent at local businesses by Tuesday, June 30.

By Aaron Gershon and Al Cross
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

State officials won't reimburse the city the $40,000 in coronavirus relief money it sent residents to spend at local, non-franchised businesses, further opening the way for direct grants to the businesses, Mayor Grayson Vandegrift told the City Council and the news media Sunday.

"While this does not put us out any for the first round of vouchers, since it was funded by our economic-development surplus, it clearly could reshape your thinking on the second round," the mayor said in an email. (The city did not have to make a $40,000 interest payment this fiscal year on the Midway Station industrial and commercial park, thanks to lot sales there.)

"While I think this decision . . . does not account for the fact that a voucher program can help create new long-term clientele in our own city," Vandegrift wrote, "it does open the door wider for a small-business grant program, where we could conceivably use up to $80,000 to boost our local small businesses."

Vandegrift had suggested a grant program to reach more businesses, but the council informally voted 3-2 this month to use federal relief money to do two more rounds of vouchers. When retailers said they needed grants or many of them would go out of business, the mayor said he would propose grants in place of a third round and named a committee to work out details.

The committee (Council Members Stacy Thurman and John Holloway and City Clerk-Treasurer Cindy Foster) is scheduled to meet online at 5:15 p.m. Monday. Vandegrift said its plan and the options would be discussed at the July 6 council meeting.

To help the council decide, he pressed for an answer on reimbursement from the state Department for Local Government and the office of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who sponsored the $2 trillion Coronavirus Relief, Aid and Economic Security Act.

"Despite the fact that the language in the CARES Act and the spirit of the law clearly indicate such a program should be eligible," the mayor wrote, "DLG decided after a brief review that it was not eligible." Vandegrift, who earlier said he was 75 percent sure of reimbursement, said he has asked the DLG for an explanation and is waiting for it.

He said DLG's Jennifer Peters wrote, "We appreciate your innovative thinking and applaud your efforts; however, after discussion with the review group, this has been deemed ineligible for reimbursement." McConnell's staff said he favored reimbursement, the mayor wrote, but "They have informed me that the state is the ultimate arbiter of the federal money."

Vandegrift told the council, "I am sorry that I couldn’t present you with the most reliable information sooner than now, but we all know we have to act fast when people are struggling and businesses are threatened. I do hope that if the U.S. Congress decides to add $2 billion more to our staggering national debt, that they hammer out a few details better and create an appeals process that allows imagination to enter the fold."

Mayor names committee to design grant program for businesses using covid-19 relief money, as they asked

By Aaron Gershon
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said Tuesday that he is setting up an ad hoc City Council committee to design a grant program for small businesses, using covid-19 relief funds, in place of a third round of vouchers that citizens can redeem at the businesses.

The committee will be Council Members Stacy Thurman and John Holloway and City Clerk-Treasurer Cindy Foster.

The move comes after Midway merchants expressed displeasure with last week’s 3-2 council vote to send residents two more rounds of $50 vouchers, at $40,000 per round, rather than making direct grants of up to $2,000 to businesses, as Vandegrift first suggested.

The mayor said restaurants, not retailers, were the main beneficiaries of the vouchers, and Tuesday he cited reports from local businesses of their redemptions to prove his point.

The Brown Barrel and Blind Harry's got the most vouchers. (Google photo)

The restaurants are getting far more than retail stores. The report shows that The Brown Barrel ($4,180), Goose and Gander ($2,910) Don Jockey ($2,410) were the only three businesses to get more than $1,000 in "Midway Bucks."

Eleven retail stores redeemed a total of $2,300, an average of $209; the highest was $430.

After the council voted for two more rounds of voucher instead of grants, 19 business people signed a letter warning that "without significant assistance or the lifting of pandemic restrictions . . . by the end of 2020, there will be more closed stores in downtown Midway than would be open."

In response, Vandegrift said he would ask the council to appropriate $40,000 for the grant program. Tuesday, he said the ad hoc committee would work on the exact details. "The committee will propose the details and the parameters as well as the potential paying scale of grants" hopefully for the council’s consideration July 6, he wrote.

"We've all agreed that time is of the essence for these businesses," he said. "We need to move as quickly as we can for them, regardless of what is decided."

The letter from the merchants noted that a grant program was clearly authorized by the relief bill but the voucher program was not. Vandegrift has said he thinks it will be approved.

In his latest statement, he said he is talking with the state Department for Local Government and the office of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who sponsored the bill, “to get as much guidance as possible” and would report to the council on at the July 6 meeting.

Council prefers two more rounds of Midway Bucks to business-grant program mayor proposed; budget OKd

Leslie Penn of the Midway Museum Gift Store watched as Elisha Holt (facing camera) and Morgan Castle of the Midway Business Association recorded a promotional video for Facebook last month as stores prepared to reopen. (Photo by Al Cross)

By Aaron Gershon and Al Cross
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

The Midway City Council voted 3-2 Monday for a second and third round of vouchers for residents to spend at local businesses, rather than give money directly to the businesses for covid-19 relief.

The council also unanimously approved the city budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1.

The budget, which the council worked out last month, calls for almost $1.8 million in spending. “It really well serves the city of Midway while preserving the surplus, but it’s not skimpy either,” Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said.

Business aid: When Vandegrift learned last week that the city qualified for $129,000 in coronavirus relief funds from the federal government, he proposed that the city apply for $80,000 to give grants of up to $2,000 to as many as 40 businesses to help make up revenue lost to the pandemic.

He told the council that it could issue $80,000 more in vouchers to citizens, on top of the $40,000 that it issued in May, but that would “roll the dice” because there's no assurance that it will be reimbursed. He said the grant program is clearly authorized by the relief law but the voucher program is not.

“We may not know for months,” Vandegrift said. But he added, “I’m confident it would be reimbursed.”

As for the grant program, he said, “Maybe $2,000 isn’t gonna save everybody, but I’ve talked to these shops and restaurants a lot lately, and there are quite a few that are close to having to pack it in.” He said grants would help shops more than vouchers, which he said are being spent mainly at restaurants and the grocery.

Vandegrift said a vote for the grant program would be “a preference vote” that wouldn’t commit the council to it, just start a process in which a council committee would work out details. “The clock is ticking for these businesses,” he said, “and if we’re gonna do a grant project we need to move on it for it to matter.”

Council Member Stacy Thurman said, “I feel we have to be responsible, and I have a hard time trying to make the decision when I don’t know for sure.”

The vouchers come in $10 denominations; no change is given.

Council Member Bruce Southworth said he preferred the vouchers. He said the city could afford to risk not getting reimbursed because it has a big surplus, and “It’s the people’s money to begin with. If we get reimbursed, it’s somebody else’s money. If we use our money, it’s the tax dollars they pay anyway.”

Council Member John Holloway disagreed. “I just don’t think it’s fiscally responsible to give away a bunch of money . . .when we don’t know if we’re gonna get reimbursed for it,” he said.

Council Member Sara Hicks, who had made the motion for the grant program, said the council needs to “prevent a lot of empty storefronts downtown … it can be a snowball reaction; we’ve had that happen before in Midway; if the town doesn’t have enough going on you start to lose more business.”

But no other members favored the grants. Thurman wasn’t present for the 3-2 vote because she had to leave the meeting for a work obligation, Vandegrift said.

Voting with Southworth were Kaye Nita Gallagher, who said earlier, “We’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback from citizens about the vouchers,” and Logan Nance, who said he didn’t think $2,000 would make a difference to a business at risk of closing.

After the vote, Vandegrift said, “This is what I hoped would happen, but I didn’t want to cloud it or make it difficult to have free discussion.”

He said the next round will be conducted exactly like the current one, except that the “Midway Bucks” would be a different color and he might delay before starting again. The current vouchers must be spent by June 30.

“I’m not saying we won’t do them again until August 1,” he said. “I think we’ll probably try to do it in the middle of July.”

St. Matthew AME Church is on South Winter Street.
(Photo by Christopher Riley, via Flickr)

Racial matters: Vandegrift said the St. Matthew African Methodist Episcopal Church wanted people in the city to know that it has put up surveillance cameras to catch someone who is “messing with them.”

“There’s just no way that I can’t believe its not racially motivated at this point,” Vandegrift said. “I’m pretty sure we know who it is. That’s not indicative of the people of Midway; it’s just one jackass.” Addressing the unnamed person, he said, “You should move, because you don’t belong in Midway, in my opinion.” Southworth agreed.

Vandegrift added, “I hope they catch him and we can say his name.”

In a related matter, Vandegrift complimented Versailles police, who patrol the whole county, for their participation in a peaceful demonstration June 3 at their headquarters to honor George Floyd, the African American killed by a Minneapolis police officer.

In a similar vein, Holloway said he is mapping the recently renovated St. Rose Tabernacle cemetery with short biographies of those buried there, and would like to put up an informational history sign about the African American burial ground.

He said he would like to do the same for several sites in town, like the Black History Tour in Washington, D.C., and asked people with information to contact him.

Covid-19 response: ” The virus has kicked into gear again a little bit,” with a recent uptick in Woodford County but no second case reported in Midway, Vandegrift said. He said mask wearing and social distancing should be encouraged.

Midway saw its lone confirmed case on May 22. As of Monday, Woodford County had 58 confirmed cases, with 24 of them recovered, according to the county health department’s Facebook page. One person in the county is hospitalized and with covid-19 and 30 are recovering at home.

During the grant-or-voucher debate, Hicks pitched the idea of having a coronavirus testing site in Midway. Vandegrift said he had talked to county Emergency Management Director Drew Chandler about a mobile site in Midway but had “no luck yet.” He said there is much demand for such services “and we’re small.”

There are two testing sites in the county, including a rapid testing site at Bluegrass Community Hospital in Versailles, where results can be received in less than an hour. The mayor said a Midway resident went there Monday and the test came back negative.

In other business, the council approved a quitclaim deed to Scott Bradley, clearing up some property-line discrepancies at the Midway Corner Grocery, so he can sell the real estate to Nik Patel, who bought the business in January; and approved the addition of Todd Pack’s name to the veterans memorial in the cemetery.

The mayor announced that the city would not have its annual Sparks in Park gathering on July 4 but might come up with “some way of helping to do something.”

City in line for pandemic relief funds; mayor proposes giving up to 40 businesses $2,000 each for shortfalls

By Aaron Gershon
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

The city of Midway can get more than $129,000 in for expenses related to the covid-19 pandemic, and Mayor Grayson Vandegrift has proposed funneling the money to small businesses.

The mayor said in an email to city council members Thursday that he plans to apply for over $49,000 to reimburse the city for the $40,000 it spent on the “Midway Bucks” voucher program and $9,000 for expenses such as hand sanitizer,  protective spray in city vehicles, masks and food programs.

Vandegrift said he will apply for $80,000 to “grant 40 businesses in Midway with $2.000 to help make up for the revenue they lost due to being forced to close or partially close. While I feel it is unlikely that more than 40 would apply, should that happen, I propose we award grants first to businesses that were forced to close their doors completely.”

He said that would be “clearly reimbursable,” more so than the voucher program, which “is not specifically spelled out” in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act, which appropriated the money. “I am very confident the voucher program will be reimbursed . . . because frankly, it’s that cutting edge,” Vandegrift write. “In reading a summary of the act, I do feel that it falls under the eligibility requirements.”

The mayor said the grant application process would be simple and “would likely verify that the business applying are in good standing with the city on taxes and plan to stay open.”

He said he would ask applicants to say how much revenue they normally make in April and May, “though we would not ask them to open their books to us,” and probably require each to report by year’s end how they used the money: “payroll, rent, supplies, debt, etc.”

Vandegrift said the grants “would give a much needed shot in the arm all at once for all Midway businesses, and help them stay open and contribute to our tax base and culture.”

When Council Member Sara Hicks asked if businesses in Midway Station would be eligible, Vandegrift said the grants would be available only to businesses with 50 or fewer employees.

Council Member John Holloway endorsed the idea in an email, with a caveat: “I like the idea that they can apply for funds in proportion to how much loss they've actually had rather than giving everyone the same amount, but only if we can determine a way to do that without causing infighting over the amounts.  Not everyone has been impacted in the same way, or to the same degree. Things are generally more complex than they first appear.”

Vandegrift said the council will discuss the plan at its meeting June 15.

Mayor reminds post-office-box users to respond to census, urges them to vote by absentee in primary

By Aaron Gershon
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

Midway residents are getting a letter from Mayor Grayson Vandegrift urging them to fill out their census forms, encouraging them to vote by absentee ballot in the June 23 primary election and giving an update on the “Midway Bucks” program.

The notice about the census was prompted by a note the mayor and the Midway Messenger received from civic activist Helen Rentch, saying that she and many people in town had not received a census form. “Those of us who can only get our mail at the post office did not get them because our forms had been sent to our street address rather than our P.O. boxes,” she wrote.

The Postal Service couldn’t deliver the forms because it does not deliver mail to residences in Midway, with a few exceptions. “I hate for Midway/Woodford County to get undercounted,” Rentch said. “I suppose there will be surveyors come door to door, when restrictions for such are lifted. Just seem to have so little faith in the Feds right now!”

Vandegrift said in his letter, “In order for Midway and Woodford County to be appropriated the federal resources required it is important that as many of us as possible fill out our census.”

He encouraged anyone who had not received a direct email with instructions on how to fill out their census form to call or email him or visit the 2020census.gov website.

Voting: The mayor announced that there would be no in-person voting at the Northside Precinct on primary election day due to the covid-19 pandemic, and asked all citizens to cast absentee ballots by mail.

The State Board of Elections is mailing notices about the election changes to voters at their physical addresses, so post-office box users will need to request an absentee ballot by going to elect.ky.gov.

Vandegrift said anyone not able to vote by mail can request an appointment to vote at the Woodford County Courthouse by calling 873-3421. Anyone who enters the building will be required to wear a mask unless they can provide a medical reason not to do so.

Midway Bucks: The mayor reminded Midway residents that they would each receive $50 in “Midway Bucks,” five $10 vouchers redeemable at local, non-franchised businesses to encourage local shopping as retail reopens amid the pandemic.

“This is a local stimulus we share with you as dividend residents from our large budget surplus,” Vandegrift explained.

“I am happy to say we’re the first in Kentucky with such a program,” Vandegrift said. “We see it as a way to help our local brick-and-mortar businesses to get through this time.”

The mayor said the city’s expense for the program would be reimbursed by the federal government with money from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act passed by Congress. He encourages residents to use their vouchers by the expiration date of June 30 to support local businesses.

Vandegrift wrapped up his letter by praising residents for their efforts during the covid-19 pandemic.

“We have stayed together and respected each other in a caring way,” he wrote. “Midway throughout the ages has always responded admirably and courageously to difficult circumstances and this time is no different."

Phyllis Hudson, a fixture at City Hall for 21 years, dies

Phyllis Hudson

Phyllis Hudson, who worked for the City of Midway for 21 years, about half that time as city clerk-treasurer, died with her family at her side Thursday. She was 55.

“She never let a nickel get past her,” Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said in a Facebook post Thursday. “She was a great custodian of the city’s money, a helpful servant to the people, and she was a comforting friend. Whenever I made a mistake that I thought would be problematic, she was there to tell me, ’Awww, it’ll be all right,’ and then she always helped me fix it.”

Hudson was born and raised in Woodford County and graduated from Woodford County High School in 1983. When she retired last May 31, Vandegrift said, “She leaves the city in the best financial shape it’s ever been in.”

Her survivors include her husband, Donnie Ray Hudson; a daughter, Sarah Wilson; two brothers, Stevie (Amber) Wilson and Lonnie Wilson; a brother-in-law, Ronnie Hudson; sisters-in-law Margaret Dunn, Lisa Thompson and Janice Hagan; and nieces Jenny Gill and Cindy Craig.

Private services will be held in the Midway Cemetery with Blackburn & Ward Funeral Home in charge. Pallbearers will be Vandegrift, Ronnie Hudson, Derek Hudson, Stevie Wilson, Andrew Wilson and Jimmie Pantina. Honorary pallbearers will include Cindy Craig, Peggy Irwin, Debbie Hudson, Jenny Gill, and Amber Wilson.

Family and friends are encouraged to share memories and leave messages of condolence on her online tribute wall.

Council votes to put completion of cemetery pavilion back into budget; first reading scheduled for Monday

Late-winter photo shows that the concrete base, casket platform and walkway for the pavilion have been completed. 

By Aaron Gershon

University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

The Midway City Council voted Tuesday to put $30,000 back into the city's draft budget to finish building a pavilion at the Midway Cemetery.

The decision came after Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said Public Works Supervisor Terry Agee saw an elderly woman roaming the cemetery alone, with funeral crowds limited due to the covid-19 pandemic. It was "heartbreaking to see," Vandegrift said.

The concrete base and casket platform of the pavilion have been completed, and Vandegrift had the rest of it in his proposed budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1. When the pandemic hit, threatening payroll-tax revenue, he and the council drafted a “bare bones” budget without the pavilion.

When Lakeshore Learning Materials, the city’s largest employer, said it would call most or all of its workers back soon, the officials drafted a “middle ground budget” with the pavilion as the main unanswered question, which Vandegrift put to the council.

Council Member John Holloway said he visited several cemeteries and said pavilions are "something other cities are doing now,” And "It's something that should we should go ahead and get done."

He also said, "Something that's this close and to being finished, it seems to me to be a waste of money that went into before if we don't go in and finish the deal."

Council Member Bruce Southworth agreed. "It really needs to be done," he said. "It needs to be finished. We already started it; let's go finish it."

The vote was 4-0. Council Members Kaye Nita Gallagher and Stacy Thurman were absent. The meeting was held online, as meetings have been since the covid-19 pandemic hit.

Holloway said Agee wants to ensure that services at the cemetery are of low stress and that the pavilion will help accomplish that, especially in wet weather.

“He's not just blowing smoke,” Holloway said. ”They can handle things so much better and it'll be a better service,” because graveside services with tents require “being so super careful about where the dirt is” placed.

He also said completing the pavilion might even save some money, because f less manpower used in setting up tents.

The only real question was whether to take the $30,000 from the city’s large surplus or, as Vandegrift first suggested, eliminating cost sharing for repair of sidewalks. After some discussion, the council voted to use the surplus, which Vandegrift said is almost $1 million when certificates of deposit are included.

"I think it's the right thing to do, I think it's the proper thing to do," the mayor said after the vote. "I think we're still very fiscally cautious."

Concern remains about a significant loss of payroll-tax revenue amid the pandemic, so Vandegrift reduced that revenue estimate to $737,500 from his original $825,000.

The mayor said Lakeshore has been "on top of the outbreak" since it began in Wuhan, China, because it has a manufacturing center there. Thus, the company believes it will still have a profitable year, which will help Midway's revenue.

Vandegrift said Midway University may still "produce big" payroll-tax revenue regardless of whether or not classes are online or in person.

He said it's hard to tell how the virus will spread, given behavior such as "idiot kids swimming in pools three inches away from another in Missouri." However, he believes there won't be a "typical recession" if the people of Midway continue to keep proper social distance and wear masks.

While much of the budget remained the same from last Monday's discussion of the "middle ground budget," Vandegrift proposed a handful of mostly minor changes that brought no objections from the council. They included:

● Police expense increased from $160,000 to $175,000, based on Midway’s agreement to pay 4.2 percent of the budget of the Versailles Police Department;
● Brick repair work on the Rau Building, which houses City Hall, down to $17,000 from $45,000, with expectation that a grant will pay part of the cost;

● Parks maintenance reduced from $10,000 to $7,000;
● Christmas decorations down to $3,500 from $5,500.

Vandegrift said Wednesday afternoon that he expects the budget to be in ordinance form and ready for first reading at the council's next regular meeting on Monday. Ordinances require two readings before passage.

Mayor says he will use persuasion, 'market forces' to compel compliance in reopening, but not 'three strikes'

Elisha Holt does a Midway Business Association video about the Historic Midway Museum Gift Store, part of a series tied to retail reopenings, as co-owner Leslie Penn watches and Morgan Castle records. The store will reopen on a limited basis.

By Aaron Gershon
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

The Midway City Council heard Mayor Grayson Vandegrift outline the city's game plan as several businesses are set to reopen this week with Kentucky’s covid-19 restrictions gradually being lifted.

Vandegrift also discussed his new “middle ground” budget, and the council approved three zoning-ordinance changes, in another council meeting held online due to the pandemic.

Reopening and enforcement: Vandegrift told the council that he has sent both digital and hard copies of the reopening guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to businesses, and expects workers and customers to follow them closely.

"We're going to be strict about this, as we should be," the mayor said, adding that violations of the guidelines should be reported: "Tipping ain't snitching." However, he said reports should be made to him directly via phone call, text, or email, not to police, who he said are busy enough already.

Vandegrift said “There are some things we can mitigate ourselves, just by talking to business owners,” who are responsible for controlling behavior in their premises. He said after the meeting, “The optics of having a police officer come to a business is not really something we want to do.”

Council Member Sara Hicks said she has had “some kind of scary experiences” in a Lexington grocery of people not wearing masks or keeping six feet apart, and asked Vandegrift “who is responsible for following those rules, besides the customers.”

He replied, "I do consider myself somewhat responsible for making sure the governor's guidelines are being followed. You know, we're not going to create a police state. . . . My approach is going to be this, that no restaurant and no shop wants to permanently damage their brand right now by being the place that created a virus farm."

He said customers will be expected to wear masks indoors, except when eating, but “We as a government can’t force people to wear masks,” so it’s up to business owners.

“Restaurants need to know that right now, their duty is heightened, in a sense,” he said. “They really, I think, need, and I think they will, step up to the plate and help enforce these guidelines, because they don’t want to be the restaurant that gets in trouble; they don’t want to be the restaurant or shop that gets shut down and loses their business license over, you know, infractions. They don’t want to be the restaurant known as the place that started an outbreak in a city that had zero confirmed cases. And I think in that sense, market forces can help keep them in line.”

The mayor, a former restaurateur, said he knows how hard it is to tell independent-minded customers that they have to do thing they don’t want to do, but should think of the mask rule as just the latest addition to the standard sign, “No shirt, no shoes, no service.” He added, “That mask is not to protect you, it’s to protect other people.”

Asked after the meeting what the penalties for violation would be, he said “I don’t think it’s going to come to a point where we have to do something drastic, like pull a business license.” He said he would use “open communication” and “honest dialogue” and give violators an opportunity to comply, but there is “not gonna be three strikes.”

Vandegrift said Midway’s experience would be “a bit of a case study” because it is a small town that attracts many visitors.

“Everyone's got to stay vigilant, using social distance, wearing a mask and using the proper hygiene to keep our numbers as close to zero as possible,” he said. No cases of the virus have been reported in Midway, but “I’m sure it’s been here in one form or another.”

Many visitors come to Midway’s restaurants, which can reopen Friday but with only one-third of their normal indoor seating capacity. Vandegrift said he would issue an executive order letting restaurants put tables in parking spaces that the city has designated for curbside pickup, and waiving fees restaurants normally pay to use their sidewalks to set up outdoor tables

He said the order will also allow alcohol sales at such tables, but he would not reinstate the "entertainment destination center" ordinance that allows patrons to carry open beverage containers between businesses. "I think we need to step slowly into this," he said. "I don't think it's the time to encourage congregation downtown."

Vandegrift said outdoor dining is safer than indoor dining. "Indoors has poorer circulation of air, and ventilation systems can pass covid-19 to others."

Restaurants will still be advised to encourage customers to use their curbside pickup, online ordering and delivery options.

“The restaurants and shops that adapt are the ones that will survive,” Vandegrift said. “No restaurant can survive on just 33 percent occupancy.”

Budget: With reopening on the horizon, Vandegrift discussed his recently revised "middle ground budget" that adds back some expenses he and the council agreed to cut when city revenues were more in doubt.

The “bare bones budget” cut almost $200,000 of spending from the mayor’s proposed budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1.

That is now “not necessary,” he said, mainly because the city’s largest employer, Lakeshore Learning Materials, had furloughed 225 of its 300 employees, putting a hole in the city’s largest source of revenue, the occupational tax on wages and net profits.

Now Lakeshore plans to bring back its full workforce in the next few weeks, and “expects to have a profitable year,” which it did not expect last month, Vandegrift said.

The company also expects to receive a certificate of occupancy in September for its second Midway distribution center, with that facility opening officially in March 2021, adding revenue from up 100 new jobs in the last quarter of the fiscal year.

Nevertheless, Vandegrift reduced his estimate of occupational-tax income for the next fiscal year to $737,500, down from his original estimate of $825,000. He said the city also expects less income from restaurants. The mayor proposed restoring these “bare bones budget” cuts, totaling $67,500:

●            $10,000 for training and travel for employees and elected officials

●            $7,500 in donations (including $5,000 to Court Appointed Special Advocates)

●            $25,000 for street paving, for a total of $50,000

●            $20,000 for the sidewalk cost-sharing program

●            $5,000 for a water fountain and refill station on East Main Street

Vandegrift said he would like to see the council find a way to restore the $30,000 originally budgeted for completion of the pavilion in the cemetery, because city employees have told him about older people having a hard time in bad weather at the cemetery, with few family members to help them. Beshear has limited funeral and burial gatherings to 10 people.

The council will work more on the budget during a special budget workshop meeting at 5 p.m. Tuesday, May 26.

Zoning: The council gave second reading and final passage to three zoning ordinances that will:

●            Allow fences in the front building setbacks along rights of way to be up to 48 inches high instead of 42; John Holloway voted no.

●            Limit display of banners for charitable activities for up to 14 days, with a 14-day waiting period for reinstallation; Logan Nance voted no, calling it “silly.”

●            Prohibit permanent location of recreational vehicles in flood plains. All council members present voted yes; Kaye Nita Gallagher was absent.

The changes, in the countywide zoning ordinance, are being approved by the Versailles City Council and the county Fiscal Court. Those bodies are also approving another change recommended by the Planning Commission, which allows signs to project up to five feet from fronts of buildings, with nine feet of head clearance.

With the council’s tacit agreement, Vandegrift did not ask for approval of that change. He said at the last meeting, “Our downtown is beautiful and pedestrian-friendly, and I feel that this could only lead to a cluttered and unnecessary look.” He said it is “the first time I can remember when all three bodies didn’t adopt the same amendment” to the countywide ordinance.

Other business: Holloway, the unpaid manager of Walter Bradley Park, said it will “probably have 20 times more visitors than we did this time last year for obvious reasons,” but “most everyone is really considerate of getting out of the way of other people.”

Nance and Vandegrift said they had noticed more dog waste in the park. Holloway said he is placing signs to encourage owners to pick up after their dogs, but “Some people just don’t want to.” He said a dispenser for pet-waste bags is located in the fenced dog park. 

Vandegrift announced that the city’s annual Memorial Day service would be held largely online, with readings of the names of veterans on the monument in the cemetery, beginning at 10:30 a.m. Saturday.

City budget outlook brightens, as feds will reimburse vouchers and Lakeshore plans to call back workers

By Aaron Gershon
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

Two developments have prompted Midway Mayor Grayson Vandegrift to begin drafting what he calls a "middle ground" budget, not the “bare bones” plan he and the City Council drafted two weeks ago.

The mayor announced Monday he expects the federal government to reimburse the city for the $40,000 the council set aside a week ago for vouchers for city residents to spend at local businesses.The money had been budgeted for a Midway Station interest payment the city didn’t have to make.

He also announced that Lakeshore Learning Materials President Bo Kaplan told him Friday that the distribution center expects to be fully staffed within three weeks, after furloughing 225 of its 300 employees. Lakeshore is the city’s largest employer, and the city’s largest revenue source is a payroll tax.

Vandegrift also delivered more good news from Kaplan: Lakeshore expects to receive a certificate of occupancy for the company's second Midway distribution center in September, with that facility opening officially in March 2021. It will add 100 jobs.

With the reimbursement and return of payroll-tax revenues, the mayor said he does not believe that all the potential cuts in the "bare bones" budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1 will be necessary.

“If businesses reopening leads to bad spikes in covid-19, we may need to reassess,” he wrote, “but if people use these skills we’ve learned and wear their masks, we might be able to avoid another economic shutdown.”

Vandegrift said he would propose restoring these funds:
● $25,000 for street paving
● $5,000 for a drinking water filling station on East Main Street
● $20,000 for the sidewalk cost-share program

The mayor said he would ask the city council to decide on adding another $25,000 worth of spending back into the budget, for a total of $75,000 in restorations.

That would be just over half of the $145,500 in potential “bare bones” cuts. Before the council and Vandegrift agreed on those, he had cut from his original budget proposal a $50,000 project, an extension of the Stephens Street sidewalk to The Homeplace at Midway, saying the timing wasn’t favorable.

Vandegrift said he would present a “middle ground of the two budgets” during the council meeting May 18. He said he would call a special meeting for 5 p.m. Tuesday, May 25 via Zoom to work on the budget, which must be enacted by June 22.

Mayor's update: Stay vigilant, act safely as reopenings begin; vouchers are 'a dividend created by our surplus'

By Grayson Vandegrift

Mayor, City of Midway

This Friday will mark eight weeks since we started social distancing and then soon after started staying healthy at home, all while washing our hands often and practicing good personal hygiene. You likely see or hear all kinds of numbers and projection models about the virus, and frankly, it can be dizzying – and confusing. So here’s something we know: the measures we took have worked. We have not overwhelmed our hospitals, and that has likely saved hundreds if not thousands of lives across the commonwealth.

To your credit, and with great blessings, we have yet to confirm a case of covid-19 in Midway, and we’ve seen only 17 in the whole county. That is a testament to how well you have adapted to these nearly unprecedented circumstances. I do urge us all, though, to remember that just because we haven’t confirmed any cases in Midway, that doesn’t mean it isn’t here.

The unusually long incubation period of this virus means an outbreak could happen today, but we wouldn’t know about it for a week or two. That’s why, even as we begin to see parts of our economy open back up we have to remain vigilant to giving the virus as little chance as we can. Words can’t describe how incredible you’ve been. It’s been two long months, and we’ve got a ways to go still, but what you’ve accomplished is not only impressive, it’s inspirational. So let’s dig in and keep getting through this together.

With staggered openings coming to our economy, we can’t be surprised if we see some spikes in cases, so let’s remember to keep using our good common sense and stay healthy at home as much as possible, and even with some return to a new normal, keep using the social distancing and hand-washing practices that have gotten us here. Midway, and even all of Woodford County, have been a model for how to get through a crisis with the best face possible, and that’s because of you.

I was extremely happy that the City Council supported a plan to use $40,000 of unused economic-development funds to become the first and only city in Kentucky to create a stimulus to help both our citizens and our local businesses get through this time. With your next water bill, which will be mailed out around the 28th, you will receive five $10 vouchers to be used at any participating local business. You can use these as cash, though you cannot make change with them, and those businesses will be reimbursed for the purchase amount. It’s a way to help everyone – businesses who are struggling to meet overhead, citizens who are squeezed to pay bills, and those who are in need of the most basic of necessities. It’s your money – a dividend created by our surplus – and you get to decide personally how you reinvest it in our local economy. And we all know that money spent at home stays at home.

There are frequently asked questions and answers about the vouchers that we will post on the door at city hall and in the post office and other places around town, as well as on our website, and on my Facebook page. If you live in an apartment or you aren’t the one who directly receives your water bill, we’re already planning for how we’ll make sure you get your vouchers. Each home, apartment, or other abode in Midway will receive them. I’d also like to add that this program won’t cut into important infrastructure plans like our sewer rehabilitation project, which is still included in the upcoming budget for this fiscal year, with work to begin in the first half of it.

Masks are still available if you need one; just call City Hall at 859-846-4413 to arrange a pick-up. On May 18, if there are still masks left, we will open that program up to anyone in the area or county who needs one. No one is going to force you to wear a mask, and while I admit it feels weird at first, you get used to it quickly, and it’s an act of love, not of fear. As we transition to a healthy at work environment, masks are going to be a very important part of how we keep cases from spiking.

I truly believe we’re feeding off of each other right now. Even though we can’t be together, there is a light at the end of the tunnel. And if the healthy at work initiative goes well and we’re able to begin gathering in small groups in the coming weeks or month, we will still need to use these skills we’ve clearly shown we can adapt to exceptionally well. So keep your heads up and looking forward, you’ve clearly got many, many reasons to be extremely proud of yourselves and of our home – of Midway. Thank you, and God Bless.

City Council votes to send all water customers $50 in vouchers for use at local, non-franchise businesses

It will be a while before downtown Midway is this busy again, so the
city's $50 voucher program is designed to shore up local businesses. 

Amid talks of a fourth stimulus of relief bill in Congress, to deal with the effects of the covid-19 pandemic, Midway will have its own stimulus to relieve the economic burden on local businesses.

The Midway City Council voted Monday to send each of the city's 755 water customers $50 in vouchers that can be redeemed at local businesses. The five $10 vouchers will be mailed with water bills at the end of May and can be redeemed until June 30.

"The idea [is to] give an infusion of cash to local businesses through the decisions made by citizens," said Mayor Grayson Vandegrift, who proposed it based on a suggestion by resident Bart Shockley.

Local shops and restaurants "are not going to be able to rely on tourism anytime soon," Vandegrift said. "The idea is to help now, when they need it."

The city's four franchised businesses -- two chain restaurants and two convenience stores near Interstate 64 -- will not be eligible for the vouchers. "I'm not worried about them," Vandegrift said. "They're gonna be OK. I am worried about our downtown."

The money will come from $40,000 that the city had budgeted for interest payments on the Midway Station industrial and commercial park, which it did not have to pay because of land sales made by the Woodford County Economic Development Authority.

Vandegrift first proposed that each water customer get two vouchers of $25 each. After discussing details of the plan, the council changed that to five of $10 each, to let recipients spread the money around, approximate the cost of a meal, and avoid the issue of making change, which won't be allowed.

When redeeming the vouchers, the recipients would sign them, and the business would countersign. Vandegrift said the vouchers will be printed on special paper with a watermark to avoid counterfeiting and would be transferable. He said he would work with individual council members and businesses on other details.

To recognize Shockley's idea, Vandegrift said he would call the program Business Advance for Rural Town Stimulus, or BARTS.

"I'm very excited about this," he said. "I don't know that there's a city in the country doing this. . . . Everyone's got something to gain from this."

Council members were likewise excited. "It feels good to do something good," Bruce Southworth said. "This is the way city money should be spent."

The council also voted to match a $2,000 grant that Council Member Stacy Thurman got from the Woodford Community Fund to buy $7 restaurant meals for the needy. That could extend the program beyond Thurman's planned five weeks, as could more donations. The money is being held by Midway Christian Church.

"I'm just really proud to live in a city that takes care of our citizens and our businesses," Thurman said.

Vandegrift thanked Assistant Versailles Police Chief Rob Young for the countywide work of his officers during the pandemic, when they sometimes can't practice social distancing. Young said, "The officers have really appreciated how everyone's been treating us."

UPDATE, May 6: Vandegrift posted answers to some frequently asked questions:
Q1: When will I receive my vouchers? A1: With your next water bill, around June 1.
Q2: What if my landlord gets my water bill? A2: Midway School Apartments and Midway Loft Apartments residents will receive vouchers in a city issued envelope under your door around the same time. If for any reason you live somewhere else and you don’t receive your bill, please email mayorgrayson@meetmeinmidway.com to make arrangements to receive your vouchers.
Q3: How do I use them? A3: We will furnish a list of participating businesses where you can use your vouchers as if they’re cash. You will need to sign each voucher upon use.
Q4: Can I get change from them? A4: No, but we are asking businesses to be flexible and round to the nearest number as much as possible. They will come in $10 increments, each water customer will receive 5 of them.
Q5: How long can I use them? A5: They expire on June 30, that is the last day to spend them, so use them quickly!
Q6: What if I want to donate them? A6: We ask you call Midway Christian Church at 846-4102 to arrange to drop them off, the Midway Ministerial Association is being asked to help distribute them to those in need.
Q7: What if I have other questions? A7: No problem! Email mayorgrayson@meetmeinmidway.com or call his cell, 361-6320.

In other business, the council approved an encroachment permit for Windstream Communications to install fiber-optic line under the sidewalk on the south side of East Main Street, after the company made clear that it would use existing conduit and do no excavation; and gave first reading to three amendments of the countywide zoning ordinance.

The amendments would allow 48-inch-high fences and hedges in setback areas, instead of 42; allow banners for charity events to be hung on posts and fences for two weeks; and ban permanent placement of recreational vehicles in floodplains. Second reading and final passage of the amendments are expected at the next council meeting, on May 18.

Mayor Grayson Vandegrift included this photo, of a Versailles
sidewalk somewhat cluttered by signs, in a social-media post
saying that he wouldn't offer the Midway City Council a text
amendment that would allow signs in Midway to jut out 5 feet.

Vandegrift said before the meeting that he does not plan to ask the council to vote on a fourth proposed amendment to the ordinance, relaxing sign rules. The county Planning Commission voted to allow signs to project up to five feet from fronts of buildings, with nine feet of head clearance.

Versailles has approved the move, and the Woodford County Fiscal Court has given it first reading, but "I don't feel it's a prudent step for our city," the mayor said. "Our downtown is beautiful and pedestrian-friendly, and I feel that this could only lead to a cluttered and unnecessary look."

If Midway does not approve the ordinance, "It’d be the first time I can remember when all three bodies didn’t adopt the same amendment upon its recommendation [by the commission], but I just don’t feel it’s right for Midway," Vandegrift said. "I don’t anticipate any council members pushing for it either, but if one of them decides to, it’ll receive a vote. Otherwise, it won’t be put on the agenda." He said much the same during the council meeting, and no members spoke in favor of it.

City council, mayor draft ‘bare bones budget’ in virus response, but delay final action; sidewalk projects cut

By Emmanuel Flemister
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

The Midway City Council and Mayor Grayson Vandergrift cut 10.6% of expenses from the mayor’s proposed budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1, in a meeting held Monday in response to the coronavirus pandemic and its unforeseeable end.

Vandergrift called the special meeting to draft what he called a “bare bones budget” after the town’s largest employer and taxpayer, Lakeshore Learning Materials, furloughed 225 of its 300 employees.

 With a loss of occupational-tax revenue looming, the council and Vandegrift agreed on $195,500 in potential cuts from the $1.83 million in expenses he had proposed.

”Obviously, a lot of things have changed,” Vandegrift said at the start of the discussion. “I think we’re going to have to rethink the way we budget for next year. . . . I am very concerned about our revenues.”

The mayor’s original budget anticipated $825,000 in occupational-tax revenue, but he said that is no longer certain. “Originally I hoped we could bounce back in the new fiscal year,” he said, but now, “Even if things go better than expected, I just don’t think the economy is gonna be in full stride by July 1.”

Vandergrift and some council members were not too pleased with having to make these changes. “This is a painful exercise for me,” the mayor said. None of the budget cuts are final, since there are two budgets are in the works: the bare bones budget and the “status quo budget,” as coined by Council Member Logan Nance.

Before the meeting, Vandegrift had already subtracted $50,000, delaying the Stephens Street sidewalk project for a year.

The project would extend a walk to The Homeplace at Midway, and Vandegrift was hoping to make it part of a larger project to extend a walk to Walter Bradley Park, which would lead to Northside Elementary School, making the overall project eligible for a federal walk-to-school grant. He said City-Clerk Treasurer Cindy Foster said getting the grant would probably take a year anyway.

Vandegrift suggested, and the council agreed, to suspend the city's cost-sharing program for sidewalks, for which he had proposed $20,000.

Several other projects and expenses are on the list of proposed cuts:

• $30,000 for finishing the cemetery’s pavilion.

       At this, Hicks exulted, “My baby!” She has been on the forefront of the project.
       Vandergrift said, “You know Sara is serious about this when she talks about pulling out her biggest project.” He noted that the concrete base for the pavilion “isn’t going anywhere; it would not be a detriment to that project to be delayed a fiscal year.”
       He said $5,000 needs to remain for the cemetery’s fence: “It’s pretty bad in spots and doesn’t look too great.” This cut was the biggest made by the council.

• $25,000 of the $50,000 proposed for street paving. “You got to leave something there,” said Vandergrift, noting the possibility of small, unexpected paving projects.

• $18,000 from training and travel for city officials and staff, which was originally proposed to be $20,000, down from the current year’s $22,000. This will cut travel to Kentucky League of Cities conferences, for which the elected officials get incentive pay.

       “I think here’s where we really need to make a sacrifice,” Vandergrift said. “This is going to cost me, and it’s also going to cost the veteran council members $2,000, but you know this is a sacrifice we’re willing to make.” He said the remaining $2,000 might be needed to pay for webinars to receive training.

• $10,000 for donations, the same as the current year’s budget. Nance said, “Since we’re not bringing in money, we don’t need to be giving it out.”

• $10,000 from the proposed $20,000 for the coming year’s contingencies, which would have been the same as the current year. “These are the little things that come up that don’t necessarily fit in the ledger, but we decide we have the money to do them,” Vandegrift. We’re saying: less of that.”

• $5,000 from the $35,000 proposed for fire department salaries, which are budgeted for $28,500 this fiscal year. “This is a way to cut $5,000 without really hindering them,” Vandegrift said, adding that salaries were on track to hit $30,000 by June 30.

• $5,000 for the proposed public water fountain on East Main Street. “No one’s going to want to share a fountain anyway,” considering the pandemic, Nance said.

• $2,500 for park improvements, cutting that $5,000 budget in half. The council budgeted $12,500 on park improvements for the current fiscal year.

• $20,000 in City Hall maintenance. Brick tuckpointing was supposed to be done, perhaps with a grant; the proposed total budget for maintenance was $45,000.

The council tentatively decided to keep Vandegrift’s proposed 2 percent pay raise for city employees, and to not shop around for health insurance instead of accepting a 9 percent increase. “I don’t like the idea of messing around with the health insurance, especially at a time of uncertainty, so I think we’re gonna have to bite the bullet on that one,” Vandegrift said.

The council discussed cuts in the water and sewer budgets but decided against it since those are enterprise funds, generating their own revenue. “Believe it or not,” Vandegrift said. “we’ve already cut out a lot from water and sewer in the past.”

The council and Vandegrift agreed they need to be conservative with funds during the pandemic because it is uncertain how long it will last, and there may be a resurgence after the initial wave passes. 

Vandergrift voiced fears of what could happen if the state allows too many businesses to reopen too soon. “There’s a lot of political pressure to just go ahead and push through, but I think that would be a disaster,” he said. “I think it would be a disaster economically. It might end up hurting the economy more in the long run.”

He elaborated, “If you look at every other pandemic in history, it’s like humans keep making the same mistakes over and over again, they come out too quickly.” He even fretted, “If we aren’t careful, we’re going to eat all our surplus on covid-19.”

Midway is sitting on $1.2 million in unbudgeted surplus, and Vandegrift said he is “confident that Midway, pound for pound, has the healthiest city coffers of any city in Kentucky.” It’s important to note the bare bones budget isn’t final.

Council members and the mayor noted that they can amend the budget anytime. “We don’t want to get rid of this stuff, just put it on hold,” Hicks said. “Things are unsure at this time, and we should just make sure the city remains stable . . . and have money for emergencies.”

Council Member Bruce Southworth said, “Everyone’s got to make sacrifices.”He suggested that the council wait a few weeks to finalize the budget, to see “how this is going to last.” Vandegrift said the budget must be approved by June 22 to have it advertised in The Woodford Sun, thus taking effect, before July 1.