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.”

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.

Legislative report: Graviss decries veto overrides, lists some bills that passed during the final two days

By Joe Graviss
State representative for Woodford County and part of Franklin County

Hi everybody,
   Deb and I continue to pray for health and safety, peace and comfort for everyone.
   Under Kentucky’s constitution, two hard deadlines govern legislative sessions in even-numbered years: They cannot last more than 60 working days, and they cannot extend beyond April 15.
   The coronavirus may have shortened the former this year by more than a week, but the House and Senate tested the limits of the latter by adjourning just minutes before midnight on Wednesday, culminating two long days of work.
   By the time the final gavel fell, the General Assembly had regrettably overridden nearly every veto Gov. Andy Beshear had issued and approved more than 30 bills on top of the 91 already now law.
   Except for two constitutional amendments that will go before voters in November, the fate of the new legislation rests entirely in the hands of the governor, who has 10 days, excluding Sunday, to decide whether to accept or reject these bills.
   In the end, this year’s legislative session was truly unlike any other in modern times. I still believe we should have ended our work last month; Gov. Beshear promised to call us back when it was safe to return. More than 20 other state legislatures did adjourn to reduce the chance of spreading the deadly virus, or used technology to conduct business like so many others. At the very least, the General Assembly should have just focused on quickly passing a budget and covid-19-related emergency measures, especially with the public being necessarily excluded right now. While I am grateful we accomplished those twin goals, we also spent more time than necessary on bills that could have been better handled next year when we’re opened back up.
   While technology helped other legislators to vote and ask questions from the relative safety of our legislative offices or vehicles, even that was too risky for some of my elderly colleagues, unfairly limiting what they were elected to do. I was honored to be asked by my leadership to be one of the only six Democrats allowed on the House floor to help coordinate the process with our members those last two days while social distancing.
   Our primary focus during the session’s last two days was considering the governor’s vetoes. He struck down relatively little while asking for maximum flexibility to deal with the pandemic, and he also sought to keep our coal counties and teachers from bearing an unfair burden financially in this budget. These were sensible requests, but unfortunately they were turned down.
   The same thing happened with his veto of Senate Bill 2, which will now require most voters to show a photo ID, starting in November, counting Kentucky as part of a national trend to suppress the vote. Current law already requires voters to provide some form of ID, but this new requirement will add another hurdle for many who may not drive, who may have just moved or who may have changed their name because of marriage.
   There has not been a single verified example of in-person voter fraud in at least 20 years, and while the bill does provide a free ID for those in need of one, there was little discussion about its potentially high cost. Indiana, for example, spent $10 million on personal IDs over several years after enacting a similar law.
   As Gov. Beshear rightfully noted, the indefinite closure of state offices to the public complicates matters further, and if other states attempting this are a guide, this law will likely be struck down by the courts since it was rushed during an election year. Should that happen, it will only add to the confusion and cost.
   With voting in mind, the General Assembly also approved two constitutional amendments that will be on the ballot during the Nov. 3 election. One known as Marsy’s Law would give victims more of a voice in criminal cases, and if this seems familiar, it’s because a similar amendment was approved in 2018. However, the Kentucky Supreme Court ruled that the language voters saw then was too vague, which is why it is being presented again.
   The other amendment would lengthen the terms of district judges and county and commonwealth’s attorneys to eight years, beginning in 2022.
   Some of the other bills to clear the House and Senate this past week would do such things as:

• Help struggling rural hospitals by making them eligible for economic development loans offered by the state;
• Give the state more authority to reduce jail overcrowding by moving inmates to facilities having more room;
• Update accountability guidelines for our schools, so the public can better follow where they are doing well and where more improvement is needed;
• Create a new program that will make it easier for state employees to be a living-organ or bone-marrow donor; and
• Require law-enforcement agencies to document their guidelines for high-speed chases.

   The legislature did consider more covid-related emergency measures, but the most significant of those did not make it through the Republican-controlled Senate. Had it passed, it would have had our restaurants, hospitals, chiropractors and other professional organizations working on plans advising Gov. Beshear for when the time comes to begin lifting restrictions. It passed the House 86 to 3 and I was happy to vote for it after my colleagues agreed to make some logical, helpful changes.
   Despite it not passing, Gov. Beshear did announce this past week that Kentucky was partnering with Indiana, Ohio and several other Midwestern states to come up with regional plans on how and when we restore more normalcy to our lives. That is certainly welcome news.
   Although our work passing laws is done, it is never too late to let me know your views on issues affecting Kentucky. My email address is joe.graviss@lrc.ky.gov, while the toll-free message line is 1-800-372-7181.
   Thanks for all you’re doing, we’re going to get through this, and holler anytime.

Restaurants get designated parking spaces for pickup and delivery; officials brief council on covid-19 response

Business was slow on Main Street's restaurant row around 12:30 p.m. Wednesday, despite spaces reserved for pickup.

What does a restaurant-heavy town do when a pandemic hits and the governor says no one in the state can eat inside a restaurant? City officials make it easier for restaurants to offer pickup and delivery.

That's what the Midway City Council did Monday night, setting aside three parking spaces for each restaurant and their customers to use until Gov. Andy Beshear lifts his order closing bars and restaurants to inside service.

The council also heard updates from first responders about how Woodford County is dealing with the new coronavirus and the respiratory disease it causes, covid-19.

The council approved Mayor Grayson Vandegrift's plan to put signs on three parking spaces in front of each Main Street restaurant for customers to pick up takeout orders. He said the bicycle racks in front of the Goose and Gander would be removed to create shared parking spaces for delivery vehicles.

"It gives them some semblance of authority to do this, and encourage people to use that service," Vandegrift said. "If we need to tweak this as we go, I think that's fine." Asked how it would be enforced, he said police could check a vehicle's license plate and track down the owner. He said he would "use public pressure" to keep restaurant owners and employees form using the spaces.

Vandegrift said the idea is to encourage people to support the restaurants. They rely on out-of-town trade and bring traffic to other businesses. He said Cortney Neikirk, president of the Midway Business Association, consulted "every merchant she could find" about the plan and they all agreed with it. He said other steps may be needed later to help retailers.

Holly Hill Inn on North Winter Street won't offer delivery, but its sister restaurant, Wallace Station on Old Frankfort Pike, will deliver all over Woodford County, owner Ouita Michel said in a Facebook video Monday. She said she is giving give health-care professionals a 10 percent discount, will keep buying local food, "and I want to encourage you to do the same," by shopping at farmers' markets.

The Woodford County Tourism Commission is gathering and publishing information from restaurants and retailers on its Facebook page.

Woodford County Emergency Management Director Drew Chandler talked about priorities in responding to the coronavirus.

Emergency report: County Emergency Management Director Drew Chandler, in his report on the county's reaction to the pandemic, reminded the council of the reasons for the governor's order.

"We're dealing with something that has rapid spread and no vaccine," unlike the flu, he said. "Our health care has so much capacity. You've seen reports out of Italy, where they have to choose who gets the ventilator and who passes away. We don't want that to happen. That's why we're implementing the social distancing," to slow the spread of the virus. "If we can prolong the period of time, the system can respond better."

Vandegrift said, "People need to take the social distancing very seriously. . . . We're going to be in this for the long haul. It's going to be uncomfortable. By the long haul, I mean it could last through the summer. I think the more we practice social distancing, the more we take these recommendations . . . the shorter the time's going to be," and the fewer people will die.

Chandler said, "It's important while we're social distancing that we not isolate ourselves and get stir-crazy." Council Member John Holloway later advised, "Go walk in the park," which he manages.

Holloway spoke after Council Member Stacy Thurman reported that a group of Midway citizens has organized to help "people who are very isolated right now and are high-risk and may not be able to get out of their house at all." She said they are planning to hang notices on all doors or porches in town, offering help with errands.

Chandler said the main effect of the state of emergency that local government executives declared last week is to "open up procurement" so goods and services can be obtained quickly. When he found that police were having to bring hand sanitizer from home, he said, the county got some from the state.

Versailles Police Chief Mike Murray said his department, which patrols the whole county, would maintain all services but has taken some steps to reduce personal contact, such as investigating petty crimes by telephone. He said the shoplifting he feared hasn't happened, and "Our call volume, overall, has kind of declined a little bit."

Chandler said the county road department increased its bulk fuel purchases to guard against shortages, and fire departments are being cautious about possible exposure on medical-assistance calls, assessing patients "from a good distance" so they don't have to waste any personal protective equipment, supplies of which are expected to run short.

"The biggest thing we can do right now," Chandler said, "is to maintain situational awareness." Chandler said someone in the county probably has the virus but there have been no positive tests. Beshear has said every county will eventually have a case.

In other business, the council formally accepted the recent audit report for the 2018-19 fiscal year, and held a public hearing and first reading on an ordinance to replace the telephone-line fee for 9-1-1 emergency service with a $59 fee on each residential address, to be placed on county tax bills. "Everyone seems to be behind this idea," Vandegrift said.

Thurman, chair of the city's Workplace Housing Task Force, said it has concluded that the city needs a professional assessment of housing needs and wants in the city, not only seeing what citizens think but getting the opinions of out-of-towners who work in Midway and might move here.

Library's Everything Equine event at Midway University showed visitors the ins and outs of all things horses

Midway University students showed how they groom horses and allowed the children to help take part in the process.

Stacy Thurman, head librarian at the branch library and a City
Council member, described Everything Equine as an “event that
gives people an idea of a day in the life of a horse.” She said
afterward that about 150 attended the 11 a.m.-1 p.m. event.

Story and photos by Grant Wheeler
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

Midway University and the Midway branch of the Woodford County Public Library partnered to host the third annual “Everything Equine” event Saturday at Midway University’s equestrian center. The event featured demonstrations from Midway’s equestrian students as well as the Lexington police department’s mounted unit.

Suzanne Conrad of the branch library was responsible for coordinating much of the event. “We aim to show the folks here on exactly what all that goes into caring for these horses,” she said, “and provide an entertaining as well as an educational experience for everyone involved.”

In addition to the demonstrations, folks who partook in the event were given the opportunity to visit numerous outside vendors and learn the ins and outs of all things horses.

The Lexington police department’s mounted unit came to demonstrate how horses can be used in a law enforcement setting. Officers Eckhardt and Sullivan showed how their horses Huston and Remington are used for a variety of purposes – mainly for crowd control. Eckhardt said he has been on the force for 20 years but only on the mounted unit for seven: “I love my job wouldn’t do a daggone thing different.”

Right: A young lady sits in a saddle to get the feel for what it is like to be riding on horseback.

Midway University sophomore Haley McCullah described this exercise as a way to “get them comfortable in the saddle and it helps teach a lot of confidence.”

McCullah and an admissions counselor at Midway University, Melody Small, came to speak to event goers a little about the university and equine program. The university had one of the many booths set up around the large building where the event was held.

The walls of the equestrian center displayed the anatomy of a horse, giving a better understanding of the animal’s internal workings and how distinctive they are. (Click on the image for a larger version.)

Amy Parker, an equine nutritionist, describes the digestive tract of a horse to interested event-goers.

Jenna Moline, a veterinarian for Hagyard Equine Medical Institute in Lexington, explained her role as an ambulatory veterinarian.

Moline said often has to go out on calls for an array of issues regarding horses. At right, she is pictured showing the leg bone of a horse to a few interested youths. (Click on the image for a larger version.)

Thad Gouge, from TG Forge Inc., a farrier service based in Wilmore, Kentucky explained the process behind crafting quality horseshoes for all variety of hooves and horses. Gouge is responsible for horseshoe maintenance on “roughly half of the horses at Midway University,” he said.

Everything Equine provided people with a firsthand look at horse care and use – one of Kentucky’s premier and proudest traditions.

Midway man faces first-degree assault charge after Sunday morning incident; wife in critical condition at UK

A Midway man faces a charge of first-degree assault on his wife, who is in critical but stable condition at the University of Kentucky hospital, according to Assistant Versailles Police Chief Rob Young.

Doug McDaniel, 31, was apprehended in Floyd County, Indiana, around 2:30 or 3 p.m. Sunday, about six hours after his wife, Katy McDaniel, 29, called 911 from their home in the 200 block of West Higgins Street, Young said.

"It was pretty quick," Young said of the apprehension. "We really got lucky." He wouldn't give details of it, or the crime, other than to say the Floyd County Sheriff's Office got "a report of a suspicious individual at a gas station."

Kenneth Doug McDaniel, who goes by his middle name, was lodged in the Floyd County Jail in New Albany. He awaits extradition to Woodford County, where County Attorney Alan George has prepared a warrant changing him with assault.

The main definition of first-degree assault is one causing serious physical injury by means of a deadly weapon or dangerous instrument. It is punishable by 10 to 20 years in prison.

The incident left many in Midway, a town with little violent crime, shaking their heads. As he opened the City Council meeting with the usual moment of silent reflection Monday evening, Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said, "Keep all people suffering from domestic violence in your thoughts, too. You know who I'm referring to."

City plans lower real-estate tax, online water-bill payments; council delays open-carry ordinance

Midway citizens would pay a slightly lower tax on their real estate, and be able to pay their water bills online, under plans laid out at the City Council meeting Monday evening.

The council heard first reading of an ordinance to set the real-estate tax at 7 cents per $100, down from the 7.5 cents levied last year. Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said the lower rate would generate the same amount of money, because real-estate values are up, including demand for property.

"I don't see why we should punish poorer folks because we don't have enough housing," Vandegrift said. The council has an Affordable Housing Committee looking at the issue.

The tax rate on personal property would remain 7.5 cents per $100, under a separate ordinance. Second readings and passage of both ordinances are scheduled for Sept. 3, a Tuesday because of Labor Day.

Last year the council reduced property-tax rates 25 percent because the city is receiving so much more from its occupational taxes on payrolls and net profits as a result of business expansions, mainly in Midway Station.

Water bills: The mayor can institute optional electronic payment of water bills without council approval, but Vandegrift said he wanted to make sure the members had no objections. The fee for electronic payment is expected to be 3 to 4 percent of a bill. The mayor said he would move forward as long as the change could be smoothly integrated into the city's software.

While there was no dissent about online payments, Council Member Logan Nance said he didn't think the city should assess a penalty for late payment of water bills. Council Member Bruce Southworth said the late fee is an incentive to pay. Council Member John Holloway said he thought more time could be allowed before the penalty is charged.

Vandegrift said he had no objection to giving customers more time to pay. He said the penalty was probably adopted "when the city didn't have any money . . . so the city could pay the water bill" from Kentucky American Water Co., its wholesale supplier.

Open-carry law: The council delayed first reading of an ordinance for an "entertainment destination center," which would allow drinkers to go in and out of licensed premises with alcoholic beverages as long as they stay within the designated boundaries of the EDC.

Vandegrift said he delayed the reading until Sept. 3 because city attorney Phil Moloney didn't think the ordinance should specify the hours, in case the "open carry" ordinance presents a security problem and a quick change is needed without waiting for two readings of a revised ordinance. The council had informally agreed to make the hours 11 a.m. to 10 p.m.

"His concern was, we may get into this and realize that we don't have adequate security to truly man this," because at any given time the Versailles Police Department has no more than one officer assigned to the Midway area at any given time, and "We need to have the ability to pull this back quickly," Vandegrift said. The ordinance would allow the mayor to do that without council action.

Second reading and passage of the ordinance would be Sept. 16. Vandegrift said it wouldn't take effect until Oct. 1. "It would be ideal," he said, to start it before the fall meet at Keeneland Race Course, which runs Oct. 5-26.

Council plans to allow open containers of alcoholic drinks outdoors until 10 p.m. in downtown area

Google map, with Xs added by Midway Messenger to show limits
of the proposed "entertainment destination center," where the city
would post signs banning open containers beyond those points.

The Midway City Council tentatively decided Monday night the boundaries and rules of a proposed "entertainment destination center," in which drinkers can go in and out of licensed premises with alcoholic beverages as long as they stay within the center's boundaries.

Mayor Grayson Vandegrift called the proposal, which the council heard July 15, an "open container ordinance." It is possible under a recent state regulation that allows cities to buy a license for $2,800. The rationale stated by the state Alcoholic Beverage Control Board is to reduce the enforcement load on ABC agents and police, and to help localities promote tourism and economic growth.

The Versailles City Council recently adopted the idea, allowing the mayor to set and change the dates when its center will be effective. Vandegrift said Midway council members "seem to be more in favor a permanent, set time" that the council would establish with an ordinance.

"The point of the ordinance is to allow people to walk around and shop," Vandegrift said, but later asked how many shops are open at night, saying he was "playing devil's advocate." Council Member Kaye Nita Gallagher mentioned a couple of shops, adding later that even if shops were not open, they would still attract window shoppers.

Council Member Logan Nance asked if more stores might stay open later if the council passed the ordinance, which he said would give the city "kind of a unique feel." Council Member John Holloway said, "If it turns out badly, we could just stop doing it."

The council agreed to end the open-container hours at 10 p.m., the discussed what the containers would look like. Versailles requires beverages to be in an unbreakable, "non-clear" container, such as a plastic Solo cup, perhaps in a style all the restaurants could use.

Council Member Stacy Thurman said her husband Ian, an ABC agent, said one reason for such a rule is that it is "kind of tacky" to see what someone is drinking. Council Member Sara Hicks said, "I kind of like the idea of a special cup; it could be a collector's item."

Vandegrift, a former restaurateur, called it "a great idea" but ultimately "untenable" because use of the cups would likely be inconsistent. The mayor said he would leave the "non-clear" provision out of the ordinance that he would present to the council Aug. 19, but "You all can put it in."

If the ordinance is enacted and the city buys the license, it would have to post signs marking the limits of the "entertainment destination center."

Vandegrift presented a map of the proposed boundary where open containers would be allowed, and the council made one adjustment, to allow them on Dudley Street in front of The Brown Barrel and Blind Harry's. The other limits would be the corner of Gratz and Martin streets, Winter Street and the end of East Main Street. In response to a question, Vandegrift said the parking lot at the end of East Main is private property and cannot be included in the boundary.

Midway Station: John Soper, chair of the Woodford County Economic Development Authority, reported that recent closings of property sales in Midway Station had enabled EDA to make the annual interest payment on the bonds used to build the industrial and commercial park, relieving the city and county of the responsibility, and that if sales continue as expected and the bonds are refinanced this year, EDA will no longer need an appropriation from the city, which was $15,000 last year and is budgeted at $12,000 this year.

The most recent closing was on 9 acres sold to Journey Ministries, which plans to build a church and other facilities, including a day-care center that will be open to anyone. "I feel very encouraged about where we're heading," he said, adding later, "I think we've got a great location, and in the real-estate business, that's what matters."

Soper did not mention something he reported at last month's EDA meeting, that Barnhill Chimney had decided not to buy a lot for a factory to make chimney caps.

Receiving certificates of appreciation from the Midway Veterans Committee were, from left to right, City Council Member Sara Hicks, chair of the Cemetery and City Property Committee; city employees James Downs, Terry Agee, Tim Agee and  Tim Spencer; and Sonya Conner, assistant city clerk. Retired clerk-treasurer Phyllis Hudson also received a certificate.

Good works: The Midway Veterans Committee, created 20 years ago to establish a monument to veterans in the Midway Cemetery, presented certificates of appreciation to several city employees as it prepared to disband, having accomplished its purpose and turning its functions over to the city.

One of those workers, Assistant City Clerk Sonya Conner, received an award for her recent completion of three years of municipal-clerk training. Vandegrift read a letter of recognition that said she had "sincere dedication to her work and the people of Midway," demonstrated "consistent, sound judgment and fairness to all" and "in the face of adversity" often did the jobs of two people, as recently retired clerk-treasurer Phyllis Hudson had health issues.

Vandegrift also recognized the contributions of Mark Roberts, a retired employee who continues to work for the city as a contract laborer, and Wastewater Superintendent Jack Blevins, who "has done a great job bringing our sewer plant back up to specifications," probably extending its useful life by 10 to 15 years. The city recently paid off the bonds it sold to build the plant almost 20 years ago.

Later in the meeting, Holloway said it was time to buy a $1,700 monument-moving machine for the cemetery. Vandegrift said he had already told city employee Terry Agee to order it.

Mayor breaks a tie: The council turned down a request from Midway University's tennis program to sponsor a regional tournament to be held at the school Aug. 9-11. The request was for $600, but Hicks moved to give $300, the sum the council provided last year, and Gallagher seconded the motion, noting that this year's event is expected to be larger.

Holloway said "I kind of feel iffy" about the sponsorship because the city recently gave the university $5,000 for improvements at the baseball field that is owned by the city but is "pretty much" exclusively used by the school. Nance, noting that the council had exhausted its donations budget by giving $5,000 toward a van for The Homeplace at Midway, said it would be irresponsible to go beyond the budget.

On the roll call, Council Member Bruce Southworth voted yes with Hicks and Gallagher, and Council Member Stacy Thurman voted no with Holloway and Nance -- who, like her, were elected for the first time last November. Vandegrift, who was elected to his second four-year term as mayor in November, voted no, denying the request. The mayor votes only in case of a tie.

In other business, the council:

• Approved paying $1,100 for extra police during the Midway Fall Festival, the amount that the city is saving because the Iron Horse Marathon is providing portable toilets for the newly combined events. The Midway Business Association, which runs the festival, will pay the rest of the cost, estimated by coordinator Elisha Holt to be a maximum of $1,560.
• Voiced no objections to Vandegrift's plan to allow electronic payment of water bills, with a fee of 3 to 4 percent for the vendor, which would be paid by those who choose the electronic option. "Three to four percent is still less than a late fee," Nance noted.
• Heard Vandegrift report that the sidewalk work is almost done and street work is expected to start in a week or two.
• Heard Assistant Police Chief Rob Young report that in July, Versailles police "definitely stepped up a lot of the traffic enforcement . . . at the request of the city."
• Appointed Assistant Fire Chief Joe Campbell to the county's 911 board.

Former Messenger intern explores communication in Midway; social-media posts can drive news events

Sarah Ladd discussed her research on April 29.

By Al Cross
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

For a town of 1,800 and a ZIP code of about 3,000, Midway is well covered by news and information media. The Midway Messenger provides continuous online coverage of events and issues, with a print edition about twice a year; The Woodford Sun regularly covers City Council meetings and other events in the town; and the Midway Musings social-media site has a large following.

All that was ideal grist for the mill of Sarah Ladd, who interned as a Messenger reporter last summer, recently graduated with honors from UK, then joined the Louisville Courier Journal as a reporter.

For her honors capstone course, she studied mass communication in Midway. The town is a good test bed for “The 11 Layers of Citizen Journalism” defined by Steve Outing of The Poynter Institute in 2005, Ladd said in presenting her study after the monthly community dinner at Midway Christian Church on April 29.

For Midway residents, some of her more interesting findings were the results of an online survey she conducted. It had 62 respondents. Asked where they get daily news, 22 said the Midway Messenger and 22 said Midway Musings, a “secret” Facebook group that has almost 700 members and has become an important communication platform for the town.

Chart by Sarah Ladd; for a larger, clearer version, click on it

After the top two, at 35 percent, came The Woodford Sun’s print edition, at 16.1% (10 people); the Residents of Northridge Estates closed Facebook group, 6.45% (four people); other social media, 3.23% (two people) and the Sun online, 1.6% (one person).

The impact of Midway Musings was illustrated in late July when Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said he would appoint a City Council committee to study changing the official name of Main Street to Railroad Street, which it was once called and is still called by some people. The idea was proposed on Midway Musings by local historian and merchant Bill Penn.

Vandegrift told the Messenger, "I hesitated to bring something from Midway Musings straight into potential policy without appearance by an individual at a council meeting, but this really isn’t the first time the idea has come up, and the Musings post helped show how much support this might have."

He told Ladd for her paper that he primarily gets news from the Messenger and The Woodford Sun. “I follow Musings and Northridge as well, but consider it communication more than news.” Ladd put it this way: "It’s a nice platform that people are using to facilitate news."

In her paper, she noted that the Northridge site spread word of a burglary and the official response, "breaking news." Midway Musings discourages political content, but a posting encouraging members to attend a City Council meeting to support resolution welcoming refugees to Kentucky stirred such controversy that city leaders delayed action until they could hold a public forum on the issue.

Ladd told the after-dinner crowd, “It was really interesting that a social-media group and a newspaper tied for first place,” she said. Anticipating that, she included in her survey this question: “If you used social media more than five years ago for any reason, how has it affected your knowledge of what goes on in the Midway area?” The result: 82 percent said it had increased their knowledge.

Musings founder Blake Jones said, "I want to always support forums where people can disagree without being disagreeable. I love Midway so much, and I think it is a town of exceptional people. Our diversity is our strength. "Social media gives people an anonymity at times that is not healthy, in my opinion. . . . We must all remember to measure our words, and remember that they can have consequences. Even online."

Midway Musings’ competitive impact, at least among people who voluntarily took the online survey, has been greatest on the Sun. Asked whether they had paid more or less attention to the Sun in the last five years, 39% said they paid less attention, 43% said they paid the same amount of attention, and 18 percent said they paid more attention.

Asked the same question about the Messenger, 68% said they paid more attention to it than five years ago. Ladd didn’t provide exact figures for the other respondents, but had a chart showing that by far, most of the rest said they paid the same amount of attention.

Ladd's paper noted that Sun Editor John McGary used "open sourcing" through social media to get sources for a story. "It’s so much different than having a straight, pre-approved list of experts you might call for something," she told the dinner crowd.

Ladd concluded in her paper, "The success of Midway’s current communication systems seems to be largely thanks to its size. The education levels and the sense of community trust cause the level of quality communication the small town enjoys."

Council hears plan for 'entertainment destination center' with relaxed drink-carrying rules; donates to Homeplace

Midway could have an "entertainment destination center" with relaxed rules for consumption of alcoholic beverages in a limited area, under a proposal offered to the City Council Monday evening.

The council deferred action on the idea, but took action on other matters, giving The Homeplace at Midway $5,000 to help buy a bus for residents and adopting a resolution supporting communication about land-use planning among local governments in the Bluegrass region.

Alcohol: About a year ago, the state Alcoholic Beverage Control Board enacted a regulation allowing cities to buy a license for an entertainment destination center, in which customers of private licensees can go in and out of their licensed premises with alcoholic beverages as long as they stay within the center's boundaries.

The licenses had previously been available only to businesses, but are slowly being bought by cities for a fee of $2,800. Versailles recently passed the necessary ordinance for one, and Frankfort is working on one, Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said.

The rationale for the license is to reduce the enforcement load on police and ABC agents, and help localities promote tourism and economic growth, said ABC Agent Ian Thurman, the husband of City Council Member Stacy Thurman. She asked him what the city's obligations would be as licensee.

He said the city would be liable for anything in the common area, inside the boundary and outside the privately licensed premises, that was not directly tied to a business, including someone with a beverage from that business.

Council Member Logan Nance asked about the possibility of drinkers being "overserved." Thurman said that has not been a problem in the two cities that have entertainment destination center licenses, Maysville and Owensboro. He said police and licensees say "It's one thing off the plate, about people walking in and out, that they don't have to worry about, and thus can focus more on over-service.

Cortney Neikirk of the Midway Business Association said allowing customers to go in and out of restaurants with alcoholic beverages "is a huge deal for all the restaurants." She said they work together to spot drunks who should be denied service.

Vandegrift asked the council to consider the proposal and put it on the agenda for the next meeting, on Aug. 5. He said he favored a provision in the Versailles ordinance, which requires beverages taken into the common area to be in a standard size and color plastic cup, for safety reasons. Neikirk said she was sure the restaurants would agree to that.

Other business: Business association coordinator Elisha Holt asked the council to pay half the cost of overtime for two police officers who would provide security and traffic help during the Midway Fall Festival. Vandegrift said "It makes perfect sense to help out with this," but the council deferred a decision to the next meeting.

The council adopted the regional planning resolution after a presentation from Rob Rumpke of Bluegrass Tomorrow, which he said is focused on protecting farmland and advocates growth along major transportation corridors. The resolution supports continuation and expansion of the Regional Land Use Partnership that has been meeting regularly since November 2017 to improve communication among governments and planners in the 18-county region.

"We're trying to build some consensus and partnership in the region" for better communication, Rumpke said. "It is in no way about creating a regional planning commission."

The resolution, supporting documents and other materials for the meeting, including a photo of the bus The Homeplace wants to buy, are downloadable as a PDF here.

The Homeplace bus would cost $25,000 and would hold 12 passengers and two wheelchairs. Representatives of the nursing and assisted-living facility said they had raised $8,000. Mary Lynn Spalding, president and CEO of Christian Care Communities, which operates the 48-bed facility, said the bus they want to buy is eight years old.

"I am 100 percent behind this idea," Vandegrift said. "I want to see a City of Midway sticker on that bus." He said the Homeplace generated more than $32,000 in occupational tax for the city last year, "and this is a one-time purchase." He noted that the newly adopted budget allocates $5,00 for donations. Council Member John Holloway moved to give that amount, and Council Member Bruce Southworth seconded the motion, which passed unanimously.

The council also approved an encroachment permit for Tru Blue Hemp Co. to locate in Midway Station. "They're kind of the middlemen for the farmers and the oil processors," Vandegrift said.

Vandegrift reported that he and Southworth plant to meet with Frankfort Plant Board officials next week to discuss building a pipeline that would make FPB the city's primary water supplier, as the mayor announced recently that he wanted the city to do.

He also announced that the sidewalk project is scheduled to begin Wednesday, weather permitting, and take about two weeks. When it is done, he said, "eleven new sidewalks" will replace broken ones, "including the worst of all," which he didn't specify.

City Council approves budget with $200K for sewers, $50K for curb extensions and many other additions

The City of Midway's budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1 is the probably the largest in the town's history, with General Fund appropriations of $1.9 million and a projected surplus of $488,601.

"It's likely the biggest ever," Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said as the City Council approved the budget on a 4-0 vote in an eight-minute special meeting Thursday. Members Sara Hicks and Kaye Nita Gallagher were absent, but they had attended all three workshops at which the council tweaked the budget Vandegrift had proposed.

The budget has been boosted mainly by increased occupational taxes on payrolls and net profits, mainly from the Midway Station industrial park. The council has lowered property taxes and water rates in the past year.

Holding up the budget, the mayor said, "This, as much as anything, is a policy document. What this shows is that our policy focuses on infrastructure."

The biggest infrastructure item is $200,000 for a project to examine and clean out the old sewer lines on the east side of town and see where repairs and replacements are needed. $50,000 is budgeted for curb extensions, or "bulb-outs" on Winter Street at the intersections of Bruen and Stephens streets, to help slow traffic and increase pedestrian safety.

The plan has $40,000 for interest payments on Midway Station, which are no longer made by the developer who gave up his option on the property, but the city and the Woodford County Economic Development Authority are hoping property sales will eliminate the need for interest payments.

The budget also adds $10,000 for new signs; $5,000 for new City Hall computers; $5,000 for the Court Appointed Special Advocate program, which has come to the county with the help of the Fiscal Court and the Versailles City Council; $2,000 for local churches' backpack meal program for needy children; and about $11,000 to join the Woodford County geographic information system, which Vandegrift said would help track infrastructure.

The budget includes $10,000 and $15,000, respectively, for repairs and maintenance on the firehouse, up from $5,000 and $10,000 in the current year; and $1,000 for the Woodford County Chamber of Commerce, up from $500. The Versailles Police Department will get $27,000 more as the city shares in the one-time cost of computer and telephone upgrades to the department, which patrols all of Woodford County. Under a contract, Midway pays 4.25 percent of the department's budget.

Midway to pay Versailles more for police because of one-time upgrades to that city's police department

Midway will pay about $27,000, or 16.5 percent, more for police services from Versailles in 2019-20 under figures that the Versailles police chief gave Midway Mayor Grayson Vandegrift today.

Vandegrift had budgeted $166,000, the same as last year, for police in the budget that he submitted to the council, but he noted at the last budget workshop that he had not received updated figures from Versailles. Under the cities' contract, Midway pays 4.25 percent of Versailles' police budget.

"Last year, our share came in at just under $166,000 of the $4,181,440 total. This year, the VPD overall budget is $4,550,880, which means our share is $193,412," Vandegrift said in a note to the council and news media today. He said the increase stems from four line items that will not recur next year. "Therefore, we can expect next year's total to go back to a number we're more used to."

He continued, "The additions are one-time costs for phone and computer system upgrades, as well as new furniture and office upgrades for the new police station. None of our portion pays for the new building itself. I support this temporary increase because the VPD does an excellent job serving and protecting us, and Chief [Mike] Murray and Assistant Chief [Rob] Young have demonstrated time and time again their commitment to continually creating a better and better police force. The officers, in my experience, are professional and polite, and any complaints that have been filed have been dealt with in a timely and forthright manner."

Vandegrift noted a Lane Report story today about a Safewise report of the 20 safest cities in Kentucky, based on crime statistics. "Because we don't have our own police force, Midway's data is included with Versailles and the county, but based on the reports for Midway that the police provide each month, if we were separated out and therefore included in this study, we would rank as one of the safest, if not the very safest city in Kentucky," he wrote. "This is no doubt in part due to the excellent service of the VPD, and I firmly believe that this request is reasonable and prudent. The new police building will only improve the service that this institution can provide, and will give our officers the most modern equipment and tools in law enforcement. I believe that we must support our police department and the officers that protect us, especially on this temporary basis."

The council's next meeting is at 5:30 p.m. Monday at City Hall. Its third and probably final budget workshop is scheduled for 5 p.m. Wednesday, June 5, at City Hall, with passage likely June 17. All council meetings are open to the public. The budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1 calls for revenue of $1,847,813 and a surplus of $446,743, or 24 percent of revenue.

City Council stretches out cemetery pavilion project to start funding improvements at city's three cemeteries

Two of the largest trees in the St. Rose Tabernacle Cemetery, next to the Midway Cemetery, have upended tombstones.

The Midway City Council decided this evening to stretch out construction of a pavilion at the Midway Cemetery over two years, to fund other work at the cemetery and start fixing up the two historically African American cemeteries for which the city has taken responsibility.

At its second workshop on the budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1, the council also discussed other budget changes, and a suggestion that it seek bids for engineering services on the proposed budget's single biggest item, a sewer-improvement project estimated to cost $200,000.

The council plans to finish drafting the budget at a third and final workshop at 5 p.m. Wednesday, June 5, and enact it at its regular meeting on June 17.

The pavilion, which would provide shelter in inclement weather, is estimated to cost $45,000. The council voted to put $20,000 in the budget for pouring its concrete footers and pad, and use the other $25,000 for other improvements at all three cemeteries.

Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said Public Works Supervisor Terry Agee has a list of work needed at the main cemetery and at the other cemeteries, including removal of trees that have upended tombstones. The mayor said Agee sees the tree removal as a five-year process, partly because removal of too many trees would upset the public.

Council Member Sara Hicks, chair of the Cemetery and City Property Committee, said all the tree work in the St. Rose Tabernacle Cemetery should be done first, "so you can start to re-erect the tombstones." The work there and at the Sons and Daughters of Relief Cemetery will also include installation of lines and taps for watering.

Engineering firm's map of project (click on image to enlarge)

Sewer project: The council agreed in February to use up to $200,000 of its half-million-dollar-plus General Fund surplus for a project that would send a camera through the city's oldest sewer lines, east of Winter Street, to see how they need to be repaired or replaced, and then remove sludge, tree roots and other obstructions. Vandegrift put the project in the budget he proposed to the council.

Council Member John Holloway noted that $62,000 of the estimated cost is for engineering services, which presumably would be performed by HMB Engineers of Frankfort, the city's longtime consultant. "For sixty-two thousand dollars, I think we should bid out the engineering," Holloway said. He also said he didn't understand some of the terminology in HMB's description of the project, some of which seemed duplicative.

Vandegrift said "All those questions can be answered by HMB," and "I have no problem with bidding whole thing out. . . . We can ask HMB those hard questions." He said the project was originally planned for this summer, but "It's looking more like the fall."

In other sewer-system business, the mayor noted that his budget continues to invest in improvements at the city's wastewater-treatment plant, and said that he has been impressed with the work of plant operator Jack Blevins. He said when the budget was tighter, the plant was not as well kept up.

The sewer budget calls for $60,000 in capital expenses. The water budget has the same amount, up from $43,000 in the current fiscal year. Vandegrift said lot of water-line replacements are needed, as well as a gearbox replacement.

The mayor said he expects the state Public Service Commission will give Kentucky-American Water Co., the city's water supplier, a 10 percent increase instead of the 21.5 percent hike it is seeking. He reiterated that unlike last year's increase, the city will not be able to absorb the increase and will have to pass it on to customers. The city cut water and sewer rates 25 percent last year.

Other items: The city's contract for police services from the City of Versailles is budgeted at $166,000, the same as currently; the contract calls for Midway to pay 4.25% of the police budget, and for the Versailles Police Department to be in Midway 16 hours a day. From 11 p.m. to 7 a.m, police are in the Midway-Millville area, but not in the city unless they get a call, Vandegrift said.

Council Member Logan Nance said those hours are when crime might be most likely, so "It might be worth looking into them doing some overnight [patrols in the city] as well."

On another public-safety issue, Vandegrift said his estimate of $50,000 for bulb-outs, or curb extensions, at two major intersections on Winter Street is "just a guess," and the work might be done for less. The bulb-outs at the Stephens Street and Bruen Street intersections will be designed to slow traffic by reducing street width.

The budget also calls for $10,000 for new signage. Vandegrift said about half of that would go for a promotional sign directing traffic from Interstate 64 to downtown, requested by merchants. He said that it would face traffic coming off KY 341 (Midway Road) at US 421 (Leestown Road), and that he thinks the state Transportation Cabinet would allow it to be placed in the right of way.

Holloway wondered if a sign would be visible enough to guide motorists before they chose the left-turn or right-turn lane from 341 to 421. Vandegrift said it would "if you put it in the right spot." Hicks said, "If it's big enough, you would see it before you got to the lanes."

Council Member Stacy Thurman said the city needs a sign for the charging station for electric cars behind City Hall. Shown an example, Vandegrift said he would have Agee order one.

Request for increased police presence in Northridge may have come just a little too late for one resident

At Monday night's City Council meeting, Mayor Grayson Vandegrift noted that the Versailles Police Department, which patrols all of Woodford County, had been asked to increase patrols in the Northridge Estates area of Midway due to reports of a suspicious vehicle that seemed to be prowling.

Later that night, someone broke into the car of Northridge resident Blake Jones, according to a post he made Tuesday morning on Residents of Northridge Estates, a closed Facebook group.

Magistrate Liles Taylor, a resident of the subdivision, posted on the site Tuesday afternoon that he and Vandegrift had spoken to the police about "the unfortunate increase in attempted burglaries and vandalism" in the area, seeking additional patrols. "They were extremely responsive and are processing that request. We should see an increased presence as early as tonight."

On Wednesday afternoon, Vandegrift posted on the site, "The police are actively working the case and are using all resources available, including going through camera footage available. If the perpetrators are reading this: You’re going to be caught."

Big load coming through: Police will escort 27-foot-wide load on US 62 and Interstate 64 sometime Wednesday

Motorcade route is marked in blue. Disregard the times and two possible alternate routes determined by Google Maps.

Police will escort a huge piece of industrial cooling equipment, 27 feet wide, through the Midway area Wednesday on its way from Northern Kentucky to Tennessee. Lanes and roads will be blocked in the Georgetown area before the load enters Interstate 64 in southern Scott County.

The tractor-trailer load is scheduled to leave the Interstate 75/71 rest area in Northern Kentucky at 9 a.m. and head south on I-75 to US 62 at Exit 126. It will take the Georgetown bypass and US 62, then enter westbound I-64 at Exit 69. After passing through Midway on I-64, it will take Exit 53 at Frankfort to US 127, then follow the Bluegrass Parkway and I-65 to Tennessee.

The state Transportation Cabinet said in a news release that timing of road and lane blockages is not yet available but it will provide updates "as often as possible to help motorists avoid traffic delays."

"The motorcade will occupy the entire width of the route or all lanes in its direction of travel," so police will block traffic on US 62, US 460, I-64, US 127 and the parkway, the cabinet said. "On I-75 and I-65, which have three lanes in each direction, the load will span the center and right lanes as well as part of the shoulder."

The escort for Derenz Transport of Kiel, Wis., will be provided by the Kentucky State Police’s Division of Commercial Vehicle Enforcement, in cooperation with local law-enforcement agencies, the cabinet said. Two marked vehicles will travel in front of the load and two will travel behind.

The news release concluded, "All overweight/over-dimensional travel is subject to change depending on weather conditions, emergencies and factors beyond the control of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet or Kentucky State Police."

City Council reduces property taxes 26 percent

By Hannah Woosley, Karlil Wilson, Alex Otte, Christie Netherton, Ana Neal, Sierra McLean, Thomas Franconia and Desiree Cross
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

The Midway City Council has completed the unusual step of lowering property taxes by more than a fourth, taken because the city is receiving so much more money from occupational taxes.

The council gave second and final reading Monday evening to ordinances that set tax rates on real and personal property at 7.5 cents per $100 of assessed valuation. The current rates are 10.2 cents per $100, so the reduction will be 26.47 percent. When tax bills arrive in a few weeks, the city property tax on a $100,000 house will be $75.

“We could go even lower, but this is a safe start,” said Mayor Grayson Vandegrift, who began discussing a property-tax decrease in July 2017, when the city was piling up occupational-tax revenue from the Lakeshore Learning Materials distribution center, the American Howa Kentucky auto-parts plant, and expanded businesses.

“We just did not need to be taxed at twice the rate Versailles was taxed on property,” Vandegrift said. He noted that the budget the council passed in June was based on an expected 25 percent reduction in property taxes.

Assistant Police Chief Rob Young talked with Council Member
Steve Simoff after the council meeting. (Photo by Sierra McLean)

New cop in town: Rob Young was introduced as the new assistant chief of the Versailles Police Department, which has responsibility for patrolling all of Woodford County, including Midway, which does not have its own police but pays Versailles for the service. Mike Murray, the former assistant chief, was recently promoted to chief and chose Young to succeed him.

Young said he has been a detective with the department for a year and a half, after 26 years of federal service. He told the Midway Messenger that he served 20 years with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Kentucky, the last three and a half years as the resident agent in charge in Lexington.

The assistant police chief typically attends Midway council meetings. Young told the council, “I was going through some of the crime reports, and Midway's a good place to be.” He said he plans to “keep it that way.”

Later in the meeting, Council Member Bruce Southworth said he was happy to see a report from the department showing that police have made more traffic stops in Midway recently. Speeding has been a chronic problem in the city.

Donation made: The council approved $575 in funding for Midway Christian Church, to help finish constructing a table made from recycled bottle caps for Northside Elementary School. The church has been making benches with the recycled products and wants to do more and place them around town, Vandegrift said.

Council Member Kaye Nita Gallagher asked what the council would do if the Baptist church or Methodist church asked for a donation. Vandegrift said, “Our policy has ben to do this on a first-come, first-served basis.” He said the council has $325 remaining in its $5,000 donations budget for the fiscal year that ends June 30, 2019.

Other business: Southworth, Gallagher and Council Member Steve Simoff voiced concerns over potentially hazardous road conditions due to lack of mowing on state roads, particularly Leestown Road, causing sight-line obstructions. Vandegrift said he sent an email Tuesday morning to the state Highway Department about the issue and will keep up with it until it is taken care of.

Vandegrift congratulated Southworth for his dedication and determination to secure a mileage sign for Midway on US 421 at the east edge of Frankfort, the first non-interstate mileage sign for Midway in years. “Congratulations to you for doing what state legislators couldn’t do,” Vandegrift said.

Message from the mayor: What a week, what a city

By Grayson Vandegrift

Mayor, City of Midway

What a week.

Wednesday, two young Midway citizens decided to sell lemonade to raise money for the Homeplace because they wanted to help with the care of the wisest ones among us. Their proud parents posted about their good deed on Facebook, and before you knew it, fellow residents were pledging to match their contributions -- they wound up raising well over $200 in the end.

It’s almost as if these two young women were inspiring us to be ready for the days to come, when we’d all have to band together to help our fellow citizens. Although I’m not surprised at how the Midway community came together, I’m still remarkably impressed and inspired by the endless accounts of residents doing good deeds to help each other get through a surprisingly monstrous storm and its serious effects.

It would take a book to account for all the selfless acts that were performed by people this weekend, so I’ll just say that I am continually inspired by the immeasurable number of good deeds done by people who simply want to help their neighbor get through a difficult situation.

KU and LG&E called in help from other states and had as many as 180 technicians working 16-hour shifts to bring power back to our homes. As I write this, nearly all of Midway has power again. We owe a great debt of gratitude to every line worker and every person who helped clear debris and limbs, and to their families for sharing them with us. One line worker from Chicago said he hadn’t seen this kind of tree damage since he was deployed to assist with the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.

Our first responders were brilliant as well, especially on Friday night, when things really could have devolved into chaos had they not held everything together.

What a week. What a city. What a county.

Council OKs new police contract, hears plans for events; annual Chocolate Stroll scheduled this Saturday

By Lizzy Allen

University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Media

The Midway City Council approved a contract Monday with the City of Versailles for five years of police protection at a much higher cost.

Midway will pay Versailles, which patrols all of Woodford County, 4.25 percent of its annual police budget. The current budget is $3.9 million, which would make the first year's payment $165,975.

That would be 66 percent more than the current annual cost of $100,000, but Midway officials have long expected a big increase. The county has already agreed to pay Versailles more -- $1.4 million, or 38 percent of the city's police budget.

Each citizen will end up paying about $100 per year for this service, Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said, adding, “That sounds like a fair deal to me.”

Vandegrift said that the Versailles Police Department “serves us very well. They are very responsive to our needs.” He added that Assistant Chief Mike Murray, the department’s point man for Midway, “does an outstanding job.”

Council member Sarah Hicks also said that she has been impressed with the Versailles police.

“In my previous terms on the city council, I did not have as good of an experience as I have been having the last year and a half, and I’m really, really appreciative,” Hicks said.

Vandegrift said a few minor changes were made to the contract from the one approved by a council committee, plus one material change, to let him to “select a representative to participate in meetings with the mayor of Versailles and chief of police of the Versailles Police Department beginning in March each year as the budget recommendation is drafted.”

“That will basically give us a voice in the budget process each March,” Vandegrift said. “Not a vote, but a voice.” For the contract and the rest of the council's meeting packet, click here.

Merchants plan monthly activities: Peggy Angel, who was re-elected as president of the Midway Business Association last month, told the council that the merchants are planning events almost every month this year.

“We have been really actively reflecting back on 2017 to see how we could do more things in 2018 to help bring visitors into the city,” Angel said. “I understand that the city would like us to do an event every month. We are going to try our very best to do that.”

The first event is this Saturday, Feb. 10: the annual Chocolate Stroll, in which visitors and citizens visit businesses on historic Main Street to get their tickets stamped so they can be entered into a raffle, all while enjoying chocolate treats from each business.

“Basically, the idea is to get them into our businesses to see what’s here,” Angel said. “They may not buy, but at least we’re educating them.”

Other events this year include a new St. Patrick’s Day event on Saturday, March 17, for which restaurants will donate food, drinks and gift baskets; and the annual Fall Festival in September, which Angel said will feature around 20 more booths this year, some of them educational.

Angel asked the council to help the merchants keep their interstate signs, which cost $1,200 a year. Vandegrift asked her to write a formal request to be put on the agenda for the next meeting, and said the money is available.

In other business, the council renewed the contract with John Soper, chair of the Woodford County Economic Development Authority. Vandegrift said the contract reads exactly the same as last year’s. Soper is paid $5,720 a month; Midway’s share is $858.

Soper recruits employers for the county, and one of his most active areas has been Midway Station and property adjoining the industrial park, which was largely vacant until recently. “The outlook at Midway Station, honestly, looks a lot better than it ever has,” Vandegrift said. He said the city is in a position “to truly tailor Midway Station more to our liking.”

The council also approved a request by Gary Smith, who recently purchased half an acre just south of the city limits, to hook on to the city water system. Smith and his wife intend to build a home on the property.

The council also voted to accept the final version of the audit for the 2016-17 fiscal year, the preliminary version of which was discussed at a previous meeting.

Council Member Libby Warfield again missed attending due to illness. In calling for the usual moment of silent reflection at the start of the meeting, Vandegrift asked members to remember Warfield.