Christmas in Midway: Quieter than the malls

Story and photos by Kelly Wiley
UK School of Journalism

With fresh snow on the ground and McGee, the community cat, scurrying around looking for a place to get warm, shop owners stayed inside the warm confines of their stores Saturday. However, even with the cold weather, shop owner still had a reason to be cheerful ­– it’s Christmas time.

Christmas in Midway means many things, but for most store owners it means an increase in customers. “A lot of people like the come here to get away from the mall. It’s not real crowded and it’s a relaxing atmosphere with old Victorian buildings, especially when there is a little snow it kind of reminds you of a Victorian Christmas,” said Bill Penn, owner of the Historic Midway Museum Store.

Penn said he sells a lot of handmade jewelry and crafts, along with a bookstore upstairs full mostly of books by Kentucky authors focusing on Kentucky history, with some children’s books packed in there as well. He has owned the Historic Midway Museum Store for 12 years. He and his wife moved to Midway from Indiana because of their love for museum stores, he said.

“We always liked museum stores. When you go into a museum there will always be a museum shop and they always sell educational things related to history,” Penn said.

Being a museum store, it is only fitting to have a museum, which they do. In a room to the left of the entrance there is a smaller than normal museum containing a timeline of Midway history with pictures and artifacts to go with it.

Penn said they have tried to persuade the City Council to purchase one of the vacant buildings along Main Street and turn it into a museum, but they have been turned down. So, for the time being, the history of Midway can be found in the extra room of Penn’s Historic Midway Museum Store.

At the end of the road is Celtic Trends, which sells mostly items imported from Ireland and Great Britain that are Irish or Celtic themed. Clare McCarthy, owner of Celtic Trends and an Ireland native, said Christmas in Midway is better than bigger cities like Lexington because stores are not overly crowded and most times there is always a parking spot that doesn’t require you to walk a mile to your destination.

“We have quite a few Midway residents (who shop here), but the majority are outside from Lexington, Cincinnati and Louisville,” McCarthy said. “They come here with the intention to shop or for the restaurants.”

On Midway Street, commonly called Railroad Street, there are a few restaurants on both sides of the tracks that cut through town. Out-of-towners can enjoy a variety of restaurants like Bistro La Belle, Quirk Café and Coffee and Darlin Jean’s Apple Cobbler, but McCarthy said the restaurant that attracts the most customers is the Black Tulip, known for its fine wine and Kentucky food.

In the same row as Celtic Trends and the Historic Midway Museum Store is SaopWerks. Just as unique as the rest of the stores, SoapWerks sales soap, candles and jewelry all made by family members and friends of owner Kathy Werking.

“My mother makes the soap, which is all natural. I do soy wax candles. My sister makes the pillows out of old linens, then my brother in law makes salt and pepper shakers … those are out of old chair and table parts,” Werking said. “What we really try to do is do natural products and recycling and repurposing.”

In the past, Werking used her store as way to raise the money necessary to adopt her daughter Leah from a Beijing orphanage. Less than a year ago, Werking said she added to the family with her “recent addition,” Yulan. “Chinese adoptions, well any international adoption is pretty expensive, and, so, I did a lot of fundraising from selling my products,” Werking said. “And people responded really, really nicely.”

As Werking gets ready to close shop and her girls sit making jewelry, outside the snow is still falling and McGee has found some form of shelter near a Christmas tree outside one the many specialty shops on Railroad Street.

Midway Station project awaits technical review

By Matt Jordan
UK School of Journalism and Telecommunications

Redevelopment of the Midway Station industrial park into a residential and commercial community is moving according to the expected timeline, Mayor Tom Bozarth said this week.

Bozarth said now that the city council has voted to rezone the property to allow for the construction of 600 new homes, the only thing city officials are waiting on is the technical review by the Woodford County planning staff.

Anderson Communities has purchased the right to develop the industrial park for the sum of $6 million. The contract was signed earlier this year, contingent upon passage of the rezoning. Now the only barrier to be overcome is the technical review, which Bozarth anticipates should happen on or around Jan. 1.

Dennis Anderson of Anderson Communities declined to be interviewed on when he expected to turn in the papers for technical review or begin redevelopment.

The council approved the rezoning Sept. 29 by a vote of 5-1, after months of deliberation. The county Planning and Zoning Commission recommended rezoning on the condition that the development be limited to the construction of no more than 50 homes per year.

Ed Lane, a Lexington real estate agent and publisher of The Lane Report, a publication on real estate and other business in Kentucky, said he feels optimistic about developer Anderson's plan and considers him a "very good builder" to tackle this project. And though the real estate market in America is currently on the rocks, Lane said that might actually help this project.

"With the development in Midway, that's going to be a 10- to 15-year deal," Lane said. "Actually it may be a good time to start when the market is at its lowest and you start out slowly. They're not going to go in and build all those houses; they're going to build them in chunks."

Lane also pointed to a few indicators that make him think the project will succeed. He cited Midway's high number of commuters, quality of life and close proximity to Lexington as factors that will likely fill up some of the newly constructed homes. An average home in Fayette County costs about $140,000, he says, and low property values in Midway could play a factor in selling some homes. And though he says home construction is at about 50 percent of what it was a year ago, he expects that the market will likely improve one year from now. Also, the small size of Midway has led to stability and room for expansion.

"Woodford County has got the lowest unemployment rate in Kentucky and they've got a real shortage of houses there," Lane said. "I would be optimistic that they could do well."

First Midway Living History Day stirs memories

Story and photo by Megan Wimpy

Midway residents young and old came prepared and shared stories, photographs and artifacts at the first annual Midway Living History Day on Oct. 25 at the historic Thoroughbred Theatre. The first Midway Living History Award was given to Coach Ed Allin (in blue sportcoat), following a slideshow tribute to the Midway High School State Basketball Champions of 1937.

“Midway is unique,” said lifetime Midway resident Carolyn Logan, “there are few opportunities to celebrate small communities, so this is a very special day.”

Logan and friend Dorris J. Leigh were volunteers at the Midway Public School Alumni table. “The oldest yearbook on the table is from 1913,” said Leigh. “In 1947, we only have paperback yearbooks probably because of the war.” Leigh said 1963 was the last graduating class of Midway High before the merger with Woodford County.

Logan shared fond memories of school, including her senior trip to New York City and later marrying her high school sweetheart. Logan said, “I only had 10 classmates in my graduating class from Midway High School in 1958.”

Twenty-two year resident Bill Penn shared his story about working with Jim Sames, a local historian. Sames had started writing a book about Midway, but died a couple of years ago, said Penn. “Sames’s research files were donated to the Midway Museum,” said Penn, “I am going to co-write this local history book.”

Midway College Public Relations Director Sarah Wilson, sat at the college history table. “Midway College has gone through several transformations,” said Wilson. “It began as the Kentucky Female Orphan School and since has expanded offering online courses, an evening program for career development, and a graduate degree program.” Midway College has 1,700 students including 400 enrolled in the women’s day college, said Wilson.

Bob Rouse manned a table with information on how to update and expand the Midway Historic District. “Thirty years ago my mom decided Midway should be listed on the National Register of Historic Places,” Rouse said. “She filled out a timely application and documented the historic value of Midway.” Today 70 percent of Midway is documented on the register, he said.

Participant Joyce Evans has lived in Midway 40 years but still claims herself as a new resident. “I love coming to these events because so many people care so much,” said Evans. “These people have taken care of so much to our benefit.”

Randy Thomas, president of Midway Renaissance, which sponsored the event, began a slideshow tribute to the “Boys of ’37.” The presentation recognized the Midway High School state basketball champions of 1937 as the team that helped popularize Kentucky’s “Sweet 16” tournament and Kentucky sports radio.

Woodford County Judge-Executive John Coyle presented Coach Ed Allin the first annual Midway Living History Award for his dedication as a teacher, coach, humanitarian and contributions to the history of Midway. He also received a resolution from the City of Midway and a state House citation from Rep. Carl Rollins.

African American players coached by Allin talked about what it was like to play basketball during the 1960’s. They presented Allin with a poem about his courage to take a stand for African American players on the court.

After the 1963 school merger, Midway Bluejays became Woodford County Yellowjackets. A current Woodford County basketball player stood on each side of Allin as he was recognized, one wearing blue and white and the other wearing black and gold to symbolize the schools’ colors coming together.

Betty Ann Voigt, a lifetime resident of 85 years, said the boys of ’37 are a well-remembered team. “My father was a physician in Midway,” said Voigt. “Everything closed down so we could go watch the team play in Lexington. It was a memorable night.”

Megan Wimpy of Hopkinsville is majoring in agricultural communications at the University of Kentucky.

Council votes 5-1 to turn failed industrial park into residential and commercial development

By Ana Clegg
Community Journalism
University of Kentucky

The vote is in. Five of the six Midway City Council members were in favor tonight of re-zoning the Midway Station industrial park to a commercial and residential property.

After a two-and-a-half hour council meeting at City Hall, in which the council heard from lawyers on both sides and from members of the Midway community, the industrial park will be re-zoned.

Each citizen had only a minute and a half to voice opinion for or against the re-zoning. Most members of the community used the allotted time, while others ran out of time and Mayor Tom Bozarth cut them off. Most were against the proposal, saying Midway would lose its uniqueness.

Marcella Long said she would like to see more stores in Midway. Her story included a personal example of when she was trying to hang a picture in her home she couldn’t find a nail and had to drive another county over to get one nail.

Speaking longer were Henry W. “Hank” Graddy III, attorney for the Woodford Coalition, a group of neighborhood organizations active in land-use issues, and Richard Murphy, lawyer for developer Dennis Anderson. They took questions from council members about what the commercial part would include. Their answers included a wine vineyard, health-care facility and a reception hall.

Woodford County Fiscal Court Magistrate Gerald Dotson of Versailles said he was for the re-zoning because he wants the county stop paying the $508 a day in debt service on Midway Station, which has attracted little development. It has only three property owners. The city makes an identical payment.

Nick Bentley, a real-estate broker and developer who lived in Midway for 20 years and still has property in the town, said the residential development would “soften the rental market and de-value the real estate re-sale market … and Midway will go bankrupt.”

The county Planning and Zoning Commission recommended the re-zoning on the condition that no more than 50 homes be built each year. The development plan calls for just over 600 homes. That could double the population of Midway, which was 1,620 in 2000.

Diana Queen was the only council member to vote against the re-zoning. Generally, supporters of the re-zoning said it would bring more jobs to Midway.

Dancing Dog Design joins ranks of retailers

By Ana Clegg

Dwayne Cobb has turned his hobby of jewelry making into a fulltime job. (Photo by Ana Clegg)

Cobb, 47, who’s the new owner of Dancing Dog Design at 101-B Main Street in Midway, started producing pottery, sculptures and jewelry when he attended the University of Kentucky. He gave the store its name because of a beagle named Ginger he owned when he was a teenager.

After undergraduate school, Cobb went on to seek a master’s degree in sculpting, but decided to go out into the working world before he finished. After 18 years of working for Hunter Manufacturing in Lexington as a manager of research and development, the company downsized and he was left looking for another job. (Read more)

First Midway Living History Day scheduled Oct. 25

Midway Living History Day is an informal ‘show-and-tell’ affair, with displays showcasing a variety of artifacts, photographs, and documents primarily from the private collections of citizens. The displays planned include the histories of Midway’s African American schools and churches, Midway College, the cemeteries, the railroad, the Midway Historic District, various historic farms, audio and video history projects, and much more.

More than 20 organizations and individuals are scheduled to present. Owners of the historical items will be on hand to discuss their collections and their knowledge of Midway’s history. We want to hear your stories, too! Midway Renaissance will offer free on-site scanning of historic documents and photographs related to Midway. For more information on the Annual Membership Meeting, Midway Living History Day, and other projects of Midway Renaissance Inc., click here.

Magistrate urges rezoning, threatens funding

By the Community Journalism class
School of Journalism and Telecommunications, University of Kentucky

If the Midway City Council doesn't rezone Midway Station, Woodford County might stop paying debt service on the failed industrial park, a magistrate said at last week's Fiscal Court meeting, The Woodford Sun reports tonight. (The Sun does not publish stories online.)

"The citizens of Midway need to understand that they are paying double for this debt -- county taxes and Midway city taxes," Magistrate Gerald Dotson said. He added that the proposed residential and commercial development is the only option for the local governments.

If the council votes down the rezoning, continuing a controversy that has raged for almost two years, Dotson said he would "personally have difficulty in voting to pay any other interest past Nov. 1" and might lobby the other court members to do likewise.