Midway area leads the way in preserving land via conservation easements to Bluegrass Conservancy

The Midway area has the most concentrated set of tracts dedicated to conservation through the Bluegrass Conservancy, according to a map published with a story in Saturday's Lexington Herald-Leader. The map appears below; a chart with the story showed that Woodford County has accounted for more than half of the acreage on which the private, non-profit group holds conservation easements, which permanently bar development of the properties.

Reporter Andy Mead's story was datelined Midway because it focused on Suzi Shoemaker, left, and her Lantern Hill Farm east of town on US 421-62. "It is among the best in the world in what it can produce," she told Mead. "I would like to see future generations have the opportunity to raise horses here. Whether they want to or not, they will have that opportunity." (Herald-Leader photo by David Perry)

Mead explains that the easements "are voluntary agreements, tailored to the needs of each owner and property, that keep the land as open space as a defense against suburban sprawl. The land remains in private hands, and the owners can qualify for tax benefits, including income tax, estate tax and property tax reductions." (Read more)

Midway to open pharmacy school in Paintsville

Midway College plans to open a school of pharmacy in Paintsville, Ky., in the fall semester of 2011. "We are a college that has been built around the health sciences," President William B. Drake said. "This move to the doctoral level for a pharmacy program is a natural extension of that." The pharmacy school will be the first in Appalachian Kentucky, much of which is plagued by abuse of prescription drugs.

The school's first home will be the Mayo Campus of the Big Sandy Community and Technical College. Drake said the site was selected because of "extrordinary community support. That included "an investment of financial resources and multiple land parcels currently being considered as possible donations for the school's eventual permanent site," Susan Baniak of Business Lexington reports.

Midway Station's would-be developer gets another year to close his purchase of failed industrial park

"Developer Dennis Anderson will have another year to close on purchasing the Midway Station property," the failed industrial park on Interstate 64, Stephen Burnett reports in the lead story in today's edition of The Woodford Sun (not available online).

Anderson got an extension to Dec. 1, 2010, after he cited "lackluster economic conditions" and "the necessary replacement of many utility lines on the property, which will delay the final development plan," Burnett writes, based on discussion at the Dec. 18 meeting of the Woodford County Economic Development Authority, which owns the property.

The fact that Anderson is cutting down dead trees that would be in the way of streets in his development plan shows that he is still serious about the project, EDA board member Malcolm Endicott said at the meeting, "though more details must be worked through," Burnett writes.

Only two restaurants serving alcohol on Sunday

By Cassidy Myers
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Telecommunications

Woodford County recently passed an ordinance to allow Sunday alcohol sales, but you wouldn’t know it if you drove down Midway’s Main Street on a Sunday evening looking for a restaurant serving an adult beverage.

In April, Woodford County Fiscal Court approved Sunday alcohol sales in Midway and the surrounding area outside of Versailles. The law was passed largely at the behest of restaurants in Midway, but most of them have yet to take advantage of it, citing the cost of the license and the restrictions on smaller restaurants.

“I have not applied for the Sunday license because it costs $300 for the county and $300 for the state. That's a lot of money for only Sunday,” said Laura Wolfrom, owner of Bistro La Belle. “And the state requires 100 permanent indoor seats in a restaurant to be considered for a full liquor license. This discriminates against small restaurants that are very worthy of serving liquor.”

Only two restaurants, Quirk Café and Holly Hill Inn, have obtained licenses to sell alcohol on Sundays. Holly Hill Inn only serves alcohol from 1 to their 2 p.m. closing, but says it will probably extend hours at some point, and Quirk serves from 1 to 4 p.m., although the ordinance allows sales until 10 p.m.

However, if you’re looking for a drink after 4 p.m., you’re not out of luck. The Midway Fuels gas station sells beer from noon to 8 p.m.

In addition to the restrictions put on small restaurants, Jimmy Duggan, owner of Duggan’s, says that because Midway is so empty on Sundays, it’s not profitable to open, though he is still contemplating obtaining a license so he can sell alcohol on Sundays during next year’s World Equestrian Games. “Midway is not busy on Sundays and I won't make any money,” he said. “As for the Games, we will see.”

The Games, which will be held at the Kentucky Horse Park for three weeks in late September and early October, were a motivating factor in passing the ordinance. Especially during the Games, Midway needed a way to compete with surrounding areas like Lexington, Lawrenceburg and Frankfort, which allow Sunday alcohol sales.

Grayson Vandegrift, owner of Quirk, thinks it will be a great revenue boost for his restaurant, especially with all of the foreigners expected to be in town for the Games, “It’s going to be great. European customers are more likely to have a beer with lunch. It’s going to be huge. A lot of extra revenue.”

With a struggling economy and the increased cost of food, selling alcohol is one of the most profitable ways for restaurants to make money, and can be the tipping point for many eateries.
“It’s so hard to make money off of food alone,” Vandegrift said, “so most businesses need to sell alcohol in order to keep their doors open.”

Although some restaurants may not be taking advantage of the law yet, the ability to open on Sundays for special occasions is a huge potential bonus, Mayor Tom Bozarth said. “It gives each restaurant the flexibility to open on Sundays for regular business or have special events on a Sunday,” he said. “When New Year’s Eve falls on a Sunday they now can be open and serve alcohol.”

Three Chimneys introduces its newest stallion as it cuts his stud fee and most others at the farm

By Will Steffe
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Telecommunications

Three Chimneys Farm in Midway held an open house Tuesday to introduce the stallion Red Giant, who will stand at the farm during the 2010 season.

The farm announced lower stud fees for this champion horse and for the 11 other stallions at the farm, in the wake of a decline in Thoroughbred breeding last year.

Three Chimneys, founded as a 100-acre breeding operation in 1972 by Mr. and Mrs. Robert Clay, has grown to more than 1,500 acres. The farm is divided into six divisions to accommodate a wide variety of horses.

Red Giant was foaled Feb. 28, 2004 in Kentucky. This stallion comes from a rich pedigree. His sire is the 2000 European Horse of the Year, Giants Causeway, and his dam is Beyond the Sun.

Red Giant’s most notable wins came in a track-record time at the 2007 Virginia Derby, a win in the Fourstardave Handicap at Saratoga Race Course, and a world record 1¼-mile time in a win at the Clement L. Hirsch Turf Championship Stakes. His overall racing record is 6-3-1 in 12 starts.

Three Chimneys posted a stud fee of $6,000 for Red Giant in 2010, a 20 percent discount from the $7,500 charged by his previous owner, Hill ‘n’ Dale Farms of Lexington, in 2009. The stud fees at Three Chimneys for the upcoming breeding season ranged from $150,000 for Dynaformer to $5,000 for Good Reward and Lewis Michael. Compared to the other stallions at the farm, Red Giant’s fees are in the lower quarter.

Three Chimneys reduced fees for all its stallions but Dynaformer and Exchange Rate from 2009 to 2010. According to the farm’s records, Dynaformer has been a Top 5 sire five times since 2001. He sired 80 winners in 2008 with earnings totaling more than $5 million.

These declines in fees can be attributed to the impact of the recent national recession on the Kentucky thoroughbred industry.

“We have reduced most of our fees in recognition of the market,” owner Robert Clay said. “We will continue to limit our [stallion] book sizes, while offering multiple mare packages, breed-back specials and cash discounts.”

The Blood-Horse magazine’s Market Watch predicted that 2010 stud fees would drop because of poor sales of yearlings in 2009 at Keeneland. For a second year, few breeders gained significant profit and many sold their horses at a loss.

Kentucky horse industry economists also worry about declining attendance at horse races and the fact that fewer horses enter the races.

A proposed solution is to install slot machines at the tracks. The idea is that people will come to play the slot machines and the money generated can be used to increase race purses and attendance. Three Chimneys Marketing Director Jen Roytz said the farm doesn’t take a public stand on allowing slot machines at the horse racing tracks.

While they do not take a stand on the slot machine issue, managers of Three Chimneys seek to survive the current economic down turn by finding new ways to make a profit. “We are being very creative with the ways we are saving money for our clients and for the farm,” Roytz said. “We have also expanded our price breaks for those who breed to our stallions in an effort to support our customers.”

Baptist Church did its second Mission Midway Sat.

By Cassidy Myers
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Telecommunications

Some churches say they care about their community, but Midway Baptist Church shows it cares.

It is 8:30 on Saturday morning and volunteers of all ages are gathered in the church’s dining area eating biscuits and donuts and cheerfully visiting with other helpers. At this hour, most people are still at home in their warm beds. Not these eager, smiling volunteers! They are up early to participate in Midway Baptist Church’s second annual Mission Midway project. (Photo: Chad Royalty, on roof, and Kash Foster so some exterior work on a home)

Mission Midway is a one-day mission outreach event in which members of the church volunteer for a day of goodwill around their town. Some groups will brave the cold and the rain to do yard work for the elderly; 20 others will give blood; and a group of preschoolers will deliver care packages to the town merchants. Other projects include delivering blankets to shut-ins, administering medical check-ups and distributing appreciation gift bags to first responders such as firemen and policemen.

The purpose of the project is to focus on the needs of the community and provide an opportunity for everyone to help. “We wanted to encourage our members to get really involved in the community,” Senior Minister Tom Allen said. “A lot of times we have these mission projects that involve going overseas or a long-term commitment with a lot of planning and preparation, but we wanted to provide an opportunity that almost anyone could be a part of.”

Volunteer Joy Arnold, who also helped spearhead last year’s Mission Midway, echoed the same sentiment. “It’s very easy to go off somewhere for a week and never see those people again. It’s another thing to serve the people you see on the street,” she said.

The church had plenty of willing volunteers with about 85 members of varying ages stopping in to help throughout the day. The event also inspired Midway Presbyterian Church to participate, which symbolizes the theme for this year’s project, “Making Tracks in Midway.”

The motto represents the goal of longevity and participation that the church has for this project. “We are laying the foundation for mission work in Midway and hopefully after years of doing this, we’ll make tracks in Kentucky and then the United States and then the world,” said Mission Midway coordinator David McCoun.

After a morning of distributing blankets and benevolence, volunteers began filing back into the dining area where the aroma of six homemade soups greeted them. Most of the seven projects had been completed and the day was declared a success, not only by the participants but by the Midway community as well.

Mission Midway beneficiary and longtime church member Joe Fischer was grateful for the volunteers who helped clean up his yard just in time for winter. “They did a great job and trimmed some limbs off the fence and cleaned my gutters out. It was a great thing for me. It helped me out a lot. It was a good day and they couldn’t have done a better job,” he said.

“It went well. We got done what we wanted to do,” said volunteer and resident videographer Zachary Rankin. “It brightened a lot of people’s days to see us out there.”

On an otherwise cold and dreary day, spirits were high and the day was brightened for everyone involved, exemplifying the day’s theme of “Making Tracks in Midway” and increasing expectations for next year’s event. (Photo: Left to right, Kristy Royalty, Khristina Meissner and Catlynn Taylor brave the cold to administer free blood glucose and blood pressure checkups.)

Council rezones old sewage-treatment plant to pave way for sale, perhaps to grease recycler

By Mark Wetherington
University of Kentucky School of Journalism and Telecommunications

The Midway City Council voted last night to zone as industrial the city’s old wastewater treatment plant, which has been proposed as a site for recycling waste oil and grease from Bluegrass restaurants.

The 2-acre tract was rezoned I-2, or Heavy Industrial. It had been zoned in three separate parcels as A-1 (Agricultural), CO-1 (Conservation) and I-1 (Light Industrial). Rezoning the land as I-2 was recommended by the Versailles-Midway-Woodford County Planning and Zoning Commission.

The city had accepted bids for the property last year and received one bid, from Mike Thornton of Martin’s Sanitation Service, but zoning and surveying issues prevented the bid from being accepted. The property has now been consolidated and rezoned, and surveying revealed that it is a slightly larger parcel than was previously estimated.

“Because the property size has changed, there will have to be a new bid,” Council Member Sharon Turner said after the meeting.

Thornton in a telephone interview Tuesday morning, “I would assume we would still be interested, unless there is a conditional use on it that we can’t meet.” He said that if he purchases the property he intends to use it to process the waste he collects. The solid waste would be separated and sent to a landfill, while the wastewater would be processed by the Midway Wastewater Treatment Plant and a per-gallon fee charged.

Turner noted, “Treating the wastewater will create a revenue stream for Midway.”

Thornton also said that he is planning to eventually use the property as a location for processing used restaurant grease into an alternative energy source.

Although the council voted unanimously to approve the rezoning ordinance, there was some skepticism. Maralyn Burstein, who voiced her opposition to the rezoning at the preceding council meeting, said the rezoning could have negative effects. “There aren’t any restrictions that would prevent it from being used in a harmful way in the future,” she said in an interview.

Other business

The council gave first reading to an ordinance to establish the City of Midway as a drug- and alcohol-free workplace. Final passage would bring Midway into compliance with the federal drug-free workplace policy and will help reduce worker’s compensation insurance premiums, city officials said.

David Collins of the C.I. Thornburg Co. spoke to the council about equipment that would allow Midway’s water meters to be accurately and quickly read through radio frequencies. Radio meter readers are cost-effective and eliminate many of the problems associated with traditional meters, Collins said. The city recently had a problem with meter readings.

Laura Dake and Gale Reece of ITN Bluegrass told the council that their group, a local affiliate of a national non-profit organization that provides transportation to senior citizens, is interested in expanding from Fayette County to Midway and other outlying towns. ITN Bluegrass is funded by membership fees and fares, as well as through local support such as volunteer drivers, car donations and local grants.

Helen Rentch, a Midway citizen who introduced Dake and Reece to the council, said there is a growing need for a transportation service for senior citizens in Midway, and “We don’t have taxis.”

Dake and Reece said providing transportation services to seniors allows them to stay in their home after they no longer feel safe behind the wheel. Rather than entering a nursing home or assisted-living facility, they can remain at home and safely travel by using the service provided by ITN Bluegrass.

The next meeting of the Midway city council is scheduled for Monday, November 2, at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall.