Council OK’s plan to close West John Fitch, hikes water meter install fees

By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette / WBRT Radio

Bethlehem High School Principal Tom Hamilton shows the Bardstown City Council the school’s plans to close West John Fitch and create a new parking lot and entrance on Cathedral Manor. Click to enlarge.

Wednesday, June 11, 2014 — West John Fitch will be closed to through traffic at Bethlehem High School in a plan approved Tuesday night by the Bardstown City Council.

Bethlehem Principal Tom Hamilton and Michael Salsman of BCD Construction explained school plans to create a new parking lot and entrance onto Cathedral Manor adjacent to the Nelson County Public Library. The plan will close the school’s existing Cathedral Manor parking lot entrance and move it south.

Hamilton told the council the school plans to create a student courtyard in the parking lot at the rear of school that will include the West John Fitch roadway. The move will improve student safety by eliminating vehicle traffic behind the school and create a walkway to classrooms in the former physician’s office building.

The council gave its unanimous approval of first reading of the road closure. The final reading will come Tuesday, June 24, 2014.

WATER TAP-ON FEE HIKE. Homebuilders and developers who wish to connect to the city’s water system will see the cost for a new meter connection increase substantially in a move approved at Tuesday’s council meeting.

Anna Jane Thomas, winner of the Human Rights Commission essay contest, reads her essay in front of the Bardstown city Council. Click to enlarge.

Jessica Filiatreau, the city’s civil engineer, told the council the increase comes after a recent evaluation of the city’s actual costs to install a new water meter connection. “It reflects the actual materials and labor costs,” Filiatreau said.

A new residential water connection in town will increase from $375 to $700; an out-of-town connection increases from $425 to $750. New connections for larger lines will also increase.

Councilman John Royalty questioned the size of increase for a new residential water connection. “It costs that much to actually set that meter,” Filiatreau explained. The fees for new water connections haven’t been adjusted for eight years, she said.

The final approval of the increase will come at the council’s next meeting.

HUMAN RIGHTS ESSAY WINNER. Bardstown High School student Anna Jane Thomas was recognized by the council Tuesday night for writing the winning essay in the local Human Rights Commission’s essay contest. Thomas read her essay to the council, citing the lack of state and local laws that fully protect the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals.

In her essay, Thomas said the lack of state and local protections mean that “people are unable to feed their families and pay their bills because of the discrimination that goes unpunished and unreprimanded in their community.”

Mayor Bill Sheckles and City Clerk Barbie Bryant go over details of an ordinance prior to the start of Tuesday’s meeting of the Bardstown City Council. Click to enlarge.

Citing said the use of the word “God” in the preamble and other sections reference God “are representative of the lack of protection of the LGBT community in our state due to religious arguments in our community, and this is legally not allow,” she said.

BICYCLE PERMITS NIXED. The council approved updates to the city ordinance governing bicycles to eliminate the requirement that owners register their bikes with the Bardstown Police Department and attend a training program.

The requirements date back to at least the 1970s. The ordinance also required a training program conducted by the police department for bicycle riders.

Mayor Bill Sheckles explained the updates were part of the city’s ongoing efforts to update its ordinances. The ordinance will keep the city’s “rules of the road” for bike riders, including the prohibition of bicycles on city sidewalks.

ELECTION DAY LIQUOR. An updated alcohol beverage control ordinance that will allow election day alcohol sales also passed first reading Tuesday.

Changes in state law now allow local governments to approve alcohol sales on election days, Sheckles explained.

In other business, the council:

— authorized the mayor to sign a contract with Bardstown Radio Team LLC for additional leased time on Bardstown Cable channel 19;

— approved a change order to add $20,000 to the cost of painting the Botland water tank due to lead paint levels that require special handling of the removed paint;

— approved amending the 2013-14 city budget to reflect actual costs and expenditures throughout the fiscal year which ends June 30;

— approved fireworks permits for the Nelson County Humane Society and the Bardstown Church of God;

— approved a municipal order to increase return check fees to $50;

NEXT UP. The council’s next meeting is Tuesday, June 24.

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