Fiscal court approves loader purchase, reviews extension, library tax rates

Nelson County Public Library Director Sharon Shanks distributes library budget information to Nelson Fiscal Court at Tuesday’s meeting. Click to enlarge.

By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette / WBRT Radio

Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2016, 1 p.m. — Nelson Fiscal Court met Tuesday morning and approved the purchase of a new Caterpillar 963K CAT loader for use at the Nelson County Landfill.

The purchase price of $288,139 was higher than the John Deere bid, but other considerations prompted the committee to recommend the CAT.

“We’ve had a good track record with CAT,” magistrate Sam Hutchins told the court. He also cited the greater availability of parts and the higher trade-in offer for the county’s existing machine CAT loader.

With the trade-in, the total price the court approved was $244,139.

LIBRARY, EXTENSION TAXES. Ron Bowman, an agent with the Nelson County Cooperative Extension Office, told the court the extension board has approved adjust its tax rate to allow for a 4 percent revenue increase — the first 4 percent revenue increase in 32 years.

Bowman cited cuts in state funding as the reason the board approved the revenue hike.

The extension office has three funding sources — federal, state and local taxes. The state’s extension budget statewide was cut $2.6 million.

“We hate to do it, but with everything coming down the pike we don’t have a choice,” he said.

Sharon Shanks, the director of the Nelson County Public Library, told the court the library board has approved accepting the compensating tax rate for 2016. The rate will mean the board will see approximately $100,000 in additional revenue.

The additional revenue raised eyebrows of some magistrates, but Shanks explained that the tax rates are prepared by the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives based on local property assessments.

The majority of the library’s budget are salaries, she said. The library employs 24 full-time and 6 part-time people between its three branches.

In other business, the court:

— approved a bid of $9,400 by Adams Painting to paint the metal roofing and trim at the Sutherland Building;

— approved a bid of $312,369.90 from Cleary Construction for construction of water and sewer lines to serve Thai Summit’s new location in the Nelson County Industrial Park.

— approved the purchase of four new police interceptors for the sheriff’s office at a cost of $28,977.77 each. Two vehicles will be paid for by fiscal court; the other two will be paid for by the sheriff’s office.

— approved a tax assessment moratorium request from Smith Brothers Distributing, 1207 North Third St. According to the application, the company plans to spend $750,000 to build an addition to its existing building.

— approved the purchase of a new 22 cubic yard recycling trailer to replace the existing 12 cubic yard trailer.

— approved the purchase of garbage can tippers for two of the county’s existing garbage trucks. The tippers will allow easier handling of the 75-80 gallon totes that have increased in popularity. Once full, the totes are heavy and represent an injury risk for employees.

— approved three Dean Watts Park projects: regrade the infield and rebuild the backstop at Field 4, and resurface parts of the walking trail.

NEXT UP. Nelson Fiscal Court will meet next at a special meeting 9 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2016, for a tax rate public hearing and final approval.

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