City council approves water treatment plant upgrades, welcomes new fire chief
By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette / WBRT Radio
Thursday, Jan. 25, 2018 — Mayor Dick Heaton and the Bardstown City Council welcomed the city’s new fire chief at Tuesday evening’s council meeting.
Billy N. Mattingly was sworn-in Tuesday night at the start of the council meeting.
Mayor Dick Heaton introduces the city’s new fire chief, Billy Mattingly, to members of the media at Tuesday evening’s Bardstown City Council meeting. Photo by Elijah Brooks
The council meeting began with a moment of silence for the victims, families and the Marshal County community in the wake of Tuesday morning’s school shooting at Marshall County High School.
Heaton said Mattingly has the background and experience to help lead the young fire department, which has only operated as a full-time department for three years.
Mattingly said he was glad to be back in Nelson County, and looked forward to helping the department move forward.
ROWAN CREEK SEWER UPGRADES. The council approved the award of a $652,820 contract to HDR Engineering of Lexington for its engineering and construction services for upgrades to the Rowan Creek sewer trunk line. The improvements will increase the size of the line in several areas, upgrade the pumping capacity of the Pottershop Road sewer pump station and replace the 24-inch sewer line that feeds into the Town Creek wastewater treatment plant with a 36-inch line.
CHLORAMINE WATER TREATMENT PROJECT. The council approved a recommendation to award Judy Construction Co. of Cynthiana the $881,500 bid to install the necessary equipment to convert the city’s water plant from a chlorine disinfection to a chloramine disinfection process.
The conversion means the addition of ammonia to the existing treatment process. The disinfection process will still use chlorine, but an additional step will introduce ammonia to the water after it is first treated with chlorine.
The chloramine conversion is intended to reduce problems with disinfection byproducts that can form in treated drinking water as it flows through the water lines.
As the chlorine-treated drinking water ages, organic compounds in the water break down and form byproducts. Chloramine disinfection lasts much longer than disinfection with chlorine alone.
The change will improve water quality throughout the county and for the city’s wholesale water customers. The new treatment process also makes the city’s water compatible with water treated by the Louisville Water Co.
SIGN ORDINANCE UPDATE. The council approved updates to the city’s sign ordinance that ultimately have been driven by the changing needs of the city’s distilleries and their related operations.
Mayor Dick Heaton explained that the distillery complexes also include event centers, gift shops and other attractions, making it necessary to create a new section of the sign ordinance regarding signage for a “campus”-type operation that requires directional signs on the property.
The changes also add regulations governing LED type signs with changing text.
HISTORIC REVIEW BOARD RECOMMENDATIONS. The council approved the following recommendations for Certificates of Appropriateness forwarded by the Historic Review Board.
COA-18-01. Approval to display a military vehicle in the parking lot of the Old Bardstown Village Inc. parking lot. A former military Humvee vehicle will be a temporary, static display.
COA-18-02. Troy Dennison, 112 North 3rd Street, approval to build an outdoor patio bar at the rear of his existing business, Third Street Tap House.
COA-18-03. Finn Davis Rental LLC., approval to build an addition at 214 East Flaget Street.
In other business, the council:
— approved changes to the city’s wastewater ordinance to update restricted discharges of industrial chemicals and metals; provide flow measuring options for industrial sewer customers; and update wastewater loading surcharges.
— approved the results of the city’s recent financial audit.
NEXT UP. The Bardstown City Council’s next regular meeting is 7 p.m.
Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018.
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