City Council OKs resolution needed for Bethlehem athletics complex loan
By JIM BROOKS
Nelson County Gazette / WBRT Radio
Wednesday, July 25, 2018 — The Bardstown City Council approved a resolution in support of Industrial Revenue Bonds for Bethlehem High School’s planned $3.5 million 40-acre athletics complex.
MAYOR DICK HEATON
The property is located on the south side of KY245 across from its intersection with Withrow Court.
The resolution is the first step that will allow Wilson & Muir Bank to issue the bonds. The city’s involvement was necessary in order for them to be tax-exempt.
Mayor Dick Heaton emphasized that the bonds do not create debt for the City of Bardstown. The school and the Archdiocese of Louisville are the responsible parties for payment of those bonds.
The money is being loaned at a 3 percent interest rate. The bonds are contingent on a City Council public hearing that is set to take place Monday, July 30, 2018.
OSCAR GETZ DONATION REQUEST. Linda McCloskey, the executive director of the Oscar Getz Museum, presented the council Tuesday with a donation request for $5,000.
The money is needed for signs to help people locate the museum, she explained.
Ideally, she would like to have signs on the Bluegrass Parkway at both Exit 21 and Exit 25 to alert travelers to the museum’s location. She suggested four additional smaller signs in the community that would direct people to the museum.
Councilman David Dones said that he wasn’t sure a request to purchase signs would meet the city’s established requirements to be eligible for a donation.
Mayor Dick Heaton said the signs inside the city would benefit both tourists and residents who have heard of the museum but not sure where it is located.
Councilwoman Kecia Copeland suggested McCloskey determine the exact number of signs she needed and their cost and submit a new request based on those numbers. With only $10,000 left in the donation fund, the odds are that the museum would not receive the full amount of its request.
McCloskey agreed to return with more specifics on the costs involved with the signs.
In other business, the council:
— approved a bid of $110 a ton submitted by Compass Minerals of American for 200 tons of road salt. The price is higher this year due to heavy demand in the midwestern states this past winter.
— approved a request to close South Third Street on Friday, Aug. 23 and Saturday Aug. 24, 2018, from Payne to McGee streets for the Buttermilk Festival. The council also approved a request to make traffic on Payne Street one-way for the same time period.
— approved a request by the Bardstown Rotary Club to use the front lawn of City Hall for the annual Rotary Kids Day event. The city will provide the area with electricity, picnic tables and trash barrels.
NEXT UP. The council will next meet briefly in a special-called meeting at noon Monday, July 30, 2018, for the public hearing for the Bethlehem High School Industrial Revenue Note.
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