by MATT HUGHES
J-E Editor
Webster County Fiscal Court meet with Gina Boaz of the Green River Area Development District (GRADD) on Monday to discuss the prioritization of items on the county’s list of road needs.
GRADD works as an intermediary between the five counties in it’s region and the state on many projects, helping to secure state funding. In the case of road prioritization, GRADD takes the prioritized lists each county government develops, and then uses that data to complete a regional priority list. Both lists will ultimately go the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC), where they will help determine how funds are spent on projects that are currently unfunded by the state.
Magistrates awarded top priority to the reconstruction of US 41A between Providence and Dixon. Exactly what that reconstruction would consist of us unclear, but items that have been discussed in the past include straightening some of the curves, widening lanes and reconstructing some troublesome intersections.
The design phase of the proposed $43,590,000 project has already been funded in the amount of $1,760,000. That put the project in an unusual position, because design dollars usually aren’t invested until a project is ready to get started. For the time being it looks as if the project could be at least two years away.
Other projects on the list:
#1 - Highway 132 from Highway 1340 to Highway 857. (about 2.3 miles) - $8,700,000
#2 - Curvature and elevation of roadway and bridge 0.1 miles west of Highway 857 on Highway 132.
#3 - Issues at intersection of Highway 283 and Highway 1191 - $1,350,000
#4 - Highway 138 from Highway 132 to Highway 120 at Slaughters (10.4 miles) - $17,150,000.
#5 - The intersection of Highway 120 (Westerfield Drive) and Highway 293 (Finley Ave) in Providence - $1,575,000.
In other business, Magistrate Jerry ‘Poogie’ Brown mentioned that he had received several complaints on turkey houses located on Breton Bottom Road. While speaking with the court he mentioned accusations of the illegal dumping and disposal of turkey carcasses, including burning them in mass.
Brown suggested that the county look into finding some means of controlling what kind of companies moved into the county.
“Some big hog operation could decide to move into the county and we couldn’t do anything about it,” he told the court. “There has to be some kind of ordinance we could pass that would give us some control.”
“Planning and zoning is about the only way I can see you doing that, but I’m not advocating that,” said county attorney Clint Prow. “You could pass an ordinance, but not having planning and zoning could be a problem in court.”
Brown replied that he was not in favor of planning and zoning, but he was concerned about how the odor of such livestock farms would affect their neighbors.
Prow was asked to look into a possible nuisance ordinance that could help the court have some control over such industries.
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