Dixon Commission discusses possible purchases

by Matt Hughes

J-E News Editor

The Dixon Commission was in session last week. Among other items discussed was the need to purchase a zero turn mower and a weed eater for the city of Dixon.

Until late last summer the city of Dixon, like all of the other communities in the county, had taken advantage of the mowing services offered by the Webster County jail.

In late August the city of Dixon stopped using the jail’s mowing services. At this time it is unclear whether the commission plans to ask the jail to start mowing again or not.

Mayor Linda Frederick said in a phone interview that they had not ruled that out.

“We gave (water operator) Jamie Harkins the option to use the prisoners when we hired him,” she said. “We just have no had anything for them to do.”

After discussion of purchasing the equipment, the commission decided to table the topic until spring.

Mayor Frederick told the commission that the city was the recipient of a Safety Grant in the amount of approximately $2,800. During the discussion of some of the city’s sidewalks that where in need of repair, she mentioned a bid from Tim Fraiser for repair work that would encompass four areas along highway 132 West.

Commissioner Donna Keller presented a list containing the names of 13 churches that would be willing to hold invocation before the commission meetings. Plans were made to start the invocation service in March.

In October the commission unanimously approved an ordinance that governed prayer held during their meetings. The ordinance outlines who can pray, when they can pray and requires prior approval of those people.

On it’s website, KLC says that “Many cities in Kentucky open their public meetings with a short prayer or invocation.  This practice was upheld as constitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court decades ago, but recently legislative prayer policies have taken center stage in a flurry of court cases across the nation.  Both the U.S. Supreme Court and the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals will soon be revisiting the issue and hopefully offering updated legal guidance for cities in Kentucky.”

The practice was most recently brought to the forefront in Coleman and Jones vs. Hamilton County Commission (TN), a case the KLC paid close attention to. In the end the county’s practice of opening meetings with a prayer was allowed, but KLC started urging cities to adopt ordinances outlining their own practice.

So far the city of Dixon is the only one in the county that has addressed the issue.

In other business, the commission discussed updating the city’s Christmas lights, some of which were damaged during the Christmas season. In the end the commission decided to leave that project up to water operator Jamie Harkins.

This is an issue that the Providence Chamber of Commerce also addressed at their most recent meeting. The Chamber hosts the annual Christmas lights display at the Providence city park.

Chamber President Elizabeth Holloman said that there was a company near Benton, KY that manufactures and repairs Christmas light displays.