Kentucky Senate President Robert Stivers and 82nd District Representative Nick Wilson were both on hand at the Whitley County Fiscal Courtroom last Friday to present several ceremonial checks to local leaders from funds earmarked for area projects during the most-recent legislative session.
Stivers and Wilson presented the checks to Corbin Mayor Suzie Razmus, Williamsburg Mayor Roddy Harrison, Whitley County Judge-Executive Pat White, Jr. and Corbin Economic Development Agency Executive Director Bruce Carpenter.
Before presenting the checks, Stivers noted that the funds being disbursed across the county represent an “investment” by lawmakers in this area, also lauding the county’s elected officials.
“I’ve worked in a lot of counties. I’ve worked with fellow legislators in their counties. This group, both mayors and the judge, are as good a group as you could want to work with—talking, collaborating, operating—and that is reflected by what we are going to announce here with a partnership between Nick and I,” said Stivers.
Among the ceremonial checks given out was one to White for $7.5 million for an expansion project at the Whitley County Detention Center. That project is expected to add up to 100 additional beds to the facility.
According to White, finalized schematics are in the works and are expected to be approved by the Whitley County Fiscal Court sometime at the beginning of the year. Based on the current designs, the expansion will be oriented in what is currently a visitor parking area. The existing entrance road will be relocated slightly farther down KY92 to allow vehicles to park on the other side of the building.
White said that the expansion will help the county be able to recoup some of the funds that are currently lost due to operating the jail. As of the last estimate, the county loses just over $2 million a year operating the WCDC.
The jail expansion will not be ready until sometime in 2026.
Other ceremonial checks provided during the presentation included:
– $3.5 million for the City of Corbin to be distributed to the Corbin Utilities Commission for sewer line extensions.
According to Razmus, that project will see a number of homes within the city that currently have private septic tanks be tapped into the city’s sewer system. Much of that work will be up in the Gordon Hill area of town.
– $1.5 million to the City of Williamsburg for further expansion at the Kentucky Splash Waterpark and Campground.
– $24.6 million to the Whitley County Fiscal Court for the maintenance and upkeep of roads, bridges and highways throughout the county.
According to Stivers, that amount is for all necessary projects within the county and also accounts for work expected to be performed on state roads and highways.
– $500,000 to the Southern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce for a tourism initiative.
According to Carpenter, he is hoping to be able to build some type of festival experience at the Cumberland Run racetrack akin to other Kentucky festivals such as Railbird or Bourbon and Beyond. These funds are an investment by the legislature to help work toward making that a possibility in the near future.
“It’s been an ongoing discussion for probably a year now,” said Carpenter. “It’s just a matter now of trying to move forward with some plans there to see what they can do and what needs to be done [at Cumberland Run]. We’re talking a 12-to-18-month timeframe just to make all that happen.”
