4TH OF JULY FIREWORKS WILL BE ON SATURDAY JULY 1, 2023, LOUISA COUNCIL DECIDES

City Budget up this year, police officers get big boost, all other city workers get 6.5% raise

By Susan Salyer

On Tuesday May 9, 2023 The Louisa City Council had a Regular Scheduled Meeting at Louisa City Hall, Louisa, Kentucky at 7PM. Mayor Harold Slone was in attendance along with council members Joey McClanahan, Gary Robertson, Caleb Farley, Rose Lester, Coty Roe and Keith Chaffin (attending his first meeting since being appointed by council last month).

Mayor Harold Slone announced that he has signed a Proclamation establishing the first week of May as ‘Public Service Week’ nationally. This includes Government, Police, Fire, Water and Sanitation employees.

“I appreciate our employees very much and proclaimed this week as PUBLIC SERVICE RECOGNITION WEEK  in the city. From patrolling the streets to riding trash trucks, from making clean water and managing waste water, from mowing and keeping our parks clean and our streets safe  to responding to life threatening emergencies we are one team with one mission. #ReDiscoverLouisa

LOUISA CITY POOL is only one in area that will open this year, Slone says

Slone said the Louisa City Pool has been delayed and it’s crunch time. The concrete schedule is over half done and should be completed in one more pour. The City Pool will Open the day after the last day of school, which is on May 23, 2023. The City of Louisa is very proud of the pool and it will be well used this summer. Slone said,

“The surrounding counties will not be opening their City Pools this summer, so Louisa City Pool should stay busy. This pool provides exercise, swimming and parties and is a family environment. The City of Louisa is improving the handicap accessibility and has already built new bathrooms outside the pool area,” Slone said.

New Fire Science to be added to LCHS curriculum

The Lawrence County High School (LCHS) will be adding a new class, Fire Science, to the curriculum in August 2023, Slone said. Students can walk from the high school to the Louisa Volunteer Fire Department station 2 on campus.

Also, the Fire Station has equipment for students to train on and Louisa Fire Chief Eddie Preston has enough fire training outfits for the students. This class will train students for Emergency Management Jobs. The instructor, Steve Wilburn, is qualified and allowed to teach 12 1/2 hours per week. The Lawrence County School Board passed this in the April Meeting. The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is good for one year and a new contract will have to be passed each year.

City to donate extra funding to training recovering addicts for health related jobs at Jordan Center (See Lazer video)

Lazer video by Susan Salyer

David McKenzie Jr., Owner & Operator of The Jordan Center, Louisa, Kentucky and Lori Baier, Director of Employment Services, Fletcher Group, Inc. (ABOVE) attended the Louisa City Council Meeting to request monies from the Opioid Settlement Funds received by the city.

McKenzie and Baier are working together to give second-chances to addiction recovery participants to work in all areas of recovery care. McKenzie said, “It has been hard to keep The Jordan Center running in recent months because of decline in employment. At one point, one hall was shut down, due to lack of employees.”

This donation will let McKenzie start a pilot program with seven students to train and join into the workforce with Baier’s contacts from the Fletcher Group. Mayor Harold Slone stated the City of Louisa has received $40,000 recently in Opioid Settlement Funds. The LC Fiscal Court also received Opioid Settlement Funds and have voted to donate $25,000 in the April LC Fiscal Court Meeting to McKenzie and Baier, they said.

Motion made and unanimously approved by council to donate $3,000 of the $40,000 to McKenzie and Baier’s group.

City Budget up this year, police officers get boost, all other city workers get 6.5% raise

Mayor Slone stated that the Louisa City Budget is $2.6 million with a surplus of $172,000 and they usually have construction funds. Slone also said the CPI (Consumer Price Index) for raises for city employees was 3.2% but this year it will be 6.5%. The biggest expenses with the City of Louisa in the last 2 years has been insurance, fuel and electric bills.

“Our budget this year is $2.6 million  that includes about $500,000  carry over surplus as our budget last year was $2.1 million.  Our carryover surplus is primarily from federal stimulus from last year that hasn’t been expended yet,” Slone said.

“Due to growth and Insurance premiums  we are also expecting about a $150,00 dollar increase in insurance premium tax over last year. Our mineral severance tax is expected to increase about $50,000 dollars over last year. The budget for Louisa Public Utilities is expected to increase to $3.5 million dollars. However, I expect the increases in cost of repairs and maintenance , cost of chemicals, insurance premiums , electricity to operate the plants , and fuel will make utilities cash flow challenging in the coming year.”

Slone said, “City Ordinance 2023-02 concerns starting pay for City of Louisa Police Officers which is $12.25 and will be raised to $14.25 with a maximum starting pay of $15.25 plus incentives of $2.07 per hour. New Police Officers will also receive a 3 year contract. Also, with this city ordinance, Chief of Police Greg Fugitt said, “Police Officers hired by the City of Louisa with a military background will have the $30,000 tuition fee paid for by the Department of Defense instead of the City of Louisa.”

Louisa 4th of July fireworks will be on Saturday July 1

The Louisa City Council Members voted to celebrate Fourth of July and fireworks on Saturday, July 1, 2023. Also the City of Fort Gay, West Virginia usually follows the same activities schedule for Fourth of July picked by Louisa City Council Members in Louisa, Kentucky.

Lazer video by Susan Salyer

Alleyways not city’s business, Bud says

Terry Collier and Michael & Rebekah Spradlin attended the Louisa City Council Meeting to discuss the ‘Alley Dispute’ on Conley Street in Louisa, Kentucky which has been ongoing for months.

Louisa City Attorney Eldred E. (Bud) Adams said, “There are two options for the parties involved. Option One is close the alley and split the property between parties involved. Option Two will be for any party involved to file a lawsuit at LC Circuit Court. The Louisa City Council is not an adjudication court.”

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AGENDA

1. Call to Order

Old Business

2. Approve Minutes for April 11, 2023 Motion by Rose Lester 2nd by Coty Roe.

New Business

3. MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) School Board Fire Science Academy – Motion by Caleb Farley 2nd by Joy McClanahan. None Opposed.
4. Opioid Funding Request – (Training Program) Motion by Joey McClanahan 2nd by Keith Chaffin. None Opposed.
5. Approve Louisa City Budget for 2023-2024 – Motion by Rose Lester 2nd by Coty Roe. None Opposed.
6. First Reading of Ordinance 2023-01, City of Louisa 2023-2024 Budget – Motion by Coty Roe 2nd by Rose Lester. None Opposed.
7. First Reading of Ordinance 2023-02, City Employee Compensation – Motion by Coty Roe 2nd by Keith Chaffin. None Opposed.
8. Approve Louisa Utility Budget for 2023-2024 – Motion by Rose Lester 2nd by Gary Robertson. None Opposed.
9. First Reading of Ordinance 2023-03, Louisa Utility Budget – Motion by Caleb Farley 2nd by Gary Robertson. None Opposed.
10. First Reading of Ordinance 2023-04, Utility Employees Compensation – Motion by Joey McClanahan 2nd by Caleb Farley. None Opposed.
11. Establish Date for July 4th Fireworks – Motion by Caleb Farley 2nd by Joey McClanahan. None Opposed.
12. Council Comments – None
13. Audience Comments – Terry Collier and Michael & Rebekah Spradlin discussed ‘Alley Dispute’ on Conley Street in Louisa, Kentucky.
14. Executive Session – Louisa City Attorney Eldred E. (Bud) Adams said, ‘The City Council Members want a ‘Title Search’ and Appraisal on 2nd piece of property the City of Louisa is interested in purchasing.’
15. Adjourn – Motion by Gary Robertson 2nd by Joey McClanahan.

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The next Louisa City Council Meeting will be held on Tuesday June 13, 2023 at Louisa City Hall, 215 N Main Cross Street, Louisa, Kentucky. The Public is Welcome to any and all meeting’s.