Lawrence Co. Business gets $92,750 for new fabrication equipment
FRANKFORT, Ky., July 7, 2016 – Seven projects in eastern Kentucky have been selected to share about $314,150 in economic development grants from Kentucky Power. The awards are part of the Kentucky Power Economic Development Growth Grants (K-PEGG) program and the Kentucky Power Economic Advancement Program (KEAP).
The K-PEGG is funded through the Kentucky Economic Development Surcharge approved by the Kentucky Public Service Commission in 2015. For every 15 cents collected monthly from customers, company stockholders match the customer contributions dollar for dollar to generate $600,000 annually for investment at the local and regional levels. The program is available in all 20 counties served by Kentucky Power.
The KEAP program was created as part of a 2014 agreement with the Kentucky Public Service Commission and other interveners to provide $1 million in economic development assistance to customers over five years. KEAP is specific to seven counties in Kentucky Power’s service area – Boyd, Carter, Elliott, Lawrence, Johnson, Martin and Morgan. The grants must be used for programs and projects, such as job retention; expansion surveys; wage and benefit surveys; retaining and attracting new industries; and conducting special studies.
“Kentucky Power takes great pride in working with local, regional and state organizations to promote stronger economies and economic growth in the communities we serve in eastern Kentucky,” said Greg Pauley, Kentucky Power president and chief operating office. “We are doing what we can to assist in the development of our region and in adding meaningful, sustainable and good paying jobs.”
K-PEGG recipients are:
The Big Sandy Regional Industrial Authority — $100,000 for a building purchase at East Kentucky Business Park in Martin County. The project will assist a local company in expanding to a new location that will create 80 additional jobs and retain 35 existing jobs.
One East Kentucky — $37,000 for Aerospace Feasibility Certification. The grant will fund a regional aerospace feasibility study focused on the One East Kentucky Region. The specific areas of focus will be on the Pike County airport, Big Sandy Regional Airport (Martin County), Hazard Airport, East KY Business Park in Martin County, Marion’s Branch Industrial park in Pikeville, and Coalfields Industrial Park in Hazard.
KEAP 2016 recipients are:
Ashland Alliance / Northeast Kentucky Regional Industrial Authority — $45,000 for a project at the East Park Industrial Site in the greater Ashland area. The grant funds various improvements of an existing 110,000 square foot specification building at the park. Project includes $5,000 in local matching funds.
Big Sandy Area Development District — $10,400. Grant funds economic development training.
City of Olive Hill — $25,000. Funds preliminary engineering services for surveying, measurements of existing wastewater treatment facilities and equipment as well as preliminary layout and design as part of a capital project to upgrade the city’s wastewater treatment facility.
FIVCO Area Development District — $4,000. Funds East Park Industrial Park marketing project to include signage to be placed on the property to advertise its availability. Any remaining funds would be used for additional marketing materials for the property.
Louisa Chapter of the Southeast Kentucky Chamber — $92,750. Funds assist Quality Metal Products in Louisa in purchasing new equipment that will allow the company to fabricate new products and increase their production by 18 to 24 percent. This project will add six new jobs at the facility.
All grant applications were reviewed by a six-member committee comprised of four Kentucky Power employees and two outside, economic development professionals. The outside professionals represented the Kentucky Association of Economic Development and Kentucky Economic Development Cabinet.
“It is always difficult for the committee to finalize and make its recommendations, but in the end, the recipients are the ones judged to have the best, or perhaps most immediate, impact on area development,” said Brad Hall, external affairs manager for Kentucky Power. “We encourage those with promising economic development projects to submit applications for consideration.”
Information on the grants are posted on the Kentucky Power website at https://www.kentuckypower.com/info/community/economic/.
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Kentucky Power, with headquarters in Frankfort, Ky., provides service to nearly 170,000 customers in 20 eastern Kentucky counties. It is a unit of the American Electric Power system, one of the largest electric utilities in the United States, with nearly 5.4 million customers in 11 states. AEP ranks among the nation’s largest generators of electricity, owning nearly 32,000 megawatts of generating capacity in the U.S. AEP also owns the nation’s largest electricity transmission system, a more than 40,000-mile network that includes more 765-kilovolt extra-high voltage transmission lines than all other U.S. transmission systems combined.
