7-28-10 —     Wayne County will receive an additional $250,000 in funds from the State Transportation Cabinet for blacktopping projects. During a meeting on Thursday, July 15, the court approved a resolution authorizing paperwork be completed for the discretionary funding.

    County Judge-Executive Greg Rankin noted that Wayne County was among a handful of Kentucky counties to receive the additional funding. Every county in the state is awarded blacktopping dollars based on a formula.  Wayne County received $231,000 in that initial process. The additional $250,000, along with local funds that will be spent, translates into about $500,000 in blacktopping projects this year, according to Rankin.

    Rankin explained that he and the magistrates have put together roads that will be of the plan for blacktopping this year. There had to be some shuffling of projects, since one pot of the state money cannot be used to blacktop gravel roads. The discretionary money can be, explained Rankin.

    He added that the county can use its own resources and equipment to do smaller projects at a little cheaper price.

    "We can do five miles for the price of four miles if we do it ourselves," noted Rankin.

    He said that as soon as all the paperwork is completed they hope to begin blacktopping projects in the county.

    When this money is spent, Wayne County will have spent more money on blacktopping in a four-year span that it has in any other term in its history, according to Rankin.

    Also during the meeting, magistrates and other county officials mentioned the ongoing problem with keeping county road signs up. Wayne County EMS Director Bubby Corder noted that his department recently had some problems finding a patient because a road sign was missing.

    Rankin noted this is an ongoing problem. He estimated that there were about 20 signs that had just been completed and were ready to put up right now, another 20 were being completed and about 30 more were being ordered.

    Often, Rankin said that signs go back up and only stay up a few days before they are stolen again.

    "It's a big problem," he said.

    "It's dangerous and it's expensive," stated District Three Magistrate Dale Vaughn, as officials discussed how the missing signs affect the response times for emergency services.

    County Attorney Lee Tobbe said that several cases have been prosecuted regarding stolen road signs, and he said many people are not aware of the penalties that are involved with the crime. He said that significant fines have been levied, and individuals who are convicted of the offense can serve up to a year in jail.

    In other action during the meeting, the court:

    • Approved the sheriff's tax settlement.

    • Approved the reappointment of Mary Lou Brown and Bill Bush to the Northern Wayne County Ambulance Service District.

    • Approved the adoptions of Mary Beth Drive, Elk Park Drive, Oak Park Drive, Oak Valley Lane, and Pittman Lane into the county road system.

    • Approved bids for culverts and road oil.

    • Heard a report from Jailer Ray Upchurch who noted that the current population at the Detention Center is 171, including 84 county inmates and 87 state inmates. For the month of May, the county received $94,383.64 for housing inmates.

    • Heard a monthly report from Solid Waste Coordinator Tim Bell who noted that white goods had been picked up at 120 households last month. The county received $2,341 from the sale of recyclable materials in June, brining the total this year to $22,347.

    • Heard a monthly report from EMS Director Bubby Corder who noted that the ambulance service has answered 1,811 call so far this year. He told magistrates that the online EMT class is about half full right now. Wayne County is the first ambulance service in Kentucky to offer this service.