By Dennis Brown

Lewis County Fiscal Court met in regular session last week and approved a request to change the name of Sparks Drive to Laney Drive.

The request was made at the December meeting but was tabled to allow Judge Executive Steve Applegate and magistrates an opportunity to determine if the roadway was privately owned and if the county maintained any portion of it.

Applegate said there was some confusion on the matter because there is a Sparks Lane and Sparks Drive. He clarified that Sparks Drive is privately owned and that fiscal court needed to approve the name change to allow for proper addressing for E-911.

Magistrates heard an update on the Boys and Girls Club of Lewis County from Director Mike Kennedy and approved agreements between fiscal court and the US Department of Agriculture. Applegate said the agreements stem from a request for a portion of federal funding to purchase a new cruiser for the sheriff’s department.

Applegate said Sheriff Bill Lewis determined the department would be better served by purchasing two used cruisers rather than one new one. The agreements reflect that change.

Magistrates reviewed a request from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet for the county to accept ownership of a 

4.5 mile section of Old Ky. Rt. 8 west of Concord since the state had determined that section was unessential to the state road system. The request was denied and magistrates chose to forgo ownership rights to that section of roadway.

      Magistrates approved the appointment of Claude Bradley as Secretary to the Firebrick Volunteer Fire Department. That term will end in 2012. Greg Webb and Donna Shoemaker were appointed to the Lewis County Extension District Board with terms ending in 2010.

County officials presented their monthly reports to magistrates and Applegate reviewed a letter received from Time Warner Cable Government Affairs Manager Steven Cuckler.

The letter outlines some changes to be made to the Vanceburg system beginning about January 14 as a result of federally Designated Market Area Rules and Digital Transition Requirements.

In the letter, Cuckler said the system will no longer carry Lexington stations WKYT and WTVQ. He stated that customers will be able to receive programming from CBS and ABC networks via WOWK and WCHS out of the Charleston and Huntington, West Virginia, markets.

Magistrates approved the closure of State Fork Spur Road near Garrison. The roadway will no longer be maintained by the county and will not be open to the public.

The Vanceburg Electric Plant Board met in regular session last week, the first meeting of the New Year and the first meeting for Superintendent Eric Bloomfield.

Bloomfield took the helm of the local utility January 1 and said he hit the ground running. Bloomfield reported on a problem with the electric system December 29 and a fire at a sewer treatment plant December 30.

Bloomfield said a broken insulator caused an electrical short which resulted in a power surge affecting 13 homes in the Bradford Lane area. He said appliances, televisions and even surge protectors were damaged as a result.

The sewer treatment plant fire resulted in about $10,000 in damages and although the system kept operating, Bloomfield said workers are still making repairs to the facility. He said insurance will cover the repairs to the treatment plant but will not cover damage to items in the homes affected by the power surge.

AAA Fire and Water Restoration workers, he said, were still working at the treatment plant and after their job was completed workers with Labtronics would come in to go over electronic monitoring and diagnostic equipment and make any necessary repairs.

Bloomfield said the utility company was not able to do chlorine testing for a few days and the Kentucky Division of Water was notified.

Board members met in a closed session for about 40 minutes to discuss proposed or pending litigation and upon returning to open session authorized Bloomfield to negotiate with homeowners about damages pertaining to the power surge on December 30.

Bloomfield recommended accepting Robinette’s proposal and hiring an accounting firm to do the actual audit. He said the total cost will be about the same since Robinette will be doing most of the number crunching. He said that in the interest of continuity in the transition, accepting the proposal would ensure an accurate comparison. Board members approved the recommendation.

Bloomfield also gave an update on improvements to the sewer system as required by federal and state regulations. He said work is progressing well and is on schedule. The work includes new pumps at each drywell station, new generator connections, new meter bases and masts, and new control panels. He also noted that a water pump located at the water plant in Black Oak has been taken out of service and is being refurbished.

He informed the board of some changes through natural gas suppliers which will result in the loss of a small discount and a notice from AEP informing the utility of a small rate increase in electricity rates amounting to about one percent.

Vanceburg Councilman Denver Moore returned to the board as the council representative, replacing Brenda Lykins who chose not to run for re-election to council. Other board members are Gayle Massie, Charles Stapleton, Charles Ross and Jack Prater.