Perry County court declares local emergency, approves sewer and housing grant draws and awards bid

Perry County Fiscal Court declared a local state of emergency and approved several grant actions and a bid award during a regular meeting, actions the court said would allow it to seek state assistance and to draw on multiple grant programs for local sewer and housing projects.

The declaration of a local state of emergency was approved to preserve the county’s ability to apply for state reimbursement and to request immediate assistance — including tractor-trailer loads of water — if recent and forecasted heavy rains produce landslides or other damage. The presiding official cautioned, “It doesn't mean that we're gonna get any reimbursement, and it doesn't mean that the state will meet this threshold,” adding that the declaration preserves the option to apply if damage meets state thresholds.

Nut graf: The court approved grant rounds and draw requests tied to two infrastructure efforts — the Upper Second Creek sanitary sewer Phase 1 project and the Sky View Housing Development water and sewer work — and awarded an economic development bid, moving funding and contracting decisions forward. Court members emphasized that grant-funded projects can take years between application and visible construction.

The court recorded a series of routine administrative approvals at the start of the meeting including minutes, bill payments and transfers. It then voted, without extended discussion, on a set of grant approvals for the Upper Second Creek sanitary sewer Phase 1 project: approvals were recorded for a KIA item (22CWS087), an ARC (South Appalachian Regional Commission) grant (KY20919), and a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG 22-020). The presiding official noted these grants and the project have been in development for several years and that “from the time we apply and the time we're awarded to actually seeing the work going on can be 4 to 6 years.”

The court approved a draw request for the Sky View Housing Development water and sewer project for a total of $702,507.41. The record includes grant program references for the draw (ARC 23a-051 and multiple KIA codes) and the presiding official explained that funds arrive from different sources and must be accounted for in separate line items in the county’s books. Specific line-item amounts tied to each grant code were read into the record during the meeting; the total requested draw recorded in the minutes is $702,507.41.

Separately, the court awarded a construction/installation bid to BML Group USA. The motion to award listed a base bid of $289,880; the total bid figure was read into the record and the county noted that Wells Motorsports will pay the difference of $69,816 between the grant amount and total cost. Court members described this as an economic development grant allocation and said the funds are intended solely for economic growth purposes.

Other business: a recycling program update was tabled until the next meeting. The court then moved to adjourn.

Votes at a glance: The meeting minutes record the following formal actions and outcomes (motion/second as spoken in the meeting): - Declaration of a local state of emergency — motion by Church; second by Spencer; outcome: approved. (See transcript excerpt.) - Approval: KIA Grama 22CWS087, Upper Second Creek Sanitary Sewer Phase 1 — motion by Church; second by Spencer; outcome: approved. - Approval: ARC (South Appalachian Regional Commission) Grant KY20919, Upper Second Creek Sanitary Sewer Phase 1 — motion by Church; second by Cones; outcome: approved. - Approval: Community Development Block Grant (CDBG 22-020), Upper Second Creek Sanitary Sewer Phase 1 — motion by Church; second by Combs; outcome: approved. - Approved draw request for Sky View Housing Development water and sewer project, total $702,507.41 — motion by Combs; second by Church; outcome: approved. - Awarded bid to BML Group USA (base bid $289,880; total bid read into record; Wells Motorsports to pay $69,816 difference) — motion by Combs; second by Church; outcome: approved. - Recycling update — tabled until next meeting.

Ending: Court members did not engage in extended debate on the listed grant approvals and award; the presiding official reminded the public that multi-source grant tracking requires reading each line item into the record so allocations match their originating funding source. The meeting adjourned following the routine business items.