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Franklin County Fiscal Court approves Grama Theater bonds, multiple contracts and grant applications
Summary
At its Oct. 15 work session the Franklin County Fiscal Court approved a second-reading ordinance to apply a 2% transient-room surcharge to finance up to $1.8 million in Grama Theater renovations, awarded a courthouse construction-management contract, authorized several facility-monitoring contracts and agreed to apply for a $2 million DOJ grant with a local nonprofit as subrecipient.
Frankfort, Ky. — The Franklin County Fiscal Court on Oct. 15 approved a package of funding and contracting actions that includes a second-reading ordinance to apply a transient-room tax surcharge to retire bonds for the Grama (Grand) Theater renovation and the selection of a construction manager for courthouse repairs.
The court voted to amend local ordinances to apply a 2% transient-room tax surcharge to finance up to $1.8 million for renovation, repair and equipment at the Grama Theater in downtown Frankfort. Judge Miller said the surcharge is levied on hotel rooms and “is not a new 2% tax” on residents but a visitor-focused fee to pay debt service on the project. The ordinance passed on its second reading with the court’s approval.
Also approved was the recommendation of the county’s selection committee to award construction-management services for the courthouse renovation to Trace Creek Construction. Contractor Erin McCauley told the court the RFQ produced two responses and the committee selected Trace Creek based on scored presentations.
The court approved three agreements with Landmark Sprinkler for fire-alarm monitoring and annual inspections for county facilities (addresses heard during the session) after staff explained the county lacked up-to-date written contracts with a prior vendor and that consolidating services with Landmark will reduce costs and simplify scheduling.
On grants and public-safety funding, the court authorized the county to apply for a U.S. Department of Justice Community-Based Violence Intervention and Prevention Initiative grant — a proposed $2,000,000 award over four years — with the Wanda Joyce Robinson Foundation serving as a subrecipient. Belinda and Amy (staff) explained the foundation would provide 5% ($25,000 per grant year) back to the fiscal court to cover administrative costs.
Separately the court approved two memoranda of understanding with the Administrative Office of the Courts to document responsibilities and reimbursement flows for FEMA public-assistance work tied to courthouse flood repairs. County contractor ER Assist noted the paperwork helps FEMA classify eligible projects and clarify how reimbursements will be distributed between AOC and the county.
Financial housekeeping items included authorizing the treasurer to open a segregated bank account for bond-construction interest proceeds and a 6‑month certificate of deposit for $700,000 to increase investment earnings; staff said the county has earned more than $700,000 in interest on bond and ARPA funds while Amtech’s arbitrage calculation estimated a potential liability of roughly $177,000 (a preliminary figure).
The court approved the voting agenda by voice for the package of motions; where formal second readings were required the court advanced ordinances and related bond authorizations according to the local process. No votes on these actions reversed earlier staff recommendations.
The court concluded its work session with routine approvals of minutes and quarterly reports and adjourned to the voting session.
