By Carolyn Reid
FALMOUTH - Falmouth City Council covered ground on Jan. 16 that had been on the agenda for two months.
New business, including filling the vacant council seat, land transfers, the audit, an internet agreement and date changes were brought before the council during the process of the meeting.
The appointment of former Councilperson Luke Price to the mayor’s seat left a seat unfilled on city council. Darryl Ammerman’s seat, vacated in December, had garnered several letters interest from residents wishing to fill the position.
Council requested a time for letters to be submitted once again, allowing for others who may have gained interest in working on council to be considered.
With that in mind, they requested letters be submitted to City Clerk Susan Bishop by noon Feb. 2. Those who previously applied were requested to resend their letters in order they could be renewed in the files.
Council discussed changing the days of their meetings from the first and third Tuesdays to the first and third Thursdays of the month to allow citizens and themselves, the city representatives, to attend fiscal court meetings, which occur on the same days. Fiscal court representatives also could attend council meetings under the arrangement, if they desired.
This action would require an ordinance change. If the change is approved by council, the new schedule of meetings will begin in March.
The city-owned Klee property was once again addressed as council heard a request from neighboring landowner Mark Kobasuk to purchase 10 acres of the Klee farm rather than seven-and-a-half acres of land he and council had originally discussed.
Council seriously considered the request because the additional land that is being requested is land that is unusable.
Kobasuk had originally requested between five and 10 acres originally, and the extra land would serve well to provide more buffer between his property and the usable property the city has for sale. Council agreed to allow an agreement in which the mayor has the authority to contact Kobasuk with the proposal the could include the additional 2.5 acres, but Kobasuk would pay for the survey and the closing costs.
In other land transactions, the land surrounding the American Legion Hall, which includes a cemetery, was requested by the Legion. The Legion has cared for the cemetery and the other land for many years and it requested the land be signed over to the Legion with the promise the cemetery would continue to be tended by them.
Council authorized the mayor to discuss the transaction with the American Legion. City Attorney Brandon Voelker said he wants to clarify the transfer would be in line with the Kentucky Cemetery Association regulations, and Cemetery Board President Carolyn Reid confirmed she would check with the association.
The contact was made later, and the transfer was confirmed to be allowed.
Kathryn Robertson of Accelecom Telecommunication, part of the Kentucky Wire Project, brought in a proposal for a franchise agreement for her company. She requested council sign a letter of intent in order to allow building to start; however, Voelker explained council would have to follow the ordinances in place, meaning the letter of intent would have to wait to be sure they followed the ordinances on the books.
While she had a copy of an ordinance from Fayette County, she offered to provide a sample ordinance from cities closer to the size of Falmouth in order to give the city guidance.
Voelker suggested City Clerk Susan Bishop send that information out to all council members in order that they could make informed decisions at the next meeting. When she again requested the letter be signed, Voelker explained they should not do that yet because they needed more information in order to enter the agreement.
Her fear, Robertson said, was the project would be put on hold for years. She stated the Kentucky Department of Education took two years to go through the process. Price assured her the process for the city would not take two years.
Paul Maddox, CPA from Maddox and Associates and the city’s auditor, distributed the 2022-23 audit. The audit, including business from July 1, 2022, through June 30, 2023, showed no concerns, he said.
Council will hold a special meeting 6:30 p.m. Feb. 6 to hold first readings of ordinances that are being drafted and to take care of business requiring votes and other official action. The caucus will follow immediately.