Woman trapped in car after Bethel Hill accident

Two Butler residents were fortunate to escape with their lives after a serious car accident on U.S. 27 at 5:52 p.m., Monday, June 25. Kentucky State Trooper Mark Grisik, who was off duty at the time, came upon the accident and immediately alerted emergency personnel. Pendleton County Sheriff Craig Peoples responded to the scene and worked the accident. Rachael Gosney, 22, of Butler, was traveling north on U.S. 27, down Bethel Hill, in a 1997 Pontiac Grand Am, when she came around a curve and lost control due to heavy rains and slippery roadways. She ran off the left side off the roadway, struck a tree and overturned in a wooded area. A passenger in the car, Kyle Gosney, 15, of Butler, was able to free himself from the wreckage but Ms. Gosney was trapped inside. The Falmouth Fire Department was dispatched to extricate Ms. Gosney from the vehicle. The firefighters did an excellent job, working for well over an hour in extremely tough conditions to free the woman. Pendleton County Ambulance Service, TransCare, and Rodney Miles Towing also assisted at the scene. Mr. Gosney was examined by medics and appeared to have no injuries. Although Ms. Gosney was airlifted to University Hospital in Cincinnati, she seemed to somehow suffer only minor injuries. Her condition is unknown as of presstime. Falmouth Firefighter Bob Pettit slid off the road on Bethel Hill as he was making his way to the accident scene. Mr. Pettit was shaken up but not injured. Rodney Miles Towing removed Ms. Gosney's vehicle from the accident scene. The roadway re-opened at 8 p.m. Article and photo by Jackie Vaughn.

City Council amends 2006 water rate increase in special session

By Roger McKinney, Reporter

In the late summer of 2006 the Falmouth City Council approved an ordinance which raised the wholesale water rate charged to East Pendleton Water District from $1.98 per thousand gallons to $2.02 per thousand gallons, and the rate for Pendleton Water District from $1.98 per thousand gallons to $2.10 per thousand gallons. A cost of service analysis was performed by GRW Engineering, which supported the city's need for an increased price rate to the water districts. In February of 2007 Pendleton and East Pendleton Water Districts offered to accept a rate of $2.02 per thousand gallons. Falmouth rejected the offer, opting to wait for a decision by the Public Service Commission. After reviewing the cost of service study by GRW the PSC performed a cost of service study of their own and determined that the rates should not be raised, but in fact, they could be reduced by 30 cents per thousand gallons for Pendleton Water District and 34 cents per thousand gallons for East Pendleton Water District. Then, Pendleton and East Pendleton Water Districts said they would not ask for a rate reduction and would stand by their agreement to accept the rate of $1.98 per thousand gallons, if Falmouth would withdraw its case from the Public Service Commission. The Falmouth City Council acting on the advice of Attorney Watson chose not to do so.

In a special called session of city council held June 20, 2007, City Attorney Henry Watson III, gave a first reading to an amendment to the 2006 Water Rate Increase Ordinance, which reduced the charge back from $2.02 and $2.10 to the originally $1.98 per thousand gallons. In a regular called Falmouth City Council Meeting June 21, 2007, the law makers gave a second reading to the amendement and approved its passage. Pendleton and East Pendleton Water districts sent a letter to the Public Service commission asking for a full investigation of Falmouth's wholesale water rates.

Other business conducted by The Falmouth City Council in the June 21 meeting:

A first reading was given to an ordinance that placed a 2% tax on the gross income from the sale of packaged liquor.

The council discussed an ordinance that would increase the rate charged for sewage processing by 50% before July 1, 2008. The increase would take place gradually after January of next year.

The council approved a resolution allowing Falmouth to participate in the Renaissance Facade Grant Program.

The council approved the passage of the annual Road Aid Agreement.

Attorney Watson gave a first reading to an ordinance amendment which increases the rate that businesses pay for city dumpster service from $16 per pick up to $18 per pick up. The cost to rent dumpsters remains at $21 per month. The amendment also determined that the deposit on a special garbage toter would be $30. The cost to rent the toters would be $3 per month.

The Falmouth City Council went into a closed session in order to discuss a matter of litigation. When the lawmakers returned to open forum no action was taken.

MISS KASEY BISHOP

Kasey Bishop to compete for Miss Kentucky title

Thirty contestants from across the state will be vying for the title of Miss Kentucky 2007. Among them will be Falmouth native Kasey Bishop, Miss Heart of the Mountains.

Bishop is the 20-year-old daughter of Eddie and Donna Bishop of Falmouth. She won the Miss Heart of the Mountains title at the local pageant held in Morehead this past March. Bishop is majoring in Sociology at Morehead State University and her future ambition is to work for the Salvation Army in the human trafficking department. Bishop's platform issue is "Help for Today... Hope for Tomorrow: Breast Cancer Awareness" and her talent presentation will be a vocal performance of "Colors of the Wind."

The pageant will be held at the Singletary Center for the Arts on the campus of the University of Kentucky in Lexington. Preliminary competitions will be held on Thursday, July 19 and Friday, July 20 starting at 7 p.m. Saturday, July 21, beginning at 7:30 p.m. is the final night of competition culminating with the crowning of the new Miss Kentucky.

Tickets for the preliminaries and final competition are available by calling the Singletary Center Box Office at 859-257-4929. Preliminary night tickets are $25 per night and tickets for the final night are $40.

Over $34,000 in scholarships will be awarded to contestants in addition to numerous prizes and inkind scholarships to various colleges and universities.

School Board discusses alternate bus route plan

In order to conduct school on days when main roads are clear but turn-arounds are a problem, the Pendleton County Board of Education approved a Transportation Plan that will provide limited bus service. While buses will continue to run state and main county roads, routes will be adjusted to reduce the number of turn-arounds from 210 to 15.

"The Snow Route plan will give us another way of holding school when road conditions permit," said Assistant Superintendent Don Tetrick.

A campaign to inform parents of route adjustments and pick-up times under the Snow Route Plan will occur this fall; information will be sent home with opening of school materials and will be posted on the district website.

Starting this fall, early childhood mental health services will be available at the Falmouth School Center. Under an agreement approved by the School Board, NorthKey services and the South Family Resource center will bring a 3-member staff [a master degreed therapist, a case manager and a family liaison] in exchange for office space.

Rick Flesch, KEYS Project Coordinator and Tal Curry, Early Childhood Mental Health Specialist, provided the School Board with an overview of the Systems of Care approach that will be used in this project. The Systems of Care approach brings various local agencies together to provide services to children and families. One benefit for the school district is helping pre-school age students get ready to enter the school setting.

Architect Gabe Jones of Sherman.Carter.Barnhart and Blanton Coates from Codell Construction Company provided updates on progress of the Addition/Renovation project at Pendleton County High School. ÊLimited early progress was hampered by rain and removal of bad soils; with school out and the dry weather, work is on schedule to allow re-opening the school for students first day, August 21st. The School Board approved 2 change orders: $68,594 for Planum Excavating for removal of bad soils on the northside of the building (area of the multipurpose gymnasium) and $3,957.25 also to Planum Excavating for replacement of a 6" pipe with a 12" storm drain under the road. The Board also approved construction claims totaling $411,879.29 plus a claim for Reis Concrete totaling $46,572.

Adult Education Director JoEllen Mitchell reviewed recent state data regarding performance of the Pendleton County GED program. Pendleton County has one of the highest performance scores by GED graduates in the state and has a 90% passing rate, placing the program in the top 15 in the state for 2004-06.

"One-fourth of the adults in Pendleton County do not have a high school diploma or GED," reported Ms. Mitchell. "That's approximately 2,700 adults." The Pendleton County GED program has a target of serving 247 individuals in the upcoming year.

In other Board action:

District Assessment Coordinator Betty McKinney reviewed 2006 Non-Academic data.

Approved the district 3-year Technology plan.

Approved district participating in the Kentucky Purchasing Cooperative through Kentucky Education Development Co-operative.

Next meeting of the Board will be at 7 p.m., July 19, at Sharp Middle School.

Pictured above: The cast and crew of this year's production of "The Music Man." Be sure to get your tickets to this wonderful show that runs through July 21.

Kincaid Regional Theatre celebrates opening night of 25th Anniversary Production of "The Music Man"

Kincaid Regional Theatre's 25th Anniversary Production of "The Music Man" opened Saturday night, June 16, to an enthusiastic audience that had nothing but wonderful accolades for the cast, orchestra, and production crew. The Opening Night Dinner was a delight to the palate and put everyone in the mood for an exciting night of sheer entertainment. The production was filled with beautiful love songs, "Till There Was You" and "Goodnight, My Someone" and fantastic ensemble melodies, "Seventy-Six Trombones" and "The Wells Fargo Wagon" just to name a few. These were all accompanied by the very talented ten piece orchestra that completed the extraordinary musical mo-ments experienced by the wide-eyed audience members. "The Music Man" set and lighting were truly beautiful, taking you back in time to the 1910 era in small town U.S.A.

The cast of this summer's production is one of the most talented that has been on Kincaid's stage in some time, and they enthusiastically brought to the life the town folks of River City, Iowa in a very entertaining and comedic fashion. If you have missed seeing Kincaid's 25th anniversary production, don't fret. There are still two weeks remaining, beginning July 8 and running through July 21, to get in on this wonderful entertaining show. Just call Kincaid's ticket office at 859-654-2636 or go on line at www.KRTSHOWS.com to order tickets and get more information about the show dates and times. Don't let this summer go by without seeing Kincaid's 25th Anniversary show! We have a great thing going by having a professional theatre in our town. Take advantage of the opportunity to support our theatre and our community.

Falmouth woman arrested in cemetery for theft

By Jackie Vaughn, Reporter

Officers of the Falmouth Police Department arrested a local woman at Riverside Cemetery in the early morning hours of Sunday, June 24.

While on routine patrol around 2 a.m., an officer noticed a suspicious vehicle parked in the cemetery. Upon closer investigation, the police discovered Cynthia Clos, 49, of Falmouth, wandering around the grounds, behaving strangely, and taking flowers off of gravesites.

Officers also found tires and several thousand dollars worth of tools inside her vehicle. As they followed up on the case, they learned the merchandise belonged to Rodney Miles Body Shop.

Clos was charged with Public Intoxication (Controlled Substance), Theft by Unlawful Taking Over $300, Theft by Unlawful Taking Under $300, and Burglary, 3rd Degree. She was placed in jail under a $1,000 bond.

Clos appeared in District Court for Arraignment on Tuesday, June 26. She pled not guilty to the charges. She will return to court for her Pre-Trial Conference on July 3.

"We may never have caught this individual if we weren't doing routine night patrol," said one Falmouth Police Officer. "It's important that we're out at night for reasons just like this."

Falmouth Police help Drug Strike Force with burglaries

By Jackie Vaughn, Reporter

The Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force ended a month-long drug dealing investigation after arresting seven people on Thursday, June 28. Two of the suspects are believed to be part of the burglaries that occured at pharmacies located in Grant, Pendleton, and Henry Counties.

Falmouth Police Officer Mark Posey interviewed Jeremiah J. Smeltzer, 28, of Richlands, Virginia and Joseph Lee Young, 27, of Elsmere in connection with the recent burglary of Pharm-Care in Falmouth. During the interrogation, he was able to obtain enough information linking the two men to the crime.

Officer Posey reported that the two individuals were looking for rural pharmacies where they could get in and out in the span of a minute. They were after drugs such as Percocet and OxyContin. The suspects were selling the pills and supporting their own drug habits.

"They just had such a drug problem that they had to support, and this was their way to do that," stated Officer Posey.

Smeltzer has been charged with Trafficking in a Controlled Substance, two counts, and Possession of Cocaine. Young has been charged with Trafficking in a Controlled Substance and Possession of OxyContin.

Additional items this week:

Flag Page - Advertisers' List

Kentucky's Best wins championship at Eddie Wright Softball Tournament

Weaver finishes in four-way tie for first place at Kenton County

Falmouth Rotary Club honors past and new presidents

McClanahan retires after 31 years from FNB

and more!