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Bill Mitchell discovered a fawn on his property
n 2001, County Judge Henry Bertram was working to pull Pendleton County past the devastation of the flood that largely took out the county seat and wreaked havoc on its smaller sister Butler as well as rural areas that were in the wake of the Licking River’s rapid rise.
Bertram had formed a partnership with the area development district after the flood to help rebuild the county and to expand its economic potential.
“We were trying to get back on our feet after the flood and we were getting grants to do that, but we had a long way to go,” Bertram recalls. “We had a young lady in the position from Area Development, but we lost her to Cincinnati.
“We needed a grant writer. None of us knew anything about writing grants, and there is a lot of competition for them.”
Bill Mitchell came onto the scene at just the right time.
A native of the Appalachian area of Kentucky, Mitchell had already been away from those roots for a while, serving in areas such as Boyle County and Carroll County, where he took the job as executive director, all thanks to his job with the Area Development District.
“In 1985, the job prospects were horrible, and I was looking. I applied to the AD district, and I got the job. My background was in historic preservation. My degree is in Economic Geography.”
While he was in Boyle County, he started dating JoEllen, the woman who was to become his wife. When they married in 2001, Bertram talked to him about taking the position of Director of Economic Development in Pendleton County. He accepted.
The position was and is unlike any other that he knows of across the state.
“The position started because of the flood,” Mitchell confirms. “It was all about flood stuff, but then it started branching out. It grew into what it is now out of need.
Bertram clarifies that with concrete examples.
“[County leadership]would come up with ideas, and Bill would write the grants.”
Bertram recalled that the county was 40% covered by water when he came into his position. By the time he left, 90% of the county had water. Mitchell wrote the grants.
The county decided to build an athletic park. Mitchell wrote the grant.
And then there is the county sewer story. Bertram laughs as he shares.
“We applied for a $2 million grant for the sewer in the county. No one had ever applied for $2 million. The most anyone had applied for was $1 million.
“I was on the golf course when I got a call from the governor. At first, I thought it was a joke. After the third time he confirmed he was Gov. Fletcher, I recognized his voice and apologized. He told me he wanted to let me know personally that we got the grant, and no one had ever been awarded that much before.
That grant funded the sewer plant for the county, the plant that is now being revamped on Ed Monroe Road--another grant that Mitchell helped the county obtain.
“It is a unique office. We have done a variety of things, and no one else in the state does all that this office expects.
His sole focus has not been on grants. “Schools are the tranformative factor in society. We need to put in as many resources as we can.”
To that end, he took up the mantle that his wife JoEllen started in 2001. At that time, JoEllen put together a community forum. Mitchell resurrected it in around 2013, and Michelle Lustenberg, Pendleton County Schools Gifted and Talented teacher, joined in. That partnership led to Sophomore Leadership, a program where sophomores who are gifted in leadership met with community members and leaders to lead discussions on what can be done to improve the county. Those discussions led to at least one permanent fixture, the Pendleton County Tourism Council.
“The forum fit students so well,” Mitchell states. Not only did the students get to participate in leading the forum, but they also spent time in government sessions from the city to the state levels, observing how leaders make decisions and what was involved in those actions, from team work to allocating funds to set tling disagreements in a productive manner.
While leadership in the county praises Mitchell for what he has helped provide to the county since 2001, Mitchell sees the accomplishments from a different angle.
“Butler City Council did a major sewer project in 2016-2020. They showed courage. They raised rates because they would go broke if they didn’t do something. They had lots of little leaks that had to be addressed, and they had to raise rates to regulate the average. The replacement allowed them to remain stable for a long time.
“They almost weren’t a city.”
Falmouth City Council from 2020 also made the courageous decision to raise rates, according to Mitchell. “They are still barely up to the average.”
He applauds Judge/Executives Fields and Bertram for their work to bring in small businesses to the area.
He applauds the hiring of Billy Steele as Solid Waste Coordinator, Kevin Valentine as Code Enforement Officer, and Mike Moore as PCEMA Director.
He applauds the fact the fiscal court, under Henry Bertram, moved to implement planning and zoning to help improve the value of land and marketability to businesses.
“Mike Moore has gotten hundreds of thousands in grants to help protect us from danger. Craig Peoples gave him a great foundation to build on, and he has done lots of projects,” Mitchell explains.
But over the years, Mitchell has had his hand in major and more minor projects requiring grants and manpower to improve our county, and even more, he has had a hand in creating countless jobs in the county, as well.
The list of what Mitchell has done gives in sight into just how much he has accomplished in 20 years in this county.
2001-2005: county waterlines (fiscal court)
2005-2008: housing rehab (fiscal court and Butler)
2005-2007: Streetscape (fiscal court/Falmouth)
2006-2008: Sewer plant (fiscal court/Falmouth)
2001-2011: waterlines (fiscal court)
2011-2013: new library (fiscal court)
2014-2015: ambulance quarters (fiscal court)
2015-2018: sewer and water (Butler)
2019-2020: sewer and water (Falmouth)
2021-2021: Covid-19 utility bill reimbursement (fiscal court)
As quickly as Mitchell is patting leaders on the back, those leaders are just as quick to acknowledge what he has done for the county.
Falmouth Mayor Ron Stinson says, “Bill is a master at working through all the intricacies of municipal projects and grants. Through his diligence for detail, he has secured millions of dollars for our community.”
Butler Mayor Greg McElfresh thanks Mitchell for the “long hours in helping seeking grants and showing us how we could move foreward in a position way by improving the city of Butler Water and Sanitation. We wish him the best retirement.”
Jody Dunhoft, Ambulance Director, remembers his help as she started her position. “He sat down with me personally and had virtual meetings , as well.”
Judge/Executive David Fields provided numbers. “Bill Mitchell has been a great asset to our community through his 20 years working in Pendleton County. Through his work an estimated $480,346,000 were received in different grants for the county and cities of Pendleton County.
“It has been a pleasure to work with Bill, and I feel that I have gained knowledge through his work of economic development which will assist me in years to come.”
Fields sent along a personal message, as well. I would like to wish Bill a happy, well-deserved retirement. Thank you, Bill, for your commitment and dedication to Pendleton County.
“Now go fight those weeds!” When he came in 2001, Mitchell had one vision. “I wanted to try to make the community a better place, wanted to make a difference. I worked with the community to achieve. My questions were, ‘What can I do to help?’”
The leadership of the county hails Mitchell as an important reason for the county developing as it has in the past 20 years. But Mitchell has a different take on that perspective.
“I was just a cog in the wheel.”