Annexation to Exit 29 officially repealed

Nov. 9—LONDON — It was the last item on Monday's agenda for the London City Council, but it was one that will hopefully ease the controversy over who should claim the properties along Exit 29.

The second reading of Ordinance 2023-39 will make the proposed annexation along Interstate 75 from London Exit 38 to Exit 29 in southern Laurel County invalid. The issue was addressed during a September meeting in which council member Kip Jervis proposed to stop the annexation process. Jervis said the annexation had created problems between Corbin and London and that the Supreme Court had sent the case back to Laurel Circuit Court to review some of the issues in the initial ruling.

The controversy arose when property owners along Exit 29 requested annexation into the City of London for business development. The initial proposal was to create a shopping mall with restaurants that could serve alcohol. That area is in southern Laurel County, which remains a dry territory. At that time, state law prevented Corbin to annex the area as Corbin City Limits is already in Knox and Whitley counties and could not extend into a third county. However, that law was changed in 2021 and Corbin could now annex that area. Although the cities of London (Laurel), Corbin and Williamsburg (Whitley) and Barbourville (Knox) do sell and serve alcohol, the counties remain a "dry option territory" where alcohol sales are prohibited.

Jervis made the motion to approve the second reading of the ordinance repealing the annexation, explaining the background of the original annexation purpose was for development of the properties, the change in the law would now allow Corbin to claim that property.

It passed with only member Justin Young voting no.

Representatives for each city will be in Laurel Circuit Court this (Thursday) for a hearing in the still-pending litigation.

Maryann Hendrix, co-owner of London Children's Museum, addressed the council on financial support for the facility that is growing in popularity. Hendrix said the facility's monthly rental was $6,300 and the facility could use some assistance. Hendrix said the London Children's Museum was drawing visitors from Lexington and other areas and that for its size, had offerings different from larger cities with more population.

When questioned by Councilman Stacy Benge on what the council could do to assist, Hendrix said a partnership to assist with the overhead costs — and the utilization of the city/county grant writer — would benefit both. Council members then voted to table the request until the December meeting with Hendrix returning with a proposal with costs needed.

The city's budget, which reflects a $7 million increase over the last fiscal year, was also discussed with council members voting to establish a sub-committee to review particular areas for potential cuts and/or reviews. Benge, Philpot and Young were appointed for that sub-committee.

Members of the Bluegrass Discovery Center, associated with Volunteers of America, also addressed council members about having London declared a Recovery Ready Community. The Bluegrass Discovery Center is a non-profit organization and the certification would cover a three-year span. Through that program, recovery facilities in the city and county would be reviewed and rated and would require approval of said facilities by state agencies.

Police Chief Chuck Johnson told council members that the department had issued 32 criminal citations and 20 incident reports during October. He added that the first annual Logan Medlock Run took place on Oct. 30 — the date of Medlock's death — and that over 80 law enforcement officers and first responders had participated in the event. He also thanked London Mayor Randall Weddle and First Lady Victoria Weddle for their support and spoke about the memorial established in Medlock's honor at the site of the fatal crash in A.R. Dyche Memorial Cemetery.

London Fire Chief Carl Hacker reported the firefighters had completed 753 training hours in October and had responded to a structure fire in which a home was destroyed. He added that firefighters remained on the scene to keep houses on each side of that structure from being destroyed. Firefighters also conducted "Sound the Alarm" in which 46 fire alarms were installed in city residences.

Bids for five trailers for the city street department were accepted. Those bids ranged at $83,700 for all five trailers which were of better quality than others that street department officials had looked at.

There was a split vote on closing a portion of East London Church Road, which has also been a topic before the city council in the past months. Council members Donnie Philpot, Holly Little and Kip Jervis voted in favor of the closure, while Justin Young, Stacy Benge and Kelly Green voted no. With the council members in a tie, London Mayor Randall Weddle had the deciding vote, which he cast as a 'Yes.' That will allow the road closure to take place.

Revising an ordinance addressing garbage disposal and recycling was another issue before the council during Monday's regular monthly meeting. Since the curbside recycling services have been discontinued for several years, the ordinance addressing the recycling center hours were revised in Ordinance 2023-41. City Sanitation supervisor Jim Sensabaugh explained that certain items are no longer accepted at the recycling center and that hours had to be changed and the gates locked due to unacceptable items being dropped off at the center.

Ordinance 2023-40 addressed pets within city limits, and specifically mentioned that no snakes, monkeys and other animals would be permitted at the World Chicken Festival. The ordinance also addresses the number of dogs, cats and chickens that can be located at a residence.

A sub-committee was also established for the Interstate Coal Property, which now houses Somerset Community College, the Wellness Park and the Laurel County Public Library. That property is jointly owned by the city and county. However, the widening of U.S. 25 will cut into the city's street department and will require them to relocate. Weddle said that some unused area on that jointly owned property is being sought as the new location. The sub-committee will work with the county government to resolve that issue.