Gordon's removal top story of 2022

Dec. 31—Owensboro and Daviess County saw some big changes in 2022.

In the county, voters elected a whole new slate of officials, including a new judge-executive. On the other end of the spectrum, a state agency stepped in and removed a sitting judge from office.

The Messenger-Inquirer staff ranked the year's top 10 stories.

1. Gordon removed as Family Court judgeJulie Hawes Gordon was the county's first and only Family judge for several years. In November, 2021, the state Judicial Conduct Commission announced it was proceeding with an investigation of Gordon for misconduct.

After a three-day hearing in Bowling Green, the commission ruled Gordon had used her position to help her adult son get favorable outcomes in his criminal cases, with her conversations with County Attorney Claud Porter and District Judge Daniel "Nick" Burlew II deemed inappropriate.

The JCC also ruled Gordon had retaliated against social workers who disagreed with her decisions on cases, had directed staff to conduct drug tests that were mishandled, had destroyed evidence by deleting items from her son's phone and had been untruthful in statements to the commission.

The JCC ordered Gordon removed, and the state Supreme Court upheld the JCC decision. Gordon ran unsuccessfully for her Family Court seat during the primary. Gordon filed to run for the newly-created second Family County judge seat but withdrew after the Supreme Court ruling.

2. Confederate state removed from Courthouse lawnIn June 2020, Gov. Andy Beshear called for counties across the state to remove Confederate monuments.

After a citizen committee recommended the Confederate monument on the Daviess County Courthouse lawn be moved to a museum — while the base be placed elsewhere — the United Daughters of the Confederacy sued, claiming ownership of the 122-year-old statue.

In May, a circuit judge ruled the statue belonged to Fiscal Court, and the statue was removed.

The statue of the solider was placed at Potter's Field, while the base for the statue was given to the UDC, for them to place at the Battle of Panther Creek site. The site is owned by the UDC.

Ownership of the statue was turned over to the Owensboro Museum of Science and History.

3. Owensboro city commission initiate, plan major projectsThe Owensboro City Commission launched plans for major projects across the city this year, including downtown projects that are still up in the air.

Using American Rescue Plan Act funds, commissioners approved major work to improve drainage in the York area neighborhoods. City ARPA dollars also went to Owensboro Municipal Utilities and the Regional Water Resource Agency for projects, while other funds were allocated to renovate and expand Cravens Pool. Funds were set aside for a plan to expand the Family YMCA to include space for a new senior center.

The city also began planning to construct an indoor sports complex downtown and revived plans to build a transient boat dock on the riverfront. Those projects, along with improvements for the Owensboro Fire Department and work at Jack C. Fisher Park, were included in a bond ordinance commissioners were anticipated to approve earlier this month. But some commissioners had concerns about the cost and usefulness of the boat dock, and the ordinance was postponed.

Commissioners passed a room tax for hotels and Airbnbs to finance some of that work and have funds freed up from bonds that have been paid off. But general fund revenue will be used as well. The total cost of the bonds for the planned projects, with interest, is $66 million.

4. Daviess County Public Schools delays school yearThe 2022-23 school year got off to an unexpectedly rough start for staff and students at Daviess County Public Schools.

The issues the district had led to delaying the first day of school and keeping students out of the new Daviess County Middle School two months longer than school officials initially anticipated.

Construction on the new Daviess County Middle School building began two years ago on Fairview Drive, near Gateway Commons. The old middle school building on West Fourth Street had been in use as a school since 1935, and school officials wanted a more modern facility for students.

Everything seemed to be on schedule with construction, and school board members were assured the building would be ready for occupancy by the first day of school in August. In February, the principal architect told board members the new school would be substantially complete and ready for students by the first day on Aug. 10.

That estimate held until early August, about a week before the first day of school, with DCPS officials saying the school wouldn't be completely finished, but would be open. Then, on Aug. 3, the school district said in a release the building couldn't be occupied because inspectors found too much of the school incomplete to grant occupancy.

Superintendent Matt Robbins said later "significant material delays" prevented Danco Construction from finishing the building by Aug. 10.

The middle school staff reversed course, moving back into the old middle school building. The staff had more time than they'd anticipated: The first day of school in the county was delayed five days, due to transportation issues. The school district had issues imputing student data into its bus routing software, which postponed the start of school by three days.

The district welcomed back students on Aug. 15, and the new DCMS opened to students in October.

5. Gun violence increases in OwensboroThe year got off to a violent start in Owensboro.

In the first four months of the year, Owensboro Police Department officers worked 35 confirmed reports of shootings in the city.

The gun-related violence continued well past the spring.

Gun violence, particularly involving juveniles, was a concern for police and city officials this year, as OPD worked to find individuals involved in the shootings, and the Owensboro City Commission debated whether to change the city's juvenile curfew.

Some of the shootings involved fatalities.

Mark E. Griffith, 59, of Owensboro was charged with murder and assault in early February for fatally shooting a woman and seriously injuring a juvenile on East 25th Street. In May, a juvenile was charged with murder in fatal shooting on Arlington Drive.

Also in May, a Spencer County man, Bronson T. Lindsey of Rockport, was charged with first-degree assault for shooting an OPD officer after being stopped in connection with a convenience store robbery.

Damian M. Fields, 28, of Livermore and Derrick Carroll 30, of Mayo Street were both charged with murder in the June death of a man on West Seventh Street. In October, Keith Lamar Bryant II, 33, of Oakwood Court was charged with murder for a fatal shooting on West 10th Street.

Numerous juveniles were also arrested by officers on various firearms-related charges this year, including shootings and firearms thefts.

6. Election brings changes to Daviess County, Owensboro leadershipThe year brought big changes to Daviess County government.

Some of the county's highest elected offices will have different faces next week when the new Fiscal Court, sheriff and county attorney take office.

Some of the changes were driven by retirements. Judge-Executive Al Mattingly, who was in city government before serving three terms as judge, decided to retire, as did County Attorney Claud Porter, who was county attorney for two Fiscal Courts.

Some of the elected officials are entirely new to elected office: County Attorney John Burlew, Sheriff Brad Youngman and commissioners Chris Castlen and Janie Marksberry have never held office before. But new Judge-Executive Charlie Castlen was an Owensboro city commissioner before becoming a county commissioner, and new Commissioner Larry Conder is also a former city commissioner.

Both Youngman and Burlew, however, do have professional experiences related to their jobs. Youngman served with multiple law enforcement agencies, including the sheriff's office and OPD, and led the county schools police department before running for sheriff. Burlew had a long career as a prosecutor with the county attorney's office before being elected to the top position.

City government didn't see a huge transition. Commissioner Jeff Sanford is leaving office, and the commission will be joined by Commissioner Pam Smith-Wright. City Hall won't be new territory for Smith-Wright: Before running unsuccessfully for mayor in 2020, Smith-Wright served on city commissions under former Mayor Ron Payne and current Mayor Tom Watson.

7. Churchill Downs takes over proposed entertainment complex at mallIn 2021, Ellis Park Racing and Gaming announced plans for an entertainment complex in the former JC Penney store in Towne Square Mall that would include historical racing machines, simulcast wagering and a sports-themed restaurant.

Ellis Park leased the former JC Penney location in the mall in March, and work on the entertainment complex was scheduled to begin in the summer.

Then, in September, Churchill Downs bought Ellis Park for $79 million.

Churchill Downs officials have said they will continue with plans for the off-track project at the mall.

A spokeswoman for Churchill Downs said, "I'm told that the facility is still in design development, and we expect to have updates for the public at the conclusion of the design phase. The project is on course as originally announced."

8. Owensboro welcomes Afghan refugees into communityOwensboro has a growing community of people who fled their home countries to escape war, poverty and injustice. The city and county have welcomed refugees from places like Myanmar for years, with the assistance of the International Center.

The city's refugee population has grown, as people fleeing Afghanistan began settling in the city.

About 180 refugees from Afghanistan arrived in Owensboro, and the task in 2022 was to get them out of hotel rooms and into permanent housing. The International Center also worked with employers to find jobs for the new arrivals.

The transition to life wasn't always smooth, and the Afghan refugees were met with at least one act of violence. In late January, an Afghan man was sprayed with a chemical irritant of some kind outside the Comfort Suites on Salem Drive, where many Afghans were staying.

More than 300 refugees had settled in Owensboro between the summer of 2021 and August of this year, officials said.

In addition to refugees from Myanmar and Afghanistan, the city also is home to refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Thailand, Ukraine, Somalia and Cuba.

9. Regional Water Resource Agency enacts large rate increaseRegional Water Resource Agency customers will see their bills increase beginning in July, with bills expected to go up by almost $25 by mid-2027.

The RWRA rate hikes are needed to make required improvements to its wastewater treatment plants, officials said.

The average monthly RWRA bill is $44.69. With the increases, the average bill will be $54.67 beginning in July and will have increased to $69.18 by July 2027.

The Kentucky Division of Water is mandating RWRA make improvements to its plants no later than 2024. The estimated cost of the improvements is $104 million.

The RWRA Rate Review Board, made up of city and county commissioners, approved the rate increase earlier this month.

The fee to improve the plants is expected to expire once the wastewater improvements are paid for — which is expected to take about 20 years — while the other increases would be permanent.

10. Owensboro Grain sold to national agricultural companyOwensboro Grain, a family-owned business since 1906, surprised the community in October when it was announced the company was being acquired by agricultural giant Cargill.

Ownership of the company transfers to Cargill next year.

The sale was announced in late November. The details weren't disclosed, but Owensboro Grain CEO Helen Cornell said the sale would have be to approved by federal officials in the Justice Department, whose antitrust regulators monitor certain transactions.

Owensboro Grain, one of the city's landmark businesses, will become a subsidiary of Cargill, but the sale won't result in layoffs or employee reductions, Cornell said.