The Jessamine Journal: Nicholasville, Kentucky

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Jessamine water, road projects included in House budget
By Mike Moore
mmoore@jessaminejournal.com
March 9, 2010

Several Jessamine County projects made it through the state House of Representatives’ biennial budget. The House budget now goes to the Senate for its consideration.

“I would hope that they would stay in the budget,” state Rep. Bob Damron, D-Nicholasville, said. “We won’t know until the other side looks at the bill, but water and sewer is basic infrastructure to the state and, of course, so is the road plan.”

In all, more than $124 million worth of Jessamine water and road projects moved on to the state Senate for its consideration.

The House’s budget includes $3.03 million in water projects. Those projects include:

• Elevated storage tank near Catnip Hill Road for $600,000 (Jessamine-South Elkhorn Water District)

• Elevated storage tank for $1.32 million (Nicholasville project)

• Brookview Sanitary Sewer replacement project for $230,000 (Nicholasville project)

• East Jessamine Middle School potable and fire-protection water main for $360,000 (Nicholasville project)

• A 1,400-foot water main and appurtenances along John Preace Drive for $100,000 (Nicholasville project)

• Renovate an elevated water-storage tank (Wilmore project)

• Master life station at Wesley Village (Wilmore project)

Damron said Jessamine leaders have stressed the importance of the water and sewer projects throughout the General Assembly session.

“One of the projects (elevated storage tank) out on Tates Creek for the city of Nicholasville is critical for them, according to (city Utilities Director) Tom Calkins,” Damron said. “The provision on Catnip Hill for a water-storage tank is a critical funding component for the Jessamine-South Elkhorn folks to provide water to the people on the north side and west end of the county. All of them are based on things that are essential.”

Road projects

The House allocated $62.697 million for the 2-year road spending plan. This includes $16.5 million for the four-lane connector between U.S. 27 and I-75.

“It (I-75 connector) had tremendous support in the House, and, of course, it’s the number-one project for the Bluegrass Area Development District and the central Kentucky region as a whole.”

The House budget also includes money for the Wilmore downtown drainage and street improvements, turn lanes at West Jessamine High School and a culvert replacement on Ky. 169.

In addition, the budget has $37 million in FY 2011 and FY 2012 for the East Nicholasville Bypass project.

The House also budgeted $58.36 million in its 2012-2016 state highway construction plan. Those projects include additional funding for the East Nicholasville Bypass project and $5.7 million to reconstruct the intersection of Ky. 29 and U.S. 68, known locally as the ‘Y’ intersection.

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