Council endorses Option 2 of Heartland Parkway
By Chris Hamilton
State Rep. Jimmy Higdon is determined to make sure the Kentucky Department of Transportation is aware of Marion County's feelings about the proposed Heartland Parkway.
Tonight, Higdon will host a public meeting to gather residents' opinions about the three options for the road that would extend from a point on the Martha Layne Collins Blue Grass Parkway to the Louie B. Nunn Cumberland Parkway and pass through Adair, Green, Taylor, Marion, Nelson and Washington counties.
Monday, Higdon asked the Lebanon City Council for a resolution stating its choice for the path of the parkway.
Option 1 would create a new road, similar to the interstate system, nearly two miles to the west of the existing route.
Option 2 would widen the existing KY 55/U.S. 68/KY 555 route into a divided four-lane road.
Option 3 would keep a two-lane road but passing lanes would be added every three miles on existing KY 55/U.S. 68/KY 555.
"I'd like for the council to weigh in," Higdon said.
Councilman Van Gadberry pressed Higdon for his personal opinion but Higdon was hesitant, saying he did not want to influence the council's feelings.
Councilman Bill Pickerill suggested the council endorse Option 2 but pointed out that Option 3 would also be acceptable.
Option 1, however, seemed to be a radical concept that might not ever get off the ground, he said.
The council voted unanimously to draft a resolution endorsing Option 2.
In other matters:
€A committee charged with approaching Hampton Inn investors to ask them to pay for a new utility easement to the Crossroads Development site announced that it was still not prepared to make a recommendation.
After learning the easement could be paid for with grant money obtained by the Marion County Industrial Foundation, the committee set out to negotiate the best price for the easement needed to build a sewer line that would cross either the Gerald Hamilton property or the Phillip George property.
Hamilton is asking for $20,000. George and other members of his family have not made a decision.
Lebanon Mayor Gary Crenshaw asked the committee for a report and Councilman Dennis George said the committee was not ready.
There was no further discussion.
Last week, the council voted to give Crenshaw authority to sign a contract with Charles & Co. for construction of the line.
Council members Jerry Abell and Van Gadberry voted against giving Crenshaw the authority.
Abell said after the meeting that he believes a sewer line built to Crossroads in 2000 is all that is needed.
"I'm against the total (new) project," Abell said. "The engineers should have told us what it was going to take (in 2000). We've got the service there. The line that we took the headache over is there and that should do it."
Gadberry said he voted against signing the construction contract for another reason.
"Why sign the contract when you don't have an easement," Gadberry said. "I don't see the reason for giving anyone free reign to sign something I haven't seen. If the contract says something we don't agree with, what's it matter now. We've already given the authority to sign now."
