CONTACT: Keith Todd, Public Information Officer
Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Districts 1 & 2
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Emergency funding approved for Livingston County bridge replacement
PADUCAH, Ky. (February 19, 2007) — The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) has approved emergency funding for a Livingston County bridge replacement project. The county will receive $55,000 to assist with replacement of a bridge on Reed Road (County Road 1122). The new bridge will replace a failing structure that crosses a tributary of Crevasse Creek near Lake City.
“Emergency county road funds are reserved for special situations when local governments need assistance for critical infrastructure issues,” Transportation Secretary Joe Prather said. “These funds will help Livingston County officials replace an aging bridge that is inadequate for today’s standards.”
Livingston County Judge-Executive Chris Lasher said the bridge, which cuts through a farming area between KY 917 and Corinth Church Road, provides a critical transportation link for area farmers.
“The existing bridge, constructed about 25 years ago, was not adequate for the size of the stream and the traffic that crosses it,” Lasher said. “This emergency aid will allow us to correct those problems.”
Jim LeFevre, chief district engineer in District 1, said assisting with the cost of emergency repairs is one of many ways the cabinet assists local governments.
“A percentage of our county road fund money is set aside for special situations just like this,” LeFevre said. “We most often have requests after major storms have caused substantial damage to county roads. Emergency funding helps keep those special situations from becoming too large a burden to county governments.”
The funds will be issued directly to the Livingston County Fiscal Court.
County Receives Additional Grants for Roads and Library
During a recent visit, Governor Ernie Fletcher announced grants in the amount of $375,000 to be used for road improvement and resurfacing and committed $1,000,000 in funding to establish a new Library for the County which is backed by Senator Dorsey Ridley and Representative Mike Cherry. The road work will be ongoing and no date has been set for construction on the Library
Courthouse Construction Begins
Construction has begun on the new state courthouse near Wilson and Level streets. Over the past few months geological surveys have been conducted including core drilling to investigate the possibility of using hydrothermal energy for heating and cooling.
B.H. Green & Sons has been awarded the contract for approximately $6.6 Million with a construction term of 454 days.

Additional information can be obtained at the Judge Executive's Office.
Scott's Chapel Road Bridge Completed
After long delays, the bridge on Scott's Chapel road has been repaired at a cost of $249,000 maiking it safe for travel.
Livingston County "CenComm" Completed
Recently purchased by the Fiscal Court, the building where Four Rivers Behavioral Health was formerly located has been renovated to house the County 911 Dispatch Communications operations. The move was required due to the impending demolition of the old county Jail where Dispatch is now located. The new building also houses offices for the Jailer, County Coroner, Emergency Management Director and the 911 Coordinator as well as the County's only formal conference room.
State of the art features include LCD display panels at all workstations for a Computer Aided Dispatch system and computer based radio consoles which will replace outdated pen and paper recordkeeping. Large format LCD panels are also installed in Dispatch and the conference room which will be used for various training sessions and conference demonstrations as well as severe weather tracking, mapping and security cameras. In addition, a cell phone repeater and wireless internet access have been installed to ensure sufficient communications services are available to Emergency Management personnel when needed. The facility is powered by a diesel generator that will provide uninterrupted power for a minimum of 72 hours without refueling should normal utility power fail for an extended period of time, ensuring continued emergency communications services availability to the community. This facility is linked to the Administration offices on Court St. and EMS on Walnut St. by means of special radio devices so that all three locations are on one Local Area Network for computer and telephone service.
In cooperation with ComputerLand/Systems Solutions of Paducah, high speed wireless internet has also been installed. Early testing at the three county sites indicate that this service is far faster than any other service currently available. As part of the agreement allowing ComputerLand/Systems Solutions to install related equipment on the county owned 140' radio tower located at the site, the vendor will soon be offering service to local homes and businesses at competitive monthly rates.
Click here for a look inside.
Grant Money Issued
Livingston County has been notified it will receive a grant of around $147,000.00 to be used for upgrading 911 Communications systems as part of some $250,000.00 in state grants to Western Kentucky counties. Further details are not currently available.
Photo Gallery Launched
A new photo gallery of events, incidents and other happening of public interest has been launched on this website. Please visit the new gallery here. County residents or anyone with pictures of general interest or historical importance are invited to submit them for inclusion. Digital pictures may be emailed to the Webmaster at the "Contact Webmaster" link at the bottom of this page. Other pictures may be mailed to the Judge Executive's Office. Please include a short description of the place or event.
Architectural Firm Selected for Judicial Center Project
On December 7, 2005 the Livingston County Local Project Development Board chose JRA Architects to provide architectural and engineering services for the New Judicial Center.
Timothy L. Graviss, Senior Associate with JRA, will be the Justice Center Designer & Planner on the project. Mr. Graviss has over 20 years of design experience with a vast amount of that experience in historical renovations and designs. He is attending the University of Cincinnati, Ohio and has received certificates for Courthouse Design from the Harvard Design School. His awards include “One of the Nations Best County Justice Facilities” from the
American Institute of Architects for his work on the Nelson County, Kentucky Judicial Center in historic Bardstown.
The Board is excited to have JRA Architects and Mr. Timothy Graviss as part of our design team and all are looking forward to getting the project underway.
Design will take place in the spring of 2006 with construction beginning in the fall of 2006 or
spring of 2007. The Facility will encompass approximately 25,000 square foot and will
provide new court rooms, circuit clerk office, judge’s chambers, prisoner handling
areas as well as other offices necessary to carry out Judicial requirements.
Further information on JRA Architects can be found here