Whitley County Superintendent John Siler gets high marks on evaluation

Whitley County Superintendent John Siler got the equivalent of straight A’s on his report card when the Whitley County Board of Education conducted its annual superintendent’s evaluation during the July monthly meeting.

Final Country Meets City of season rocks downtown Williamsburg Friday night

Photos by TIMOTHY WYATT 

Williamsburg’s final Country Meets City concert was held last Friday night, featuring the band Triple Shot. Attendees were treated to the band’s renditions of a variety of popular classic and modern hits. Chelsea’s Creations was also on-hand to provide food for those in attendance.

Legal Notices for 7-26-2023

NOTICE:

2001 Dodge Durango VIN:1B4HS28N61F578222 will be sold August 2, 2023 for towing & storage charges. 952 US Hwy 25W, Corbin, KY 40701.

NOTICE:

Bonnie Phillips / NISSAN MOTOR ACCEPTANCE COMPANY LLC  2019 NISSAN PATHFINDER VIN: 5N1DR2MM6KC587494 will be sold Aug 8th, 2023, for repair bill charges by Aeron Automotive (DBA Bill Berry’s Auto Body Collision Center) 1921 S Hwy 25W, Williamsburg, KY 40769 / 606-549-4112

PUBLIC NOTICE:

Pursuant to 405 KAR 8:010, Section 16(5), the following is a summary of permitting decisions made by the Department for Natural Resources, Division of Mine Permits with respect to applications to conduct surface coal mining and reclamation operations in Whitley County. ARQ CORBIN, LLC, 8618018 MI, 6/29/2023

NOTICE OF BOND RELEASE

Permit Number 918-0472

In accordance with KRS 350.093, notice is hereby given that Alden Resources LLC, 332 West Cumberland Gap Parkway, Suite 100, Corbin, KY 40701, has filed for a Phase II Bond Release on Increment1 1 & Phase III on Increment 2 of permit # 918-0472, which was last issued on 6/17/2018. The application covers as area of approximately 180.46 acres located approximately 0.6 miles east of Rockholds in Whitley County.

The operation is approximately 0.6 miles northeast of the junction of KY Route 3423 and KY Route 26 and located approximately 0.6 miles northeast of Colonel Hollow streams confluence with Watts Creek. The operation is located on the Rockholds 7 1/2 min. quadrangle map.

Increment one (1) is a Surety Bond in the amount of $123,400.00. Approximately 25% of the original bond amount of $123,400.000 is included in this application for release.

Increment two (2) is a Surety Bond in the amount of $63,900.00. Approximately 100% of the original bond amount of $63,900.00 is included in this application for release.

Reclamation work performed includes: Backfilling, re-grading, topsoil replacement, and drainage control including soil preparation and initial seeding and mulching in accordance with the approved reclamation plan, and completed in February 2020.

Written comments, objections, and requests for a public hearing of informal conference must be filed with the Director, Division of Field Services, 300 Sower Boulevard, Frankfort, KY 40601, by 9/1/2023.

A public hearing on the application has been scheduled for 9/5/2023 at 9:00 am the Department for Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement’s Middlesboro Regional Office, 1804 East Cumberland Avenue, Middlesboro, KY 40965-1229. The hearing will be cancelled if no request for a hearing or informal conference is received by 9/1/2023.

NOTICE OF BOND RELEASE

Permit Number 918-5197

In accordance with KRS 350.093, notice is hereby given that Alden Resources LLC, 332 West Cumberland Gap Parkway, Suite 100, Corbin, KY 40701, has filed for a Phase II & III Bond Release of permit number 918-5197 which was last issued on March 12th 2015. The application covers an area of approximately 738.90 acres located approximately 1.5 miles Southwest of Lick Fork Road’s intersection with KY Hwy 92, and approximately 0.9 miles west of Poplar Creek in Whitley County, Kentucky.  The operation is further located 1.5 miles southwest of the community of Carpenter, Kentucky.

The bonds now in effect are as follows:

Surety Bond in the amount of $107,300.00. Approximately 100% of the original bond amount of $107,300.00 is included in this application for release.

Reclamation work performed includes: Backfilling, re-grading, topsoil replacement, and drainage control including soil preparation and initial seeding and mulching in accordance with the approved reclamation plan, completed March 2015.

Written comments, objections, and requests for a public hearing of informal conference must be filed with the Director, Division of Field Services, 300 Sower Boulevard, Frankfort, KY 40601, by 9/1/2023.

A public hearing on the application has been scheduled for 9/5/2023, at 10:00 am the Department for Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement’s Middlesboro Regional Office, 1804 East Cumberland Avenue, Middlesboro, KY 40965-1229. The hearing will be cancelled if no request for a hearing or informal conference is received by 9/1/2023.

NOTICE OF INTENTION TO MINE

Pursuant to Application Number 861‐0543 Amendment 01

In accordance with the provisions of KRS 350.070, notice is hereby given that Mountainside Coal Co., LLC, 7692 S. Hwy 25‐W, Williamsburg, KY, has applied for an Amendment to an existing surface coal mining and reclamation operation located 2.5 miles northwest of Permon in Knox and Whitley Counties. The amendment will add 79.5 acres of surface disturbance making a total area of 416.5 acres within the revised permit boundary.

The Amendment area is approximately 1.2 miles north of the intersection of Hwy 779 and Hwy 1418 and located 0.02 miles west of Flat Creek and 1.6 miles north of Cotton Creek.

The proposed amendment is located on the Barbourville & Rockholds U.S.G.S. 7‐1/2 minute quadrangle maps. The surface area to be disturbed by the amendment is owned by William Wayne Hubbs, Calvin Jones, Brandon Pratt, Gary Lynn & Donna Sue Imman, Carolyn A Mosses, Vicki Partin, Gino Cima, Debbie Lawson, Joyce Lawson, and Venda Hill. The operation will use the contour and auger methods of mining.

The amendment application has been filed for public inspection at the Department for Natural Resources, Division of Mine Reclamation and Enforcement’s Middlesboro Regional Office, 1804 East Cumberland Avenue, Middlesboro, KY 40965‐1229. Written comments, objections, or requests for a permit conference must be filed with the Director, Division of Permits, 300 Sower Blvd. Frankfort, Kentucky 40601.

NOTICE OF INTENTION TO MINE

Pursuant to Application No. 918-0513 NW

In accordance with the provisions of KRS 350.055, notice is hereby given that Torchlight Energy, Inc., P.O. Box 1245, 1658 Torchlight Road, Louisa, KY 41230, has applied for a permit for an auger coal mining and reclamation operation located approximately 2.5 miles north of Louden, Kentucky in Whitley County. The proposed operation will disturb 25.77 surface acres within the permit boundary.

The proposed operation is approximately 0.5 mile south Bear Hollow Ln’s junction with KY Route 779 and 0.2 mile south of Caney Branch.

The proposed operation is located on the Rockholds USGS 7 ½ minute quadrangle map. The surface area to be disturbed is owned by C.J. Clark and Randy Johnson.

The application has been filed for public inspection at the Division of Mine Reclamation and Enforcement’s Middlesboro Regional Office, 1804 E. Cumberland Ave., Middlesboro, Kentucky 40965. Written comments, objections, or requests for a permit conference must be filed with the Director of the Division of Mine Permits, 300 Sower Boulevard, Frankfort, Kentucky 40601.

Tabetha Housekeeper discusses her goals as new superintendent of Williamsburg Ind. Schools

Tabetha Housekeeper may have been selected as Williamsburg Independent School’s next superintendent just under a week ago, but she’s already planning big things for both the school and the community.

Housekeeper was announced as the district’s superintendent during the Williamsburg Board of Education’s regular monthly meeting last Thursday before officially assuming the role the following day, making her the school district’s first female superintendent in its 114-year history.

While she acknowledges the worth of that accomplishment, Housekeeper concerns herself more with relationship building and serving the needs of her students/staff over wielding the authority that such a title might bring.

“I don’t care about the professional ladder because titles, to me, they just get in the way. A title gets in the way of the task. I don’t care about the title. What I do care about is being able to hold up the ladder so everybody else can climb and see that they can get to the top—whatever their top is,” said Housekeeper. “I feel like relationships are what we have to focus on. It’s the North Star of my life. I fully believe it is the solution to our problems. If you don’t have a meaningful relationship and show kids that you genuinely care, that’s when problems arise.”

Her mindset comes from her rather humble upbringing, which makes her someone who can somewhat easily understand some of the struggles kids in this area may face.

Housekeeper originally hails from Letcher County, where she was the only child to a father that worked in the coal mines as a bolt machine operator and a mother that ran a small country store with multiple specialties—ranging from doing taxes, to cutting hair and selling pool supplies.

“We used to laugh and say she was kind of like Walmart,” said Housekeeper. “You could get a haircut, clear up your pool and get your taxes done all in one fell swoop.”

The importance of learning was ingrained in Housekeeper by her family from an early age, but it was during her time in college that she became truly focused on it. As a first-generation college student at Georgetown University, she initially planned on becoming a pharmacist, though her career path quickly changed after taking an education class.

“Immediately, in my very first education class, I loved being with kids,” said Housekeeper. “I would be excited to wake up the days I had TA (teacher’s assistant) hours. I just really got excited about education there.”

Housekeeper got her first teaching job at Anne Mason Elementary in Jefferson County before eventually moving on to Lemons Mill Elementary, which was a brand-new school in Georgetown she helped build “from the ground up.” Along with a core group of 10 other teachers, she helped create policies/procedures, fire safety routes, bus route plans and everything in between for the school’s inaugural year.

After serving as a teacher at Lemons Mill Elementary for five years, Housekeeper took over the role of assistant principal at the school and later assumed the position of principal. She was then asked to step into an administrative role for the school district, taking on the position of director of student services for Scott County Schools.

She most recently held a position with University of the Cumberlands after her family moved from Georgetown to accompany Housekeeper’s husband, Shan, who took over as the university’s head football coach in 2022.

Housekeeper describes herself as a “big idea person.” Currently, she is planning an event she’s calling “The Super(intendent) Party Bus,” where Williamsburg Independent’s faculty and staff will be invited to ride around the district’s bus routes to meet with students and their families to fellowship, give out goodies and learn about one another.

“That’s where relationships begin. We need to show families that we want to be a part of their environment,” said Housekeeper. “The very worst thing in the world is to walk into your kid’s school and not feel welcome. They’re giving us their prized possession. So, it is my goal that parents feel excited to be involved here, too.”

Though Housekeeper has some lofty goals for the district’s long-term future, she has three concrete short-term objectives that she hopes to be able to meet over the coming year: working to build the community’s trust in her and the school, champion good attendance practices and making herself more knowledgeable of the district’s finances.

“I want people to know if I say something, I’m going to do it. I want teachers and students to value attendance, to value being here. Because those relationships can’t happen if we’re not here,” said Housekeeper. “I want to learn what we are doing for kids right now with our money and learn could any of those things change with creativity.”

Housekeeper takes over the position of superintendent from Loren Connell, longtime director of instruction at Williamsburg, who had served in an interim role since July 1 following the departure of former Superintendent Tim Melton.

Her initial superintendent contract is for a three-year period, with it currently set to expire on June 30, 2026. The board can choose to extend the contract at a later date.

Electronic Edition For 7-26-2023

If fiscal court approves, magisterial districts could see a slight boundary shift

Whitley County’s magisterial districts are expected to see some changes if a new map that slightly alters the boundary lines is approved by the Whitley County Fiscal Court.

Whitley County School District getting fifth school resource officer

This upcoming school year, the Whitley County School District is getting a fifth school resource officer.

Three others have survived trips over Cumberland Falls in recent years

A kayaker, who went over Cumberland Falls Friday evening, has lived to tell about it, but he isn’t alone.

Adult welding classes to be offered soon at Whitley County High School

If you are an adult living in Whitley County and have thought about a career in welding but didn’t know where to get training, then you are in luck.

Starting in August, Whitley County High School will be offering a welding night class two nights a week, and you have to already have a high school diploma to take the class.

Whitley County Health Department Public Health Inspections

Whitley County Health Department conducts routine public health inspections of various entities, including restaurants, stores, schools, mobile home parks, swimming pools, etc.

Some of the most recent inspections include: