Halloween coming a day early in W’burg

Halloween will be coming to Williamsburg early this year, but only one day early.

During a special called meeting Monday, Mayor Roddy Harrison informed the city council that Halloween falls on a Sunday this year, and asked them to set trick or treating one day early on Saturday, Oct. 30, from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m.

When asked whether the downtown merchants would be taking part in the festivities, Harrison noted that he has had discussions with several downtown merchants about the subject.

“I think they are going to get together and do something,” Harrison said.

Also, during Monday’s meeting, the council set the dates for the annual fall clean-up, which will be Oct. 11-15 for the Highland Park side of town, and Oct. 18-22 for the downtown side of town. During these time periods, city sanitation workers will pick-up one pick-up truck size load of debris, junk, and so forth from each residence.

The fall clean-up lasts for one week for each side of town while the spring clean-up lasts for two weeks for each side of town.

In other business during Monday’s meeting, the council:

• Hired Mark Stephens with Kentucky Engineering as the engineer for the sewer upgrade project. The $1.2 million project includes moving and expanding the waste water pump station that services the Exit 11 area of town in order to accommodate the growth expected with the opening of the Cumberland Mint historical wagering facility, an expansion project at the Kentucky Splash waterpark, and other growth expected in this area of the city over the next 10 – 20 years, Harrison said. The 54,100 square-foot Cumberland Mint facility is expected to bring in 2,500 visitors per day, and is projected to open in July or August 2022. Construction of an adjacent hotel is expected to take place within about 18 months of the facility’s opening.
• Hired Codell Construction Company to serve as the construction manager on the water park expansion project. Codell is also assisting the city in applying for over $2 million worth of new market tax credits, which could be used to help pay for the project. Harrison said that he hopes to find out in October whether the city will receive the tax credits. “It is looking good I think,” he added. The city has already financed $8 million for the project.  Councilman Loren Connell asked that Codell be required to regularly update the city council on the status of the waterpark expansion. Harrison said that this is part of the agreement. Construction on the project is expected to take about 18 months to complete.

• Proclaimed September as City Government Month in Williamsburg. The proclamation notes that there are 416 cities in Kentucky, and that 55 percent of the state’s population lives in a city. The proclamation is in conjunction with a Kentucky League of Cities initiative, which includes a website www.citymonth.org where people can go to find various resources, including coloring pages for children, and lesson plans to teach first, second and third graders more about city government.