Jessamine County

Polls are open for voters on Election Day in Jessamine County from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. The statewide races on the ballot include governor, secretary of state, attorney general, auditor, treasurer and agriculture commissioner.

THURSDAY - The Creative Art League of Jessamine County will host its first meeting Thursday, Sept. 13, at 7 p.m. at the Jessamine County Public Library. CAL is an interactive group for established and emerging artists directed toward the enrichment of art appreciation in Jessamine County. For more information, call 859-885-5536. - The Wilmore Senior Community Center will host Memory Banking each Thursday in September at 1:15 p.m. - The Wilmore Senior Community Center will host “Smiling Memories and Melodies of 1942” on Thursday, Sept.

Taste buds will be tickled and tantalized as First Southern National Bank hosts the 16th annual Taste of Jessamine County at West Jessamine High School from 6-8 p.m. Friday, May 10. “Every year, more people get involved and the funds raised continue to grow,” First Southern spokesperson Suzanne Short said. “Over the past couple years, we have added things like our friendly cook competition. Guests that enjoy the celebrity chef samples vote on their favorite appetizer, dessert and entrée.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet announced that a section of U.S. 27 near Baker Lane in Jessamine County will be closed for a period of time on Tuesday, March 26, from 2-4 a.m.  The closures are necessary for overhead utility crossing work to be completed.

The Nicholasville Fire Department put out a large grass fire Monday off northbound U.S. 27 near the railroad underpass near the R.J. Corman Hanger. Nicholasville battalion chief David Johns said the fire likely started from either a discarded cigarette or fireworks. As of 3:30 p.m., the Nicholasville Fire Department had put out three grass fires Monday while the Jessamine County Fire District had put out one. Last week, Jessamine County judge-executive Neal Cassity signed an executive order that enacted a burn ban throughout Jessamine County.

• Jason R. Jordan, 30, homeless, was arrested Dec. 28 at Spears Trailer Park No. 20 and charged with second-degree burglary and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Weeks of dry weather have prompted Jessamine County officials to enact a burn ban until further notice, Jessamine County assistant fire chief Gerald Wheeler said Tuesday. “There has been no rain, and it's been super dry, and we've got a slight breeze going on, and we don't need to fight any grass fires,”¿Wheeler said. The last burn ban in Jessamine County was in summer 2010. Anyone caught burning illegally could face fines. “There could be a citation issued,” Wheeler said.

Residents with old tires cluttering up the garage or yard will have a place to dispose of the wheels in early October. The Jessamine County Fiscal Court in partnership with the Kentucky Division of Waste Management will be hosting a waste tire amnesty Event Oct. 4, 5 and 6. “It's for residents only,” environmental services operations manager Richie Horn said. “When I say residents, I mean a dealer (or other businessess) cannot bring tires in; it's just for the residents.” Any type of tire will be accepted, and the event will give Jessamine County residents the opportunity to dispose of waste tires free of charge.  The last tire amensty event was held in 2009, and it saw nearly 70,000 tires disposed of in Jessamine County, according to Mike Cassidy, director of Jessamine County Enviromental Services.

Thirteen athletes from Jessamine County schools are competing in the Kentucky High School Athletic Associations 2A track-and-field state championships Friday. Below are the competitors and their respective events in the order they are scheduled to compete. The Journal will update results throughout the day. Follow @thejj_sports on Twitter for the latest news. 2:30 p.m. - boys' shot put • Robbie Irgang - West Jessamine High School - 12th place (43 feet, 10.25 inches) 4 p.m. - boys' triple jump • Noah Daniel, East Jessamine High School - 18th (38 feet, 5.5 inches)

THURSDAY - The Jessamine County Senior Center will host a “Seniorcise” fitness program for adults 60 years of age and older. The 10-week session will run on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10-11 a.m. and started April 23. The center is located at 111 Hover Drive. For more information, call 859-885-9102. - The Wilmore Senior Community Center will host the Body Recall: Fitness for Life program each Thursday in May at 11 a.m. - The Nursing Home Ombudsman Agency, located at 1530 Nicholasville Road in Lexington, will host its meeting Thursday, May 16, from 6:30-7:30 p.m. at the Jessamine County Historical Society, located in the Farmer's Square in downtown Nicholasville.

A new initiative in Jessamine County schools' world-language program aims to begin Spanish instruction in third grade and aim for Spanish proficiency in district students by the eighth grade. Director of secondary schools Maurice Chappell presented the plan to the Jessamine County Board of Education at a work session Monday, telling board members that having a half-time position at each elementary school and two full-time positions at each middle school would not add any additional cost.

The Jessamine County school district is one of 17 to apply to be “Districts of Innovation.” The distinction would exempt districts from certain administrative regulations in an effort to improve student learning. The Jessamine County Board of Education approved its application at an April 22 meeting, and the Kentucky Department of Education announced the 17 districts who had applied May 6. Jessamine County's application centers on work through the Project 225 (P225) program at East Jessamine High School.

The Kentucky United Methodist Home for Children has experienced great change since getting its start in 1871, and the next few years will be no exception. The home, currently located in Versailles, plans to move to a 31-acre property on Ashgrove Road in northern Jessamine County. According to Rev. Randy Coy, president of the Kentucky United Methodist Home for Children, the decision to relocate came after consideration of several important questions, starting with, “Where is childcare going in the future?

On Dec. 5, 1831, the Ohio River froze over, making voyage impassable for Alexis de Tocqueville and his party. They disembarked at Westport, Oldham Co., Ky. and walked the cold 22 miles to Louisville. It was one of many poor experiences that during a 10-month voyage planned to determine “what a great republic is like.” Upon reaching Louisville, the river still offered no passage and de Tocqueville experienced a large swatch of central Kentucky as he traveled south toward Nashville.

Soon, those in certain areas of Jessamine County will have the power to save someone's life if necessary - no training required. Jessamine County Emergency Medical Services has purchased seven automated external defibrillators (AEDs) it plans to distribute throughout the county. The AEDs will be placed in locations where large groups of people typically gather, EMS director Jerry Domidion said. “If there's a large congregation, there probably will be an AED,” he said.

The Jessamine County school district is moving forward with an effort to raise the dropout age, creating a task force to examine the issue over the summer and bring back a recommendation in the fall. A bill that allows school districts to increase the compulsory attendance age for students from 16 to 18 goes into effect July 1. Superintendent Lu Young told the Jessamine County Board of Education at a Monday work session that several districts have plans to enact the change this summer but that she didn't want Jessamine County to “fling headlong” into the move without proper planning.

The Jessamine County Board of Education got the ball rolling on the search for a new superintendent Saturday, creating a timeline that could have a new chief in place by July 1. The board contracted with the Kentucky School Boards Association for the search at an April meeting, and KSBA consultant Mike Oder met with the board at a special work session Saturday morning to go over the search process. Current superintendent Lu Young is leaving July 1 to become chief academic officer in Fayette County.

Jessamine County Animal Control officers confiscated two horses from property near Wilmore Thursday night. According to animal control director Mike Cassidy, the two horses were in dire need of care. “A neighbor called us, and one of our officers responded out and he saw that the horses were in bad condition,” Cassidy said. “They made contact with the owner, and it was a bad situation all the way around.” Animal control did not release the owners' names, “because they cooperated,” Cassidy said.