Lancaster

LANCASTER - A global engineering and consulting firm has not only helped secure high-paying jobs for some central Kentuckians, but also recently opened a brick-and-mortar headquarters in Lancaster that employees local residents. Sustainable Solutions Inc., or SSI, until recently was a home-based operation run by Garrard County resident and company CEO Scott Shinn and a handful of telecommuting employees. However, the company has grown so much that opening a traditional business office was necessary.

LANCASTER - Living veterans as well as local and state dignitaries stood Monday in honor of the 107 Kentuckians who died in Iraq and Afghanistan while giving service to their country. During the 45-minute event in front of the new Garrard County Justice Center, speakers also remembered veterans of past wars, especially Vietnam.  “It's always great to be in Garrard County,” Congressman Brett Guthrie said. “Only in America do we remember everybody.” Nearby, a traveling Vietnam exhibit and museum depicted thousands of men and women who died during that war. About 600 people visited the exhibit Monday, including school groups, according to Garrard County Economic Development Director Nathan Mick.

LANCASTER - City Council members will discuss with county officials the cost of remaining a member of the Bluegrass Emergency Response Team.  Russ Clark, Bluegrass 911 director and spokesman for the emergency response team, addressed the council at its meeting Monday. BERT is an emergency support and responder team serving 11 counties in Kentucky and helps in disasters, even when a county is not one of the members.  Garrard County is a member and, according to Clark, the fees are generally split between the governing bodies in each county.

By TODD KLEFFMAN tkleffman@amnews.com LANCASTER - Even though Liquor Mart of Lancaster sold a case of Bud Light to an intoxicated Brett Whitaker just before he killed a Berea couple in a drunk-driving collision, the liquor store won't be held responsible for the deaths, a judge has ruled. Garrard Circuit Judge Hunter Daugherty granted a motion for summary judgment in favor of Liquor Mart, dismissing the liquor store from liability in the wrongful death lawsuit filed by Joel Rowland, son of John and Lavada Rowland, who were killed in the crash on U.S. 27 in June 2010.

LANCASTER - Authorities say the death of a Lancaster man found in a storage unit two weeks ago was ruled accidental. Christian Robinette, 41, was reported missing by his wife, Renee Vest, on Jan. 31. He was found dead in his pickup truck Feb. 5 at the family's storage unit at East End Storage on Richmond Street. Garrard County Coroner Daryl Hodge said toxicology results confirmed the cause of death was carbon monoxide poisoning. “It was ruled accidental,” Hodge said. Robinette likely was cold and turned the truck on for periods at a time to warm up, Hodge said.

LANCASTER - Garrard County authorities have captured one of two men who walked away from a Fayette County correctional facility this weekend. About 11:30 p.m. Sunday, a Garrard deputy sheriff traveling on Ky. 39 about four miles south of Lancaster spotted a truck that had been reported stolen from the Lexington area, said Sheriff Ronnie Wardrip. Upon further investigation, the deputy realized the two men in the car were Christopher Melton and Tyler Roberts who had walked away from the Blackburn Correctional Complex about 8 p.m. Saturday, according to Wardrip.

LANCASTER - Janetta Starnes' eyes widened as she looked upon the Grand Theater for the first time in more than 40 years. She remembered how the gold frame once housed Lancaster's silver screen, the balcony once buzzed with excitement, and the stage once promised small-town stardom. "Ohhh, I used to come here and you couldn't even walk for the people," Starnes, 72, said. "So many memories. " After taking in the sight of the theater's renovation Tuesday, Starnes turned to thank the day's special  guest - Kentucky First Lady Jane Beshear.

About $27,000 worth of renovations to Lancaster city hall may allow the city to secure a tenant for the vacant back portion of the building. On Monday, the City Council preliminarily accepted Frank Atkinson’s low bid of about $26,800 for remodeling, including building walls, laying vinyl flooring and replacing electrical outlets in the unrented portion of city hall. The improvements were requested by an unknown potential renter, so the city plans to incorporate the cost of the project into the lease, City Attorney Leonard Smith said.

LANCASTER - City officials approved first reading Monday of a 3-percent increase of Lancaster’s life insurance tax. Council members gave the initial OK to the increase with the understanding that a budget review committee will examine the effects in detail before a second reading. Mayor Brenda Powers said the increase is necessary to keep the city on track financially. The proposed ordinance would increase the current rate by 3 percent, but Powers said a 7-percent increase also will be a possibility.

LANCASTER - From taxing districts, to Medicaid and affordable health-care reform, to industrial hemp production, to the Grand Theater, a variety of topics were discussed during Tuesday's town hall meeting in Lancaster with state Rep. Jonathan Shell, R-Lancaster; state Sen. Tom Buford, R-Nicholasville; and Mark Lord, district director for U.S. Rep. Brett Guthrie, R-2nd District, present. For Shell, who began his term in January, elected to fill the shoes left by retiring representative Lonnie Napier, the evening was his first experience at such a meeting.