Water Supply

If you took a shower in Winchester this morning, there's a 30 percent chance the water flowed through a cast iron pipe that was built in 1891. There's a 100 percent chance the water was treated in a plant that hasn't been updated since 1974. Those were among the details discussed Tuesday as the Winchester Board of Commissioners continued its review of infrastructure needs at Winchester Municipal Utilities. The assessment is in preparation for a vote later this year on sweeping rate increases to pay for capital projects at WMU. The WMU Commission has asked city commissioners to raise the average residential utility bills by 70 percent over the next four years to fund the projects.

The Wilmore City Council took a step toward approval of an ordinance that would govern the water supply to the proposed Forest Creek development. If the council approves Forest Creek, the ordinance will require the developer, Kelley Properties LLC, to "furnish and install" the necessary equipment to deliver water to the homes, and the city of Wilmore will operate and maintain the water supply. Wilmore Mayor Harold Rainwater emphasized during Monday's meeting that Forest Creek residents would pay the same rate for water as the rest of the city's residents.

A presentation of four alternatives to address the future of Clark County's water supply led to much discussion at the Winchester Municipal Utilities commission meeting Thursday night. CDP Engineers, Inc. of Lexington presented the report to the WMU commission. The report outlined WMU's estimated costs for each alternative, and the advantages and disadvantages of each. "What we're trying to do with this report is to provide you with the facts, not to make recommendations, but to give you what you need to come to some conclusion yourselves as decision-makers," Ken Roseman, vice president of CDP Engineers, told the commission.

It's been a long, hot summer, but according to Nicholasville Utilities Director Tom Calkins, the city's water supply is still holding out. "We've still got water coming into pool eight, so we're doing fine for the time being," he said. "It's not as bad as last year. " Since early August, the water surface elevation at lock nine has steadily dropped, going from approximately 22 inches on Aug. 5 to about an inch on Sept. 28. But having dry spells in August and September is normal for central Kentucky, Calkins said.

HARRODSBURG - Water quality may be something Mercer Countians do not have to worry about. Walter Bottoms, superintendent of the Harrodsburg water treatment plant, reported an "outstanding year at the water plant" regarding lead and copper levels, as well as overall cleanliness of the county's water supply. Bottoms issued the report at Monday's Harrodsburg City Commission meeting. "Everything is looking real good for us," he said. "We have good numbers. " Bottoms said the maximum contaminant level, or MCL, was at an all-time low for the water plant.

Director Irena Salina sounds the alarm in her award-winning film, "FLOW: For the Love of Water," which will be shown 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Centre College in Norton Center for the Arts' Newlin Hall. The 83-minute film examines water as a resource in peril across the planet. The screening is free and open to the public. Co-producer Gill Holland will be on campus to introduce the film and answer questions afterward. Holland, Spirit Award nominee for Producer of the Year, has produced more than 40 films, including Sundance favorites "Spring Forward," "Loggerheads," triple winner "Hurricane Streets" and the FOX sitcom "Greg The Bunny.

Harrodsburg's water plant was down around 3 p.m. Friday. Kentucky Utilities personnel told the city they think downed power lines in Salvisa are causing the problem, and they think they can restore the water supply.

An ongoing disagreement between a regional water supply group and Kentucky American Water may finally reach an accord if continuing negotiations are successful.These negotiations would also resolve water supply concerns for Winchester in the face of expanding industry, said Winchester Municipal Utilities General Manager Vernon Azevedo. The latest audit for WMU, under the manager's discussion and analysis section, stated that WMU would not have the capacity to serve the proposed phase II expansion of Sekisui and meet its water supply needs by 2009 without increased water supply capacity.

The Winchester City Commission will vote Tuesday on a resolution concerning local efforts to solve the region's water supply issue. The meeting will be 4:30 at City Hall.The resolution encourages Kentucky American Water to return to the Bluegrass Water Commission's public-private partnership to find a cost-effective solution for water supply. The partnership includes several city-owned utilities and Kentucky-American, the only private partner. The commission, formally the Bluegrass Water Consortium, was originally created in 1999 after a severe drought hit the Bluegrass region.

Stanford City Council continued to exempt commercial car washes from the town's mandatory water restrictions at a special meeting Thursday. But that could change next Thursday when the council meets again to discuss the city's dwindling water supply in the midst of the worst drought in recent memory. "I don't think we can do that," said Mayor Bill Miracle, referring to the car wash exemption. "We can't pick and choose. An ordinance is an ordinance. " But councilman Eddie Carter repeated what has become his mantra during the lead up to water restrictions: "I have a problem putting several businesses out of business," he said.

As a result of continuing high temperatures and limited rainfall, the Energy and Environment Cabinet today announced a water shortage watch for 27 counties in Kentucky, according to a news release. Citizens living in these areas should closely monitor local news sources for notification from water suppliers on reducing demands for water. A Water Shortage Watch is issued when drought conditions have the potential to threaten the normal availability of drinking water supply sources.

The water shortage advisory is still in effect for Clark County, but the rainfall this week has improved water levels at Winchester Municipal Utilities, a WMU official said Thursday. WMU General Manager Mike Flynn said Thursday that conditions are improving, but customers are still urged to voluntarily conserve water. “We have been steadily improving our overall distribution system pressure,” he said. “We've actually gained levels in our elevated storage tanks, and we're actually breathing a sigh of relief this evening compared to a week ago.” On July 1, Flynn issued a notice of a phase one water shortage advisory, because of the extreme heat and dry conditions in the area.

June 29, 1987 Chlorine levels are back to normal in the city's water supply, but the Winchester Municipal Utilities Co. is continuing to purge the system of the smelly water that trickled into homes over the weekend. A Picnic on Main Street at 6 p.m. Friday will begin the holiday weekend in downtown Winchester. The picnic will include musical selections by the Clark County Community Orchestra, followed by the Jack Hodgkin Jazz Ensemble featuring Jessie Laine. The Cards will battle the Expos at 5:30 p.m. at Lykins Park for the right to advance to the championship game of the Winchester T-ball League.

Because of extremely dry weather, Winchester Municipal Utilities officials are cautioning customers to conserve water voluntarily, and are warning them of what may come if it continues. During June, Winchester has received 0.88 inches of rain, WMU General Manager Mike Flynn said. “(The lack of rain) impacts source water or raw water levels, which is the Kentucky River. What we want to convey is that we've had a sustained demand that exceeds our normal production levels,” Flynn said.

A drawing by Lyman C. Draper, an early writer who put the Draper Manuscript Collection together from works and papers of several early Americans, is being used as a model for reconstruction of Logan's Fort in Stanford.  The fort is located on a tract of land within the city limits about 500 feet from the original site of the fort built by Benjamin Logan who arrived in this area in 1775.  Irene S. Jaggers, president of Logan's Fort Foundation of Sanford, talked about the project Tuesday at the Boyle County Genealogical Association meeting in Perryville.

PARKSVILLE - Howard Johnston had to fight a crowd to pay his water bill Monday morning at the Parksville Water District office. The fact that he was unaware of the struggles his water district has been facing since the system was damaged during the February 2009 ice storm is a testament to the success of the hard work it has taken to keep the system running. The “crowd” was a gathering in the small Lebanon Road office for the presentation of a ceremonial check for $725,000 from Rural Development State Director Tom Fern to the water district.

100 years ago - 1911 The Interior Journal said the people who want to keep Stanford dry will not publish the list of names signed to the wet petition in that city by reason of the fact the petition had been knocked out and its publication would cause humiliation to a number of good people who signed it. It is safe to say the wets will never secure enough names again. The work of tearing down the old bridge, which stood the test of carrying the heavy trains of the Q&C over the Kentucky River at High Bridge for a quarter of a century, is progressing rapidly.

Editor's note: This is the first of two stories about a Perryville resident's memories of that town after the Battle of Perryville. PERRYVILLE - William L. Linney was 9 years old when his family moved to Perryville in January 1866, not long after the famous Battle of Perryville. It did not take long for him to get acquainted with the people, and learn about the town's businessmen, churches, schools and the crime in this small town. He wrote his memories 50 years later and added a couple of poems.

There will be a showing at the Danville Opera House of the genuine Tanhouser picture of The Coronation of King George 5th, of England. These pictures show the coronation, the royal procession, the starving peasants, etc. They have never been show in Boyle County before. There will be three shows a night. With Grella's Famous Military Band rendering enchanting and stirring music, the Danville Fair opened auspiciously. Grella is a master and the music is well worth the full price of admission.