Dock extensions set for this week

Local News

March 11, 2007

By SHARON DODSON, Staff Writer The Commonwealth Journal Sun Mar 11, 2007, 04:43 AM EDT

Somerset — Contractors are expected to begin work on extending 10 landlocked boat ramps — including Waitsboro and Lee’s Ford in Pulaski County— as soon as the water level on Lake Cumberland drops to 680 feet above sea level, a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers official said Friday.

Bernie Kearns, facilities manager for Lake Cumberland, said work had to be put on hold for a while because of recent heavy rains. The lake level was at 685.86 feet as of midnight Thursday.

“Hopefully, we will get started next week,” Kearns said at a meeting with small business contractors.

According to Kearns, contracts have been awarded to extend boat ramps at Alligator No. 2, Conley Bottom, Fall Creek, Jamestown Marina, Waitsboro, Lee’s Ford and Grider Hill. The Corps is in the process of getting contracts in place to extend ramps at three other facilities, which include Beaver Creek Marina, Cumberland Point and possibly Alligator No. 1. The ramp at Halcomb’s Landing will be extended by the construction division in conjunction with a $309 million rehabilitation project at Wolf Creek Dam.

The work does not include county or state-maintained boat ramps. “The Corps does not have the authority to extend those ramps, but the county and state are in the process of getting contracts in place to do the work,” Kearns said.

Representatives from County Judge-executive Barty Bullock’s office were in Frankfort last week to try to get funds to extend county-maintained boat ramps. County officials have made a request to the Governor’s Office of Local Government (GOLD) for funding to extend 11 of 23 boat ramps maintained by the county. Several of the ramps are so far out of the water that it is not feasible to construct extensions.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has announced plans to lower the lake’s water level to 680 feet — 43 feet below the tree line — at least through the summer months to relieve pressure on the dam.

Kearns said work on the boat ramp extensions could be completed in 30 days or less once the water level reaches the recommended 680 feet.

The dam, which impounds Lake Cumberland, has been classified as a “high risk” of failure. An accelerated grouting program is underway in an attempt to stop seepage through and beneath the earthen section of the dam and below the concrete portion of the structure. The project is slated to take seven years to complete.

During the next nine months, the Corps plans to upgrade several of its recreational facilities to provide more opportunities for locals and tourists while the lake is at a reduced water level.

Some of the projects listed in the annual work plan include:

•Renovations to the day-use area at Fishing Creek Recreational Area, off Ky. 80 in western Pulaski. Kearns said the Corps is looking at redesigning the picnic area.

•New children’s playground area and restroom facilities at Waitsboro Recreational Area in southern Pulaski.

•Ten additional parking spaces at the top of the boat ramp at Cumberland Point recreational facility in Wayne County. New underground electrical wiring and water will be supplied to campsites that previously did not have these services.

•New walkways and repairs to a restored grist mill at Mill Springs in Wayne County.

• Additional campsites and improvements at Kendall recreational area, below Wolf Creek Dam.

Kearns said all of these projects depend on the availability of funds.

Information on the construction projects was announced Friday at an informal meeting with small business contractors at The Center for Rural Development. Charles Appleton, deputy for small business for the Nashville District Army Corps of Engineers, will be the point of contact on small business matters in the Nashville district.

Extra projects could be added if funds become available.

“If we get any additional funds...all of this will be multiplied greatly,” said Kearns.

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Pulaski carries Girdler to win

In the weeks leading up to Tuesday’s primary election, it was impossible to miss the colorful signs dotting nearly every Pulaski roadway. The names in the race for the 15th State Senatorial District seat popped out: A.C. Donahue. Chris Girdler. Mark Polston.

Once citizens hit the ballots, however, the results mirrored the dimensions of the signs themselves: Chris Girdler stood the tallest.

Girdler, deputy district director for Congressman Harold “Hal” Rogers, ran away with the votes inside Pulaski County’s borders, earning 3,926 votes for 62.05 percent of the total number cast.

That number more than doubled the next highest vote-getter, businessman Mark Polston, who raked in 1,624 votes for 25.67 percent.

However, Polston — who owns Classic Carpet, a home-flooring business located just off the southern 914 bypass — can claim a moral victory ... three of them, in fact. In all three counties in the district other than Pulaski — those being Adair, Casey, and Russell Counties — Polston actually edged out Girdler.

In Adair, Polston beat Girdler 629 to 394. In Casey County, it was 538 to 417, and in Russell, it was 1,862 to 1,038.

Polston said he just “couldn’t pull it out with the numbers” and that “the machine worked for” Girdler in Pulaski County.

“I think that was their strategy — I think they had a Pulaski County strategy all along,” said Polston. “They played the political game well.”

Polston said the difference between his and Girdler’s campaigns was that “mine was a very, very grass roots campaign,” he said. “I did not have a political machine behind me. I understand how this process works, and in this instance, he prevailed.”

As for why Girdler didn’t take three of four counties, the winning candidate — since there are no Democrats in the race, winning the Republican primary was effectively a final victory for Girdler — said he didn’t have an answer for that.

However, “I believe things happen for a reason and I hope the long and strenuous campaign will only heighten my desire to move beyond the bitterness and partisanship of the recent past,” said Girdler.

“Regionalism is a goal of mine, and I look forward to helping all four counties,” he added, noting that he campaigned heavily in each of them.

Sen. Vernie McGaha, the long-time state senator whose seat the candidates were vying for, actually supported Polston after Liberty’s Todd Hoskins dropped out of the race earlier this month.

Donahue, a local attorney, got 556 votes in Pulaski County, 8.79 percent of the vote. He only received 145 votes in Russell County, 74 in Adair County, and 75 in Casey County, where hometown candidate Hoskins almost matched him with 71 votes despite no longer being officially in the race.

Polston said he’s “still digesting” what happened, and though “the process has been a very good experience for me,” he wouldn’t commit to running again in the future. “I wouldn’t shut the door to anything, but I’m not opening any doors either.”

Still, “I think I got a lot of people involved in the process that had not been involved before and would not have been otherwise,” he said. “A lot of people got out and worked really hard, got motivated to talk to friends and neighbors. I think a lot of people became involved through this campaign that are going to be involved for a long time.”

Girdler stressed his “positive message” and said that Rogers is a “mentor and good friend” that he would turn to for advice in dealing with a frequently combative legislative body in Frankfort, one for which Girdler hopes to help change the culture.

Girdler said that he was “confident and optimistic” during the day Tuesday because he’d “worked extremely hard.” Nevertheless, the realization that he’d won gave him “chill bumps,” he said.

“I’m absolutely honored,” said Girdler. “The position of state senator is more than an honor, more than an office. It’s a charge to keep, and I will give it my all.

“I pledge to be the people’s state senator,” he added. “I look forward to working with everyone to move this region forward.”

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