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Life After the Budget
Dear Friends and Neighbors,
As is customary after the budget vote, Metro Council took a 2-week recess to include the 4th of July Holiday. We did come back together the week of the July 15th and resumed our typical cadence of committee and council meetings. I would like to highlight a couple things that happened this past Thursday at the general Metro Council meeting:
- I recognized District 19 resident Ramsi Kamar. He and his wife own and operate the Raising Hope Organic Farm and was recognized by the Jefferson County Conservation District as the 2019 Master Conservationist. We congratulate Mr. Kamar for his land stewardship efforts in our district. See picture below.
- Metro Council did create a Commission for Persons with Disabilities. My mother taught children with physical and intellectual disabilities and I have a niece with Cerebral Palsy. It is critical that we do what we can to create a city that is inclusive of people with disabilities. This is one additional step toward accomplishing that goal.
There is also some good news happening in our district around infrastructure. That continues to be my focus as District 19 grows and welcomes new neighbors and businesses:
- We did recently see the completion of several paving projects that were budgeted for in the last fiscal cycle.
- A section of the Louisville Loop has been constructed in Middletown. There are two more phases that we are working on that will ultimately connect that with the Parklands via Shelbyville Road.
- We did change the intersection with Middletown Commons and North English Station Road which was the site of many, many accidents. The new traffic flow will significantly reduce the problems with that intersection.
- Construction has started on creating a turn lane at Johnson Road on Shelbyville Road. This project was funded by District 19 funding from your previous Councilwoman, Julie Denton and through the system development charge funds.
- Finally, I have been meeting closely with our state representatives including Councilman Jerry Miller. He and our state representatives are bringing unprecedented funding for state infrastructure projects to help us with our needs.
I do want to close with an update on the Library and the LMPD 8th Division. First, as the media has accurately reported, I have been frustrated with the slow pace of reopening the library. The good news is, Mayor Byron Chapman of Middletown and I have presented multiple options to the library Director for both short and long-term solutions. He is working on those plans and we expect to hear back from him very soon. I will not let one day go by without putting the pressure on the administration to reopen this critical service to our community.
Our current 8th Division commander, Major Jamey Schwab, has been reassigned to lead the LMPD Special Investigative Unit. Major Schwab has been an outstanding leader in our community, had dedicated his life to public service, and has always been responsive to the needs of our public safety. I want to thank him for service and wish him well on his transition. Our new commander will be Major Frank Hardison. I plan on meeting with him soon and we welcome him to the 8th Division. The 8th Division is still housed at the East Government Center but there have been very productive meetings recently around a permanent space for the 8th Division and as soon as I have more information to share on that, I will. Again, I will not rest until the 8th Division has a great permanent location to call home.
Thank you again for your communications and engagement. This new fiscal year is off to a great start and I hope to have more good news for you soon.
Humbly Yours,
Anthony Piagentini
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