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County clerk agrees to stay in fee pooling

Expecting a large crowd for last Thursday’s special called meeting, the Ohio County Fiscal Court moved from its normal cozy meeting room to the auditorium of the Ohio County Community Center. And though not all of the dated mustard-colored cushioned seats were filled, a sizable audience gathered to witness County Clerk Bess Ralph and the Fiscal Court square off over the fee pooling dispute. At the last regular Fiscal Court meeting on June 19, Ralph became upset at the Fiscal Court for cutting her office budget increase from $99,000 to $36,000. Although computer equipment upgrades were made in the auto department, Ralph argued that the records department was still lacking in technology and her employees were also in need of pay raises. Magistrate Bill Burden told Ralph that she should “slow down” on her renovations and equipment upgrades and then added, “The office was working just fine before.” Ralph responded to Burden by saying, “I will not write another (fee pooling) check until I seek (legal) counsel.”

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Horse Branch school lagoon bid approved: Project 8% over budget

The lowest bid for the Horse Branch Elementary School lagoon system came in at eight percent over budget but that didn’t stop the Ohio County School Board from pushing the project forward. Bobby Luttrell and Sons was awarded the bid as the general contractor after submitting a cost of $226,800 — the school system had $212,000 estimated. The Luttrells beat out two other contractors. Baccus Oliver of Marcum Engineering, who is overseeing the sewer project, said he wasn’t surprised the bids came back a little higher. “It’s a struggle right now to get a good feeling on a budget,” Oliver said. “I feel pretty good that we got it at eight percent over.”

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Health forces Duke to resign from board seat

Tommy Duke attended his last school board meeting on Friday as a voting member. Duke, 63, resigned from his Fourth District seat, which covers the Dundee and Fordsville areas, over health concerns. “I hate to have to do this,” Duke told his fellow board members at the noon special called meeting at the central office in Hartford. “My doctor was very adamant about this.”

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Hartford opens bicentennial office

Hartford Mayor Charlotte Hendricks cuts the ceremonial ribbon Saturday morning to officially open the city’s downtown bicentennial office. Hartford will use the office as it plans for its 200-year birthday that will come in February of 2008.

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Beaver Dam man arrested in shooting: Centertown man shot twice in leg

The Ohio County Sheriff’s Department arrest a Beaver Dam man Tuesday after shooting a Centertown man and wounding him. Stuart B. Reichardt, 25, was charged with second-degree assault after shooting 25-year-old Chester Howard at 2786 Highway 69 South. Howard was shot twice in the leg with a Hi-Point .9mm handgun around 8 p.m., Sheriff’s Det. Greg Clark said.

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