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Commercial flights closer to reality in Pike The Williamson (WV) Daily News

Commerical_flights_closer_to_reality_in_Pike0_1340684063

Wayne T. Rutherford

By JULIA ROBERTS GOAD

Staff Writer

PIKEVILLE, Ky. – The Pikeville/Pike County Airport Authority asked the Fiscal Court for its support to secure funds to recruit an airline to service commercial flights to the county.

Luke Schmidt, with L. B. Schmidt and Associates, a consulting firm, outlined the plan to bring commercial air service to the airport, located near Harmon’s Branch.

Judge Executive Wayne T. Rutherford gave a brief history of the airport.

He said the property was jointly purchased years ago by the City of Pikeville and the Fiscal Court, including the mineral rights to coal on the property. The money from the sale of the coal that was mined as part of construction at the site was was put into an account for development of the airport.

Then, Rutherford said, the “government withdrew from the project. We looked at three locations to put the airport, but the one we have now was determined to be the best one.”

The location the airport is now, near Harmon’s Branch, was purchased by the County, Rutherford said.

“Then the City became part of the Airport Authority again,” Rutherford said. “That airport is there because of the Pike County Fiscal Court.”

He said last year, the Airport Authority asked the Fiscal Court to fund a feasibility study, a request the Fiscal Court denied. Then, Rutherford said, the study was done with money from the Pikeville/Pike County Chamber of Commerce.

“We have worked to bring commercial air service here,” Rutherford said. “Then along the way we, as a body, were left out. We heard about commercial air service in the paper.”

“I have always been for the airport,” Rutherford said. “All of the magistrates have said they were in favor of this service in the county.”

Schmidt addressed the Fiscal Court at their regular meeting. L.B. Schmidt was hired by the City of Pikeville and the Eastern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce to study bringing commercial air service to Pike County.

“There have been many twists and turns along the way,” Schmidt said. “But there clearly is a market for scheduled air service here. It would service 13 counties, in Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia.”

Schmidt said there were two goals needed to provide that service. The first is to recruit a regional airline that is linked to a major airline, and secondly to connect service in Pike County to a major hub such as Charlotte, N.C. or Atlanta.

Schmidt told the Court the best tool for recruiting an airline to Pike County would be a revenue guarantee package.

The concept is that some money is set aside in as the revenue guarantee fund.

An airline doing business in the county would set a financial goal for each month. If the company falls short, money from the revenue guarantee package would be used to bring the amount of money the airline makes up to the monthly goal. The money would be given to the airline on a monthly basis so the company would not incur financial losses during the first two years of operation.

Schmidt said the Airport Authority has already secured a $750,000 from a Small Community Air Service to provide money for that revenue guarantee. He said the Authority, along with the Eastern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce and the City of Pikeville, is asking the Kentucky Legislature for $1 million in multi-county coal severance tax funds for that guarantee.

Schmidt asked the Pike County Fiscal to agree to support that request.

But the Court had reservations in asking for coal severance tax money for the revenue guarantee package.

“Pike County supplies 32 percent of the coal severance money in Kentucky,” Rutherford said. “This Court was not asked to be included in applying for the $750,000 grant, we have not been included even in news releases about the airport. I am disappointed that we are left and then brought back in when they need money.”

Rutherford said he has asked how much money the Airport Authority has, and found out that amount is $6 million.

District One Magistrate Jeff Anderson asked Schmidt why the Airport Authority was asking for $1 million in coal severance funds if they had $6 million.

Schmidt said there were restrictions on the money the Airport Authority has, although he was not certain what those restrictions were.

“I am not the person to ask,” Schmidt said. He said coal severance money was to be used for economic development, which the airport would be.

Members of the Fiscal Court said they had doubts to the feasibility of a regional airport. Schmidt used an example of a small airport in Manhattan, Kansas, to show how a revenue revenue guarantee package could work to establish air service in a small airport.

But PCFC Deputy Judge Executive John Doug Hayes pointed out that he Manhattan Kansas area has a much larger population, more college students and a more stable tax base.

“They don’t rely on coal,” Hayes said.

Magistrates on the Court said they felt there were more pressing matters coal severance funds could be used for. DIstrict Three Magistrate Leo Murphy said the county’s citizens have more basic needs than air service.

“I want air service too, but let them use their $6 million,” Murphy said. “We have needs in the county, There are people in my district without drinking water, we have to truck water to them. There are more needs for coal severance money.”

Another concern of the Court was that although Schmidt said there were two major airlines who are interested in providing service in Pike County, neither of those companies wanted their identities to be disclosed.

“I have great reservations,” District One Magistrate Jeff Anderson told Schmidt. “It is not transparent.” He said that the City and the Airport Authority know who those companies are, but that the Court did not. Schmidt explained that the City of Pikeville and the Airport Authority were his clients, and as such he could not disclose any confidential information that might hinder the project.

“It is a competitive issue,” he said. “If carriers see their name in the paper, it will blow our chance out of the water.”

But the PCFC was not convinced that an airport was a worthy project in such financially challenging times.

“My objection is that it isn’t a smart use of our tax dollars,” District Six Magistrate Chris Harris said. “If we supplement their income now, where will be in two years? If a was self-supporting, then an airline would want to come in.”

“The Airport board should come and talk to us,” District Two Magistrate “Chick” Johnson said. “They act like they are hiding something. We have never seen letters, or anything about this. They need to come to us; coal severance money is all we’ve got.”

In the end, Rutherford put a motion on the floor to support the request for $1 million in coal severance funds for the revenue guarantee, but none of the Magistrates seconded the motion, and it died without a vote. It will be carried over to the next Fiscal Court meeting.

Read more: The Williamson Daily News – Commercial flights closer to reality in Pike

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Airport could add commercial service WYMT-TV (Hazard)

 

The Pikeville-Pike County Regional Airport could soon be adding commercial airline service.

Officials say they are talking with two major airlines that could provide daily service at the airport.

The flights would serve as connecting flights to larger airport hubs in cities like Charlotte and Atlanta.

The airport would serve a 13 county area in the tri-state region.

Those included would consist of nine counties in Kentucky, three in Virginia, and one in West Virginia.

“You would get on the plane in Pikeville, make a relatively short flight to a major connecting hub, and then you get there and you can connect and go to virtually any place that you want to go,” Luke Schmidt said.

Officials hope to have something in place by the end of this year.

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Consultant: Pikeville could host regional airline Lexington Herald-Leader

Article originally posted to the Lexington Herald-Leader Web site http://www.kentucky.com/2012/05/26/2201975/consultant-pikeville-could-host.html#storylink=misearch
The Associated Press
Talks are ongoing with two regional airlines to provide daily service in and out of Pikeville-Pike County Regional Airport and flights could start in 2013, the Pikeville city manager and an aviation consultant said.
The consultant, Luke Schmidt, said the airlines could connect with commercial hubs in Charlotte, Cincinnati, Cleveland and Detroit.
Schmidt said a key milestone in the long-term effort to get commercial air service for Eastern Kentucky was the awarding of a federal $750,000 small community air service development grant to the Pikeville Airport last year. The grant is being administered by the U. S. Department of Transportation.
“This is a competitive grant,” Schmidt said. “Pikeville competed with 68 other airports, and Pikeville was the smallest of the 68.”
City Manager Donavan Blackburn told The Appalachian News-Express ( http://bit.ly/Js2XmU) that $100,000 of the grant will be used for marketing with the rest subsidizing an airline that provides service.
Blackburn said the airline is expected to operate at a loss for at least two years.
The 5,300-foot runway at Pikeville Airport can handle a turbo prop aircraft capable of carrying 19 to 37 passengers with a crew of three, Schmidt said. He said the region to be served would include 13 counties, of which nine are in eastern Kentucky, three are in southwest Virginia and one is in West Virginia.
This region is currently served by four commercial airports: Lexington, Huntington-Ashland, Charleston and Tri-Cities. Each of the 13 counties is closer to Pikeville Airport than to any of those airports, Schmidt said.
Schmidt said work is currently being done to complete a letter of commitment, which he anticipates would be submitted sometime this fall, with commercial air service becoming available in and out of Pikeville Airport nine to 12 months thereafter.
Blackburn said the airport does not have a fire station. The requirement for fire protection would be met by having a Pikeville City fire truck and crew of firefighters arrive at the airport one-half hour before a scheduled aircraft arrival and remain until one-half hour after the plane’s departure.
Schmidt and Blackburn said some modification might be required to the general aviation terminal that now serves the airport. They said that space might have to be provided for screening passengers before boarding.
Schmidt said the 13-county region that would be served by commercial air service in and out of Pikeville Airport has a population of 445,000, is a major energy region and has a total of $5 billion in bank deposits.

 

 

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Survey may attract commercial passenger service (Somerset) Commonwealth Journal

Article originally posted to (Somerset) Commonwealth Journal Web site

By KEN SHMIDHEISER, Managing Editor and CHRIS HARRIS, Staff Writer Commonwealth Journal

Somerset —

Has the time come for the Lake Cumberland region to become a hub in the nation’s air travel network? Somerset-Pulaski County Development Foundation hopes to answer that question now that commercial airline carriers are again expressing interest in locating passenger airline service in Somerset.
Yesterday, Martin Shearer, executive director of Somerset-Pulaski County Development Foundation, and Luke Schmidt, president of L.B. Schmidt & Associates, announced the launch of a regional survey of air travelers. The purpose of the survey will be to confirm both existing and future air travel patterns, and the demand for passenger airline service in the Somerset region.
During the past two years, community leaders have been quietly working to develop new airline service at the Lake Cumberland Regional Airport (also known by its three letter identification code, SME). This effort has included updating the market profile, establishing a target list of potential providers of commercial air service and recruiting the providers to Lake Cumberland Regional.
The survey is targeted towards 137,000 Facebook users across southcentral Kentucky. In addition to Pulaski County, input is being sought from residents of in Bell, Casey, Clay, Jackson, Knox, Laurel, Leslie, Lincoln, McCreary, Owsley, Rockcastle, Russell, Wayne and Whitley counties. The survey can be accessed by visiting:
This month two years ago as the economy continued to sour, Locair, a Florida-based airline carrier terminated passenger service at the airport here following the expiration of a million-dollar federal grant that made the flights possible.
“Business and industry leaders throughout the region have asked repeatedly when air service will be restored to SME,” Shearer noted.
Today, with the stock market at its highest levels in years, and the number of people seeking unemployment near a four-year low, Somerset-Pulaski County Development Foundation feels the time has come to respond.
The airport’s attractive $1 million terminal is now staffed and being used by the private aviation community as attested by a jet parked on the tarmac outside the Kit Cowan Road terminal yesterday.
“The Foundation recognizes the important role that airline service can play in not only providing a valuable service for our residents, but also in helping to attract new jobs to the region,” Shearer said.
As part of its efforts to restore air service at Lake Cumberland Regional, the Foundation retained Louisville-based consulting firm L.B. Schmidt & Associates, LLC to assist in the effort. The consulting firm updated the market profile, which recognizes that the airport will serve 15 Kentucky counties with a combined population of 384,000 people. The firm has also identified several potential providers of air service and has met with each of these companies to introduce the Somerset market. The focus now turns to a regional survey of air travelers to fully understand where people from this region travel to and how often.
“Today, we are announcing the launch of our survey which is open to any and all business and industry representatives, professionals and individuals who travel by air for any reason—business or personal,” said Luke B. Schmidt, consultant to the Foundation. “We have designed a short, easy to complete survey which will help us to understand just where people from this region fly to and how often they fly. And, in order to help drive participation, we are using social media, specifically Facebook, in an effort to reach the largest number of potential users of SME airport.”
“The survey will help us to better understand the market and the demand for airline service in this region,” said Schmidt. “More importantly, a robust level of participation in the survey will help to match this market to the right provider.” The survey period will continue through February 24, 2012.
Somerset-Pulaski County Development Foundation serves as the economic development arm for the Somerset and Pulaski County, Kentucky region. The Foundation facilitates the development of new jobs by recruiting world-class firms to the community and also assists existing business and industry through the expansion of existing facilities.

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Schmidt: Commuter airline deal could be finalized by year’s end (Elizabethtown) News-Enterprise

By Marty Finley
Wednesday, October 26, 2011 at 3:00 am (Updated: October 26, 1:59 pm)
The airportwas abuzz Monday as crews worked feverishly to finish roughly $5 million worth of infrastructure upgrades to the airport by next month.

In addition to a deeper overlay on the 6,000-foot-long runway, the Elizabethtown Regional Airport at Addington Field is making improvements to its lighting system and its weather service program, said Joe Yates, chairman of the Elizabethtown Airport Board.

Elizabethtown City Council got an intimate look at the changes at the airport during its work session, in which the board and its consultant, Luke Schmidt, updated city officials on an aggressive plan to attract a major airline by the end of the year.

Since revealing its pursuit of a commuter airline service with a connection to a major hub, the airport has rebranded itself and launched millions in upgrades to meet state and federal aviation guidelines, Schmidt said. The airport also is in the process of moving its certification from a general aviation airport to a commercial airport, Yates added.

Schmidt said the airport started dialogs with seven major airlines, but airline mergers, bankruptcies, the economy and rising fuel costs stalled talks in many cases.

One major airline is showing increased interest in expanding to Elizabethtown, though, and hopes are a deal will be finalized by the end of 2011 if not sooner, Schmidt said. The airline could not be revealed for confidentiality purposes.

If a deal is struck, Yates said the airport would approach the Kentucky Department of Aviation and the governor’s office for a state grant to build a passenger terminal, which is expected to cost $3.5 to $4 million and is required to be in place before the airline service can launch. The board wants to launch the service within the next year.

Yates said the airport also will have to provide money upfront for the airline, either by raising $2 million through a travel bank or offering a $2 million guarantee.

Schmidt and Yates said the travel bank is preferred and could be obtained by approaching local businesses to purchase subscriptions to the service. Schmidt said the minimum subscription would be $1,000 and would increase for businesses that travel frequently. As an incentive to subscribe to the service, businesses would have subscription fees reimbursed in full if they utilize the service. Flight costs would be reimbursed upon proof of travel until the amount of the subscription is fully repaid, he added.

“It’s not a donation,” Schmidt said.

The travel bank creates built-in business for the service because most businesses will want to get their money back if they purchase a subscription, he added.

Schmidt said the airline appears to prefer the travel bank method, too, but the guarantee would be needed if the airline rejects the concept. Schmidt said a guaranteed amount was raised for an airline service in Manhattan, Kan., to shore up shortfalls in its first few months of service, when it started turning a profit. The airline has since added several flights to Dallas Fort Worth and Chicago. Schmidt said the work in Kansas to promote the airport, which is located near Fort Riley, is an indicator smaller military markets can be successful.

And the local airport can be even more successful because Fort Knox is larger and the air service market in Elizabethtown dwarfs the market in Manhattan, Schmidt added.

The service would be geared toward military and business flights, Schmidt said, and he projected Fort Knox would have more than 100,000 air trips for trainees in 2012. Flying out of Elizabethtown would be easier and more affordable for the post, he added.

“We’re real confident” it will be successful, Schmidt said.

Marty Finley can be reached at (270) 505-1762 or mfinley@thenewsenterprise.com.

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Rogers Visits Visionary Groups in Eastern Kentucky (Press Release)

 

Press release originally posted to Congressman Hal Rogers’ Web site directed to:

Washington, DC, Oct 21 – U.S. Congressman Harold “Hal” Rogers (KY-05) visited with two visionary groups in eastern Kentucky on Wednesday, October 19th. During a monthly meeting in Whitesburg, the Letcher County Planning Commission updated Congressman Rogers on progress and plans for economic development and tourism in Letcher County.

“The Letcher County Planning Commission is on the right track,” said Rogers. “You can change your outlook and make great things happen in your community by getting involved. I commend you for being proactive and planning your work and working your plan.”

Congressman Rogers later joined the newly formed Southeast Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, made up of eight counties, including Floyd, Johnson, Knott, Lawrence, Letcher, Magoffin, Martin, and Pike Counties. Together, they announced the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded a Small Community Air Service Development grant to implement a scheduled passenger airline service at the Pikeville-Pike County Regional Airport.  The $750,000 Federal Aviation Administration grant will provide a revenue guarantee for a commercial airline service to be established in eastern Kentucky.

“This grant is a big step toward opening greater doors of opportunity for eastern Kentucky,” said Rogers. “This project has been in the works for more than two years and I am pleased that the Department of Transportation recognized the hard work and commitment from area leaders to bring this much needed air service to the region. A scheduled passenger airline service will benefit economic development, tourism and much more.”

The Small Community Air Service Development Program offers highly competitive grants to small communities across the country where air fares are higher than average and improved service will provide benefits to businesses, educational institutions and other enterprises. The City of Pikeville was one of only 29 communities selected across 22 states to receive this grant. Only three of the awards will assist communities in acquiring scheduled airline service. City and airport leaders are working with L.B. Schmidt and Associates, LLC to continue discussions with a commercial carrier.

“This is not a Pikeville project. It is an eastern Kentucky project,” said Tracy Syck, Chairperson of the Southeast Kentucky Chamber of Commerce that represents eight counties. “Businesses in cities along U.S. 23 and highway 80 will all have a local commercial airport to call their own. We are working diligently to secure an air carrier that will be as committed to our region as we are.”

“We are leaps ahead of where we were last year and everybody is really excited,” said Donovan Blackburn, Pikeville City Manager. “I believe you’re going to see commercial air service at the Pikeville-Pike County Regional Airport very soon. We will be making some improvements at the airport and working with TSA for security at the terminal to prepare for our new air service.”

The Pikeville-Pike County Regional Airport is approximately 6 miles northwest of Pikeville, Kentucky.  More than 20 aircraft are based on its field, including single- and multi-engine airplanes.

Grants are awarded through the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), a part of the U.S. Department of Transportation.  The FAA is responsible for the safety of civil aviation.

Rogers has served Kentucky’s 5th Congressional District since 1981. With a focus on economic development, job creation, fighting illegal drugs and preserving Appalachia’s natural treasures, he has a reputation for listening to his constituents and fighting for the region he represents.  For more information visit www.halrogers.house.gov.

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Congressman Hal Rogers makes announcement of federal aviation grant WYMT-TV (Hazard)

Article originally posted to the WYMT-TV Web site directed to: http://www.wkyt.com/wymtnews/headlines/Congressman_
Hal_Rogers_makes_announcement_of_federal_aviation_grant_
132212238.html

Congressman Hal Rogers (R) of Kentucky told those gathered at a reception at University of Pikeville’s Booth Auditorium that a $750,000 federal aviation grant has been approved for take off.

The formal announcement made by the congressman follows efforts made by him along with a partnership between the Southeast Kentucky Chamber of Commerce and Pikeville, Pike County Regional Airport and the City of Pikeville.

“We worked with them on getting a small airports grant out of Washington which has been successful and we have tried to help them to locate a carrier that would want to fly in and out of here and to work with the T.S.A. – Traffic Security Administration,” said Rogers.

Officials said it will help the region’s economy.

“For business administrative folks who are considering building a location here or expanding to this part of the world, it will make it much easier for them to get here. for the current business community throughout the region it will make it much easier when they have to go someplace to visit a customer, visit a corporateoffice or a home office,” said Luke Schmidt, a consultant brought in who has recently worked with an airport in Elizabethtown.

“Years in the past we have had to leave to go to places like Lexington and Huntington and Charleston,” said Pikeville City Manager Donovan Blackburn.

“Now what we are seeing is the trend in reverse, people are now coming here to the events at the east Kentucky expo center, the hospital.”

The reality is that we are going to have the opportunity to attract businessesthat we would have never attracted before>

The congressman said it will also help anyone just wanting to take a trip.

“It will be a huge convenience for people that live in this immediate area,” said Rogers.

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Hardin County United joins alcohol push The (Elizabethtown) News-Enterprise

Article originally posted to The (Elizabethtown) News-Enterprise Web site directed to:http://www.thenewsenterprise.com/content/hardin-county-united-joins-alcohol-push

By Marty Finley

Thursday, March 24, 2011 at 4:27 pm (Updated: March 24, 10:06 pm)

Another prominent Hardin County entity has emerged in favor of placing increased alcohol sales to a public vote.

Hardin County United formally endorsed the efforts of Yes for Economic Success, arguing the debate is one of economic development and should be taken to voters to decide.

Y.E.S. is a collective of local organizations and residents working to change existing alcohol laws in Hardin County because, Y.E.S. argues, they are unnecessarily stringent and an encumbrance to business growth.

In an effort to revise the laws, Y.E.S. is leading concurrent petition drives in Elizabethtown, Radcliff and Vine Grove to authorize a local option election in the three cities at the same time.

Hardin County Judge-Executive Harry Berry, chairman of Hardin County United, said Thursday that he respects alcohol use as an issue of personal choice. He said HCU’s steering committee voted to endorse Y.E.S. and its effort because it recognizes the issue as one crucial to economic development.

Berry said the county is giving up revenue to surrounding counties that allow alcohol sales because Hardin County residents are traveling and spending their money despite the inconvenience.

“The purchase of these products is happening whether it is allowed in Hardin County or not,” he said.

HCU also argues that being dry gives other areas a competitive advantage over Hardin County from a tourism perspective.

Luke Schmidt, president of L.B. Schmidt & Associates LLC, the consulting firm that conducted the Hardin County Vision Project and provides consulting services to HCU, said many of the cities Hardin County competes with have more accessible alcohol sales, everywhere from Bardstown and Bowling Green to Lexington, Louisville and Nashville.

Berry said loosening these restrictions could generate more interest in Hardin County as a tourism destination and attract new businesses.

Schmidt said it also could change a perception businesses may have in terms of quality of place. According to the statement released by HCU, the availability of alcohol in restaurants and pubs is important to developers looking at sites to place businesses.

“Changing the law will make it easier to open new establishments in the historic buildings in downtown Elizabethtown and Vine Grove and in commercial areas in Radcliff,” the HCU statement read.

HCU identified 24 strategic goals to consider as part of the Hardin County Vision Project that weighs core areas, from government to education and health care. Expanded alcohol sales is one of those goals.

Schmidt said the firm polled more than 100 community leaders about the alcohol issue and the response was overwhelmingly in favor of Hardin County going wet.

For example, when respondents were asked if they feel the dining and entertainment scene in Hardin County is robust, 72 percent voted no.

Further questioning revealed 67 percent of respondents felt current alcohol laws are cumbersome for development of new restaurants and entertainment venues and 90 percent of those responders felt the laws should be changed.

Both Berry and Schmidt said the research and polling data led to HCU’s decision.

“It seems consistent with the goals of Hardin County United,” Berry said of the endorsement.

Schmidt said HCU will not proceed as an active arm to market or promote the expanded alcohol effort but rather offer its vocal support to Y.E.S. in its role.

HCU is the latest in a long line of local organizations to endorse the effort, including the Elizabethtown Tourism and Convention Bureau, North Hardin Economic Development Authority, Elizabethtown Industrial Foundation, Elizabethtown Heritage Council, West Point City Council and all four county chambers of commerce, which recently united to form the Hardin County Chamber of Commerce.

But everyone is not crazy about the plan. Liquor store owners in Bullitt and Meade counties have said the emergence of package liquor stores and other alcohol-friendly venues in Hardin County could hurt businesses in nearby counties.

Some also have argued the Y.E.S. group is misguided in its belief that the expansion of alcohol will lead to large financial success. Pat Donnelly, an Elizabethtown resident and owner of Turnpike Liquors in Shepherdsville, said much of the revenue will be funneled out of the county because corporations will apply for most of the alcohol licenses. Meanwhile, taxes generated from the licenses will be minuscule, Donnelly said.

On another front, the Hardin County Christian Coalition has stepped out in opposition to the plan. Founder Will Stolz said the push for alcohol is an unimaginative way to produce revenue in the county and a faulty form of progression.

Hardin County, Stolz added, should strive to stand out from the crowd rather than join its neighbors.

Y.E.S. and HCU maintain gains will be found for the county should it reach a ballot and find voter approval.

“Research indicates millions of dollars are being left on the table in surrounding counties by Hardin County citizens when they travel to Bullitt, Jefferson, Meade and Nelson counties to purchase alcoholic beverages,” HCU said in its written statement. “It’s time to put these dollars in local cash registers along with the taxes that such sales generate.”

Y.E.S. needs to gather more than 3,600 signatures total to place the issue on the ballot. State law requires petitions from each city to have enough signatures from eligible voters to equal 25 percent of the voter turnout in the last general election. That translates to 1,990 signatures in Elizabethtown, 1,182 in Radcliff and 468 in Vine Grove, according to Hardin County Clerk Kenny Tabb.

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HCU Says Expanded Liquor Sales Will Help Econ. Dev. WFPL-FM (Louisville Public Radio)

Hardin County Group Says Expanded Liquor Sales Would Help Economic Development

Gabe Bullard March 24, 2011|

Petitions are being circulated in Hardin County to change the liquor laws in three cities.

The group Hardin County United is supporting efforts to expand restaurant and package liquor sales in Elizabethtown, Radcliff and Vine Grove. Vine Grove is currently entirely dry, and consultant Luke Schmidt—who has worked with the Food with Wine Coalition—says the other two cites allow limited liquor sales.

“Restaurants with at least 100 seats and with 70% of their revenue from food sales are allowed to sell liquor by the drink, however no package liquor sales are allowed,” he says.

Schmidt says more open alcohol sales would help the cities compete for residents and jobs as Fort Knox expands. These initiatives often face challenges from some businesses and religious-minded lawmakers. However, if enough signatures are collected through the petition campaign, the issue can be placed on the ballot in the three cities without going before any local legislative bodies.