Gov. Beshear presents $16 million in Henderson and Union Counties

UNION CO., Ky. (WFIE) - Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear was in the Tri-State on Wednesday.

In Union County, Gov. Beshear was joined by Morganfield Mayor Randy Greenwell, Sturgis Mayor Kent Sayle, Uniontown Mayor LaDonna Tapp, Waverly Mayor Cris Payne, and Director of Tourism Paul Monsour.

The Governor presented funding to improve infrastructure, promote tourism, support local nonprofit organizations, and renovate the local area vocational education center.

Here’s the full event in Union County.

Full event in Union Co.: Gov. Beshear presents funding

After that, he traveled to Henderson County to present similar funding.

He was joined by Henderson County Judge/Executive Brad Schneider, Corydon Mayor Ronda Smith, Henderson Mayor Brad Staton, Executive Director of Henderson County Tourist Commission Abby Dixon, and Henderson County Water District Superintendent Pete Conrad.

14 News spoke with people from the Sandefur Center, which is going to be receiving $100,000 from the state.

The organization is a non-profit that works with people with disabilities to provide job support. Sandra Kaiser was present and said she’s about to start working for Arby’s. Kaiser said she’s most excited to start receiving paychecks.

Sandefur Center Executive Director Julie Wischer said the money will help more people have outcomes like Kaiser.

“This money is going to invest in our infrastructure – our human infrastructure – to ensure that we can grow for the future so that we can find more people jobs like Sandra got her job at Arby’s,” she said.

In total for both counties, Gov. Beshear presented more than $16 million.

The Governor presented $8,582,500 to Union County Public Schools to support renovations at the district’s vocational education center.

Renovations include updating portions of the building that do not meet Americans with Disabilities Act requirements; welding exhaust system renovations; adding a sprinkler system; and renovating emergency lighting and fire alarms.

He also awarded $155,663 to the Henderson County Tourist Commission and $14,455 to Union County Fiscal Court to support travel marketing and promotion.

The Governor awarded $100,000 to the West Kentucky Brewery Hop Trail, a collaborative tourism project with a focus on craft breweries, to support multicounty collaborative destination marketing.

He also announced $1.5 million in funding to the City of Morganfield, in Union County, to replace the outdated sanitary sewer system at the Earle C. Clements Job Corps Center.

Gov. Beshear announced $641,000 in funding to the Union County Fiscal Court to install a new elevator in the Union County Courthouse.

He also announced the commitment of $830,258 in funds for utilities in Union County and $2.7 million in funding for utilities in Henderson County.

Gov. Beshear announced the commitment of funds for the following projects in Union County:

$175,065 to the City of Morganfield to replace leak-prone waterlines along North Morgan Street.
$175,065 to the City of Uniontown to replace a problematic waterline on Main Street.
$175,064 to the City of Sturgis for improvements to the wastewater treatment plant.
$175,064 to the Union County Water District to replace water pipes around the county.
$130,000 to the City of Waverly to purchase generators for their lift stations. This will help in the case of power outages.

He announced the commitment of funds for the following projects in Henderson County:

$2,067,242 to the Henderson Water Utility to build a new raw water intake structure and piping to transport raw water from the new intake structure to the existing South Water Treatment Plant site.
603,694 to the Henderson County Water District for three projects:
Construction of a waterline across the Green River on the new Spottsville Bridge. This will help serve the community of Reed in eastern Henderson County.
Update leak detection equipment county-wide.
Rehabilitate water storage tanks throughout the county.
$50,000 to the City of Corydon to purchase equipment for sewer system upgrades.

The Governor awarded $484,343.11 to nine nonprofits in Union County and $1,220,842.90 to 20 nonprofits in Henderson County.

The awards come from the Nonprofit Assistance Fund, which is helping organizations across Kentucky recover from the effects of the pandemic.

In Union County, Gov. Beshear presented:

$100,000 to Breckinridge Place Retirement Community;
$100,000 to St. Agnes Parish of Uniontown;
$100,000 to John Paul II Catholic School;
$74,192.04 to St. Ann’s Parish of Morganfield;
$66,473.41 to St. Francis Borgia Parish of Sturgis;
$20,752 to the Morganfield Lions Club;
$16,097.74 to Sacred Heart Parish of St. Vincent;
$4,275.82 to St. Ambrose Parish of Henshaw; and
$2,552.10 to St. Peter’s Parish of Waverly.

In Henderson County, Gov. Beshear presented:

$100,000 to Habitat for Humanity of Henderson;
$100,000 to Holy Name of Jesus Catholic School;
$100,000 to Hugh Edward Sandefur Training Center;
$100,000 to St. Anthony’s Hospice;
$100,000 to United Way of Henderson County;
$100,000 to Holy Name Parish of Henderson;
$100,000 to the Henderson County Healthcare Corporation;
$100,000 to the Audubon Kids Zone;
$94,763 to the Henderson County Family YMCA;
$67,951.46 to the Father Bradley Shelter for Women and Children;
$48,737 to the Ohio Valley Art League;
$45,718 to Healing Reins of Kentucky;
$38,733.94 to The Salvation Army of Henderson;
$38,427 to Redbanks Regency Apartments;
$21,306 to The Gathering Place;
$18,839.85 to Experiencing Autism Together;
$18,376.65 to St. Augustine’s Parish of Reed;
$16,972 to Volunteer and Information Center;
$5,586 to the Henderson County Healthcare Corporation – Two
$5,432 to the Humane Society of Henderson County.

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