Lewisport City Council reviews finances, progress on regional water plant

By Jennifer Wimmer | July 1, 2026 |

By Jennifer Wimmer

The Lewisport City Council met Thursday, June 18 and heard an audit presentation from certified public accountant Jennifer Estes, who reported another positive audit for the city.

Estes said overall cash decreased, but debt declined by a greater amount, leaving the city in a positive position. She reported no significant findings and noted the detailed figures provided to council are not typically used for day-to-day decisions, so she did not review each item.

After council members reviewed the materials, Estes opened the floor for questions. Mayor Chad Gregory asked members to direct any follow-up questions to City Administrator Jason Roberts, who will relay them to Estes. He said there is still time for review.

Regional water plant update

Roberts read an update from Bluegrass Engineering on the regional water plant, which is planned for completion in 2028 in Lewisport and will serve all of Hancock County. Engineers Bryan Lovan and Matt Curtis, co-owners of the company, are working on the project along with local engineer Jason Bevill.

Roberts said there is “a lot going on” with the project and that the firm has been addressing comments from the Kentucky Division of Water on the preliminary engineering report. He told the council the report is closely reviewed and “nitpicked” and that the engineers have already responded to those comments.

He said the water treatment plant has received two sets of Division of Water comments, typically five to six pages of questions each, and that the project team has had to answer all of them. He said the transmission main and elevated water tank have been the subject of three sets of comments and that all of those have also been answered.

The city is still waiting on final approval of the environmental report, which is being submitted from Green River Area Development District (GRADD). Roberts told the council a total of 21 easements are needed for the transmission main, which he described as the last part of the project, with construction of the water plant completed first, with additional work to follow.

“They have been working really hard behind the scenes,” Roberts said. “Now it is just selecting the colors we want on the plant, the furniture, things like that — the amenities.”

He explained that colors must be chosen with sunlight penetration and wear-and-tear in mind; he said bright colors may look appealing but can degrade water quality depending on the color, which is why most water towers are painted pale shades. He added that the new water tower will be visible when drivers come around the curve by Bob’s Garage.

Roberts said the remaining submittals and approvals include going through the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet for a highway encroachment permit and providing a $25,000 bond, which the city will obtain through its insurance company and which he said will cost only a few hundred dollars. The project also needs a CSX Railroad permit but that the city is waiting to apply until all easements are finalized so they do not have to submit two different permits depending on where the line has to cross the tracks.

A Kentucky Housing building construction permit will not be required because the state has determined its review and shows the building will be under the county’s jurisdiction. He called that “a huge deal” because it means the city does not have to go through the state on that permit and avoids the extra requirements the state would otherwise want.

Roberts said the engineers finished the survey plat but, although they are land surveyors, they typically contract that work out. He said they completed the land survey but initially forgot to add a temporary easement for the contracted surveyor to reach the back side of the property during construction, so the city can convey that access back once construction is complete.

He said the plat has since been updated, with work resuming within the week.

He added that the city has a letter on its letterhead that gives it authority “to exercise” that option. He said they still must obtain a stream-crossing permit and a water quality certificate and that as soon as those are in place, “we’re ready to go to bid.”

Public comment

A resident identified only as Wayne spoke during public comments, questioning recent increases to the gas meter fee and utility-related taxes. He said he did not understand the higher price for gas meters and noted the city has about 1,400 gas customers. Wayne asked what the additional revenue from the changes will be used for.

Gregory responded that the city plans to use the revenue to help run city operations and for infrastructure improvements. Wayne said he is concerned about the impact of the additional charges and expressed disagreement with how the city is funding its services.

Gregory said the city’s premium tax will not cover the revenue lost when Dal-Tile closed and that the city has to make up the difference. Wayne replied that the loss was not his fault and said he pays about $120 in city tax on his house, which he feels is too high. He said he worries his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren will not be able to afford to live in Lewisport if rates and fees continue to rise.

Wayne said some residents have two houses on the same tap, including himself, and that he feels that arrangement affects how they are billed. Roberts responded that the city charges a connection fee, but that sewer bills are based on how much water a customer uses regardless of how many houses are tied into a tap.

Wayne said the situation is not fair, especially for seniors on fixed incomes, and asked how many houses have been built in Hancock Park. He said he worked in Lewisport for 42 years and had never seen anything like the new charges. Gregory said the city faced a choice between raising rates “astronomically” or pursuing another option.

Wayne said he opposes flat fees because everyone pays the same amount regardless of usage and believes that is unfair. Gregory said the electric bill for operating the city’s sewer plant is nearly $6,000 a month and that those costs have to be covered.

Wayne said he would rather see sewer rates raised than a tax added to bills and that rate increases would not bother him. He said he believes many Lewisport residents feel the same way, noting that he has lived in the city for 54 years and has never heard complaints when rates were raised in the past. He said he does not think anyone has objected to prior rate increases.

Gregory said he would not object to higher rates either, but that the council had decided to follow the current approach. He told Wayne he was sorry he felt that way.

Gregory added that supporting documentation is available to explain the decision if anyone wants to review it. He said the city has justification for the changes and that if the information were laid out for residents, it would help them understand why the increases were made. He said Roberts has documentation and that he also keeps a copy at work, and he invited anyone who wants to see the materials from the budget workshop to contact him.

The Hancock Clarion has reported in depth on council meetings, including direct quotes from Gregory explaining in detail why the council approved each rate and fee increase. Those articles are available in the archives of the newspaper’s online e-edition.

Councilwoman Mary Margaret Hawkins said she has long believed the city should annex more property. She said, “they’re getting the same services that we’re all getting with their utilities but they’re not paying taxes” and that annexation “would help some.”

Hawkins asked whether the new part of Hancock Park is in the city limits and noted that at first it was not. She said the city has annexed along Highway 60 in all directions many times.

Gregory answered that the newer portion of Hancock Park is now entirely within city limits.

“If this council would have had the guts years ago, and when you all were here when that Industrial Park was built, you would have stepped up and annexed it, but you folded,” Gregory said. “Had I been here, that would not have happened. We’ve annexed when we’ve needed to.”

Hawkins said the city has not annexed property in about 10 years and that it has not annexed all the way along Highway 60 to the creek at the Daviess County-Hancock County line.

Gregory replied that businesses in the Industrial Park would “fight us tooth and nail” if the city tried to annex them. He then asked City Attorney Charles Kamuf Jr. for his opinion on annexing the Industrial Park, including what companies such as First Class Services, McElroy Metal and Precision Roll Grinders might think if the council decided to annex that land.

Kamuf said all affected parties would have to agree to annexation and that if they did not, it would become a fight.

Council members discussed annexation rules and city boundaries, saying that the city cannot “spot annex” and that annexed areas must be contiguous to existing city limits.

Gregory said he has previously asked about annexing the Industrial Park, but that the idea has “fallen on deaf ears.” He mentioned that every new home built on Lincoln Road has been annexed into the city.

Hawkins said the city has annexed sections of subdivisions over the years, not always all at once, and that the council might not need to annex the Industrial Park itself but could consider annexing more at the outer edges of the city.

Gregory and Roberts said the city has already annexed as far as it can go. Hawkins said she thought only part of the area had been annexed up to the creek, not all of it. Gregory said the entire area is annexed and also mentioned Heartland Villa, noting that the facility is in the city limits except for the apartments. He said those apartments will come back into the city because the new owners agreed to that when they purchased that portion of the property.

Budget ordinance

Kamuf delivered the second reading of Budget Ordinance 26-2 for the fiscal year July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027, outlining projected revenues for the general, road, LGA, gas, water, sewer, fire department, park, Heritage Festival, municipal and American Relief funds. The ordinance is now in effect following publication of its full text in the June 25 edition of The Hancock Clarion.

Sewer rate ordinance

Kamuf also completed the second reading of Sewer Rate Ordinance 26-3, amending the city’s 1996 sewer user charge ordinance to adjust sewer user rates and add a monthly connection fee for customers. The ordinance is now in effect following publication of the legal notice on June 25.

Under the updated schedule, wastewater user and debt service charges are based on metered or estimated water consumption. The monthly wastewater service rate includes a $12.85 minimum bill and a charge of $5 per 1,000 gallons. Section two adds a connection fee: residential customers will pay a recurring monthly fee of $10 per meter, and commercial or industrial customers will pay $20 per meter.

The amended rate schedule applies to bills beginning with those sent out on July 1.

Public Works update

Roberts gave a Public Works update in place of Superintendent R.J. Simpson, outlining what the city’s crew has worked on over the last month.

“The guys have been busy spraying — tons of spraying with all of the rain we’ve had,” Roberts said. “We’ve done some bush hogging. The guys worked really hard getting ready for the 2026 Lewisport Heritage Festival. They have been doing mosquito spraying, and the summer help is working out really great. They have been a great crew so far. The festival was really good. We had nice weather. The $10 armbands for the rides this year (half price of previous years) were good. I think we sold a record number of T-shirts this year. We sold out every night. We brought back the old-school ones — the old design from years ago.”

City Clerk Carrie Dixon said a few pink festival T-shirts remained — two mediums and a large — for $10 each.

The city hired four summer employees who began working May 26: Lane Dixon, Leland Wilson, Harrison Emmick and Wyatt Huff. Public Works crew member and Lewisport Volunteer Fire Department Chief Troy Roberts also earned his Class II water distribution license in May.

Police department update

Lewisport Police Chief Greg Linn said, “Everything went well with the festival. The crew did a good job as usual. Shout out to them. The great weather helped out a whole lot as well. From last month to this month, so far we have had a total of 112 CAD calls. Everything else is going well.”

Linn said Lewisport Officer Nick Jarboe finished his in-service last month.

At the May meeting, the department reported 89 CAD calls (46 general). Linn also noted at last month’s meeting that Jarboe and his wife, Madison, had welcomed their first child several weeks earlier and that the family was doing well.

Fire department update

The Lewisport Volunteer Fire Department financial statement was approved by the council.

The department is recruiting new members. Applications are available at the station or can be downloaded from the pinned post on the Lewisport Volunteer Fire Department Facebook page. Completed applications may be emailed to [email protected] or mailed to P.O. Box 22, Lewisport, KY 42351. Volunteer firefighters must complete at least 20 hours of training each year.
Junior Firefighter Program
The Junior Firefighter Program is open to youth ages 15 to 17. Program details and the application link are posted on the department’s Facebook page.

Last month’s meeting

A few details about last month’s meeting were not available when that report was published; they are included here for context.

At the general meeting in May, public comments were made by Gary and Robin Elder, who reported an incident that occurred around the second week of May. Mrs. Elder said that while she was walking, as she does daily, a dog at a residence in Lewisport ran out and knocked her down. She said the owner came out, helped her up and told her she would cover any medical bills if Mrs. Elder needed to be checked out. Mrs. Elder said she contacted dispatch but had not heard from an officer as of the May 21 meeting.

Linn said the CAD entry left for him when he returned to work indicated that an officer was not requested, and he read the entry aloud at the meeting. He told the Elders that in order for anything to be done about the dog, they would need to file and sign a formal complaint, noting that this has been the process for a long time. The Elders said they planned to follow up with him within a few days to discuss and file a complaint.

At the May meeting, the council awarded the bid to demolish the Alexander property to GN Excavating and Trucking. Road bids were approved for Scotty’s Contracting & Stone.