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The error lies with the third-party company contracted to print county tax bills for the first time. The printed version of tax bills already received in the mail reflect a discount and penalty assessed to the 911 service based on early or late payment, respectively. The $36 fee assessed on all dwellings must be paid at face value regardless of when it is paid.
Kentucky statutes allow counties to assess a flat fee to fund emergency 911 services; however, KRS 65.760 restricts the amount to be collected. The 911 fee is not subject to the 2 percent discount for early payment of the property tax bill, nor are the late payment penalty amounts added to it.
Tax bills already received incorrectly reflect a reduction on the $36 fee if paid during the discount period of Nov. 1-30. Essentially, property owners listed on the 4,500 or so tax bills that include the 911 service
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Activities, which are coordinated by Marion Tourism and Recreation Commission, will be from 3 to 5 p.m., Tuesday. Following is a list of the local participants who will have treats.
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| District Player of the Year Katie Perryman covers the net during the regional tournament |
The Lady Rockets advanced to the regional title game for the first time ever by beating Union County and Christian County in the first two rounds of the tournament.
The girls finish the season 16-14.
UHA improved to 35-2. The Lady Blazers have been the top-ranked team in the region all season and Crittenden has lost to them three times.
According the KHSAA power rankings, Crittenden was ranked No. 3 in the region going into the tournament behind UHA and Christian County.
Get caught up on Halloween happenings in Marion, plus find out who the new resource officer will be at Crittenden County Schools. It's a familiar face.
Our reporting from city and county government will keep you up to date on local policy that affects you every day. We have coverage from city council and fiscal court in this week's newspaper.
Plus, find out what a couple of CCHS graduates plan to do now that their college has scrapped the sports programs with which they were participating.
A man held in the local jail on a murder charge is growing tired of waiting for trial. See what the judge plans to do.
There is always news happening in our community and you will never get the whole story unless you read The Crittenden Press.
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The Crittenden Press is your primary source of news and information for this community. We’re proud to serve our community and we take great pride in bringing you real news, sports reporting and other information that helps you know what’s going on in town and across the county. Help ensure that real reporting continues in this community by subscribing today. You can subscribe online to the full version of the newspaper for only $2.95 a month. Try our new e-Edition newspaper emailed straight to your inbox every Wednesday. Click here to SUBSCRIBE.
Copyright 2023
The Crittenden Press
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| Katie Perryman spikes a shot during Wednesday's semifinal win over Christian County |
Quertermous was hired as principal in August 2021. She is a 22-year employee of Crittenden County School District.
It appears that an unanticipated, immediate opening in the high school's English department may have precipitated this move.
The school district’s formal announcement follows:
Citing a desire to return to the classroom, Dr. Melissa Quertermous announced today that she is vacating the role as principal of Crittenden County High School. Rhonda Callaway, a 29-year veteran of education, will serve as interim principal for the remainder of the 2023-2024 school year.
Callaway, a native of Union County, served as assistant principal at Crittenden County Elementary during the 2009-2010 school year and assistant principal of Crittenden County High School during the 2010-2011 school year, prior to being selected as the principal--a position she held until 2014. Since the start of the school year, she has served in a consultant role with the district, primarily focusing on the career and technical education program at the high school. Previously, Callaway has served as principal at Union County Middle School, secondary instructional supervisor for Webster County Schools, and, most recently, she retired as superintendent of Webster County Schools in July, 2022, after four years serving in that role.
Quertermous will teach senior English, a subject with which she has more than 18 years of teaching experience at Crittenden County. A graduate of Livingston Central High School, Quertermous attended Murray State University as an English major, where she obtained a teaching degree. She has since obtained both a masters and an EdD from MSU.
Callaway holds a Bachelor's degree in Biology from Indiana University and two Masters degrees; one in secondary education with an emphasis in biology and a second Masters in administration from Murray State University.
Guggenheim Road is off Crittenden Springs Road.
The road will be closed on Oct. 26, 27, 30, 31, and Nov. 1 for repairs from 7am until 3pm.
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An after-school traffic change at Crittenden County Elementary School prohibiting left turns onto Autumn Lane toward the school has been rescinded.
Last week, school officials issued an announcement about changing traffic flow there, but the idea was scrapped after only two days. It will be back to normal today.
The school district reminds motorists to be cautious in the area during morning and evening commutes and to be aware of buses stopping on Country Club Drive.
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Livingston County Bale Trail is underway and Saturday will be the second annual Bale Blast event at the Extension office with Trunk or Treat and activities from 2-6 p.m.
There will be a costume contest, story walk, cake walk and chili supper. Trunk or Treat set up begins at noon but registration deadline to participate is Friday. There will be judging for the best setup with winners announced at 4:30 p.m. The costume contest is at 5 p.m.
The county’s fall Bale Trail includes sites from Ledbetter and Grand Rivers to Burna and Smithland. Maps are available at the Extension Facebook page. Addresses for decorated bales and the map is also below. Click the map to enlarge.
Beginning Monday, after school traffic at Crittenden County Elementary School traffic will be restricted from making left turns onto Autumn Lane.
Parents and guardians dropping off students or picking them up in the afternoon are asked to NOT turn left onto Autumn Lane "in order to protect the safety of our students and to ease traffic congestion," according to a release by Crittenden County Schools.
The turn restriction will only be enforced Monday through Friday from 2:50-3:30 p.m.
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Then on Sunday, the church will host a block party at the park, providing food and fun for families. There will be face painting, sports activities and more during Sunday’s event from 3-5pm.
There will be a fundraising chili supper in the multipurpose room before the game and the 1985 Class A state champion football team and its fans and followers will be gathering there before the game.
There will be a halftime hospitality room inside Rocket Arena for the 1985 group.
Also, this is senior night for fall sports teams. More than 30 student-athletes will be recognized. Parents and players should stage in the end zone at 6:15pm.
Tonight's game is also Pink Out and the Rocket football team is dedicated its effort to school teacher and former golf coach Vicki Hatfield, who is currently taking treatments for breast cancer.
Rocket boosters will be auctioning a Peyton Manning autographed football and there will be another fundraising activity to raise money for the Phyllis Sykes Reading Room at CCES. Some of the late school teacher's dolls and other items will be auctioned to raise money for the project.
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Kentucky State Police investigated the accident and have identified the victim as William R. Keene, 49, who was operating at 1989 Harley Davidson.
A female passenger on the motorcycle, Jamie Whitworth of Marion, was slightly injured, but did not require transportation to a hospital. Keene was taken to Crittenden Community Hospital by ambulance where he later succumbed to his injuries.
Investigators said the motorcycle accelerated from a stop sign at the intersection of West Mound Park Avenue and North Main Street, crossed North Main and attempted to drive onto East Mound Park Avenue. The driver lost control of the motorcycle and struck an embankment then a wooden utility pole.
Neither the driver nor passenger were wearing a helmet.
The investigation is ongoing and being led by Trooper Ethan Garrison.
The death marks the third traffic fatality this year in Crittenden County.
Typically a “hard flush” is conducted twice a year. The fall flush isn’t normally conducted until November, say city officials. However, it’s going to start Thursday and run through Monday.
City Administrator Diane Ford-Benningfield says complaints about discoloration, smell and quality have prompted this response.
Customers of the Marion water system are being asked to conduct a home flushing of their own. The city administrator said that starting this weekend, residents are strongly encouraged to open every faucet and valve to help flush the entire system. That means toilets, sinks, tubs, showers, outside spigots and any other water lines should be opened and allowed to run for 2-3 minutes.
The city will be flushing lines overnight from 8 p.m., to 5 a.m., each day through Monday. Customers could experience low pressure during the flushing periods. Water line breaks are also common during massive flushing operations, Ford-Benningfield said. “We are asking for your patience while we conduct this operation,” she said.
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Guests can find out about programs available for students.
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A Hogwarts Howl-O-Ween: House Cup Challenge will include multiple natural history programs based on the beloved fantasy world of wizards and witches.
Young wizards and witches, it’s time for the House Cup Challenge! Win points for your House by coming dressed in your house colors, attending classes, and completing wizarding world activities. Make a Patronus charm, visit the Owlery, and interact with beloved prefects and professors from the Wizarding World. At the end of the day, the points will be tallied, and our Headmaster will announce this year’s winner of the House Cup Challenge!
Costumes are encouraged. For the safety of Nature Station's fantastic beasts, please leave pets at home.
For more details and to view the full festival schedule, please click here.
All activities are included in Nature Station special events admission, which is $9 for ages 18 and up, $7 for ages 5-17, and free for ages 4 and under. For more details, call the Woodlands Nature Station at (270) 924-2299 or visit www.landbetweenthelakes.us.
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Community Arts Foundation is hosting a Soup-Ort the Arts fundraising event from 11 a.m., to 1 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 21 at Fohs Hall. The lunch is being held in conjunction with the Fall Into the Arts Festival on the same day.
Select from over 50 bowls of hand-glazed bowls by Crittenden County High School students with which to enjoy your hot soup from area restaurants and stores, served with bread and a drink. The bowl will be yours to keep. Price is $20.
Tickets are available at The Crittenden Press office.
There will be a blood drive at Rocket Arena from 8:30 a.m., to 3:30 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 25.
The blood drive is being promoted by the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. West Kentucky Regional Blood Center will donate $5 to the Crittenden FCA for each pint of blooded collected.
Typical blood donor guidelines apply. Donors must be at least 17 years old or 16 with parent consent.
For more information, call WKRBC at 888-684-9296.
Guy Hodge Road in northern Crittenden County off of KY 91 North will be closed for repairs on Tuesday and Wednesday this week.
The work will be from 7am to 3pm each day Oct. 17-18 as county crews replace cross tiles at various locations.
Crittenden County tax bills will be mailed Monday, and they will look a bit different this year.
The mailing is a few weeks later than normal because Crittenden County government has been in the process of moving from the courthouse to its new office complex.
Bills in the past have been printed on a small, post-card size mailer. This year, they will be letter size, which should make it more readily identifiable as a tax document and perhaps fewer will be lost in the mail.
City of Marion property tax bills were mailed last month. City taxes are due before Nov. 1. After that date, a 25 percent penalty will be applied to all unpaid balances.
County taxes are not due until Dec. 31, but taxpayers can get a discount by paying early.
Tolu Haunted House will continue to be open across the next three Saturdays of October.
The haunted venue will stay open from 10 p.m., until midnight on Friday, Oct. 20 following the Rockets’ football game against Caldwell County.
Otherwise, the haunted house will be open from 7-10 p.m. The kitchen is open 6-9 nightly.
Admission is $10 adults, $8 for 12-under. Proceeds benefit the Tolu Community Center, which is the old school house and grounds.
A map and listing of Crittenden County’s Fall Bale Trail entries is now available on the Bale Trail Facebook page.
The scene with the most Like Clicks by Nov. 1 will be crowned 2023 champion.
While the trail is free, the program seeks non-perishable food items for Crittenden County Food Bank. A collection box is behind the Extension office on US 60 East.
The extended closure will facilitate replacement of the bridge or bridges over a slew next to the Tradewater River.
The road could be closed for three months or more.
Traffic will have to find a suitable detour, which could create some hardships for work commuters, farmers and commercial traffic.
Traffic surveys indicate that between 500 and 600 vehicles travel along that KY 120 route on an average day. The project will cost $727,224 and will be done by bridge builders Cambry Contracting.
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| Deputy Boyd Bates and Sheriff Evan Head are organizing their new office space. |
To contact any county government office, including the judge-executive, county clerk, PVA or sheriff, there is one number working. Dial 270-965-5251.
"This is merely temporary until all regular office numbers can be activated at the new county office complex. Calls will be answered and forwarded to the appropriate county office of need," County Judge Perry Newcom said.
The annual Youth Hunt is Saturday and Sunday for gunners age 15-under.
Resident and nonresident youth age 11-under are not required to purchase licenses or permits to participate in deer hunting.
All youth deer hunters must be accompanied by an adult and those age 12-up must abide by all statewide license and permitting regulations.
The following weekend, Oct. 21-22, will be the annual early Kentucky muzzleloader season.
And turkey hunters will have their first firearms opportunities for the fall when wild turkey shotgun season opens Oct. 28 and runs through Nov. 3.
Rodriguez and some of her students painted a similar flag as part of an on-campus Veterans Memorial inside Rocket Arena.
Mayor D’Anna Browning spearheaded the project on Main Street. The mayor said Rodriguez was paid for materials and her time.
“I am so pleased with how that turned out,” the mayor said. “A lot of us remember the flag mural on the old city hall. I have always felt like that has been missed in downtown. Now, we have a new one to cherish.”
Elizabeth Rodriguez has been the art teacher at Crittenden County Schools for just two years. Over that time she’s left quite an impression…literally. Rodriguez, hired as an art teacher at Crittenden County Middle and High Schools in November of 2021, is sharing her artistic gifts with many more than just the students enrolled in her class. A stroll through the schools – and now through town – gives viewers a glimpse of her talents.
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| Other murals around the school that Mrs. Rodriguez had painted. |
“When I saw the mural created for the school, I knew we had to have one in town,” said Browning.
Rodriguez spent most of her fall break completing the new mural.
Rodriguez’ other recent projects include murals inside the cafeterias at both the middle/high and elementary school, as well as space-themed paintings on the walls of the high school. While all of her work is important to her, Rodriguez says she is especially grateful for the opportunity to give back to her community.
“Everyone has been so supportive as I worked throughout the week,” she said. “It’s inspiring to see the members of our small town find common ground, and it’s a powerful feeling to know I played a part in that.”
Making connections, Rodriguez says, is essential.
“I hope I have inspired my students and other kids in our community to use art, or any other skills they may have, as a way to find connections with others.”
Rodriguez' mother, Kay Kirby, is a former school teacher and her father, Brian, is maintenance director for the school district.
Phones at the new Crittenden County Office Complex on Industrial Drive are not operational in this, the first week the building is occupied by the Crittenden County Judge-Executive, Crittenden County PVA, Crittenden County Clerk and Crittenden County Sheriff's Office.
Phones should be up and running next week, officials say.
The office complex is open for business; however, citizens are advised to show up in person to conduct business or make inquiries.
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The annual Hunting Guide is sponsored by Marion Tourism and Recreation Commission and produced by The Crittenden Press.
Find yours at restaurants, convenience stores, sporting goods centers and at The Press office or Marion Welcome Center. This is a free publication.
Inside are hunting articles, information for outdoors enthusiasts and great deals from a variety of advertising partners.
A subcontractor plans a work zone lane restriction on the New U.S. 60 Cumberland River Smithland Bridge starting today.
The New U.S. 60 Bridge will be restricted to one lane to allow touch-up painting on the main bridge structure.
Motorists should be prepared to encounter one-lane traffic with alternating flow controlled by an automated signal from approximately 7 a.m., to about 5 p.m. each day. The work is expected to take 3 to 4 weeks to complete.
The painting crew will initially work on the downstream side of the bridge until explosive demolition of the old bridge is completed. They will then move to the upstream side of the new bridge to complete their work.
Explosive demolition of the old bridge is tentatively scheduled for Oct. 20 with weather and other factors determining a final date and time.
The New U.S. 60 Cumberland River bridge, also known as the Jim R. Smith Memorial Bridge and the Smithland Bridge, is at U.S. 60 Livingston County mile point 12.348. The 1,912 ft bridge with a 700 ft. main span and 40 ft. wide deck opened to traffic on May 15. It was constructed by Jim Smith Contracting of Grand Rivers.
About 5,100 vehicles cross the Smithland Bridge in an average day. The bridge is at Cumberland River navigation mile point 2.7.
The new bridge replaces a structure that opened to traffic in 1931.
Crittenden County Road Department advises that on Wednesday, Oct. 11, the north leg of Cool Springs Road Y at Nunn Switch Road intersection will be closed.
However, Cool Springs Road will remain open.
A contractor for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) has reopened a section of KY 1943 in northern Lyon County.
KY 1943 has been closed at the 2 mile marker since July 17, to allow the construction of a new bridge over Crab Creek about 1/2 mile west of the KY 373 intersection.
The project was completed more than a month ahead of schedule.
Jim Smith Contracting of Grand Rivers is the prime contractor on this $1,499,724 group bridge project that includes construction of two bridges.
Kentucky Hunting and Trapping Guide will help you learn and understand your area’s hunting and trapping regulations.
Public Lands Hunting page has all the information you need to find public land to hunt as well as the regulations regarding public lands.
Wildlife Management Area & Public Lands Search engine allows you to find public land to hunt based on your specifications.
Learn to Hunt Deer page is a helpful tool with a list of recommended steps and equipment to help you plan a well-prepared, safe, and fun hunting trip.
Field to Fork is a hunting workshop designed to teach beginner and advanced hunters everything they need to know to hunt a specific game species successfully.
Good hunting!
The Crittenden Press examines what's happening right now in the new Valley of the Sun near Fredonia and what could happen in a couple of spots in Livingston County.
Green energy is coming and it could be landing on property next to you.
Don't miss this week's Crittenden Press coverage of solar's big push in the immediate area.
The Crittenden Press is your primary source of news and information for this community. We’re proud to serve our community and we take great pride in bringing you real news, sports reporting and other information that helps you know what’s going on in town and across the county. Help ensure that real reporting continues in this community by subscribing today. You can subscribe online to the full version of the newspaper for only $2.95 a month. Try our new e-Edition newspaper emailed straight to your inbox every Wednesday. Click here to SUBSCRIBE.
Copyright 2023
The Crittenden Press
Sheriff Evan Head said Martin was confronted by the homeowner and held at gunpoint until law enforcement arrived.
Just prior to the alleged break-in, it is believed that Martin had been involved in an automobile accident nearby on KY 91 North at the intersection of Aunt Jane Tabernacle Road.
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| John Martin |
The homeowner summoned a neighbor for help and together they were able to subdue the suspect after a short scuffle that left the intruder injured.
Martin is also suspected of breaking into another building in the area before his encounter with the homeowner.
Crittenden County Sheriff's Department, Kentucky State Police and other Crittenden County agencies responded to the incident.
Martin is charged with burglary, DUI and failure to report a traffic accident.
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