Elizabethtown City Council Regular Meeting - August 3, 2026
Elizabethtown City Council Regular Meeting - August 3, 2026
The Elizabethtown City Council held its regular meeting on August 3, 2026, at 20:24 UTC. The meeting opened with a prayer led by Councilman Marty Fulkerson, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance and roll call. Key actions included the promotion of two police sergeants, approval of several municipal orders, a first reading of a data center zoning ordinance, and public comments addressing community concerns.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of minutes from July 13, 2026: Motion made, seconded, and passed unanimously.
- South End Elizabethtown Economic Development Program (SEED): Motion to approve the program passed unanimously.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Mr. Torres (resident of 313 Nicholas Ridge Drive) raised several issues:
- Requested that public speakers be allowed to provide their name and address confidentially (e.g., on paper) to avoid doxxing, citing safety concerns for women and others. The mayor indicated this would be discussed at the next work session.
- Criticized the council's decision to override the planning commission on the VA clinic location, stating the council did not listen to community opposition. He argued that the Elizabethtown 2040 comprehensive plan should not override the clear "no" from residents.
- Expressed concerns about the lack of affordable housing development, noting that new construction is not being built for people earning under $100,000 per year, and highlighted broader economic struggles (e.g., HB 500 impacting free lunch, rent vs. insulin costs).
- Called for more direct democracy, suggesting that major decisions should be put to a public vote.
- Shared a personal story about past discrimination and urged the community not to remain silent.
- The Mayor responded to Mr. Torres, explaining that the VA clinic decision was based on the comprehensive plan and that the council had made changes to the ingress/egress to address concerns. He noted that the council had only overridden the planning commission twice in about 300 cases. He also defended the project's location choice and invited Mr. Torres to meet privately.
Discussion Items
- Police Sergeant Promotions: Chief Jeremy Thompson introduced two new sergeants, Eric Ryman and Jared Hatfield, who were sworn in by the mayor. Both were lateral hires from other agencies. Families participated in the badge-pinning ceremony.
- Recognition of Maurice Young: The mayor presented a token of appreciation to Maurice Young for four years of service on the Planning Commission (June 2022 – June 2026).
- Ordinance 13-2026 (First Reading): Text amendments to zoning code related to data centers. The mayor explained that the council is unified against hyperscale data centers but cannot ban all data centers because existing ones would become non-conforming. The proposed regulations, developed by planning staff (led by Aaron), aim to make hyperscale data centers practically impossible. The mayor argued that regulations are a stronger defense than a moratorium, which could invite lawsuits. Council members thanked the planning commission and staff for their work, acknowledging that technology changes and the ordinance will need periodic review. The first reading was passed by summary.
- Municipal Order 57-2026: Accepted bid from Night Sign for signage at Steel Grove Amphitheater, not to exceed $253,965, with change orders up to $38,094.75. Passed unanimously.
- Municipal Order 58-2026: Approved a lease agreement with Mission Hope for Kids, Inc. for city-owned property at 1117 Woodland Drive. Passed unanimously.
- Municipal Order 59-2026: Authorized a contract with CMW Incorporated for the Trooper Lake Master Plan (access roads, park facilities, amenities, multi-use trails) not to exceed $25,000. Passed unanimously.
- Municipal Order 60-2026: Authorized a contract with Loch Mueller Group for engineering services for the Trooper Lake Preserve master plan (site development and access alternatives) not to exceed $60,000. Passed unanimously.
Key Outcomes
- All agenda items received unanimous approval (no opposition votes recorded).
- The council will hold its next regular meeting on August 10, 2026.
- Cruising the Heartland was canceled due to an 80% chance of rain; the decision was made Friday to avoid safety risks.
- Elizabethtown City Pool will close for the season on August 9, 2026, due to lifeguards returning to school.
- Family Scholar House project: 7 of 48 apartments have been occupied; the program supports single parents pursuing education at ECTC.
- The council voted to enter closed session under KRS 61.810(1) to discuss future acquisition or sale of real property; no action was taken afterward.
Meeting Transcript
Good Julian. Welcome everyone to Elizabethtown City Council regular meeting for August third, two thousand and twenty-six. I will now call the meeting to order and ask Councilman Marty Fulkerson if he lead us in the invitation, please. Let's pray. Father, we're so grateful for the beautiful day that you blessed us with here. And Father, as we start a new school year, we pray blessings upon those administrators and teachers and support staff as they work hard to help make our students successful. And for the students, as they start a new chapter, new school year, God, we pray blessings upon them, that this'll be the best year yet for them. And may they know that we as a community are here to support them to encourage them and to help them succeed. Father, we're thankful for our community for this great city for those that wear the logo that work hard each and every day to make this the great place to call home. Father, we pray now as we go through this meeting that what we do will bring glory to you. And we pray this in your son's mighty risen name. Amen. And if you would join me in the Pledge of Allegiance, I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. And to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Yes, sir. Councilmember Bishop. Present. Very good. At this time, I'm gonna ask Chief Jeremy Thompson if he would come up and introduce introduce us to the two newest sergeants that we're gonna have. Yeah, grab that mic if you don't care. So we're not doing something right to keep people. But tonight we're here to celebrate the the newest two promotions that we have. And recently we were here because we had a couple of retirements, and those retirements led those individuals that left for new opportunities. But what that does is that creates a snowball effect for the rest of us. So when those positions become vacant, uh oftentimes, especially when they're supervisors, then we have to promote a lieutenant, and we have to promote a sergeant to fill that. And then because you all as a council have bought into the leadership plans that we have for our department to lead the city, we were able to increase that lieutenant's position by one. Again, the snowball effect means we needed to promote two sergeants. We had a very competitive list this year. Uh, our process produced six candidates, and tonight we're gonna promote uh sergeant Eric Ryman and Sergeant Jared Hatfield. A little anecdote about both of these um newly appointed or promoted sergeants is they came together uh as laterals. We're not together, but they came to us as lateral candidates, which means when we look out and we're searching for talent around us to bring in an accelerated officer to get out here without going through the traditional academy. These are many of the laterals that we have come through. Um Austin Smith was one of them that was that did come with Ryman. So we've been able to pick the right people. And uh although Eric came to us locally from the Harden County Sheriff's Department, Jerry was just down the road, um, just over in North Carolina. So, you know, it's really close. But we've been able to reach our uh our footprint, our our reach for a long way. So tonight we're here to celebrate those guys. So if you guys will come up and allow the mayor to uh swear you in, and as I say often, get you sworn in here, and then you can go get sworn at out there. Okay, gentlemen, if you would raise your right hand. And if you agree with what I'm about to read to you, just say I do when I'm done, okay. I do solemnly swear that I will support the Constitution of the United States and the Constitution of this Commonwealth and be faithful and true to the Commonwealth of Kentucky so long as I continue a citizen thereof, and that I will faithfully execute to the best of my ability the office of sergeant according to law. And I do further solemnly swear that since the adoption of the present constitution, I being a citizen of this state, have not fought a duel with deadly weapons within this state nor out of it, nor have I sent or accepted a challenge to fight a duel with deadly weapons, nor have I acted as second in carrying a challenge, nor aided or assisted any person thus offending, so help me God. Congratulations. Chris, you want a good picture? Oh, you're good? Okay. If you all don't mind, come over here and sign this paperwork that just family real quick come up and put their badges on if everybody have to sign that. I didn't notice they were badgeless. They're really not policemen if they don't have their badge on.
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