Sunday, February 14, 1999
Town forum focuses on jail concerns
Edgewood site one possibility
BY KRISTINA GOETZ
The Cincinnati Enquirer
EDGEWOOD — There were about as many government officials present as there were private citizens at the first in a series of town meetings put on by the Kenton Fiscal Court.
The meeting, held at the Edgewood city building Saturday, brought in 15 residents.
Kenton Judge-executive Dick Murgatroyd said he wasn't disappointed with the turnout but would like to see more residents attend the next meetings.
“We can only be as good as you help us to be,” he said to those in attendance.
Most of the residents wanted answers about whether a new county jail could end up in their city. Several said they thought the county was doing a poor job of getting information out to the public.
County officials have for 15 years discussed building a new jail to replace the crowded Kenton County Building near Covington's riverfront, but have been reluctant because of high costs.
New fiscal court members say they want to make sure the $38 million estimate is justified before they go further.
Several residents expressed concern about safety.
“There are a lot of things we don't understand here,” one resident said. “These people (inmates) could be within five minutes of walking to my house.”
Commissioner Barb Black assured residents that a lot of questions need answers before the county talks about a location for the jail, and that Edgewood residents would be a part of the decision process.
Officials need to look into the cost and where the money would come from, and what kind of facility the county needs, she said.
The proposed site is south of Interstate 275 and east of Ky. 17.
Edgewood resident Leo Knipper lives near the proposed site.
“Because of the location of the property, I can almost look down the hill and see the site,” he said. “A lot of residents feel helpless. I wanted to personally get up and express my view on this.”
By the end of the year, fiscal court members will have met with residents in each of the county's 20 cities. The meetings are designed to bring together fiscal court and community members to discuss cities' needs.
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