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Local News

  • Festival 'sweet' for revenue

    Downtown needs more than one-time festivals, parades and special events to attract and retain viable businesses, according to merchants and public officials. Long-range planning and private capital investment is crucial to create a stronger business backbone, they agree.

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  • Sparta skaters: Park needs upgrades

    Sparta residents Colton Matt and Logan Bailey have skateboarded together for five years. Now, the two are looking to share that passion.

    The Maurice Bowling Middle School students, both 12, are fund raising for concrete and equipment to improve the skate park in Sparta.

    The Sparta city park has one piece of equipment, but Matt said he and Bailey both would like to see the site expanded.

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  • Meet the school district's new $95,000 man

    A 3-2 vote on a new Owen County superintendent contract has brought the district’s search process to an end.

    The board approved a $95,000 superintendent contract for David Raleigh during a special called meeting Thursday.

    Raleigh, who currently serves as principal at Boundrant Middle School in Frankfort, was selected from 13 applicants for the superintendent position.

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  • Fire guts Monterey house

    A Monterey woman who was in the process of moving lost her home when a fire struck early Thursday morning. According to Monterey Volunteer Fire Department Chief Larry House, the fire that began around 12:15 a.m. at 245 Taylor St. started in the back part of Phyllis Massey’s home. House said Massey had bought another home near Gratz and was planning to put her house on Taylor Street up for sale. She had already moved most of her belongings.

    House said an arson investigator was called in and ruled the fire as electrical.

     

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  • New group hopes to touch lives of veterans

    Owen County veterans could soon be getting some much needed help.

    Hospice of the Bluegrass Frankfort recently received a grant, “Reaching Out,” funded by the Department of Veteran Affairs.

    The focus of the grant is to support innovative programs committed to increasing access to hospice and care to ease pain for rural and homeless veterans.

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  • Primary school sees big rise in reading scores

    With a philosophy of “mission possible” Owen County Primary School students are going above and beyond with test scores in the 99th percentile.

    The school participated in a six-year federal grant, Group Reading and Diagnostic Evaluation, along with 75 other Kentucky schools.

    Out of those 75 schools, OCPS ranked third in the GRADE assessment scores for kindergarten through second grade.

    OCPS Principal Sharen Hubbard said when the school began with the program in the fall of 2004, only 31.9 students scored at or above grade-level reading.

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  • Board rejects tax hike

    For the first time since the 2005-2006 school year, the Owen County Board of Education will not be taking the 4-percent tax increase.

    The board met Thursday to hear concerns from the public. Several citizens attended the meeting, including Owen County Magistrate Teresa Davis, Owenton City Councilman and incoming magistrate Robert “Casey” Ellis.

    The board decided against the 4-percent increase and the compensating rate and levied a rate in between the two.

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  • Still swingin’ for the fences

    Age is just a number.

    Damon Rains has been playing baseball and softball for a long time – a very long time.

     “I’ve played ball ever since I was 10 years old,” Rains said.

    That might not seem like a big deal until you realize that Rains is 88 years old.

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  • Pair will share national stage

    The Maurice Bowling Middle School cheerleaders continue to shine.

    In July, the team attended camp at University of Kentucky and came away with lots of new material and more trophies for the school. This year, some of the awards included Superior Squad, first-place Middle School Crowd Cheer; first-place Middle School Extreme Routine; and Top Spirit Squad UK UCA Camp 2010.

    Three of this year’s eighth-graders were awarded top awards at camp also.

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  • Group urges leaders to focus on the future

    With an eye set toward the future of Owen County, the Leadership Owen County Alumni members held a Rural Community Renewal event Thursday in hopes of getting more community leaders involved and brainstorming ideas for the revitalization of the county.

    Members of the Owenton and Monterey City Councils and the Sparta and Gratz Commissions were invited to attend the event. Those who won seats in the May primary election, as well as those who are running for positions in the November general election were also invited to the event.

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