Fiscal Court meetings recognize Parks and Recreation and Clark County Homeless Coalition

Two Clark County Fiscal Court meetings in August demonstrated magistrates’ commitment to providing for and learning more about various services communitywide.

A few actions were taken during a morning meeting on Wednesday, August 14.

Having previously heard from Kevin Ryan, Aquatics Director for Winchester-Clark County Parks and Recreation, Magistrate Daniel Konstantopoulos moved to designate no more than $100,000 of ARPA funds for the North Effluent Retention Basin (NERB) project with Winchester-Clark County Parks and Recreation, contingent upon all approvals and the City of Winchester working in partnership.

The NERB, to be located just off Van Meter Road, would serve as a recreational place for waterfront activities, swimming, and additional leisure activities.

Konstantopoulos’ motion – seconded by Magistrate Mark Miller – was unanimously approved.

Another motion made by Konstantopulos and seconded by Miller concerned payments.

The specific motion was to authorize the county treasurer to make a payment of $125,000 from the ARPA funds for WCCPR and to notify the treasurer who to make the payment regarding a new Seresco dehumidifier.

Winchester-Clark County Parks and Recreation Director Jeff Lewis had previously spoken with the Court regarding such a matter.

At the meeting on the evening of Thursday, August 22, Clark County Equity Coalition (CCEC) founder Donna Carter presented before the Court.

“Four years ago, there were 12 percent of teachers who identified as [having] trouble interacting with students from a different cultural background of their own, and 13 percent who struggled to incorporate new material of people from a different background into the curriculum,” she said. “This data came from one school, but if you look at the demographics of our community, the impact of this discomfort can be far-reaching.”

The organization has sought to provide resources and create further partnerships to help remedy this concern and create sustainable change.

“Clark County Equity Coalition exists to build capacity that nurtures our community’s youth by moving towards a mindset of abundance. We ask what is possible before [asking] what is wrong,” she said. “Part of why we are here today is to create a shared understanding emphasizing that the coalition is hopeful about creating a positive and empowered community by ensuring every student has an opportunity to graduate with a meaningful diploma.”

This includes understanding content areas and preparing students with life skills, connecting them to available resources, and building on their potential.

In partnership with CCPS, programs such as Courageous Conversations have been created.

“The Clark County Equity Coalition hopes that by delivering these programs and resources, students can graduate ready to contribute to their community [while] reducing youth involvement with the juvenile justice system, substance abuse, and generational poverty while helping to build capacity along [with] our educators.”

Carter took several questions from Magistrates.

Among them was where they received funding, as asked by Magistrate Steve Craycraft.

“Right now, we’re under the fiscal sponsorship of the Bluegrass Community Foundation, but we just applied for our 501 [(c)(3)] in June.”

Designation as a 501(c)(3) organization would allow Clark County Homeless Coalition to qualify as a non-profit, tax-deductible organization, among other perks.

Carter hopes for strong, continual involvement within Clark County.

“I just can see it growing to really be a good service and continue to bridge a gap in the community,” she said.

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