Fort Mitchell FOCUS Dear Residents, There are a lot of new and exciting things in the works for the City of Fort Mitchell. We are actively exploring a partnership with Beechwood Schools to place a School Resource Officer (SRO) in the school. The daily presence of an SRO would be beneficial for the students and staff while providing all of us with additional peace of mind. We are hopeful that we will be able to achieve this partnership in the coming months, continuing a concerted effort for the City to partner with Superintendent Dr. Hutton, and the Beechwood School Board. Our city staff has done a wonderful job in securing grants. In the last six months Fort Mitchell has secured over $35,000 in safety and Homeland Security related grants. It is refreshing to see some of our tax dollars returned to benefit our community. You probably have seen recent newspaper articles about the demolition of the Summer Issue 2014 Drawbridge. We are hopeful that we will be able to share a development plan for this project in the coming months, which contains the details and amenities we www.fortmitchell.com hope to bring to the area with the project’s developers on this critical project for our community. While we were sad to see the demolition begin, we are excited Like us on Facebook! to be working towards another landmark redevelopment project for our City and region. In the coming months, you will also notice a custom City of Fort Mitchell sign City of Fort Mitchell being placed near the Dixie Highway exit. Special thanks are due to Mercedes- 2355 Dixie Highway Benz of Fort Mitchell for their support and partnership with the City on this project. Fort Mitchell, KY Due to changes in redistricting, all voting precincts have changed except for 41017 precinct 7. If you are not sure of your voting precinct, visit the City web site at www.fortmitchell.com for a link that will take you to the Voter Information Center. 859-331-1212 You simply put in your name and date of birth and it will provide your exact voting location. These changes are in effect going forward including the upcoming May Mark Your primary. Calendar We are entering our busy street repair season. The following streets are scheduled to be repaired or resurfaced this year: portions of Beechwood, Page, City Building Grace Court, Marquette, O’Brien, Wexford, sections of Edenderry, Sheffield and Administrative Longmeadow. Fortside, Summit Lane and Park will have storm sewers replaced Offices will be this year in advance of complete road reconstruction in 2015. Please call the City closed: for any questions regarding these projects. Monday, May 26 As always, we remain committed to serving you, providing the best possible Friday, July 4 service at the best value for your tax dollars. If we can be of any assistance, please let us know. Chris Wiest, Mayor 1 History Lesson about Our City The original town of Fort Mitchell was incorporated in March 1910, and at that time it included the area between the Dixie Highway (then called the Lexington Pike) on the east and the present site of the Fort Mitchell County Club on the west, and between St. John’s Cemetery on the north and Maple Avenue on the south. In May 1927, the residents to the south of the original town chose to incorporate as the town of South Fort Mitchell. Through subsequent annexations, the two towns became contiguous and, 40 years later, during the general election of 1966, their electorates approved a merger, with the combined towns now known as the City of Fort Mitchell. The City was named after “Fort Mitchel” (through an oversight, the name of the town was spelled with two L’s). The exact location of Fort Mitchel is believed to have been on the hill between the end of Summit Lane and Barrington Road near the Dixie Highway. It was one of 23 Civil War forts and batteries manned by the Union armies and located on the hills and ridges of Northern Kentucky. Their primary function was to protect the City of Cincinnati from invasion by Confederate armies. Cincinnati was extremely important to the Union because it was the largest meat packing, manufacturing and river harbor city in this part of the nation. It was common during the Civil War to name encampments after the living as well as the dead. Fort Mitchel was named after General Ormsby MacKnight Mitchel, a general in the Union army. General Mitchel was born in Goss, Kentucky, and received his training at West Point, graduating fifth in a class which included Robert E. Lee. In addition to a distinguished military career, Mitchel was a professor of mathematics and philosophy at Cincinnati College and was instrumental in helping to establish Cincinnati College’s Law School. In 1836, he established Ormsby MacKnight Mitchel’s Institute of Science and Language, located on the corner of Broadway and Third Street in Cincinnati. Sometime between 1842 and 1845, he founded the Cincinnati Observatory, which at the time of its founding on Mt. Adams housed the second largest telescope in the world. Following the outbreak of the Civil War, he accepted the rank of brigadier general in the Union Army and was involved in organizing the Northern Kentucky defenses of Cincinnati. In 1862, he led his forces from Shelbyville, Tenn. to Huntsville, Ala., where they surprised and captured the city and gained control of the Memphis and Charleston Railroad. After this campaign, he was promoted to major general and was transferred to South Carolina, where he took command of 4,500 Union soldiers. Unfortunately, his command was decimated by yellow fever. General Mitchel died while serving at a second Fort Mitchel, also named for him and located in South Carolina inside Hilton Head Plantation. www.fortmitchell.com Our website is a wonderful source of information about our Like Us on Facebook! City’s history, ordinances, Mayor, Visit Fort Mitchell’s new City Council members, local businesses, City departments, Facebook page. pavilion reservations, current Check out upcoming events and events and much much more! current information in the City. The best way to find information on our website is by using the search option. 2 HIGHLAND CEMETERY MEMORIAL DAY SERVICE Monday May 26th – 10:00 AM By the Cemetery Chapel Please join us to remember and honor those who served our country! Fort Mitchell Senior Citizens Club Fort Mitchell has a Seniors Club that meets the third Tuesday of each month in the undercroft at Blessed Sacrament Church. The Meetings start with refreshments at 12:00. Afterwards people stay and play bingo and card games. Various day and weekend trips are taken throughout the year and a couple week long trips take place each year. For more information, please contact Dave Bowman at 859-341-5716. Kenton County Libraries Our local Kenton County libraries offer a variety of weekly and monthly fun programs and events which are free to individuals and families of all ages. You can learn more at http://www.kenton.lib.ky.us/ or by picking up a hard copy of their calendar at one of their three branches. Covington Library Durr Branch Library Erlanger Branch Library 502 Scott Boulevard 1992 Walton-Nicholson 401 Kenton Lands Road Covington, KY 41011 Independence, KY 41051 Erlanger, KY 41018 Phone: 859-962-4060 Phone: 859-962-4030 Phone: 859-962-4000 Advertising Opportunities for Fort Mitchell Businesses Advertise for FREE on the Fort Mitchell Website We have started advertising for our local Fort Mitchell businesses on our website If you would like your business to be added, please visit www.fortmitchell.com, search advertise. Advertise in the Fort Mitchell Focus The City will be offering advertising space on the back page of the Focus Newsletter for our local Fort Mitchell businesses. For pricing and other information, please contact the City Clerk at [email protected]. 3 PUBLIC WORKS Planned Projects for this Construction Season Beechwood and Page Roads The water main will be replaced by NKWD and the roads resurfaced. Work will be completed by August 15. Fortside Summit Lane and Park Storms sewers will be replaced by SD1 and the City and a new water main installed. Work will begin in May in advance of complete road reconstruction planned for 2015. Grace Court Complete reconstruction of the road is scheduled for this Summer. The following projects are in design now and will be scheduled as soon as possible: O’Brien, Wexford, parts of Edenderry, Sheffield and parts of Longmeadow Repairs to curbs and resurfacing of the road is in the planning stage. Marquette Design has begun for future complete reconstruction. A start date has not yet been set. Garbage Collection and Recycling Kentucky Transportation Cabinet The City is now contracted with Best Way Buttermilk Pike, Disposal, not Bavarian. Dixie Highway and Trash is collected two days a week and recycling Orphanage Road once a week. are state roads. If If your garbage was not picked up or you need a you want to report new trash or recycling bin, contact Best Way at 859-372-4900. a pothole or road condition on these roads you will need Best Way will collect large to notify the Highway Department at items for pickup all year long. All you need to do is notify them 859-341-2700. with a courtesy call. Project planned during the summer Kenton County Public Works at months: 420 Independence Station Road, Independence, KY 41015 has 1. A resurfacing project will take “open dumping days” on the first place on Dixie Highway beginning Saturday of each month from at Huckleberry Hill Drive/KY 371 9:00 AM - 2:00 PM.