Business View Civil and Municipal l January 2023

110 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 9, ISSUE 12 “We are beginning to see in Nicholasville and Jessamine County several market-rate apartment complexes, which we have found is attractive to all generations. It used to be apartment- style living for a younger generation, but now we’re seeing that it’s available to some older folks who maybe don’t want the maintenance of a home or want the freedom to travel, “ he adds. “One project in Jessamine County is being conducted by a regional developer called Calamar. It’s going to be our first high-end, age- restricted living facility with high amenities.” Cross illustrates that Publix Supermarkets, the Florida-based grocer, which only recently has begun to expand into the Kentucky marketplace, is going to be the “anchor” at Stonedale, with construction to begin next spring. “It used to be one of Sears or a big-box retailer that anchored developments,” he notes. “The trend now is to find a grocer to anchor those developments. One of our most successful retail commercial areas, Brannon Crossing, is anchored by Kroger. They also have Hobby Lobby and Petsmart and Marshalls. But Kroger came first.” Bob Amato is Nicholasville’s Utilities and Finance Director. Part of his portfolio is keeping the city’s infrastructure on pace with its burgeoning population. “To keep up with the growth of the town, we have large capacity-increase projects – one in water and one in sewer, increasing the size of our wastewater treatment plant while continuing to protect the environment,” he states. “We’re also working on a new water transmission line for our water plant to keep up the water supply. Our electric system has good capacity; it was upgraded in past years and we have excess capacity. Those are the big projects that we have. And we continue to have among the lowest rates in the region, if not the lowest.” “As far as stormwater goes, the city participates in the state-mandated permit program called the MS4 Program,” Cross adds. “We stay current with our permit which requires us to have six minimum control measures. So, we actively inspect our stormwater, but we don’t have an active stormwater upgrade in the works. We did one in 2014-15. That was a response to a flood event that we had; we built a dam, and that dam has had a positive impact on those folks that were affected.” Doug Blackford, Director of General Government, talks about Nicholasville’s commitment to green space and recreational amenities: