“ Our old road department sat on 9 / 10 of an acre ,” he said on the property located on Highway 3439 . “ We didn ’ t have room to park our employees , we didn ’ t have room to turnaround hardly . It was a pretty dangerous situation .”
As a result , Mitchell said that after taking office in 2018 , he immediately began looking for new property in which to locate the road department . He was successful in locating an approximately 15-acre piece of property , prompting the department ’ s move and members of the county ’ s fiscal court approving the surplus of the old property back in June . By that point , most of the road department had been moved over to the new location . Mitchell said the county was also in the process of building a shop facility at the new location and that once it ' s completed , the entire department will be able to operate in one location . “ And we ’ ve done it without incurring any debt ,”
Mitchell said , adding he was hoping to have the new shop facility opened by March . Mitchell and the fiscal court have also made a concerted effort of overhauling the equipment found at the road department , purchasing new tractors , backhoes , trucks , etc . Over the course of the last two years , the county has also built up a fleet of seven snow plows to clear roadways following a winter storm . Mitchell said that at one point , Knox County had zero snowplows and had depended on a couple of road graders , backhoes , and the generosity of local farmers and heavy machinery owners to clear roadways .
“ We ’ ve invested in our employees , too ,” Mitchell said , noting that now the equipment has been taken care of , the county can focus on its most important asset - its people .
“ They ’ ve went several years without any pay cost-of-living increases . We ’ ve addressed that every year , and have been able to give them better pay ,” Mitchell added . “ They know our county , they know the roads we work on ,” he continued , noting that after the most recent winter storm , crews worked through a Sunday and the following holiday to clear more than 300 miles of snowcovered roadways throughout the county .
“ They ’ re our number one resource ,” Mitchell added on the county ’ s employees . “ They do a good job and I ’ m proud of them .”
HOUSEHOLD INFORMATION
Total housing units |
14,824 |
Households |
11,961 |
Persons per household |
2.56 |
Households with computer |
70.9 % |
Households with broadband internet subscriptions |
58 % |
Median gross rent |
$ 562 |
KNOX COUNTY HOMES
Median Household Income : $ 30,181
Median Property Value : $ 86,800
SOURCE : WWW . CENSUS . GOV
POPULATION DEMOGRAPHICS BY RACE AND GENDER
Total |
Total Population |
30,193 |
White |
96.6 % |
Hispanic or Latino |
1.3 % |
Black or African Am . |
1.3 % |
Two or More Races . . . . 1.4 % |
SOURCE : WWW . CENSUS . GOV
KEEPING KNOX COUNTY CLEAN
Looking back to last year , Mitchell also noted how the county had made an effort of cleaning up its roadways . He said the county has experienced a decline in roadside dumps and contributes that to the county ’ s Dumpster Program , which offers dumpster services to different regions of the county on a rotational basis throughout the year . It ’ s a goal of Mitchell ’ s to eventually have permanent sites installed , he said .
Mitchell also said it was important to help keep Knox County clean as he felt it and the region had a lot to offer would-be visitors . With that thinking in mind , Mitchell and the county have also recently established the Knox County Tourism Commission , with the idea of drawing more visitors to the area .
INVESTMENTS PAYING OFF
Looking ahead , Mitchell said he was excited to see previous investments made in the county come to fruition . One such example was an investment made by KCEOC Community Action Partnership and Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College that will see a Work Ready Training Center ( WRTC ) brought to the area . Nearing completion , the WRTC will offer trade , certificate , and post-secondary education provid-
The Times-Tribune • Community Guide 2022 — Page 21