Governor Andy Beshear visited the construction site of the consolidated Christian County High School where he presented grants to the Christian County Public School System, local government and other organizations totaling to around $9 million on Wednesday.
Before Beshear started handing out checks, Christian County Public Schools Superintendent, Chris Bentzel welcomed attendees and spotlighted the consolidated high school’s construction progress.
In September 2023 members of the school system and local government hosted a groundbreaking ceremony to commemorate the beginning of the high school’s construction. On Wednesday, attendees sat in what will be the commons and cafeteria area of the high school and Bentzel calls the progress amazing.
Bentzel then introduced Beshear who started giving out grants. The first grant was for $400,000 presented to Pennyrile Allied Community Services (PACS) for the construction of a transportation facility that will include bus drop off and pick up, a maintenance garage and training facility for drivers. The facility will serve Caldwell, Christian, Crittenden, Hopkins, Livingston, Logan, Lyon, Muhlenberg, Todd and Trigg Counties.
Beshear says Kentucky families deserve safe and accessible transportation and the only way it can be ensured is by funding it.
Hopkinsville Mayor J.R. Knight thanked Beshear for the grant and says it’s all about moving Hopkinsville forward and meeting the needs of the community.
Beshear then presented a 1.2 million grant to Pennyrile Electric Co-Op to connect 270 unserved homes and businesses to broadband internet. Pennyrile Electric President, Alan Gates says the grant will help them complete their end of year broadband internet expansion goals.
Christian County Fiscal Court was presented with a grant of $38,250 to go toward cyber security enhancement and the Hopkinsville Christian County Public Library was presented with a grant of $480,000 to go toward renovations. Elysa Parks, the library’s operations director accepted the grant and shared that the renovations serve to update the library’s restrooms, increase handicap accessibility and redo their programming area with the hopes getting more children involved at the library.
The final grant worth around $7 million was presented to the school system for the construction of athletic fields at the consolidated high school. Bentzel thanked Beshear and said this grant was the last bit of funding they needed to be able to complete construction.
Christian County School Board Chair Tom Bell thanked Beshear as well as former senator Whitney Westerfield and representatives, Walker Thomas, Myron Dossett and Jason Petrie for also working to acquire integral funding for the construction of the high school.
Bell says construction is continuing on budget and on schedule. Construction is set to be completed in 2026.
