Commission to help fund railroad spur

Bedford County Board of Commissioners voted Tuesday night to give up to $60,000, depending on whether or not the City of Shelbyville participates, for a railroad spur to serve a potential industry which is looking at the old DESA Industries building on Eagle Boulevard.

The commission suspended its rules to consider the contribution, which had not been on the published agenda. According to Walt Wood of Shelbyville & Bedford County Chamber of Commerce, who made the request, he is working to meet a deadline of Tuesday, March 16, to assure the potential industry that rail service would be available. Wood said Shelbyville is competing with one other location, in a different state, to lure the company, which would employ 34 people and invest $7.2 million in the project.

It would cost $562,742 to extend rail service to the building; a grant is available for the project, which would mean that only $90,039 in local matching funds would be required. The Bedford Railroad Authority would provide $15,000, with Wood saying he has "another commitment" for $15,000. That would leave $60,000 for city and county governments to cover. The chamber hopes that the city and county will each contribute $30,000.

"We want to do what we can to get some jobs in, some new investment," said Wood.

Details of the county commission meeting, which lasted only about 15 minutes, were provided Wednesday by County Mayor Eugene Ray. In other action Tuesday night:

* The commission appointed Tony Cornish to a seventh district seat on the Bedford County Agriculture and Education Center board, but had no nominations on which to act for the sixth district road board seat or for a vacancy on Bedford County Board of Equalization.

* The commission closed a section of Shofner Bridge Road measuring 0.4 miles in length. John Cooper now owns all of the property surrounding the dead-end segment and had requested the closure, saying that there have been problems with vandalism and rowdy behavior at the site.

Cooper requested that the county abandon the segment beginning just past Jenkins Chapel and continuing to the dead end. He would then put up a gate to block access to that portion of the road.

* The commission voted to formally exempt the Fly Arts Center on South Main Street from paying property tax. The building, operated by the non-profit Bedford County Arts Council, had not been taxed since it became an arts center but it was discovered that the building had never been formally exempted from the tax rolls.

* The commission referred to Bedford County Planning Commission a request for an easement related to the new doctor's building being constructed on Airport Industrial Park Drive.