Health Department May Donate To Rail-Trail Project

The Christian County Health Board is considering a 100-thousand dollar donation to the Pennyrile Rail-to-Trail project being spearheaded by the City of Hopkinsville. Board members are concerned about making sure the Health Department stays solvent, given the cuts in funding it has undergone in recent years, but Director Mark Pyle reportedly told them the donation would not hurt the department.

Rather, Pyle hopes it will help increase the activity of the citizens, one of the goals of the Health Department. Pyle says the money is there to advance public health, but board members want to make sure there is enough money for a rainy day.

The Health Department has a reserve fund of nearly 2.4 million dollars, of which 650-thousand dollars will go into the general fund by this summer. The board will consider the donation during a finance committee meeting and expects to make a decision in the coming months.

The city hopes estimates the first phase, which would extend from the Hopkinsville-Christian County Public Library to a trailhead on Pardue Lane, of the rail-to-trail will cost 400-thousand dollars.