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 Nelson Sanders, a Lincoln resident, speaks to the fiscal court about petition to extend the Green River Ferry operation hours. Darren Doyle, story and photo: Mr. Nelson Sanders, a Lincoln resident, spoke to the Edmonson County Fiscal Court today as he discussed the importance of the operation hours of Green River Ferry, located in the area near the forks of the river. Sanders said the ferry operation hours have been shortened from 6AM to 9:55PM to 6AM to 6PM and that is was hindering the community, specifically church goers in the area. Mr. Sanders said the hours of operation were reduced one year ago, due to the retirement of a ferry operator. "At that time, people was told that a ferryman had retired and they was getting one certified in order to take over and start restoring it," he said. "It's took a year and they still ain't got any certified, or they ain't tried." Sanders said he and other community members distributed petitions to extend the operation hours of the ferry back to 9:55PM. Many were sent to area churches. He said the petitions went out on Wednesday of last week around 5PM and of this morning, more that 700 signatures had been gathered. He also handed out a map that showed the mileage from the former Forks Grocery at HWY 1352 (Stockholm Road) when using the ferry from the Mammoth Cave side and routes drivers are forced to take when the ferry is not operating. From HWY 70 to the start of Stockholm Road is 16.6 miles, according to his map when using the ferry. Going through Brownsville and Bee Spring is 36.1 miles, and going from HWY 70 to Cave City, through Munfordville and around to Cub Run to Stockholm Road is 31.9 miles. Sanders asked the fiscal court to send a letter to Mammoth Cave National Park Supervisor Barclay Tremble, officially requesting that the ferry's operation hours be returned to 6AM to 9:55PM. According to the NPS MCNP website, current ferry hours are 6AM to 6PM Mon-Fri and 8AM to 6PM on Saturday and Sunday. In a press release published on the website on May 4, 2022, it read "The ferry boat is operated and maintained by the National Park Service, but ferry boat drivers are required to meet specific training and certification standards set by the United States Coast Guard. The park’s facilities management team is working to replace the vacant ferry operator positions as quickly as possible." The Edmonson Voice receives press releases and updates from MCNP on changes to ferry hours, but with the changes so frequent, we no longer publish these updates. Many times the hours have changed again before we have opportunity to publish information. Drivers often times have to rely on ferry signage on Stockholm Road on HWY 70 on the other end to determine whether or not they can use the ferry, even though this info is available at www.nps.gov/maca, on Twitter: @MCNPRoadsFerry, or by phone (270) 758-2165. Mr. Sanders said he has already received letters from State Rep. Michael Meredith and local elected officials that support the petition. He also said there were several that attend Stockholm Church that depend on the ferry's operation. He said they currently have to be at the ferry around 5:45PM then sit in the parking lot for nearly an hour before church starts at 7PM evening services. When church is over, those same people have to take one of the long routes back because the ferry is closed. He also noted that bike and hiking trail users are also affected, having to cut their usage down in order to get back to the ferry before closure. After a few more minutes of discussion, District 5 Magistrate Gary Bagshaw made a motion to draft a letter of support for the extended ferry hours and present at the next fiscal court meeting for approval before sending to the Park Service, which was seconded by District 4 Magistrate Mickey Johnson. The motion passed unanimously.  Transient Room, Recreational Tax Update: The second reading of Edmonson County's Transient Room Tax (Ordinance EC23-06) was approved at today's meeting. The Tourism Commission has run into obstacles collecting this tax from vacation rentals like Airbnb and VRBO in the past. The tax is a straight 3% fee charged to any facility that is available for short term rent in Edmonson County and is used to fund the Edmonson County Tourism Commission. Tourism Director Vanessa Ulm said an online form has been created so that each property host can register their property so that the Tourism Commission can help them promote their listings. There are currently around 70 different listings available on the county tourism site, cavesandlakes.com. She also added that tourism will be filming commercials in June and July using two different families vacationing in Edmonson County. The second reading for Edmonson County's Recreation Tax (EC 23-13) was also approved at today's fiscal court meeting. The tax is paid by all recreation providers in the county (ATV riding, water sports, golf courses, etc.) and the funding is used for Edmonson County Parks and Rec. Other county offices gave their normal reports including Jailer Todd Vincent, who said there were currently 20 inmates at Hart County Jail. Parks and Rec Director A.B. Webb announced that the annual Freedom Fest is scheduled for Friday, June 30th. County Clerk Kevin Alexander reported that early voting will continue this week. Excused early voting will continue through Wednesday the 9th at the Community Center from 8am to 4pm; however a voter must have an excuse. Thursday, early voting for anyone (no excuse needed) is available from 8am-4pm on Thursday, 8am-5pm on Friday, and 8am-4pm on Saturday, also at the Community Center. Monday, the Clerk's Office will be preparing for the primary election which will be held on Tuesday, May 16th. No local elections will be held but voters will choose a nominee for governor and other state offices. The fiscal court also voted to:
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