By Brandon Farmer – Assistant Editor 1-18-26 On Thursday, January 8th the Stanton City Council convened for their first regular session of the year. Following call to order and recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance, Mayor Willie Means requested the Council review the minutes from the December Special Meeting and the December Regular Session. The Council approved the minutes of each meeting unanimously.
The mayor advised that public comments would be issued at the end of the meeting and proceeded to provide a summary of accomplishments for the year 2025. Mayor Means reported that Stanton boasted the launch of 14 new small businesses in the previous year with a large company set to open in 2026 which will create many new jobs for the community. The mayor also highlighted the expansion of residential zoning across the city and the construction of new housing units. Mayor Means then recognized the City’s purchase of the property on Maple Street and the purchase of a new backhoe to assist in water department operations. He also highlighted the opening of the new dog park and pickleball court at Stanton Park. Additionally, the city also annexed property to Powell County Schools for the construction of new facilities. Mayor Means next reported that the City of Stanton had resurfaced four streets and have more scheduled for 2026, and the Halls Lane right-of-way had been completed. The city also completed important highway studies and responded to a variety of public concerns over the year.
“A lot of things have been done,” said Mayor Means, going on to commend the cooperation and teamwork across all city departments and officials that allowed for all of these accomplishments.
Mayor Means proceeded to the next item on the agenda and advised that the city has posted an advertisement for a new maintenance position following the resignation of one of their workers. The mayor said that they have already received interest in the position.
The mayor then reported that inspections of the Pendleton Street water tank had been completed but the report was not yet available at the time of the meeting.
Next the Council held discussion on the Maple Street rental property. Councilman Billy Rice explained that there had been little interest shown to utilize that space for business, but he believes the property would be best suited as a community center that the public could rent and use to host a variety of events. Councilman Rice continued, asserting that the proposed community center would work and could be maintained and operated by Parks and Recreation who have been in need of additional community recreational space. He added that this would assist Parks and Rec in maintaining their staff through the off-season, during the winter months when work is limited. Councilman Rice suggested that the idea is worth exploring and he would like to see a feasibility study performed to assess the viability of the proposal.
Mayor Means inquired about the apartment which is also located on the property and asked if the city is still seeking to rent out this space for residential purposes. Councilman Rice explained that it would still be reasonable to rent out this space and it wouldn’t prohibit the rest of the space from being used as a community center. He added that he had noticed the discourse on social media regarding the posted apartment rental and clarified that the City of Stanton is not seeking to rent out any additional properties. He said that this rental opportunity is circumstantial and only offered because the apartment came with the purchase of that piece of property.
Councilmen Mays and Lindon supported the community center proposal and said that the community would benefit from that kind of space and that it would mesh well with Parks and Recreation. Councilwoman Lockard opposed the idea, expressing concern over parking and liability and said she believed the property should be sold. Citizen Ruth Jones addressed the Council and said that she thinks the city should rent the property to help offset the expenses associated with the property. Councilman Rice said that the apartment unit can be separated from the event space and would be a low-risk utilization of the property.
Mayor Means moved on to the next item of business and requested a review of the proposed Employee Uniform Policy. The Council agreed with the language of the policy but requested that it specify to only apply during “standard business hours”. The motion to approve passed unanimously.
The Council then approved the emergency declaration for the Pendleton Street water tank. The mayor explained that if the tank were to fail, most of the town would be without water. The emergency declaration will speed up approvals on repair related funding in Frankfort. The Council passed the emergency declaration unanimously.
The Council proceeded to the next item of business and approved a city donation to the food bank, as well as a zoning change to 300 Oak Ridge Drive to R1 status.
Next, the Council discussed their contract with Rumpke and an upcoming renewal. The mayor said that the figures and rates for the proposed new contract would be available the following week. Mayor Means asked if the Council wished to bid out the contract. Councilman Merriman recommended bidding out the contract for due process and to follow necessary procedure. Mayor Means said that they called half a dozen garbage collection companies during the last bidding process and Rumpke was the only bid that was submitted.
A member of the public provided lengthy and passionate commentary on his discontent towards Rumpke and their poor business practices and operational procedure. He challenged the Stanton Council to negotiate with Rumpke and threaten to dissolve the contract unless better terms were agreed upon.
The Council passed the motion to bid out garbage collection.
Moving on to further business, the Council voted to approve a budget amendment and the mayor provided budget data, reporting that the City of Stanton is currently at 52.3 percent income for the year and 48.5 percent on expenses, adding that these figures are right on track for the fiscal year.
The Council then entered closed session, taking no action upon return to open session.
The Council next opened the floor to public comment, and Citizen Ruth Jones took the podium, commending the work of the Council, saying that she saw progress made in 2025 and has hope for the direction of the city moving into 2026. She added that her primary concern is taxes, saying that she wants to see them being used effectively and that she believes that it needs to be more balanced, whereas homeowners have a greater tax burden than businesses. She said that she would like to see the city push to find and develop more business opportunities for Stanton.
The Council then provided individual updates and commentary. Councilman Mays provided a positive update on the state of Parks and Rec and discussed ongoing water and drainage concerns with Councilman Rice. Councilmen Merriman and Lindon commended the work of the Board and the progress made by the city. Councilwoman Lockard reported the return of a sinkhole at the intersection of Lisa Lane and Airport Road.
The Council then passed a motion to adjourn.
Meetings of the Stanton City Council take place every second Thursday at 6 PM at Stanton City Hall and are open to the public. These meetings are also livestreamed on Facebook on the City of Stanton government profile.
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