Union City Commission

Welcome / Pledge of Allegiance / Meeting called to order at 6:01 p.m.

PRESENT: Mayor Larry Soloman, Commissioners John Mefford, Doug Bine, George Eldridge and Kimberly Tuyn. City Administrator Amy Safran, City Attorney Greg Voss, Public Works Director Paul Kremer, City Clerk Tammy Wilhoite

APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Minutes were approved for the February 2 regular commission meeting and the February 18 Caucus Meeting

MAYOR COMMENTS / Larry Solomon

The mayor asked Commissioner Bine to read a proclamation to honor Mr. Nathan Hatton Jr. on March 1, 2026, his 100th birthday. Mr. Hatton is a WWII veteran and moved to Union in 1958. He raised his family here and was an advocate for community service all his life. He worked with various organizations to feed the poor and care for the needs of people. A motion was made and approved unanimously to declare March 1 as “Nathan Hatton Jr. Day” in the city of Union.  Mayor Solomon introduced Mr. Hatton’s wife, Judy, and noted that this is the first time she has ever attended a Union Commission Meeting since he became mayor in 2015.

FINANCIAL REPORT / Commissioner Mefford

Monthly bills have been paid. An invoice for $295,000 for the Town Square playground was paid. $46,000 received in interest for February 2026. The snow and ice removal charges are around $315,000 for the year and are expected to be around $350,000 when recent bills come in. They will look at the budget for next year at the upcoming Financial Meeting. The budget for snow removal for 2026 was $200,000.

PUBLIC WORKS COMMITTEE / Commissioner Bine and Paul Kremer

Bolts have been reinstalled to correct the problems of the Union Town Center project. The bids for concrete maintenance and asphalt were presented. The 2026-2027 ice and snow removal bids will be open in a few weeks. A new software plan, iWorQ Systems, was discussed and Paul has sampled it. He thinks it would help tremendously with keeping records for the work done around the city for future analysis. Currently records for different improvements are filed but accessing them is difficult. This would allow everything to be in one place. The startup cost is $15,000. It was approved unanimously.

ADMINISTRATOR’S REPORT / Amy Safran

Amy recently attended a legislative conference in Frankfort and gave updates on some of the bills affecting the city. HB 758 would affect remote workers in Union. The taxes they pay while working in the city of Union would be sent to the locality of their home office. That would greatly affect Union’s payroll taxes, estimated to be roughly 15% of the amount Union presently collects. Discussion was made about sending a resolution to the state against this bill.

Also, the state has determined that residents may have a total of six chickens without being zoned agricultural. There are some restrictions in place, but it makes it easier to have fresh eggs right in your own backyard. Discussions were also had about sending a resolution that each locality should be able to say if they do or don’t want chickens and that the state should not determine that for everyone.

COMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE REPORT / George Eldridge

There will be an Easter Egg Hunt on March 28 at 8:30 a.m., at Union Presbyterian Church. Health and Wellness Fair is scheduled for May 16 at StoryPoint. They have 20 vendors signed up now, and expect several more to join. The hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

LEGISLATION / ATTORNEY’S REPORT / Greg Voss

MUNICIPAL ORDER 2026-05 A municipal order accepting the bid of Straight Edge Construction Company for the 2026 concrete maintenance for the city of Union, Kentucky, and authorizing the mayor to enter into the contract with Straight Edge Construction Company in support of said bid. (Total amount $52,000) Unanimously approved.

MUNICIPAL ORDER 2026-06 A municipal order accepting the bid of Riegler Blacktop Company for the 2026 street resurfacing for the city of Union, Kentucky, and authorizing the mayor to enter into the contract with Riegler Blacktop Company in support of said bid. (Total Amount $228,693.60) Unanimously approved.

ORDINANCE NO 2026-03 (First Reading) An Ordinance of the city Union, Kentucky, approving and adopting amendments relating to the adoption of zoning text amendments to the Boone County zoning regulations to regulate and define Manufactured Home, Manufactured Home, Qualified; and Mobile Home, and identify zoning districts where such uses are allowed as authorized within the Boone County planning unit for Boone County. This ordinance has already become law in Kentucky, and Boone County has already approved it. This is a formality for Union to also approve.

VISITORS TO SPEAK   No residents had any comments. Two local students, Hunter from NKU and Colt from Ryle High School, introduced themselves and said they were taking classes that required them to attend a city meeting.

The gallery was dismissed and the Commission went to Executive Session KRS 61.810 (1) c Discussion of proposed or pending litigation against or on behalf of the public agency.

Meeting adjourned.

Next: Caucus Meeting March 16 at 6 p.m. Regular Commission Meeting April 6, 2026 at 6 p.m.