GLASGOW — At least one county has agreed to turn over its Recovery Zone Facility Bonds to Barren County for an economic development project.

Pat Vann, a Glasgow businessman, has approached officials in Hart, Metcalfe and Monroe counties over the last two months asking the counties to surrender their bonds to Barren County so the money can be used to help fund the project. The bonds are available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. They are available in every county in the state, but must be used by Dec. 31.

Barren County Judge-Executive Davie Greer said Thursday she had received a letter from the Metcalfe Fiscal Court stating magistrates have agreed to allow Barren County to use the bonds.  

“But that’s all I’ve heard,” she said. She has yet to hear from officials with Monroe and Hart counties.

Barren County received $766,000 in facility bonds, while Hart County received $637,000. Monroe County received the highest total at $796,000 and Metcalfe County received $173,000, according to an earlier Glasgow Daily Times story.

Greer said she was not sure what the project involved, but Metcalfe County’s judge-executive Greg Wilson said he and Metcalfe County magistrates were told “they were trying to put together a package for a drug company to make prepackaged drugs.”

Vann told magistrates several weeks ago that there is an interest in developing the former Walmart property at Barren River Plaza for that purpose.

Magistrates turned the issue over to the Edmonton-Metcalfe County Industrial Authority, and, according to Wilson, the industrial authority said it didn’t have a project that would involve using the bonds.

Wilbur Graves, judge-executive for Monroe County, said the Monroe Fiscal Court has not made a decision on what to do with the bonds it received. Graves said he wanted to discuss the issue with Greer.

“As of right now, we don’t know anything. We were just wanting to do some research on it and see what was in the best interest of Monroe County,” he said. “We will probably be deciding something on that next month.”

Hart County Judge-Executive Terry Martin said the county’s industrial authority has agreed to let Barren County officials have the bonds if Hart County officials decide not to use them.

“We are talking with a certain company on maybe using them, but I don’t know if it would be in their best interest or in our best interest to do it,” he said. “There’s a lot of counties that want them. Warren County wants them and Pike County wants them.”

Martin explained Barren, Warren and Pike counties have large projects in the works and need the additional bonding capacity to help fund those projects.

Should Hart County’s industrial authority agree not to use the bonds, Martin said of all the counties that have asked for the bonds industrial authority officials want to give them to Barren County.

“We feel that if they attract this business that they are using them for, it is possible they will hire Hart County citizens since they are close by,” Martin said. “We hire a lot of people in Hart County from Barren County.”

Martin has not brought the issue before the Hart County Fiscal Court. He said he anticipates a decision will be made in August on whether to keep the bonds or turn them over to Barren County.

Graves and Wilson also believe their counties stand to benefit by allowing Barren County have their bonds because any new business locating in Barren County will probably hire residents from their counties.