NEWS ROUND-UP -- MONDAY EVENING 27 AUGUST

THE RIVER CITY NEWS MORE COVINGTON NEWS THAN ANY OTHER SOURCE

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FACEBOOK: The River City News

@theRCnews on Twitter  

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by Michael Monks 

Email Michael

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L&L DRY CLEANERS BUILDING DEMOLISHED

Following Sunday's devastating fire, the L&L Dry Cleaners building where the Landrum family had operated its business since 1947, was demolished. Yesterday, code enforcement officials decided it would be best to take the building down since its structural integrity had been so badly compromised. Calling the building "unstable", acting Covington Fire Chief Dan Mathew said that any investigation would be difficult because of the severity of the damage. "It's not safe enough to truly discover where the fire started and it's not worth risking a life for," Mathew said. Though Covington Police were first on the scene responding to an intrusion alarm, Mathew believes that alarm sounded because the flames had cause windows to burst. Firefighters are still working on their individual reports about the fire.

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RELATED: Traffic is moving again on this stretch of Twelfth Street. Also, while taking these photos, I ran into WKRC reporter Joe Webb who was on the scene for a live shot and he told me that owner Paul "Butch" Landrum was able to salvage the business's sign and that if insurance allows for it he will reopen his business in a newly constructed building at this site. For Joe Webb's report: WKRC

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You can find links to the original story about the L&L Dry Cleaners fire as well as 100 photos from the several-hour fire battle in the Monday Morning Round-Up below.

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DON'T MISS MONDAY MORNING'S NEWS

Readers share their photos from Sunday's devastating fire at L&L Dry Cleaners; Sen. Paul says we could learn from Canada on how to get a new bridge faster; Plus, why the NKY tea party has turned its focus toward the Covington School Board.

The RC News: Monday Morning Round-Up

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QUICKIES

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State Senator Damon Thayer (R) criticized by Democratic state representative for outburst from audience member that suggested President Obama was born in Kenya cn|2 

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Sen. Rand Paul implies that President Obama would rather support the South African Constitution LEO Weekly 

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Kentuckian will announce state delegate totals at Republican National Convention WFPL 

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Gov. Beshear is in Newport Monday night for State Rep. Dennis Keene fundraiser Facebook 

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Judge stops ex-Toyota worker from leaving country Herald-Leader 

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Gov. Beshear orders flags at state buildings at half staff for fallen Ft. Campbell soldier press release 

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Company to expand in Kenton County Business Courier 

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Restaurateur Jeff Ruby to announce reward in Stacy Peterson disappearance Cincinnati Enquirer   

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5 die on Kentucky roadways last week KSP 

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First Lady Jane Beshear, Agriculture Commissioner James Comer launch Ready, Set, Grow initiative press release 

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George Clooney aids President Obama with fundraiser in Geneva WKYT 

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NKY FAMILIES FEEL EFFECT OF HEROIN THROUGH LOSS OF LOVED ONES

Heroin is a drug that affects more than its users:

“He borrowed my car and left to go out with a friend,” Goetz said. “He said ‘I love you mom, I’ll be back later.’” But, Dietz never came back. The 30-year-old was found dead in a parking lot in his mother’s car a few days later after overdosing on heroin.
Bill Mark, director of the Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force, said that heroin accounts for 63 percent of arrests in Northern Kentucky, with the region leading the state in heroin-related arrests.

Full story: Cincinnati Enquirer/Amanda Joering 
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Kenton County Commonwealth's Attorney Rob Sanders weighed in on this very issue in Monday morning's mugshot round-up. 
Commonwealth's Attorney Rob Sanders calls heroin a plague and says many other crimes in our area are caused by addicts looking for drug money. An interview with Sanders, as well as your weekly mugshot round-up -- at the link.

Full story: Convicted: Mugshot Round-Up 

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CHARGES OF RACISM AT LOUISVILLE ATTRACTION SPARK DISCUSSION

Louisville's Fourth Street Live is one of that city's highlights, but allegations of discrimination there have led activists to plan a forum:

Community activist Theresa Boyd says residents need to address this long-standing issue locally now. “This issue of racial inequality or discrimination at Fourth Street is not a new issue. It’s an issue that’s always been there and seemingly continues to be there," said Boyd.
Boyd and her activist group Connected Voices organized Tuesday’s forum. She says the purpose is to give the community a chance to voice any frustrations minorities and others may have had with Fourth Street Live.

Full story: WFPL 
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DANGEROUS INTERSECTION COULD BE IMPROVED SOON
More roadwork coming to the South Covington/Taylor Mill/Independence area:

Improvements may be coming soon to the intersection of Fowler Creek and Senour Road. According to Nancy Wood, spokesperson for the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet District 6, which oversees state roadways, an upcoming meeting between local and state transportation employees could result in funding for improvements.

Full story: Cincinnati Enquirer/Amy Scalf 
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PRINCE OF PEACE SCHOOLS SWITCHES TO ALL-MONTESSORI
The Catholic School on Pike Street is going all-in with its Montessori education efforts:

Prince of Peace began as a traditional school for grades 1-8 in 1986. It added its first Montessori classroom for children ages 6-9 in 1999, and had Montessori at all grade levels by 2005. Due to budget constraints and the success of the Montessori program, the school started to phase out the traditional side a couple of years ago.

Full story: Cincinnati Enquirer/William Croyle
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HOLMES BAND PUBLISHES YOUTUBE "WEBISODE"
Check it out:

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RENAISSANCE COVINGTON HONORS LONGTIME PRESIDENT

From Renaissance Covington:

Last Thursday August 23, 2012, proclaimed Barney Stengle Day in the City of Covington, the Board of Renaissance Covington said thank you to Barney as he termed out after 3 years as President and 6 years on the Board. Barney has been a terrific leader and will be greatly missed!

COVINGTON RANKS POORLY IN STATE CRIME REPORT

THE RIVER CITY NEWS MORE COVINGTON NEWS THAN ANY OTHER SOURCE

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FACEBOOK: The River City News

@theRCnews on Twitter  

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by Michael Monks 

Email Michael

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COVINGTON RANKS POORLY IN STATE POLICE CRIME REPORT

The City of Covington, Kentucky's fifth largest in population, is close to the top of several unsavory categories in the 2011 Crime Report assembled by the State Police. The report found that more than 198,000 serious crimes were committed in the Commonwealth that year with one happening every two minutes and thirty-eight seconds. In Kenton County, a crime occurred every fifty-eight minutes. Statewide, there was a murder every 39 hours, a car stolen every two hours, a forcible sex offense every one hour and five minutes, and a robbery every five hours. 

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Over the course of 2011, just less than half of all serious crimes were solved, 964 police officers were assaulted, and nearly 298,000 arrests were made. 

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Covington's number of crimes higher than most KY cities

The Kentucky State Police broke down specific numbers of crimes for each city in the Commonwealth with a population of 10,000 or more (of which there are 39). Covington does not top the list in any category but is number two in arson (17), burglary (741), kidnapping (32), car theft (215), prostitution (16), and robbery (156). In each of those categories,  Covington trails Lexington, the state's second-largest city. However, Covington tops the largest city, Louisville, in nearly category of crime in raw numbers alone. 

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Covington, Florence have troubling statistics in NKY

Covington is not the only Northern Kentucky city with a bad placement on the crime report. Florence ranks first or second in NKY in every category. The NKY cities included in the breakdown of cities with more than 10,000 people were Covington, Burlington, Erlanger, Florence, Fort Thomas, Independence, and Newport. (The numbers for Newport seem rather low without explanation, however.)

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CRIME IN NKY BROKEN DOWN BY CITY

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Arson

Covington (17)

Florence (7)

Erlanger (1)

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Assault

Covington (1,228)

Florence (329)

Independence (192)

Erlanger (133)

Fort Thomas (91)

Burlington (89)

Newport (4)

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Burglary

Covington (741)

Florence (231)

Erlanger (137)

Independence (122)

Burlington (69)

Ft. Thomas (51)

Newport is listed as 0

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Drug Arrests

Covington (1,257)

Florence (288)

Fort Thomas (200)

Independence (153)

Erlanger (84)

Burlington (56)

Newport (48)

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Fraud

Florence (259)

Covington (230)

Independence (53)

Erlanger (47)

Fort Thomas (27)

Newport (0)

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Homicide (Covington's figure is not correct, but is what is in the report)

Florence (6)

Erlanger (2)

Covington (1)

Independence (1)

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Theft/Larceny

Florence (1,910)

Covington (1,623)

Erlanger (421)

Independence (263)

Burlington (249)

Fort Thomas (221)

Newport (13)

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Motor Vehicle Theft

Covington (215)

Florence (76)

Fort Thomas (22)

Erlanger (19)

Independence (18)

Burlington (13)

Newport (0)

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The report also includes statistics on statewide DUI arrests, hate/bias crimes, and breaks all of it down by demographic. To read the full report (Kenton Co. is explored starting on page 184) Click Here (PDF)

CONSULTANTS: COMBINE 2 FIREHOUSES, PRIVATIZE AMBULANCES

THE RIVER CITY NEWS MORE COVINGTON NEWS THAN ANY OTHER SOURCE

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FACEBOOK: The River City News

@theRCnews on Twitter  

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by Michael Monks 

Email Michael

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Management Partners, the Cincinnati-based consulting firm contracted to audit each department within the City of Covington, admits that its recommendations about the Covington Fire Department do not refelct the best accepted practices in the industry. Instead, their suggestions are offered because in their estimation, "the current operations plan is not financially sustainable." Management Partners' team interviewed employees in the fire department as well as administrators at City Hall and members of the City Commission to glean information that led to its final report on how best to operate the department and its 119 employees, all but one of which is a sworn firefighter. 

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The report notes, "The geographical configuration of Covington, long and narrow, and the winding and narrow roadway system makes it unusually expensive to meet travel time requirements for the initial attack phase of fire suppression. Given that Fire Department cost is approximately 33% of the non-debt service portion of the operating budget and the stagnating revenue base, it is clear that the current operations model is not sustainable."

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Because employee costs take up 95% of the fire department's $12 million budget, Management Partners offered recommendations on how best to eliminate personnel spending: Contract with a third-party vendor to provide emergency response (ambulance) services or remove EMS from the Fire Department and create a separate agency in the City; Close fire stations 1 & 2 (Robbins Street & Botany Hills) and combine them in a new firehouse; And then ultimately move toward a regional fire service operation.

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CONTRACTING AMBULANCE SERVICES

Management Partners claims that the City could possibly, but not definitely, save money by contracting with a third party provider of ambulance services as many municipalities across Kentucky do. The firm recommends that the City put together a request for proposals from possible contractors and it attempted to gain information from such a provider, Rural Metro Inc, which offers ambulance services in other cities in the state. Rural Metro would not offer a price estimate without detailed meetings with City officials but the report notes that if a company "could provide the current service quality level for less than a price of $1,500,000 (the City's cost in providing ambulance services each year) there would be an economic benefit." 

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It continues, "The current number of four pumper companies for fire suppression purposes should remain in place since there would be a loss of six potential fire fighting personnel if the fire department no longer has EMS personnel to deploy." Contracting with a company to provide EMS would reduce the daily minimum staffing in the fire department from twenty-seven to twenty-one since three two-person ambulances would no longer be needed. 

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Management Partners recommends the third party ambulance service as a first option but failing that, suggests the creation of a City-operated ambulance service outside the fire department in a move that they say would save nearly $500,000. The report notes, "The advantage of this plan is that since the ambulance crew would not be required to suppress fires, the City’s pension contribution would be reduced by over $9,000 per person.  In addition, the shift schedule could be changed from a 24-hour tour to an eight-hour tour, allowing a reduction of ambulance crews on duty during the low demand hours each day."

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"The cost difference of nearly $500,000 is a result of having three fewer personnel due to flexible scheduling to match demand and the non-hazardous duty pension cost.  This would maintain the current service quality level for most hours of the day but could result in longer travel times during the hours of 2 a.m. to 7 a.m."

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The report also notes that there may be difficulty in creating a separate department for EMS from a labor relations point of view, particularly if Covington firefighters do not transfer into it making it necessary to recruit from the outside. Additionally, the report offers, "The logistics of staffing if there are few transfers from current Covington firefighters could be time‐consuming and complicated.  An incentive should be considered so that any current firefighter who does transfer would gain automatic preference to fill a vacancy in the fire department."

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SOUTH COVINGTON FIRE STATION SHOULD STAY OPEN FOR NOW

The firehouse in South Covington is the least utilized in the City averaging less than one run per day and Management Partners studied whether it should be closed in favor of automatic mutual aid agreements with the Cities of Taylor Mill and Independence. In the hypothetical scenario, the pumper housed in South Covington ("Company 5") would remain there and be used by the EMS crew to respond to fires. 

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Management Partners concedes, however, that this move would increase the amount of time it takes for firefighters to reach the scene of an active blaze: "Pumper Company 5’s service area is closer to Taylor Mill and Independence Fire Districts than to other Covington fire stations.  However, the Independence station cannot reach the majority of Pumper 5’s service area in the four minutes or less travel time currently achieved. The Taylor Mill station is a combined (career service and volunteer augmented) service. The Taylor Mill station has two-person staffing around the clock. However, the response protocol is that their company does not leave the station until four minutes after initial tones in order to allow volunteers time to reach the apparatus before it leaves the station. When this time is added to the travel time, most of the Pumper 5 service area would see response time standards significantly degraded from those currently achieved for initial attack. Travel time for sustained operations should not experience a detrimental impact since those resources would be drawn from Covington stations as is the case currently."

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Management Partners reports that in order for the plan to work Taylor Mill would have to change its protocol of waiting four minutes before leaving the firehouse. The report notes, "This alternative has the greatest impact on service quality of all options. Even with the optimum automatic aid agreement possible with current station locations and configurations there will be a degradation of initial attack standards compared to the current service level.  Covington officials must be prepared to have a justification for this seeming disparity of service levels among Covington neighborhoods. And, over time, Covington would be subject to the impact of decisions made by Taylor Mill and Independence Fire District officials regarding plans and operations that are not the most favorable from Covington’s point of view.  Taylor Mill and Independence Fire Districts could agree to the plan initially and then want to negotiate payment terms that could wind up being unfavorable for Covington, resulting in the need to backtrack."

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Ultimately, Management Partners concludes that this option would not be in the best interest of Covington and that instead the City should initiate discussions about creating a regional Fire & EMS operation across Northern Kentucky. 

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REPLACE FIRE STATIONS 1 & 2 WITH NEW, COMBINED STATION

Management Partners recommends closing the Boatany Hills firehouse and the Fire Department's headquarters on Robbins Street and constructing a new facility. From the report: "Because a relocated station would provide better travel time coverage for pumper companies, it would not be a first priority to staff a fifth pumper during those occasions when the minimum staffing is exceeded due to low leave usage periods.  If Covington continues to provide EMS through the Fire Department rather than an alternative model, an additional ambulance could be staffed since EMS has fivefold higher demand than fire runs.  If Covington uses an alternative to the current EMS model, excess staffing could be placed on the reserve quint. Our research indicates that a new fire station should be a two-story 20,000 square foot building that would cost approximately $2.9 million to construct. We understand that Covington has already received a $300,000 grant to purchase the land. Options for funding the cost of construction are available to the City.  Tax exempt municipal bonds with a 30-year life at 5% interest would require annual debt service of approximately $190,000 or about 17% of the annual cost of a pumper unit.  Another alternative to explore would be for a private owner to construct a station and enter into a long-term lease agreement with Covington."

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Other recommendations:

-Make the positions of fire inspectors open to civillians instead of sworn firefighters. Currently the department uses captains to conduct fire inspections, but Management Partners concludes that hiring three civillians at $35,000/year with benefits worth $8,635/year would save the City $119,000.

-Develop a written training and monitoring protocol. The report notes, "The training program is not as robust as we have seen in other career departments.  Training tools and programs are not state-of-the-art. The upside is that command staff recognizes the need for improving the programs and tools available for training.

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The firefighters also responded to an internal survey and you can see the results at the end of the full Management Partners report: Click Here (PDF) 

NEWS ROUND-UP -- MONDAY MORNING 9 JULY

THE RIVER CITY NEWS MORE COVINGTON NEWS THAN ANY OTHER SOURCE

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FACEBOOK: The River City News

@theRCnews on Twitter  

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by Michael Monks 

Email Michael

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COVINGTON SHOWS BEST SIDES FOR WORLD CHOIR GAMES

Cincinnati's landing of the 2012 World Choir Games has been beneficial to Covington, too. The city hosted four friendship concerts associated with the games over the weekend, each one in a setting perfect to introduce Covington to an international audience. Devou Park, Mainstrasse Village, and Mother of God Church are certainly highlights for any visitor, with beauty to match the quality of the international choirs visiting the region. The Cathedral Basilica of the Assumption also hosted a paid concert last week as the Games were first starting. It doesn't get any better than singing there. 

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PHOTOS from Friendship Concert in Mainstrasse Village: 

This concert featured choirs from Colombia (Crescendo Arte Children's Choir), Germany (Sangerkreis Hildburghausen), and the US (Kolping Sangerchor).

PHOTOS from concert at Mother of God Church:

This concert was so crowded that people were turned away -- including Covington Mayor Chuck Scheper, City Commissioner Steve Casper, and several parents of the performers. The show featured four choirs representing Australia (Bendigo Youth Choir), Czech Republic (Zvonky Prhaha), USA (Kings Korale), and Venezuela (Coro Polifonico Rafel Suarez).

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CHECK OUT PHOTOS FROM THE CONCERTS IN DEVOU PARK: Click Here 

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Here's a great video of the first week of the World Choir Games:

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COVINGTON STATE REP SEEKS TO REPEAL BAN OF ELECTION DAY LIQUOR

Kentucky and South Carolina are the only states in the Union that still ban the sales of alcohol on election days until after the polls close. State Rep. Arnold Simpson, a Democrat from Covington's Old Seminary Square neighborhood, wants that to change:

Simpson plans on introducing the bill in the 2013 session. It will include a local option for counties and cities to outlaw local liquor sales if they choose. Otherwise, the bill would repeal the election day alcohol ban in all wet counties. Simpson will speak before the Interim Joint Committee on Licensing and Occupations at 10 a.m. Friday in the state Capitol. The bill has died in committee each of the previous four sessions. Simpson said he thinks the state shouldn’t ignore the issue. “The statute does not serve a legitimate state interest,” Simpson said. “It is not the most important thing in Frankfort by any means, but it is something we can do to remove hurdles for businesses to prosper, particularly in Northern Kentucky.”

More comments from Simpson, and the owner of Chez Nora, at the link.

Cincinnati Enquirer/Scott Wartman

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PLAYGROUND FIRE TO BE DISCUSSED IN AUSTINBURG NEIGHBORHOOD

The fire that destroyed a playground at Sixth District Elementary School will be discussed Monday evening during the Austinburg Neighborhood Association. Catch the meeting at the Oakland Avenue Baptist Church at 6:30PM.

Click here for more photos of the playground after the fire.

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STUDY: PLANNERS MISCALCULATE BENEFITS OF NEW ROADS

The in-progress expansion of Taylor Mill Road (KY-16) may fall into this trap. A study out of Denmark shows that traffic congestion often actually increases when a road is expanded because drivers that had previously avoided the road because of congestion will now flock to it:

According to the study, completed by researchers at the Institute of Transport Economics and a Danish university, this leads to skewed cost-benefit analyses that call for new highways and road widenings of dubious benefit to the public. Researchers reported that perceived time savings make up the largest portion — sometimes 85 percent — of the economic benefits assigned to prospective highway projects. But an unanticipated boost in traffic volume can turn many projects that would theoretically pass analytical muster into economic losers. Unless transportation agencies are carefully accounting for these effects, however, many of these projects get built anyway.

Streetsblog 

Read the full study here 

via The Atlantic Cities 

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COVINGTON POLICE HOST BLOOD DRIVE MONDAY

From the Police:

Covington Police Department, in cooperation with Hoxworth Blood Center, is sponsoring their annual summer blood drive on Monday, July 9, 2012. The Donor Bus will be at Police Headquarters from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on 7/9/2012. During the summer months, there tends to be a shortage of blood donations and a higher amount of usage. Covington Police is once again partnering with Hoxworth in the hope of helping them achieve their goal of increasing the amount of blood donated during the summer months. Hoxworth’s blood donations are given to local area hospitals to save lives. And this year, as a special thank you to our donors: Every person who donates will receive a Hoxworth summer t-shirt! To schedule an appointment to donate, please contact Michelle Robinson-Wilson at 859-292-2241. Requirements to donate:1. Bring a photo ID.2. Eat a good meal and drink plenty of fluids before and after donating.3. You must be 17 years of age (16 with signed parental consent).4. You must weigh at least 110 pounds.5. To check additional eligibility guidelines (medical, RX, travel, piercing/tattoo restrictions), please call Hoxworth at 513-558-1304.

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FAST & FURIOUS CASE IN DC GETS LOCAL FLAVOR FROM RICK ROBINSON 

Local author Rick Robinson (have you bought his new book yet? Do it! It's awesome with lots of scenes in Covington/NKY. Click Here) writes a regular column for the conservative blog The Daily Caller. This time he focuses on the "Fast & Furious" case being discussed in Congress and involving the Attorney General, but before delving into that shares an interesting story about a local artist:

In the winter of 1972-73, Larry Womack hated his job as an insurance salesman so badly that he spent most of his evenings teaching himself sculpture. Womack, then a 29-year-old honorably discharged veteran, was very politically aware. He knew that President Richard Nixon, who had just won a second term in office, was facing the potential of a Senate investigation into his administration’s involvement in a second-rate break-in at the Democratic Party’s Watergate headquarters in Washington, D.C. As a teaching tool for his art, Womack began sculpting a chess set of caricatures that pitted the Nixon White House against the Senate Select Committee on Presidential Campaign Activities (a.k.a. the Watergate Committee). The likenesses were brilliant. On the White House side of the board, a defiant king, Richard Nixon, was joined by Attorney General John Mitchell, Chief of Staff H.R. Haldeman (complete with buzz cut and his ever-present briefcase) and John Ehrlichman. As the Watergate hearings progressed, Womack sculpted John Dean as the rook because the piece could move from side to side as well as forward and backward. The pawns for the White House were reel-to-reel tape recorders. Senator and frumpy country-lawyer Sam Ervin (D-NC) was the king of the Senate pieces, and copies of the United States Constitution were the pawns. Committee members and fellow senators Howard Baker (R-TN), Daniel Inouye (D-HI), Herman Talmadge (D-GA) and Lowell Weicker Jr. (R-CT) joined Senator Erwin’s team.

Womack's work is often on display at the new Village Wine Gallery.

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DON'T MISS COVINGTON'S BEST WEEK IN REVIEW

A comprehensive review of the previous week in Covington and a look ahead to the next one. It's all inside The Sunday Edition -- at the link!

The RC News: The Sunday Edition 

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QUICKIES

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Drought endangers food crops, could raise food prices WFPL 

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Kentucky, Ohio among states fighting "tourists" trafficking drugs Herald-Leader 

| State pension system fights exits of mental health boards Herald-Leader 

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Sen. McConnell: No regrets on Chief Justice confirmation The Hill 

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Hamilton County could be key to Obama victory WVXU |

Historic building burns in McCreary County WKYT 

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West Liberty doughboy statue in repairs after tornado damage Herald-Leader 

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Cincinnati's decades-long population loss may be stabilizing Urban Cincy 

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Kentucky town vies for best small town in America Herald-Leader 

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Kentucky sees payback from Hatfields & McCoys miniseries Herald-Leader 

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Anthony Davis in legal battle to trademark his uni-brow WXIX 

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INDEPENDENCE FIREWORKS PHOTOS

Some great photos from the Independence Fourt of July celebration, including this one that appears to show a happy couple agreeing to marry:

More photos at the link from the City of Independence.

Click Here 

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WHERE PEOPLE "TWEET" ABOUT BEER MORE THAN CHURCH

Some new data indicates that folks in Kenton and Campbell Counties spend more time on Twitter talking about beer than they do talking about church. Much more. Boone County and Cincinnati's Hamilton County tweet more about church. Check it out:

You can either click on that image to enlarge it, or fine on at this link that appears to be the largest available: Click Here 

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Full story: The Guardian 

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CREATION MUSEUM'S ARK ENCOUNTER A BIG FRAUD?

One columnist in Louisville thinks so:

Yahoo! News visited the Creation “Museum” this summer to behold the glory of a 600-year-old man riding vegan dragons onto a giant boat a few thousand years ago. In their report — besides the obvious gawking at the freak show — they give us the latest update on the “groundbreaking” for Ark Encounter, Gov. Steve Beshear’s answer to unemployment and dignity in Grant County. As we began suspecting last year — due to horrid fundraising, groundbreakings pushed back over and over again, and the lack of a refund policy on their website — “Ark Encounter” might never actually be built, or at least nothing resembling their original $175 million plan, while Ken Ham & Co. take what they’ve raised and invest it in their Creation Museum.

LEO Weekly/Joe Sonka

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FORMER STATE TREASURER WINS BIG AT POKER TOURNAMENT

Jonathan Miller, who was once the Treasurer of this great Commonwealth, went to Vegas and scored, finishing eighth overall in the World Series of Poker:

"The idea I would ever be at the final table was preposterous," Miller said Sunday. Playing in the World Series of Poker was a goal he said he deferred while in public office. "When you're a politician in Kentucky, it is not a real good public relations move going to a gambling tournament in Las Vegas," Miller said. Miller was guaranteed at least $53,846 in winnings by making it into the final nine. He said that he planned to give part of his prize money to his temple and that a good portion of the rest probably would go into his daughters' college funds. 

Herald-Leader/Karla Ward  

Read more here: http://www.kentucky.com/2012/07/07/2251651/former-state-treasurer-jonathan.html#storylink=cpy

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FANCY HOT DOGS COME TO COVINGTON -- AT TWO LOCATIONS!

Somebody must have sent out the memo that Covington was in dire need of adding fancy hot dogs to its expansive list of culinary choices, because now we have two!

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Kelly's Pub (at the Radisson Riverfront)

Check out Kelly's new hot dog menu:

DJ's Sandwich Shop opens Tuesday, features hot dogs

But only Wednesdays, which will be known as "Weiner Wednesdays". Check out the menu here.