Versailles Mayor
Laura Dake
Woodford County
Judge-Executive James Kay
By Bob Vlach
Woodford Sun Staff
When asked to discuss the challenges and opportunities in 2026, the mayors of Midway and Versailles and the Woodford County judge-executive discussed a wide variety of topics, ranging from growth and traffic, to affordable housing.
Versailles Mayor Laura Dake said the issues she hears about most are housing affordability and traffic. “The overarching problem/challenge is that the city is growing,” she said. “There’s more development, and there are more people coming into town because they hear about Woodford County and they want to live here.
“… We can’t turn back the hands of time and say some of these developments that are already in the works have to be stopped. But how can we mitigate the effects (of growth) on our infrastructure with forward-thinking ways of doing things?”
She also acknowledges that because of the high cost of land here, more affordable housing in Woodford County is only financially feasible (outside of the homes built by Woodford Habitat for Humanity volunteers) with government dollars, such as tax credits, which would allow developers to build affordable houses.
“There’s a lot of pressure on every city in America to fight (the) affordable housing crisis, to fight the housing crisis in general, but we want to maintain the character of our town,” Midway Mayor Grayson Vandegrift said.
He said the demand for housing in Midway remains high, and he supports infill projects instead of building new subdivisions. He’s also optimistic that the planned cottages (up to 96 units) in The Homeplace at Midway could help ease the challenges of the housing supply pressures.
How the community controls growth and preserves farmland are major challenges, said Woodford County Judge-Executive James Kay. “… We may have to stop some growth in order to take stock of what’s going on in the community,” he said.
With a joint planning commission, Versailles and Woodford County “need to work more closely together because what they do affects us and what we will do will affect them,” said Kay, who lives in Versailles with his wife and children. “And, I think right now, the level of development going on in Versailles is really concerning to the whole county.”
“I think we’re all concerned about it,” said Dake. “It is going to change the community somewhat.”
Traffic
While the city has the water and sewer infrastructure and pubic services in place to handle growth, traffic congestion – specifically on the south end of Versailles – is “a concern, absolutely,” Dake said.
“I’m hopeful that the changes will take place over a number of years, so we’ll have time to absorb some of these changes,” she added, noting many proposed residential development projects have been in the works for a few years. In her 2025 State of the City, she addressed the challenges of balancing growth with the protection of irreplaceable farmland and what makes Versailles unique.
With growth seemingly poised to explode in the near future, Versailles and Woodford County residents have expressed their concerns at recent planning commission hearings about the increased traffic and other issues created by residential development – specifically on Troy Pike and in southern Woodford County.
Connectivity of local roads and adding roundabouts on Troy Pike will help move traffic more safely and efficiently in the southern end of Versailles, Dake said. The state would need to include these roundabout projects in its budget for them to move forward because Troy Pike is a state road, she said.
Connectivity would reduce the pressure on streets in the city, including Montgomery, Morgan and Main streets, Dake said.
She said a walkability committee is exploring opportunities to make sidewalks and pathways more accessible so people can safely get to destinations without driving. An example is federal funding to rebuild and redesign the sidewalks along Wilson Avenue so residents there can safely get to Save A Lot or other destinations, she said.
One of the biggest opportunities for people living in Midway is the return of a sidewalk replacement cost-share program, Vandegrift said. He said, “We did this back in 2019 with a lot of success.”
Vandegrift said he will ask Midway City Council to put $40,000 in the budget to help homeowners by paying half of the cost to repair sidewalks (up to $4,000 per property) that have trip hazards. Completing 10 sidewalk projects would make a big difference by enhancing walkability and safety for residents and visitors, he said.
What do we want?
Based on his conversations with people who live here, Kay said, no matter if someone has lived here their entire life or not, a majority would agree that uncontrolled growth is not good. Also, he said acreage is needed to support a growing cattle industry that remains profitable in what he described as Woodford County’s strong agricultural economy.
“It’s not just about me and the judge,” said Dake. “It’s about the community. What kind of community do we want to have and how do we get there – understanding that some of this (land already re-zoned for residential use) has been put into place and we can’t really stop it.
“So how do we remain a small community and friendly to newcomers who want to be a part of this community … and welcome them; and then also look at: Have we gone far enough? Do we need to put the brakes on development? And that’s a conversation that we are having and that we need to continue to have, especially as the Comp Plan … (land use plan that) will presumably be finished in 2026.”
Kay, a 2001 graduate of Woodford County High School, said Woodford County would ultimately become like other towns in the region and lose its identity if growth is not strategically controlled.
“And our strength is we’re the best place to raise a family,” he said. “And you’ve got to do that in a small, tight-knit community.”
Economy
There’s an economic opportunity with the redevelopment of the industrial property formerly occupied by Yokohama. Kay described that as “priority number one” for him. He said the goals are simple: bring in a company that will produce hundreds of good-paying jobs.
“That’s the only reason that the city and county are involved in that (the purchase of the industrial property),is to make sure that is a job-producing, generational type of company,” Kay said.
Until that industrial property is redeveloped, he said there is no need to discuss developing farmland for industrial uses.
The City of Versailles and Woodford County will need to make a final decision on approving the purchase of Yokohama in March after a due diligence period (evaluating the utilities and infrastructure of the facility), Kay said. He likened this process to the Midway Station property, where the Woodford County Economic Development Authority recruited users to come here. The EDA will play the same role in this process.
In the midst of a slowing economy, the local economy has held up, according to Kay. So, “It is a scenario,” he said, “where we have to make sure that we’re recruiting and retaining good employers,” because the revenue from occupational taxes is crucial to providing residents with adequate services.
A significant drop in net-profits tax revenue is a concern of Vandegrift, he said. With that revenue about half of what it was the previous year, the drop may be a disturbing sign for the broader economy, he said. And although he has not yet figured out the cause, he said it’s a new economic reality for Midway and other cities.
“The cost of goods and services continues to be a challenge,” said Vandegrift. “Inflation really hasn’t gone away. Just like homeowners feel it in their pocketbooks every time that they go to the store, we (as a city) feel it too.”
The cost to provide services to residents continues to go up, but the city will keep providing services and doing projects.
Kay, Dake and Vandegrift said infrastructure projects are poised to move forward in the New Year. These waterline, road and other projects are crucial to the future, they said.
Midway is switching to the Frankfort Plant Board to supply its water beginning in May, Vandegrift said. That will mean Midway residents will not face a rate hike that would have likely happened if Kentucky American continued to supply water to Midway, he said.
The cost-savings from making that switch (about half the cost) will pay for the infrastructure to pipe the water from Frankfort to Midway, and should result in water rates for residents being cut in the very near future, Vandegrift said. He also pointed out that Midway and other cities are now required under EPA regulations to determine the material of the lateral waterlines (on private property) going to a residence. It’s a mandate by the EPA to get lead out of water that is not being funded by the federal government.
“It’s a good mandate,” said Vandegrift. “It’s just a challenge because we have to use our resources” to get the work completed with a two-person water department.
Opportunities
Midway will welcome new businesses in the coming year, including an Ace Hardware. Midway has not had a hardware store since the 1980s, Vandegrift said. “So for the first time in 40 years you can drive down the street in Midway and get a hammer and nails or something for your home as opposed to having to leave town,” he said.
The old Midway Fire Station on Bruen Street will soon open as Bruen and Bunker, which will bring a golf simulator and lounge to town, Vandegrift said. Also coming to Midway is an English-style pub downtown and a Dunkin donut shop at the I-64 interchange near McDonald’s, he said.
The City of Versailles is pursuing another opportunity to re-imagine the old Kroger building as a family fun center. “It’s not dead at all,” said Dake.
Recent investments to improve public parks, including Big Spring Park, are giving families more spaces for outdoor recreation, Dake said. Activities and events this past summer at the Downtown Entertainment District exceeded the city’s expectations, and are giving people more things to do, as are the many events supported by the downtown merchants, she added.
Kay lauds what he described as a renaissance of downtown Versailles.
“It’s really wonderful,” he said. “We have so many visitors. And these small businesses downtown, they’re working so hard to make it work for everybody. And it really is special.”