The future of our region just might be the aerospace industry, according to Greenup County Judge Executive Robert Carpenter, as well as the concrete used to build the new businesses.

Carpenter discussed Greenup County’s, and the region’s, economic future as he introduced a resolution to the county commissioners authorizing application for a CDBG grant and requested a letter of support for aerospace marketing.

The resolution, authorizing application for a 2017 Civic Development Block Grant, was approved by the commissioners, and will request funds for a new railroad spur and scales at the Wright-Mix concrete site in Wurtland.

Carpenter discussed that development in his report as well, saying that he was “really pleased” the county was able to land the development, which he called a “good” fit for the old PCI site.

“That’s 130 jobs,” Carpenter said, “and a good fit for the property.”

He said that they had other industries also interested in locating near the river port area as well.

“It’s just an exciting time,” he said.

A lot of that excitement, he explained, was coming out of Braidy Industries’ announcement of their new aluminum production facility in South Shore. The letter of support for the K.Peg Grant that the Ashland Alliance was applying for was related to that as well, Carpenter explained. That grant would be used for aerospace marketing. With Braidy producing aluminum for use in automotive and aeronautical applications, Carpenter said, there was a lot more interest in promoting those types of industries for the region.

“We expect (the) aeronautics (industry) to be important to the future of the region, from Portsmouth to Huntington,” Carpenter said, noting the recent involvement of Huntington and Ashland groups in the Paris Air Show and the Appalachian Sky initiative to promote aeronautics development in the region.

In related news, he noted that they were trying to reach any descendants of anyone buried in the Chinn/Wurts Cemetery on the river port property. He said they determined that the individuals whose graves were marked by two historic gravestones had already been moved, at some point in the past, to a graveyard in Ashland. They would be removing those headstones to a nearby churchyard, Carpenter explained, for preservation, but they want to “make sure” no one’s family would be impacted by the relocations or that they haven’t missed any plots that still need relocated.

In other news, the fiscal court moved to:

• Approve a new contract with Dodson Pest Control for spraying at a cost of $45 per month.

• Accept the jail report, E911 report, and alternative sentencing report. Commissioners approved allowing E911 director Buford Hurley and Judge Executive Carpenter to draft a contract offer for consolidation and present the offer to Carter County 911 for consideration. Consolidation is supported by the state, and would result in the consolidated services receiving $400,000 from the commonwealth for the consolidation efforts.

• Adopt a resolution authorizing the reallocation of funds for the Lloyd sidewalk project.

• Approve the annual payment of $40,000 for their support of the soil conservation district.

• Request bids on a 2017, 12.5 ton dove tail trailer, with air brakes and pintle hitch.

• Request bids on two cemetery bridges, on Weaver Cemetery Road 1788 and Carpenter Cemetery Road 1902.

• Declare the James property, in King’s Addition, an emergency health hazard, and authorizing brush removal, with costs to be covered from the blighted property funds.