Meeting virtually due to ongoing audio and visual upgrades on the Hopkinsville campus, Pennyrile Area Development District Executive Director Jason Vincent gave a considerable update to constituents Monday afternoon, regarding the important future of home delivered meals in the region.
Vincent said that at present, more than 590 clients are served in the nine-county service area — behind a current budget of more than $1.5 million. On average, he noted that’s about 154,000 senior citizens meals annually.
So popular have home delivered meals become, Vincent said a cutoff had to be created this past year, and a considerable wait list has been drafted — swelling past 260 people in the last two months.
The bad news: Vincent noted PeADD has enough funding for this until December 2024, leaving half of a fiscal year remaining without accepting anyone on the wait list.
Good news, however, is on the horizon.
Vincent said people are calling “almost daily” to receive those meals, and the discussions around the next fiscal year need to begin now. In order to keep the current client list, Vincent said another $1.8 million is needed for the budget, and if those funds don’t come available, more than 370 seniors could be cut from the program.
Jill Collins, director of PeADD’s Area Agency on Aging & Independent Living, confirmed those numbers were accurate, and also urged that local seniors should address open enrollment for Medicare — which begins October 15 and runs through most of the final quarter.
In other PeADD news:
— Due to Veterans Day, PeADD will not convene in November.
— In discussions about Muhlenberg and Todd counties, Martha Jane King said there had been multiple conversations in the last month regarding the infrastructure and continued development of Paradise Park, as well as the widening of Hwy. 79.
Conversations, she said, are continuing with both.
— Amy Frogue, with PeADD’s community and economic development, noted the 2024 Kentucky Product Development Initiative (KPDI) application window opened up a couple weeks ago.
The Kentucky General Assembly, she added, allotted $70 million over the next two years to continue funding the program, in which counties can either combine forces and apply for a regional project site, or can seek up to $2 million for site development.
The match on this grant is between 10% and 20%, depending on population. A letter of intent is due by October 25, with full applications due November 20.
