LIVINGSTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — It's been a whirlwind of a week for one city in Rockcastle County after their water was shut off and then turned back on - only two days later.
LEX 18's Kayleigh Randle has been following the story within Livingston for the last week, deep-diving into the truth behind the bills.
Hundreds of residents, and even a fellow Mayor's daughter, have been wondering where the money went and why the bills haven't been paid.
"I seen that on the TV I like to die. It just popped up 89,000 I said I got the records. I said I've got it," explains Melissa Hahn, former Livingston Mayor Dwain King's daughter. "When I seen that bill pop up I said uh-huh. I've got the records and I've been filing public records all along. And then in March it wasn't even that high in March. It was only 77."
Last week, LEX 18 shared that Mayor Sandi Singleton made claims that when she first entered office in January 2023, the city's water debt was sitting at $89,000.
"The 89,000 is in fact is the number they told us we owe. And we had an incident that happened in June maybe of this year where during the past administration they had removed valves and put straight line water into that," describes Livingston Mayor Sandi Singleton. "They came in and fixed that. We got a bill from them for 19,000 dollars that I guess they added to that, We never got a solid number."
According to statements provided by both Hahn and Mayor Singleton, a statement from December 2022 for the January 2023 pay period showed $65,389.37 instead of $89,000.
Throughout the year of 2023, all bills to Woods Creek Water District were sent and paid, according to documents provided by Mayor Sandi Singleton.
In 2024, several statements and checks show that Singleton paid and sent checks to Woods Creek Water District throughout the year up until August. However, she claims she did pay the September and October months as well.
By August, the $65,000 had grown to $86,970.71 and finally $114,000. "But they do owe $94,000 of a water bill, so $94,000 of that is a water bill and $19,000 of that is a service bill," explains Hahn.
"We had applied for a grant to pay them in August we contacted them and told them, 'look we applied for a grant and looks like we're going to get it and be able to pay you off' and look like we'll have a better working relationship. And she [city clerk] got a response, she has the email and 'sounds good to us. Let us know when you know more.' and that's the last we heard of them," Singleton says she has reached out to Woods Creek multiple times for answers but has not received any response.
Woods Creek had also made claims to Singleton that the city had not paid its August and September bills. However, Singleton denies that, providing a check dated in August written out to Woods Creek.
"I don't blame Woods Creek for wanting their money and we did- the city did owe them money. We did know there was a prior back bill when we did go into office. We did know- we didn't know how much. We didn't know when it got gone but we kept paying monthly like we was suppose to," said Singleton.
Hahn says she has not received a water bill for this month and has not been able to pay her bill for this month. She says the city needs an upgraded sewer system, water lines, and a water tower.
Hahn believes that these upgrades will fix the leaks across the city and reduce the ongoing debt problems. "Big problem for the city is these leaks. Everybody's like 'what are you doing with that 114,000?' These leaks is what's killing this bill. When you keep getting these leaks. It's not like someones taking this money and just blowing it."
Singleton says the city has sent the November check to Woods Creek Water District. However, Woods Creek has not cashed the check to allow the city to pay the bill. Singleton claims this has happened several times before, and each time they call Woods Creek about it, they receive no response.
According to Singleton, the city applied for a grant through the KIA (Kentucky Infrastructure Authority) to pay off the debt. The KIA approved $57,000, paying off half of the city's debt, leaving them now at $57,000 worth of debt. Singleton says the city was subpoenaed recently for an investigation into the water payments. However, no foul play has been found.
This is a statement sent to Mayor Singleton from the KIA:
"City and Kentucky American Water representatives attended the Kentucky Infrastructure Authority (KIA) meeting on Thursday afternoon. There it was revealed that the debt dates back to before 2021, when an individual or individuals collected over 200 residents' water fees and allegedly put the funds toward other expenditures. This resulted in building a $114,000 debt to teh Woods Creek Water District. There is an open investigation through the Public Service Commission. However, no audits or transactions were provided showing where the $114,000 went. Holly Delaney, with the Division of Water, emphasized that this is not the first time this issue has emerged. She referenced instances from 2006 and 2018."
According to Singleton, the city has not had an audit done since 2009. Hahn states the city does have an audit and she plans to present it at the next meeting.
