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Sewer money is welcome. Clean water cannot wait.
Martin County is right to joyfully welcome the $4.8 million in federal funding announced last week to modernize the long-troubled wastewater treatment plant in Inez. After years of breakdowns, foul odors and limited capacity, the project represents real progress for public health and quality of life. Judge/Executive Lon Lafferty is correct to call it “a
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Editorial: Our future should not be decided without us
In Martin County, decisions have a way of being discussed after they are made, not while they are still being shaped. That reality has bred frustration, distrust and a sense among many residents that their voices do not matter. Now, for once, the order is being reversed. In the coming weeks, Martin County residents will
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Editorial: ‘Get over yourself’
There are phrases that land like a slap and others that arrive like a long-overdue intervention. “Get over yourself” belongs to both categories, depending on who is saying it, why and when. It is rarely spoken gently. “Get over yourself” carries impatience and, at times, contempt, usually delivered when someone believes another person has made
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New Year’s resolution for Martin County
A new year always arrives carrying two things at once: the weight of what we have endured and the quiet promise of what might still be possible. For Martin County that promise matters. We have known hardship, frustration and long stretches of waiting. Yet we enter this new year with resolve to move forward with
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Christmas: The light the darkness could not hold
Christmas arrives again with its familiar quiet magic, but at its heart this is more than a season of lights and gatherings. It is the celebration of the birth of Christ, the moment when God stepped into the world in humility and love. The Gospel of John proclaims this truth: “The light shines in the
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This can’t keep happening
BY MARY CROMER Kentucky Power is asking the Public Service Commission to approve yet another rate increase—its third since 2020. Bills have already risen nearly 40% in that period. This time, Kentucky Power is asking for an average 14.9% increase in residential bills. But not everyone’s bills would go up by the same amount. Instead,
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Martin County Water cannot afford another miss in Frankfort
Kentucky’s new WWATERS program was created for communities like Martin County—places where decades-old infrastructure, chronic underinvestment and limited local resources make safe, reliable water and wastewater service an everyday challenge. Yet last year, when Kentucky lawmakers awarded more $75 million to distressed utilities across the state, Martin County received nothing. Not one project. Not one
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Thanksgiving reflection: 35 years of community and gratitude
Thanksgiving offers a moment for communities to pause, reflect and take stock of the blessings that shape our lives. For us at the Mountain Citizen, this week carries special meaning. It marks 35 years since this newspaper came under its current ownership and management. Three and a half decades of service, struggle, growth and commitment
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Sunshine only stings when it lands on something never meant to be seen
Public officials carry many responsibilities, but one of the most essential is accepting scrutiny. When decisions are made with public money, on public time and in public office, the people deserve clear, truthful answers. That is not persecution. That is democracy. To suggest that accurate reporting is an attack is to undermine the public’s right
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KHSAA needs to get a rule—and fast
The Kentucky High School Athletic Association is charged with upholding the integrity of high school sports. Yet, when faced with a clear breach of competitive ethics, its response was silence cloaked in technicality. During Friday’s district championship between Martin County and Prestonsburg, a Blackcats player picked up a wristband containing Martin County’s offensive play calls
