Daviess County’s new Judge-Executive Charlie Castlen started his first State of the County with a familiar phrase Thursday morning: “The state of the county is good, there’s money in the bank.” However, he noted the county’s new leadership may set a new path as they bring new ideas and priorities.
“I’m proud of our accomplishments over the past 12 years, but a new county judge and a new Fiscal Court took office this week and will be charting a new course for the county,” Castlen said.
Saying the projects they have completed over the years may not have been “flashy,” Castlen said they provided basic services and improvements to the Daviess County community.
The first major project he noted was the commitment to provide high-speed fiber internet to every home in rural Daviess County. Using $10 million in ARPA funds, he said the project is well underway and is starting with the fringe areas in the county.
“Bringing fiber internet to every part of this county will open up education potential for school children and economic opportunities for those who wish to work from home,” he said.
Another project the previous Fiscal Court was able to see to completion was the development of a spay and neuter clinic to serve the pets in the animal shelter; the clinic has already performed over 2,000 surgeries since its opening in July 2022.
As for the quality of life across the county, Castlen noted the recent addition of pickleball courts to Stanley and Yellow Creek parks and the upcoming rework of the trail system at Panther Creek Park.
The landfill has additionally seen some work after a recent expansion with a 16-acre cell for municipal solid waste, adding 10 more years to the livelihood of the landfill.
And over the last year, the County paved 26 miles of road — bringing the total to more than 350 miles in the last 12 years.
“Making sure our roads are in good condition keeps our citizens driving to and from work, shopping and insuring our farmers can get their crops to market,” Castlen said.
He said the new Fiscal Court is currently working toward its first budget and he does not see big changes, but he does expect the priorities of the Court to be accounted for with new programs and ideas.
Castlen plans to visit local plant managers, business owners, directors, and other members of the community to learn the challenges that they face and how they can best remedy them to help the county grow.
“My hope is that next year I can announce that the State of the County, while good last year, is better than before,” Castlen said.
