HOPKINSVILLE, KY (CHRISTIAN COUNTY NOW) – At the May 22 Hopkinsville Committee of the Whole meeting, council members debated whether or not they should allocate funding directly to Pennyroyal Arts Council, bypassing the newly established Hoptown Helps program.

Established through a municipal order by the Hopkinsville City Council, this program permits local nonprofits to directly petition the city for funding in an transparent environment. $63,000 was laid out in the proposed city budget for the 2025-26 fiscal year, with the intention of dividing up the money based on who applies for the program.

During Thursday’s meeting, committee chairman Travis Martin made a motion to bypass the program and allocate $44,000 from the Hoptown Helps budget directly to the Pennyroyal Arts Council. This amount is what the nonprofit organization received last fiscal year from the city to fund programming at the Alhambra Theater.

| RELATED STORY: Hoptown Helps Grant Program established to assist non-profits and improve transparency

Funding summer youth program, finding solution

Without this specific amount pre-allocated to the arts council, they would have to eliminate their summer youth programs at the theater this year. Discussions among council members led to Vance Smith attempting to amend the motion, allowing other organizations to also bypass the program.

City Attorney Doug Wilcox clarified that they would be violating their own municipal order if they separately approved funding for any singular organization. City CFO Melissa Clayton also pointed out that they have had an overwhelmingly positive response from nonprofit organizations about the program.

“This idea for Hoptown Helps has been in the works for years,” said council woman Amy Craig in response. “Just to basically say we passed it and we’re just going to throw it aside and not do it, I think it’s a terrible idea. We’ve got to give this a shot and do it.”

Craig further explained that the arts council could benefit by waiting and going through the Hoptown Helps program. They could potentially receive more than the $44,000, although it would come at a later time.

The city attorney ultimately recommended that they advance the money to the arts council from the Hoptown Helps fund, which gives them the required funds for summer and allows them to pursue more money through the program if needed. In a tight vote, the committee voted in favor of forwarding the budget amendment to council that would allow the Pennyroyal Arts Council to receive advanced funding.

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