LIVINGSTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — It’s been a whirlwind week for a Rockcastle County town after its water was turned off and then turned back on – just two days later.

LEX 18’s Kayleigh Randle followed Livingston’s story last week, digging deeper into the truth behind the bills.

Hundreds of residents, and even the daughter of a fellow mayor, are wondering where the money went and why the bills haven’t been paid.

“I saw this on TV, I like to die. It just came up 89,000. I said I had the records. I said I had them,” says Melissa Hahn, daughter of former Livingston Mayor Dwain King. “When I saw this bill come up, I said uh-huh. I have the records and I’ve been filing public records all along. And then in March, it wasn’t even that high .It was only 77.”

Last week, LEX 18 reported that Mayor Sandi Singleton claimed that when she first took office in January 2023, the city’s water debt was $89,000.

“The 89,000 figure is actually the number that they told us we owed. And we had an incident that happened in maybe June of this year where under the previous administration they had removed the valves and put direct water in it,” describes Livingston Mayor Sandi. Singleton. “They came out and fixed it. We got a bill from them for $19,000 which I guess they added to that. We never got a hard number.”

According to statements provided by Hahn and Mayor Singleton, a December 2022 statement for the January 2023 pay period showed $65,389.37 instead of $89,000.

Melissa Hahn, the daughter of former Mayor Dwain King

Throughout 2023, all Woods Creek Water District bills have been sent and paid, according to records provided by Mayor Sandi Singleton.

In 2024, multiple statements and checks show Singleton paid and sent checks to Woods Creek Water District throughout the year until August. However, she claims she also paid for September and October.

Mayor Sandi Singleton with the City of Livingston

Mayor Sandi Singleton with the City of Livingston

By August, the $65,000 had risen to $86,970.71 and finally to $114,000. “But they owe $94,000 in water bill, so $94,000 is a water bill and $19,000 is a utility bill,” Hahn says.

“We had applied for a grant to pay them in August. We contacted them and said, ‘Look, we applied for a grant and it looks like we’re going to get it and be able to reimburse you’ and it looks like we’re going to do. Singleton says she contacted Woods Creek several times to get answers, but received no response.

Woods Creek also claimed to Singleton that the town had not paid its August and September bills. However, Singleton denies this, providing a check dated August and addressed to Woods Creek.

Mayor Sandi Singleton with the City of Livingston

Mayor Sandi Singleton with the City of Livingston

“I don’t blame Woods Creek for wanting their money and we did – the town owed them money. We knew there had been a prior bill when we took office. We knew – we didn’t “We didn’t know when it went away, but we continued to pay monthly like we were supposed to,” Singleton said.

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 improved sewer system, water pipes and a water tower.

Hahn believes these improvements will fix leaks in the city and reduce ongoing debt problems. “These leaks are a big problem for the city. Everyone is wondering, “What are you doing with these 114,000?” It is these leaks that kill this bill. When you keep having these leaks, it’s not like someone is taking that money and wasting it. »

Singleton says the city sent the November check to Woods Creek Water District. However, Woods Creek did not cash the check allowing the city to pay the bill. Singleton says this has happened several times before, and every time they call Woods Creek about it, they get no response.

According to Singleton, the city applied for a grant from the KIA (Kentucky Infrastructure Authority) to pay down the debt. The KIA approved $57,000, paying off half of the city’s debt, leaving it now at $57,000 in debt. Singleton says the city was recently subpoenaed for an investigation into water payments. However, no criminal act was found.

This is a statement sent to Mayor Singleton by the KIA:

According to Singleton, the city has not had an audit since 2009. Hahn said the city has an audit and plans to present it at the next meeting.