Wattenberger promotion highlights Winchester commission meeting

By John Chaney | Freelance writer for the Winchester Sun

Winchester, Ky. — The Winchester Board of Commissioners meet­ing on July 7, 2026, was marked by com­mu­ni­ty progress and a heart­felt cel­e­bra­tion of local law enforce­ment lead­er­ship. A high­light of the evening was the pro­mo­tion of vet­er­an offi­cer Michael Wattenberger from Police Officer to Police Captain. 

Police Chief Travis Thompson praised Wattenberger’s selec­tion fol­low­ing a com­pet­i­tive process with sev­en qual­i­fied appli­cants. “It was com­pet­i­tive. It was close. But he has the sup­port of his peers,” Chief Thompson said, not­ing the strong turnout of offi­cers in atten­dance. Wattenberger brings 32 years of law enforce­ment expe­ri­ence to the posi­tion, includ­ing 30 years with the Winchester Police Department and 15 years assigned to the DEA task force. His con­tri­bu­tions include major pros­e­cu­tions and effec­tive leadership. 

Wattenberger’s wife, Stacy, pinned on his new captain’s bars as fam­i­ly mem­bers joined for pho­tographs. In grate­ful remarks, Wattenberger thanked his fam­i­ly for their sup­port through dif­fi­cult times and cred­it­ed col­leagues, includ­ing DEA task force super­vi­sor Jared Sullivan, for their team­work. Commissioners and Chief Thompson expressed pride in his con­tin­ued ser­vice and com­mit­ment to the community. 

Christy Bush also deliv­ered an enthu­si­as­tic update on the Cardinal Community Center, locat­ed in the ren­o­vat­ed for­mer Hannah McClure Elementary School. The cen­ter is now bustling with activ­i­ty, host­ing meet­ings, train­ings, STEM camps for girls, the­ater camps, and this week’s art camp. It has wel­comed diverse groups includ­ing Republicans, Democrats, the Winchester Parks and Recreation Board, soc­cer orga­ni­za­tions, and Mayor Reed’s board. 
Bush extend­ed a warm open invi­ta­tion to res­i­dents and not­ed the center’s role as a flex­i­ble com­mu­ni­ty hub. Community-ori­ent­ed events and meet­ings that give back receive no rental fee, while pri­vate par­ties are charged $30 per hour. Support from spon­sors like Lowe’s and the place­ment of Clark County Health Department edu­ca­tors Kayla and Jessica on site have enhanced its mis­sion. Parking improve­ments are under­way to bet­ter serve mul­ti­ple simul­ta­ne­ous events. 

The com­mis­sion also received a pos­i­tive progress report on the Lincoln Street Habitat for Humanity Phase 2 project. Demolition has offi­cial­ly begun on the ten acquired prop­er­ties fol­low­ing nec­es­sary asbestos abate­ment. Completion is tar­get­ed for mid-August, after which six con­sol­i­dat­ed build­able lots will sup­port new afford­able homes. Habitat has a fam­i­ly select­ed and ready, with ground­break­ing expect­ed soon. Leaders called for local vol­un­teers and con­trac­tors to help accel­er­ate the work. 

Additional busi­ness includ­ed the approval of appli­ca­tions for Opioid Abatement Funds, allo­cat­ing $227,908 to key local non­prof­its, such as the Clark County Homeless Coalition, Health Department, and Celebrate Recovery. Routine per­son­nel mat­ters, appoint­ments, retire­ments, and res­ig­na­tions were also approved. 

The meet­ing show­cased Winchester’s com­mit­ment to vibrant com­mu­ni­ty spaces, afford­able hous­ing solu­tions, and strong pub­lic safe­ty lead­er­ship. Bush encour­aged idea-shar­ing for the Cardinal Center, while Habitat rep­re­sen­ta­tives wel­comed ongo­ing sup­port. As city lead­ers not­ed, these efforts demon­strate the pow­er of col­lab­o­ra­tion and a shared vision for the future.