Russell County may be home to a new manufacturing business that could ultimately employ upwards of 275 people over a five year operation development, according to Donna Diaz of the Lake Cumberland Area Development District at a special called meeting of the Russell County Fiscal Court on Thursday, June 27.

It’s estimated that there would be about 172 jobs within two years of the industry locating here.

Diaz said that the industry, said to be in the automotive sector, had begun by evaluating 64 communities in the state, and that now they are down to two, including Russell County. She said it is a strong company with a promise of high level of investment in the county.

Diaz asked for the court to pass a memorandum of agreement that the county would agree to donate the one percent payroll tax collected by the company to be turned over to Russell County Industrial District Authority to reduce the lease payments month 25 through month 73 of the company’s contract to lease the property.

She said the company’s plan would be to reinvest the money in equipment.

Due to the nature of negotiations the company was not named but Diaz said that the overall average wage is expected to be in the range of $15 per hour.

The court voted to agree to the memorandum of agreement and to give permission for Diaz to proceed with necessary applications.

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On Tuesday, July 2, the statewide popular radio show “Kentucky Sports Radio” (KSR) was to make a stop in Russell County at the Cove Restaurant in Russell Springs. The stop is part of the KSR Radio Tour, where the cast of the show make a stop in every city that the show airs. KSR made a stop in Russell County last year as well, appearing at Duo-County Telecom in Jamestown.

The show is hosted by Matt Jones and Ryan Lemond. The two host a call-in show where listeners can call and ask questions about UK sports, normally football and basketball-related. The popularity of the show has skyrocketed over the past few years, with a truly unique style. Jones and Lemond use the phrase “University of Kentucky Basketball, Football, and Recruiting news brought to you in the most ridiculous manner possible.”

In addition to the listeners who call in, the show has had it’s fair share of national sports media personalities, as well as prominent sports figures in Kentucky.

There have been several members from ESPN, Fox Sports, and CBS. In addition, Jones has been very adamant in getting previous UK sports figures on the show, including various players and coaches. Jones has also had Josh Hopkins, one of the stars of the television show “Cougar Town.”

Jones also runs a blog he started in 2005 with the same name, Kentuckysportsradio.com. The blog started out very slowly, but has since seen its popularity boom, becoming one of the top college sports websites in the country.

Jones has seemingly taken an unusual route, straying from the normal unbiased journalism etiquette. Jones wears his fandom on his sleeve, and it is loved by his fans. Jones shows his love for University of Kentucky sports, but has also been critical when warranted. The blog has over 150,000 unique visitors per day and its popularity continues to grow due to Jones’ rising popularity.

When Jones and Lemond came to Russell Springs, they gave away UK basketball tickets to a game to be announced.