Several issues were discussed and approved Thursday during the regular monthly meeting of the Benham City Council, including the COPS grant that was recently awarded to the city’s police department.

Police Chief Michael Franks told the council he was pleased that the department had received the grant providing an additional officer.

Franks and Mayor John Dodd informed the council that the grant had to be used to hire an additional officer and not to supplement the one full-time and one part-time position already established at the department.

The grant, which Franks announced to the council during the April meeting, was awarded to the city of Benham last month and will pay for an another full-time officer for the next three years.

“We cannot use this money to supplement the part-time officer already with the department,” said Franks. “In order to use the money, we have to hire an additional officer besides the one in that position, which will give the city a total of two full-time officers, including myself, and one part-time.”

The city of Cumberland was also notified last month that its police department was also awarded the COPS grant, which will allow the city to also hire an additional officer as well.

In other business Thursday, the council approved several actions submitted by Bobbie Gothard of the Main Street program.

Gothard informed the council of the receipt of a beautification grant which has been awarded to the city by the PRIDE program.

Gothard requested a motion for the council to allow the city to accept the grant and for them to be able to spend it on necessary items to beautify the city.

Gothard also asked the council for its approval to apply for a grant that will be used for work on the city’s public tennis courts.

She also requested that the council allow for signage on KY 160 that will indicate the Heritage Trail will run through the city.

The Coal Heritage Trail runs through Virginia and West Virginia, and plans are under way to add Kentucky roads to the trail. Gothard said two of the three Kentucky roads included are roads that pass through Harlan County — KY 160 from Black Mountain through the Tri-Cities into Letcher County; and U.S. 421 from Virginia through the Cawood area into Harlan and on to Leslie County.

Gothard said the newly appointed Coal Heritage Trail committee needed the council’s approval to place signs along KY 160 promoting the trail.

The council approved all three requests made by Gothard, with Dodd noting that the city would be proud to become a part of the Coal Heritage Trail.

“We are proud of coal anyway — we have to be. If you take a look around, there are people in here right now who have worked in coal,” Dodd said. “About every one of us in here was raised on coal (mining).”

The Coal Heritage Trail was brought up earlier in the week by Harlan County Chamber immediate past president Kathy Jones at a Chamber meeting. Jones said the trail would be a great asset for Harlan County and other surrounding areas.

The trail, which begins in West Virginia, currently runs along a route through Virginia. The trail is expected to help attract travelers through the area into the surrounding counties, bringing in more tourists who might otherwise bypass the counties.