LEXINGTON – The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government’s Board of Adjustment approved a slate of short-term rental requests Monday, including a contested Desdemona Way property and a historic Georgetown Road estate wedged between Interstate 75 and Georgetown Road, while deadlocking on a Rosalie Road proposal near Keeneland.
The meeting, held Jan. 12 in council chambers downtown, featured lengthy public comment, repeated debates over rural spacing rules and child safety, and a rare tied vote that left one application unresolved.
The most contentious vote came on a proposed un-hosted short-term rental at 4236 Desdemona Way, where multiple neighbors urged the board to reject the application, citing safety concerns for children and the disruption caused by transient occupants. Several residents described the dead-end street as a tight-knit, kid-heavy block anchored by Dogwood Park.
Despite the opposition — including testimony from parents and a teenage resident — the board voted to approve the conditional use permit for Barnett Bungalows LLC, accepting staff findings that the home met parking, spacing and nuisance standards and that no other short-term rentals exist within the required buffers.
The board also approved a high-profile request from Jolly Properties LLC for a short-term rental at 3501 Georgetown Road, a 19th-century Italianate home located between I-75 and Georgetown Road. Planning staff had recommended denial, citing the one-mile spacing rule for agricultural zones, but board members ultimately granted both a variance and conditional use permit after hearing testimony about the property’s isolation, historic preservation investment and the physical barrier created by the interstate.
“This isn’t farmland anymore in any meaningful sense,” one board member said during deliberations, noting the lot’s narrow shape and encroaching transportation infrastructure. The approval was conditioned on occupancy limits, licensing and safety requirements.
Elsewhere on the agenda, the board:
• Approved a short-term rental request at 2553 Spring Valley Loop after the owners said they plan to temporarily relocate to Mexico to care for a sick family member.
• Approved a conditional use permit allowing The Mission Church of Lexington to expand its sanctuary at 3288 Beaver Creek Drive.
• Granted approval for a twelve-bed fraternity house at 235 Stone Avenue, though the applicant withdrew part of the request and postponed a variance issue to February.
The board deadlocked 3–3 on a request from Sybil and Bruno Montero to operate a short-term rental at 3512 Rosalie Road, where the proposed use would sit roughly 450 feet from an existing rural short-term rental — far short of the one-mile requirement. Because the vote tied, the application failed but may be refiled as early as next month, officials said.
Board members also elected officers for 2026, voting to keep the current leadership in place, with Bob Sturdivant continuing as chair.
The next Board of Adjustment meeting is scheduled for Feb. 9 at 1:30 p.m. in council chambers. Meetings are broadcast on LexTV and streamed online through LFUCG’s Granicus system.
