LEXINGTON — Lexington’s Planning Commission on Thursday received wide-ranging updates on how the city is managing growth, transportation safety and long-range planning priorities, including a preview of an ordinance that could fundamentally reshape how future urban expansion decisions are made.
Much of the work session focused on the proposed Lexington Preservation and Growth Management Program, a new framework designed to separate debates over urban expansion from the city’s comprehensive plan and ground those decisions in regularly updated data.
Planning Manager Hal Baillie told commissioners the program would codify long-standing but informal practices used during past expansions of the urban service area and create a more transparent, predictable process going forward.
“This allows us to focus on growth responsibly based off data rather than reacting to whatever issue happens to be the hottest at the time,” Baillie said.
Under the proposal, the city would prepare a five-year growth trends report following each comprehensive plan update, analyzing population growth, housing production and vacant land availability. If the data shows a housing shortfall, the Urban County Council could consider — but would not be required to approve — an expansion of the urban service area.
Several commissioners pressed staff on how the program measures land availability and housing density, particularly whether redevelopment in commercial and mixed-use zones is fully captured in the data.
Commissioners noted that some of the city’s densest recent housing projects have occurred on commercially zoned land downtown — projects that do not factor into the ordinance’s calculation of average dwelling units per acre, which focuses on residential zoning districts.
Staff acknowledged the limitation but said commercial-zone housing would still be reported in the growth trends data, even if it is not used directly in the land-need formula.
“There is no perfect formula for this,” Baillie said. “This is meant to serve as a baseline of information for decision-makers, not a silver bullet.”
The ordinance received its first reading before the Urban County Council later Thursday night, with a second reading scheduled for Feb. 12. The Planning Commission is expected to formally review the proposal in February before considering amendments to the comprehensive plan in March.
Earlier in the meeting, Planning Manager Kenzie Gleason presented the commission’s annual Comprehensive Plan Implementation Update, noting that roughly 14% of the plan’s 117 action items are complete, while more than half are in progress.
Gleason highlighted the launch of the Imagine Lexington Analytic Research Center, a public-facing data platform intended to track development trends, zoning changes and housing outcomes in near real time.
The commission also received an update on Complete Streets and Vision Zero initiatives aimed at reducing traffic fatalities and serious injuries. Gleason said Lexington averages 35 to 40 traffic deaths per year, with pedestrians and cyclists accounting for roughly 30% of fatalities despite representing a much smaller share of trips.
Among projects underway are safety redesigns on North Broadway and New Circle Road, a roundabout feasibility study, neighborhood traffic-calming pilots and funding set aside for quick-build safety projects.
Staff also previewed a forthcoming Complete Streets Design Manual, expected to go before council this spring, that would standardize roadway design across new developments and public projects.
The work session concluded with a brief personnel update, with staff noting the planning division is now nearly fully staffed following recent hires.
The Planning Commission’s next regular meeting, which will include zoning hearings, is scheduled for Thursday.