LEXINGTON, Ky. — Lexington city council members on Tuesday advanced a sweeping new framework intended to guide the city’s growth for decades, approving a data-driven preservation and growth management program after extended public comment and detailed amendments aimed at infill development, vacant land, and farmland protection.
The plan — formally known as the Preservation and Growth Management Program — is designed to reduce recurring political fights over whether to expand Lexington’s urban service boundary by requiring regular growth analyses and prioritizing development within the existing boundary before outward expansion.
Council members voted to place the ordinance on the Jan. 22 council meeting agenda after adopting multiple amendments clarifying how vacant land is defined and how future growth decisions would be reviewed.
Public pressure on infill, equity and environmental risk
Public speakers urged council to strengthen protections for existing neighborhoods and to ensure that redevelopment — not just vacant land — plays a larger role in meeting housing demand.
Rolanda Woolfolk of the Fayette County Neighborhood Council warned that infill development often overlooks environmental risks and neighborhood history, including sinkholes, flooding and sewer capacity.
“We are the neighborhood who knows what’s going on in our neighborhood,” Woolfolk told council.
Fayette Alliance policy director Brittany Rothmeyer praised the overall framework but pressed council to formally recognize redevelopment as part of the housing supply calculation and to analyze the long-term cost of extending public services.
“Research is clear that growing out is not financially responsible,” Rothmeyer said, arguing that residential development frequently fails to pay for the infrastructure it requires.
Several speakers also urged council to include surface parking lots and underutilized parcels in its vacant land calculations to encourage denser redevelopment.
Amendments clarify vacant land and review process
Vice Mayor Dan Wu introduced a key amendment clarifying that both agricultural-zoned parcels and non-agricultural parcels without active uses can be counted as vacant land — a technical change that council members said would prevent loopholes in future land inventories.
Council also approved an amendment expanding the range of expertise required on a future subcommittee that would review any proposed urban service boundary expansion. The panel would be expected to include experience in agriculture, environmental science, housing, infrastructure, and economic development.
Planning staff emphasized that the program does not automatically trigger boundary expansion but instead requires a five-year Growth Trends Report assessing population growth, housing production, infill capacity, and neighborhood stability before any expansion is considered.
Long-term shift in how Lexington grows
Planning officials said the program formalizes long-standing practices into a transparent process and is intended to reduce political pressure tied to individual development proposals.
If adopted by the full council, the ordinance will be incorporated into Lexington’s comprehensive plan by August, with the first Growth Trends Report due one year later.
Council members also approved routine budget amendments, procurement items, capital projects, and board appointments during the work session, and several members highlighted Martin Luther King Jr. Day events held across the city.
The work session adjourned without dissent on the growth management ordinance, setting the stage for a formal first reading Thursday night.
