Lexington’s New Council
That Thing Last Week… An update!
(Update posted 11/18/21)
Last week, we learned more about the new council members. City council got back to work last week with its first work session and council meeting of the year. Three out of the four council committees also had their inaugural meetings last Tuesday, during which members elected their chairs and vice chairs, who serve two-year terms, and gave updates on their work as they move into the new year.
Wait, you might be wondering, how exactly does the committee election process work? It’s really simple! In each committee, committee members can nominate a chair. The committee then votes on the nomination or nominations. Whoever is voted chair picks a vice chair at their discretion.
Ok, now that we’ve cleared that up, here’s how the committee elections turned out (drumroll please):
Planning & Public Safety (met January 12th)
The Planning and Public Safety Committee oversees all matters relating to the department of planning, preservation, and development and its divisions; the department of public safety and its divisions; any related partner agencies; and matters relating to capital improvement projects.
Chair: CM J. Brown
Vice Chair: CM Preston Worley
Members: CMs Whitney Elliot Baxter, Chuck Ellinger, Josh McCurn, Susan Lamb, David Kloiber, Amanda Mays Bledsoe, Jennifer Reynolds, Kathy Plomin
Environmental Quality & Public Works (met January 12th)
The Environmental Quality and Public Works committee oversees all matters relating to the Department of Environmental Quality and Public Works and its divisions, including capital improvement projects and any related partner agencies.
Chair: CM Fred Brown
Vice Chair: CM Josh McCurn
Members: Vice Mayor Steve Kay, CMs Richard Moloney, Chuck Ellinger, Hannah LeGris, Liz Sheehan, David Kloiber, Preston Worley, Amanda Mays Bledsoe
General Government & Social Services (met January 12th)
The general government and social services committee oversees all matters relating to the department of general services and its divisions, the department of social services and its divisions, the department of law, any matter relating to the general administration of government and the divisions under the chief administrative officer, any related partner agencies, and any other matters relating to capital improvement projects.
Chair: CM Lamb
Vice Chair: CM Plomin
Members: CMs Liz Sheehan, Hannah LeGris, Vice Mayor Steve Kay, Fred Brown, Whitney Elliot Baxter, James Brown, Richard Moloney, Jennifer Reynolds
Budget, Finance & Economic Development (to meet January 26th)
The committee oversees all matters relating to Finance, Administration, and Economic Development including, but not limited to: accounting, budgeting, purchasing, revenue, fiscal operations, the urban county courts and constitutional officers.
Chair: TBA
Vice Chair: TBA
Members: Vice Mayor Steve Kay, CMs Chuck Ellinger, Richard Moloney, James Brown, Fred Brown, Susan Lamb, with the rest TBA
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This week, the City of Lexington will see the first meetings of the 2021/2022 Urban County Council. On Tuesday, Council will hold three committee meetings to elect Committee chairs and the year’s first Work Session.
Watch: Committee Meetings live on LexTV, starting at 12:30p on Tuesday, 01/12.
There will be a number of significant challenges for this Council in the months ahead, and, with several new faces, we’re taking a quick look ahead at what this year could bring.
Challenges for the New Council
As we move into 2021, there is no shortage of challenges for the Urban County Council, many of which stem from the COVID-19 crisis.
COVID-related evictions
The Mayoral administration and Council will have to deal with the significant eviction crisis looming over much of our country. After issues with the original distribution system for rental assistance, the city has shifted to managing rental assistance directly.
While the Federal Government extended the COVID eviction moratorium to January 31, many renters still have to navigate the confusing landscape of what does and doesn’t qualify under the moratorium. That’s to say nothing of the eviction crisis that existed before COVID-19.
Business closures
The Council also has to reckon with the impacts of the COVID pandemic on workers and small businesses in Lexington. 2020 saw a record number of business closures - especially restaurants. While the business assistance program that the city rolled out has been effective, the need is still significant, judging by the dozens of applications that did not receive funding.
The Council will be responsible for finding a time to reinvest in our city’s businesses at a time where it will make the most significant impact. It is likely that they will do this using leftover funds from state COVID relief payments (currently housed in the Fund Balance).
Revenue decreases
The most significant challenge for the Council related to COVID is the pandemic’s impact on city revenues and the city budget. The city has been reeling throughout the year from the loss of tax revenue due to the higher unemployment rate and reduced business profits. The most recent Federal COVID relief package did not include added assistance for cities and states suffering from significant revenue shortages.
Unless federal aid comes through from the incoming Biden administration, the crisis will likely force the city to make meaningful service cuts or raise revenue rates.
Affordable Housing crisis
Lexington has been in an affordable housing crisis for almost a decade now. In 2012, the City of Lexington commissioned a study of Lexington’s Affordable Housing landscape that showed a need for more than 6,000 new affordable housing units. It called for a $20M+ investment in an Affordable Housing Fund each year. Since it was created, we have invested just $2M. The need for Affordable Housing has only increased in the intervening years - studies show that nationwide, rents are growing faster than household income. This is particularly true in communities with low minimum wages, like Lexington.
As prices continue to climb and cheaper homes continue to up-cycle in the market, Lexington is likely to become far less livable for those with low or moderate income. With revenues decreasing, the city’s relatively small investment in the Affordable Housing Fund is at risk when it is likely needed most.
Systemic racism
Last year’s demonstrations against systemic racism changed the seriousness with which our city is approaching the issue. Late last year, the Mayor detailed the first steps she was taking to implement the recommendations of the Mayor’s Commission on Racial Justice & Equality.
As we move into 2021, much of the responsibility for implementing these recommendations will move to the Urban County Council. Many of the recommendations will be costly, and, with significant decreases in city revenue, the council will have to get creative if they want to address this essential issue.
Redistricting
Following every decennial Census, the Urban County Council conducts a redistricting process to draw new boundaries for Council Districts. Historically, the decision-making body for determining these boundaries has been a commission consisting of one resident from each council district, appointed by their Council Members. The Lexington Code of Ordinances requires Council to adopt new district boundaries by April 1 of the first election of the decade - meaning April 1, 2022.
This year, the Council will likely follow the same process. Drawing fair boundaries will be even more challenging than usual - the US Census Bureau is putting out faulty and delayed data, and there have been significant demographic shifts in neighborhoods across the city.
New Councilmember Priorities
This year’s council will welcome four relatively young newcomers into Lexington’s civic life. In District 5, Liz Sheehan defeated longtime Council Member Bill Farmer. In Districts 3, 6, and 9, residents elected Hannah LeGris, David Kloiber, and Whitney Elliot Baxter to open seats on the Urban Council Council.
These four new Councilmembers will likely reshape the priorities of Lexington’s main governing body. We’ve reviewed several sources, including forums we hosted during the 2020 election, to help you understand what their priorities may be for their upcoming term. (Disclosure: Hannah LeGris and Liz Sheehan are both recent CivicLex Board Members, though both have resigned as of January 2021.)
District 3: Hannah LeGris
The Third District, consisting of much of downtown and the University of Kentucky, is seeing significant changes. While new projects downtown are changing our city’s landscape, they are also putting pressure on nearby neighborhoods, including ones in Districts 1, 2, 3, and 5. The University of Kentucky, one of Fayette County’s biggest employers, is also significantly entangled with the city. The clearest example of this is in the recent UK/LFUCG Coldstream Land Swap.
As Councilmember of District 3, LeGris will be responsible for balancing the infrastructure needs of downtown, the civic sway of the gargantuan UK, and the impacts these two iconic parts of Lexington have on surrounding residential communities.
In our LexVote survey, CM LeGris indicated her main priority on Council would be addressing the resiliency of Lexington residents impacted by systemic racism and the COVID pandemic: “In the coming year we have to overcome an economic crisis and budgetary shortfall. As we work to maintain essential operations, I want the city to make strategic investments that keep people employed, healthy, and safe... I will work to direct state and federal dollars to a local business fund to provide more options for those at-risk.”
In comments since the election, LeGris has emphasized building “structures that protect and empower our most vulnerable and marginalized residents” and “a commitment to discomfort and uncertainty during the process of shifting our norms.”
District 5: Liz Sheehan
The Fifth District encompasses many of Lexington’s wealthiest neighborhoods, including Chevy Chase, Landsdowne, parts of Kenwick/National Ave. It also includes a significant portion of the Winchester Road corridor inside New Circle Road. CM Sheehan will likely have to balance the priorities and political influence of many of Lexington’s most well-connected with the rest of the city’s needs.
Sheehan’s focus is set on the inequalities that many Lexington residents face and tackle the city’s budgetary woes - something that will need to be done if the city wants resources to address its inequities. In our LexVote candidate survey, Sheehan stated that “thoughtful leadership and creative partnerships, not across-the-board cuts, will be required to ensure we are meeting our community’s basic needs.”
Since the election, Sheehan has reinforced her view that, while there are many significant needs in Lexington, we can tackle these issues through creative partnerships and “showing up and being there for one another.”
District 6: David Kloiber
The Sixth District is one of Lexington’s most demographically diverse districts, consisting of many Lexington neighborhoods north of New Circle and much of the greater Hamburg area. Unlike many council districts, Kloiber’s district has the unique challenge of representing neighborhoods with significant economic insecurity alongside the very wealthy communities directly abutting much of Lexington’s rural landscape.
In our LexVote survey, Kloiber indicated his top priority was the city’s need for Affordable Housing. Kloiber’s district has a substantial amount of new, greenfield development potential - and it also has neighborhoods feeling the pressure as the core of Lexington gentrifies. These facts will put Kloiber in a position to advocate for affordable housing in multiple ways.
Since the election, Kloiber has said that the city needs to focus on its long-term goals and security instead of getting bogged down in the here and now: “In trying times it becomes easy to inadvertently sacrifice the opportunities of tomorrow by solely focusing on the issues of today.”
District 9: Whitney Elliot Baxter
The Ninth District is one of the most suburban districts in Lexington and one of Lexington’s main opportunities for a dramatic transformation. Most of the district is between Nicholasville Road and Harrodsburg Road outside of New Circle. This area is in the midst of a re-envisioning process through the Division of Planning’s ambitious Imagine Nicholasville Road project. Imagine Nicholasville Road could address significant needs in the area by adding Bus Rapid Transit service, creating the capacity for more dense residential development and more. CM Baxter will have to balance these concepts - which could benefit the entire city - with many suburban residents’ preferences.
In our LexVote Survey, Baxter brought up the Imagine Nicholasville Road plan, which Baxter said she would “continue to support.” She also indicated that traffic broadly was one of her main priorities as a Council Member, which fits with the Imagine Nicholasville Road plan well. She also stated support for increased pedestrian safety measures in her district, which is very auto-centric.
Since the election, Baxter has said that many in Lexington need to have patience with changes across the city. “We will have to overcome the financial implications of the pandemic, continue to fight for social and racial equality, and make plans to accommodate our ever-growing city... It’s overwhelming to think about all the changes we face and to figure out where to begin. As we trudge through the muck of 2020, we simply need patience to move forward.”