Council amends and advances HB 443 ZOTA

The Square commercial center in downtown Lexington. Source: Carol M. Highsmith

Council has moved forward the controversial House Bill 443 Zoning Ordinance Text Amendment (HB 443 ZOTA), which revises Lexington’s planning regulations and development process to be more objective. The HB 443 ZOTA will receive First Reading in May 29th’s Council Meeting, and will receive Second Reading and final vote of approval on June 12th.

Council made several amendments to the ZOTA impacting the content of the regulations and added additional public engagement opportunities to the planning process. Here’s a breakdown of the major changes:

A new space for public comment — after approval

Planning Staff, the Planning Commission, and Council all seem to agree that HB 443 prevents public comment from being considered in the approval of a development plan.

• Why? - Because the bill requires that planning regulations be applied objectively and without discretion, meaning public opinion cannot factor into approval decisions.

  • As long as a developer’s proposal meets the city’s written, objective standards, LFUCG must approve it. No public hearings or neighborhood input can stop or alter a project that is compliant with the rules established by this ZOTA.

To work around this, Council added a new space for public comment after plans have already been approved. Starting this July, Planning Commission meetings will include a time for the public to comment on development plans that have received approval.

At-Large Councilmember James Brown, who introduced this amendment, argued that while this wouldn’t impact development approvals directly, it gives residents a space to share feedback on the quality and type of development happening in their communities. Over time, this feedback could help shape broader policy.

Important note: Something that seems to be getting lost in the public conversation around this change — new public comment restrictions only apply to new development plans and subdivision plats that don’t require zone changes. Projects requesting a zone change will still be required to go through public hearings and include opportunities for public input before decisions are made.

Council also removed an entire section regulating drive-thru and drive-up businesses in Lexington. Section 16-9 of the original HB 443 ZOTA added additional rules for how drive-thru buildings are designed.

• This Section received a lot of criticism from developers who build drive-thru businesses.

• Councilmembers removed these regulations from the HB 443 ZOTA and decided to refer drive-thru design standards as an item for the General Government and Planning Committee to review and work on sometime in the future.

Council added a requirement for developers to send letters to residents within 250 feet of a property letting them know that a development plan has been filed for the property.

While neighbors would not be able to provide public comment on the plan until after it was approved, this mail notice would ensure that residents know what developments are happening in their neighborhood as the plan approval process begins.

First Reading for the HB 443 ZOTA will occur during the Council Meeting on May 29th at 6pm in Council Chambers. Second Reading and a final vote of approval will happen during the Council Meeting on June 12th at 6pm in Council Chambers. You can attend either meeting in-person or watch live on LexTV.