Planning Gets to Work on the USB Expansion
Update 8/21:
Last week, the Urban Growth Management Plan Committee met for the second time. At this meeting, they heard presentations about Lexington’s Purchase of Development Rights (PDR) Program, and information on how sewerability affects development.
Beth Overman, Director of the PDR Program, highlighted the areas of rural land that are permanently protected from development and shared the qualifications and criteria for participating in the program. The PDR program currently has roughly 31,000 acres of farmland preserved outside the USB; the program’s goal is to reach 50,000 acres.
Charlie Martin, Water Quality Division Director, presented on how sewerability affects how land can be developed. For successful urban development to occur, a strong sewer infrastructure must be built. It is difficult and expensive to build sewers in Lexington, due to the hilly terrain and because there is no major waterway running through the city. An updated Sewerability Study, assessing how easy it is to build sewer systems in rural Fayette County, is being conducted and will be reported to the Council when it is finished.
The next Urban Growth Management Plan Advisory Committee Meeting will be held on Tuesday, August 22, 2023 at 10:00 am in the 3rd floor conference room of the Phoenix Building at 101 Vine St. You can attend in person or watch live on LexTV.
On August 8th, the Urban Growth Management Master Plan Advisory Committee held its first meeting. This 14-member group made up of LFUCG staff, community stakeholders, and Councilmembers has been tasked with identifying land to be added to the Urban Service Boundary (USB), which controls what land can be developed in Lexington. The Advisory Committee will make their recommendation to the Planning Commission, who has final say on what land is added to the USB.
The Urban Growth Management Master Plan Advisory Committee comes as the Planning Commission begins the USB Expansion process.
As part of the final Imagine Lexington 2045 Comprehensive Plan Goals & Objectives adopted back in June, Council revised the Plan to task the Planning Commission to identify 2,700-5,000 to be added to the USB. You can read more about the USB’s expansion here.
The Advisory Committee will recommend a change to the USB that the Planning Commission will vote on adopting or rejecting.
If the map is adopted, then Planning Commission will move forward with creating a new Expansion Area Master Plan that will guide new development in the Expansion Area.
The first meeting allowed Committee Members to introduce themselves, define and clarify the responsibilities and procedures of the group, and review the timeline of their work. The Committee includes Councilmembers, Planning Commission members, and specialists across the equine, development, and agriculture industries.
The Urban Growth Management Master Plan Advisory Committee will meet every Tuesday morning from now until September 26th when they will finalize their recommendation to the Planning Commission.
You can review the Advisory Committee’s timeline, membership, and other documents here. You can watch a recording of last week’s meeting here.
For more background information on the Urban Services Boundary or the Comprehensive Plan, visit our website.
The Urban Growth Management Master Plan Advisory Committee will meet every Tuesday morning from 10am-12pm in the 3rd Floor Conference Room of the Phoenix Building at 101 W Vine St, in Lexington, KY.
You can attend in-person, or watch the recorded meetings at the LFUCG YouTube page.
