By a vote of 12-2 with one abstention, the City Council approved the formation of Lexington’s first downtown management district earlier this month, which will collect fees from downtown property owners to fund enhanced services and maintenance within the district’s boundaries.
“We are very excited that now the next phase can begin, with a new entity with dedicated funding for downtown,” said Renee Jackson, president of the Downtown Lexington Corporation, which has headed up the push for the district’s establishment. “The DLC is very pleased with the process, and we’re pleased that the Council saw the value of what this could do for downtown.”
The established district is centered along Main Street, from Oliver Lewis Way to just past Midland Avenue and from West Second Street to High Street, encompassing a total assessed property value of roughly $361 million.
Tax-paying property owners within the district will be required to contribute an assessment of one-tenth of 1 percent of their property value annually, which would equate to $200 for a property valued at $200,000, or a total of roughly $360,000 for the entire district.
The next step, Jackson said, will be the appointment of a 15-member board by Mayor Jim Gray to oversee the management district, with two-thirds of the board’s seats to be held by the district's tax-paying property owners or their representatives. Among the board’s first responsibilities will be the appointment of a qualified vendor to administer the improved services within the district and the delineation of the specific services that the district intends to provide. The DLC’s possible role in the administration of services has not been determined at this point, Jackson said, but the DLC’s chairman will have an ex-officio position on the board, along with the mayor, 3rd District council member and a representative of the Downtown Development Authority. The district’s establishment also carries with it a five-year sunset clause, which will allow property owners to vote on the continuation of the district at that time.
The fee assessment is expected to take effect in January 2016, Jackson said, with the first funds collected in the fall of 2016 in conjunction with property tax bill payments.
Prior to the Council’s decision, Louisville was the only Kentucky city with a downtown management district, but such districts also have been established in cities such as Cincinnati; Memphis, Tennessee; Knoxville, Tennessee; Pittsburgh; and Ann Arbor, Michigan.
Jackson said she expects the improvements will encourage more return visits by both tourists and locals alike to the downtown area.
“I think that people will be very pleased as they see the district start to perform these enhanced services,” Jackson said. “What I hope is that, as our streets become cleaner and more beautiful, that some of the people who have voiced concerns about downtown over that will come back.”