Community input sought for study concerning Nicholasville Road
Lexington transportation services and land planners are seeking community input in reimagining Nicholasville Road as part of a study called “Imagine Nicholasville Road.” Designed to examine the busy corridor from downtown to Brannon Crossing, the study will focus on identifying strategies to respond to growth and development along the road, including opportunities for retail, commercial and residential development. It will also examine transportation solutions and the congestion issues that have come to define the corridor.
Recommendations made by the study will be used to create an improvement plan to redesign the road. The study should be completed by late fall, according to the Division of Planning.
City planners will be host an open house on Wed., March 4 from 6-8 p.m. in the Community Room at Lexington Green. Community members are encouraged to come voice their opinions and concerns about Nicholasville Road and the redesign, and are also invited to share comments and priorities with the “Imagine Nicholasville Road” team by participating in an online survey that will be available from Feb. 28-March 31 at ImagineNicholasvilleRoad.com.
“Neighborhood Conversations” will take precedence at this year’s On the Table
On the Table Lexington, the local installment of the national civic engagement initiative supported by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, will take place on March 25. Lexington is one of 11 cities selected to participate in this national effort, which is designed to encourage community-led conversations at various venues throughout the day, centering on a variety of topics; data is then synthesized into a report that is distributed after the event. Anyone in the community is encouraged to host or attend a conversation, with up to 10,000 people having participated annually in years past.
Historically organized by The Blue Grass Community Foundation, the event will be led this year by the organization CivicLex, and will feature a special focus on the topic of “neighborhoods.” For more information, or to register to host a conversation, visit www.ottlex.org.
Town Branch Park completes first phase, exceeding fundraising goal
Town Branch Park officials announced that the project has exceeded its year-end fundraising goal, as Phase I of the evaluation and design process comes to a close. The project has raised more than $12.2 million, exceeding its year-end goal of $12 million.
The project has an overall goal of $31 million in private funds to create a signature downtown park on more than nine acres of land located behind Rupp Arena and the Central Bank Center, which is currently undergoing a multi-year renovation project. The park will also will function as the trailhead connecting 22-miles of paved trails leading from downtown to into Lexington’s rural landscape.