# Urban County Council Special Meeting - June 14, 2011 > Auto-transcribed civic record · June 14, 2011 - **Permalink**: https://meetings.lexingtonky.news/meeting/2056 - **Source video**: https://lfucg.granicus.com/player/clip/2056?view_id=14&redirect=true - **Date**: 2011-06-14 - **Last revised**: July 17, 2026 - **Length**: 851 words > ⚠️ **Auto-generated content.** Audio from the official Granicus video was auto-transcribed with OpenAI's open-source Whisper large-v3-turbo model, run locally by The Lexington Times. Structured facts were extracted with GPT-4o; the narrative summary was written by Anthropic Claude. Verbatim wording may contain errors. See [methodology](https://meetings.lexingtonky.news/about/methodology) or [report a correction](mailto:editor@lexingtonky.news). --- ## Meeting Overview The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government held a Special Council Meeting on June 14, 2011, at 3:45 p.m. in the Council Chambers, presided over by Mayor Jim Gray. The meeting included two informational agenda items: a presentation on the Community Development Block Grant and its Consolidated Plan, and a discussion of Nationwide Best Practices. During the meeting, the Council took two motions to a vote and heard one public comment. The session focused on informational presentations rather than legislative action. ## Attendance **Present:** Farmer, Ford, Gorton, Henson, Kay, Lane, Lawless, Myers, Stinnett, Blues, Crosbie, Ellinger **Absent:** Martin, McChord, Beard **Late:** None ## Votes and Decisions **Ordinance on FY 2012 Budget and Capital Improvement Program** [timestamp: 00:01:43] The Council voted to accept and place on the June 21, 2011 Council Meeting docket for first reading an Ordinance appropriating revenues, expenditures, and interfund transfers for multiple funds for FY 2012. The motion also approved the Capital Improvement Program for FY 2012–2017 and approved funding for the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Tourist and Convention Commission from the Transient Room Tax. Motion by: Ms. Gorton Second by: Mr. Ellinger Outcome: Passed unanimously The following members voted in favor: Farmer, Ford, Gorton, Henson, Kay, Lane, Lawless, Myers, Stinnett, Blues, Crosbie, and Ellinger. No votes were cast against the motion. **Motion to Adjourn** [timestamp: 00:06:08] The Council voted to adjourn the meeting. Motion by: Mr. Ellinger Second by: Mr. Farmer Outcome: Passed unanimously The following members voted in favor: Farmer, Ford, Gorton, Henson, Kay, Lane, Lawless, Myers, Stinnett, Blues, Crosbie, and Ellinger. No votes were cast against the motion. ## Budget and Financial Actions The meeting addressed funding allocation for tourism promotion in Lexington-Fayette. The body approved an appropriation directing funding to the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Tourist and Convention Commission from the Transient Room Tax. Under this appropriation, the Commission will receive 99.5% of all revenue generated from the Transient Room Tax. ## Public Comment Mayor Jim Gray addressed the Council regarding executive response on budget decisions [timestamp: 00:01:03]. The Mayor expressed concern that the Council's rejection of his proposed budget reductions undermines efforts to right-size government, reduce costs, and improve efficiency. He warned that increasing government spending without recurring revenue could lead to future tax increases or drastic cuts. ## Contested Items **Budget Philosophy and Structural Changes** A significant disagreement emerged regarding the Mayor's proposed budget reductions. The Mayor expressed strong opposition to the Council's decision to reject his proposed cuts, arguing that the rejection undermined long-term financial responsibility and government efficiency. Despite the Mayor's position, the Council proceeded with a budget that restored most of his proposed reductions, resulting in a split vote on the matter. This dispute reflected differing approaches to fiscal management between the Mayor's office and the Council, with the Mayor advocating for the structural changes and cost reductions he had proposed, while the Council chose an alternative budgetary path that largely reversed those proposed cuts. ## Presentation: Community Development Block Grant and its Consolidated Plan Irene Gooding from the Division of Community Development presented an overview of the 2012 Consolidated Plan process. The presentation covered federal regulations governing Community Development Block Grants, available funding, program details, and the proposed schedule for public hearings and application deadlines. This was an informational presentation with no formal debate or voting outcome. The session provided stakeholders with details on the consolidated planning process and timeline for the upcoming funding cycle. ## Nationwide Best Practices Paul Schoninger presented on nationwide best practices related to community development planning. The presentation focused on offering insights into effective strategies for program implementation and citizen engagement. This agenda item was informational in nature, providing the meeting attendees with information about best practices being used across the country in community development initiatives. --- ## Decisions - **Motion** — passed: Accept and place on the June 21, 2011 Council Meeting docket for first reading an Ordinance appropriating revenues, expenditures, and interfund transfers for multiple funds for FY 2012, approving the Capital Improvement Program for FY 2012–2017, and approving funding for the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Tourist and Convention Commission from the Transient Room Tax. - **Motion** — passed: Motion to adjourn the meeting. --- ## Full transcript of the fiscal 2012 budget. And first on the agenda is a roll call. Then we'll have a motion. Mr. Farmer? Mr. Ford? Ms. Gorton? Here. Ms. Henson? Here. Mr. Kay? Here. Mr. Lane? Here. Ms. Lawless? Here. Mr. Martin? Mr. McCord? Mr. Myers? Here. Mr. Stennett? Here. Mr. Beard? Mr. Blues? Here. Ms. Crosby? Here. Mr. Ellinger? Here. Thank you. Thank you, Madam Clerk. I'll ask the floor open for discussion, but before I do that, I do want to say acknowledge and thanks to the council. You all have had a very long day. and I've got to confess that I don't know if I feel better for the long day, but if you will allow me, since you all have had, I know it's been tough to take seven hours, but if you'll allow just an executive response, a couple of minutes, because I do appreciate the long hours you've devoted not just today but to the whole process and to the members of the administration as well. I also understand that we will have different points of view on what should and shouldn't be included in a budget. But I do think that the actions the Council has taken today have served to magnify and clarify the differences that exist between a Council majority today and my own philosophy toward addressing Lexington's financial condition, how to go about reducing the size of government while retaining the quality of services, the highest quality that we can. By restoring most of the specific reductions I've proposed in my budget, the Council really opposes the philosophy that right-sizing and outsourcing and eliminating certain programs and positions is essential in restoring financial responsibility to our city government. Now, I'm sure in the short term a budget can pass that doesn't contain the majority of my proposed reductions, but the votes today, in my view, do compromise our ability to improve government efficiency and reduce costs to the taxpayers. I proposed extremely modest reductions in personnel, though difficult, less than 1% of our workforce, both to balance a budget and to begin a long-term process of surgically addressing structural changes, which I believe, and I know you recognize, the government really desperately needs. My solutions aren't magical. You've looked at them. You all have carefully looked at them. But they are solutions that people in business have long been dealing with ever since this Great Recession hit us. I believe that these solutions are a start. The council majority has chosen not to support them. I appreciate your point of view and right to do what you've done, and I surely understand the good intentions involved. I am concerned that increasing government costs where there are limited sources of recurring revenues is a mistake, A mistake that moves us closer to the time when this budget will require meat axe cuts or citizens will be saddled with increased taxes. In the middle still of a really very, very tough and difficult recession. I'm almost through. Either scenario will, in turn, lead to making Lexington less competitive in the long run. Less able to build those sidewalks on Versailles Road or North Lyme and all across the city. I was watching. So as this process moves toward conclusion, I would again caution that we are at the beginning of a longer process to address structural problems and financial realities we've chosen to ignore for really far too long. So thank you all very much for allowing the executive response for a couple of minutes. We are then prepared for a motion. Vice Mayor. Thank you, Mayor. I appreciate your comments, and thank you for allowing us to go a little bit late in our meeting. We all appreciate that. I move to accept and place on the docket for first reading a motion to approve the fiscal year 12 budget as amended by the Council. Second. There's a motion and a second. Is there any discussion? All right. Hearing none, if we're ready to vote, I'll ask for the vote. All in favor, please indicate by saying aye. Aye. All opposed, no. The motion carries. Vice Mayor Gordon. Thank you, Mayor. Okay. I had announced earlier that Connie Underwood would be, Today was her last day, and I just learned that she's going to work through Thursday to give the council support to follow through on our actions. So thank you, Connie. All right. Is there anything further to come before the council? I will say that I believe there's birthday cake in the caucus room, right? Happy birthday to the vice mayor and tomorrow, I believe, to Council Member Blues. No? You're tomorrow. Oh, okay. You're tomorrow. All right. Not till Thursday. Not till Thursday. An eternity away. All right. Is there anything further to come before the council? If not, is there a motion to adjourn? Is there a motion to adjourn? Is there a second? There is a second. All in favor, please indicate by saying aye. Aye. All opposed, no. Motion carries. Thank you all. The End Thank you.