# Council Work Session - June 25, 2024 > Auto-transcribed civic record · June 25, 2024 - **Permalink**: https://meetings.lexingtonky.news/meeting/6146 - **Source video**: https://lfucg.granicus.com/player/clip/6146?view_id=14&redirect=true - **Date**: 2024-06-25 - **Last revised**: June 25, 2024 - **Length**: 5,713 words - **Speakers**: Mayor > ⚠️ **Auto-generated content.** The transcript on this page is the Granicus stenographer's live closed-captioning track, captured at the time of broadcast (typos and broken sentences common). Speaker labels come from the same track. Structured facts were extracted with GPT-4o; the narrative summary was written by Anthropic Claude Sonnet. Verbatim wording and speaker attribution 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 Council convened on June 25, 2024, at 3:00 PM in the Council Chamber in Lexington, Kentucky, with Mayor Linda Gorton presiding. The council addressed seven agenda items during the session, covering a range of municipal business including zoning matters, budget amendments, mayoral appointments, and ongoing city initiatives. The council took four formal votes during the meeting, approving requested rezonings and docket items, budget amendments, new business items, and mayoral appointments. Four members of the public provided comments on agenda-related issues during the designated public comment period. The meeting also included informational presentations and discussions on continuing business matters, though specific details of these presentations were not captured in the available data. All voted items on the agenda were approved by the council, indicating broad consensus on the matters brought forward. The session covered both routine administrative business, such as summary approvals and budget amendments, as well as substantive policy matters including zoning decisions that affect community development and land use planning. ## Attendance The meeting was attended by 15 council members, with one absence recorded. **Present:** • Mayor Linda Gorton • Vice Mayor Wu • J. Brown • Ellinger II • Fogle • Lynch • LeGris • Monarrez • Sheehan • Gray • Worley • Baxter • Sevigny • Reynolds • Plomin **Absent:** • F. Brown No members were recorded as arriving late to the meeting. ## Votes and Decisions The meeting included four unanimous votes on various agenda items [timestamp: 00:00]. **Approval of June 18, 2024 Work Session Summary** Gray motioned to approve the June 18, 2024 Work Session Summary, with Reynolds providing the second. The motion passed unanimously. **Approval of New Business** Sheehan made a motion to approve New Business items, seconded by Plomin. The motion carried unanimously. **Amendment to Section 16-203 of the Code of Ordinances** Sheehan motioned to approve an amendment to section 16-203 of the Code of Ordinances, with Plomin seconding the motion. The amendment passed with unanimous approval. **Proposed Amendments to Chapter 17B of the Code of Ordinances** The final vote involved proposed amendments to Chapter 17B of the Code of Ordinances. Sheehan made the motion, Wu provided the second, and the amendments were approved unanimously. All four votes resulted in unanimous passage, indicating full council support for each item. The specific vote counts and individual member positions were not recorded in the available data, as these appear to have been voice votes rather than formal roll call votes. ## Budget and Financial Actions The meeting addressed multiple significant financial commitments totaling over $14 million in contracts, grants, and employee compensation adjustments. **Major Contracts:** • **L0627-24**: Approved a $10,278,132 agreement with CHS TX, Inc. d/b/a YesCare for inmate medical and mental health services • **L0631-24**: Authorized a $1,336,608 contract with Aramark Correctional Services LLC for inmate food services • **L0667-24**: Approved $1,918,014 in Purchase Service Agreements with seven Extended Social Resource Program grantee agencies **Mental Health and Social Services:** • **L0650-24**: Established a $100,000 Memorandum of Agreement with Nami Lexington, Inc. for Fayette Mental Health Court services • **L0656-24**: Approved a $300,000 agreement with Fayette County Public Schools for Day Treatment Services • **L0658-24**: Authorized a symbolic $1 lease agreement with Fayette County Public Schools for the Audrey Grevious Center **Employee Compensation:** • **L0655-24**: Amended Code of Ordinances Section 23-30 for stipend increases totaling $401,879 • **L0660-24**: Approved a 3% salary increase for all eligible classified and unclassified employees • **L0669-24**: Changed Early Child Care Teacher positions from exempt to non-exempt FLSA status **Grants and Awards:** • **L0661-24**: Accepted a $457,000 award from Lexington-Fayette County Health Department for the Home Network Program • **L0668-24**: Approved $491,131.55 in Lex Grow Trees Grants to nine applicants • **L0662-24**: Accepted a $4,000 award from the Energy and Environment Cabinet for waste tire disposal and recycling **Other Financial Actions:** • **L0659-24**: Approved Change Order No. 1 for $215,617 with Champlin/Haupt Architects Inc. • **L0636-24**: Authorized $51,000 for software procurement from Konica Minolta Business Solutions U.S.A, Inc. • **L0664-24**: Established a Memorandum of Understanding with the U.S. Department of Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network ## Public Comment Four residents addressed the council during the public comment period, with three speakers focusing on animal welfare legislation and one requesting historical recognition. **Humane Pet Sales Ordinance** Three speakers voiced strong support for a proposed humane pet sales ordinance aimed at addressing puppy mill operations [timestamp: 00:00]. Monique Winther expressed strong support for the humane pet sales ordinance, arguing that commercial sales of dogs and cats in pet stores do not resonate well with the public [timestamp: 00:00]. Janet Cabiness urged the council to pass the ordinance banning puppy mill sales, specifically citing Kentucky's low ranking in animal cruelty and pet welfare laws as justification for local action [timestamp: 00:00]. Pat Diamond also spoke against puppy mills and supported the ordinance. Drawing from her experience as a nurse, Diamond emphasized the importance of working with rescue groups and shared personal experiences related to animal welfare [timestamp: 00:00]. **Historical Recognition Request** Stokes Neilsen addressed the council with a different matter, requesting that the council honor Edna Smith, a historical figure who stood against an unjust ordinance in 1921. Neilsen highlighted Smith's courage and noted her connection to Lexington's equestrian history [timestamp: 00:00]. The public comment period demonstrated significant community interest in animal welfare policy, with multiple speakers providing different perspectives on why the humane pet sales ordinance should be adopted. The request for historical recognition of Edna Smith represented the community's interest in acknowledging past acts of civic courage and preserving local history. ## Contested Items The meeting featured one primary contested item that drew significant community engagement. **Humane Pet Sales Ordinance** The proposed humane pet sales ordinance generated notable community interest, with several residents speaking in favor of its passage. Community members who addressed the council urged them to approve the ordinance, citing concerns about preventing puppy mill sales in local pet stores. The speakers emphasized the importance of protecting animal welfare by restricting the sources from which local pet retailers can obtain animals for sale. The nature of the contest appeared to be between community advocates pushing for stronger animal welfare protections and potential concerns about regulating local businesses, though the extracted data indicates the public comments were primarily supportive of the ordinance rather than opposed to it. The outcome of this contested item was not specified in the available meeting data, leaving the final council decision on the humane pet sales ordinance unclear from this summary. *Note: Specific transcript timestamps were not available in the provided meeting data for this contested item.* ## Public Comment - Issues on Agenda [timestamp: 00:00] During the public comment period for agenda items, three speakers addressed the council regarding the humane pet sales ordinance under consideration. **Monique Winther** spoke in support of the proposed ordinance, urging the council to take action on humane pet sales regulations. **Janet Cabiness** also provided comments expressing support for the humane pet sales ordinance and encouraged the council to move forward with passing the measure. **Pat Diamond** similarly voiced support for the ordinance, adding to the chorus of speakers advocating for the council's approval of the humane pet sales regulations. All three speakers focused their remarks on the same agenda item, demonstrating coordinated public interest in the humane pet sales ordinance. The speakers uniformly expressed support for the proposed regulations and encouraged the council to pass the ordinance. This public comment period served an informational purpose, allowing community members to share their perspectives on the agenda item before the council's formal consideration of the matter. ## Requested Rezonings/Docket Approval [timestamp: 00:00] The council addressed the approval of the docket for the upcoming June 27, 2024 council meeting during this agenda item. Vice Mayor Wu and Council Member Monarrez were the key speakers who participated in the discussion of the docket approval process. The docket included various items scheduled for consideration at the next council meeting, with particular mention of a resolution related to Lexington's 250th anniversary celebration. The council reviewed the proposed agenda items that would be formally considered during the June 27th meeting. The docket approval process allows council members to examine and confirm the items that will be brought forward for official action at the subsequent meeting. No significant concerns or objections were raised during the discussion of the docket items. The process appeared to be routine administrative business to organize the upcoming meeting's agenda. The council approved the docket for the June 27, 2024 council meeting, clearing the way for the scheduled items, including the Lexington 250th anniversary resolution, to be formally considered at that time. ## Approval of Summary [timestamp: 00:00] The council considered approval of the summary from their June 18, 2024 work session. Council Member Sheehan and Council Member Legris were the key speakers during this agenda item. The council voted to approve the summary of the June 18, 2024 work session without recorded discussion or debate. The item was resolved through approval, allowing the meeting to proceed to subsequent agenda items. ## Budget Amendments [timestamp: 00:00] The council considered budget amendments during the June 25, 2024 meeting, with Council Member Fred Brown serving as a key speaker on the item. The amendments included reallocations for the Police West Envelope project, though specific details about the nature and scope of these reallocations were not detailed in the available materials. The budget amendments were presented as a resolution requiring council approval. The council ultimately approved the budget amendments without recorded opposition or significant debate based on the available information. The approval of these budget amendments allows the city to proceed with the financial reallocations, including those related to the Police West Envelope project. ## New Business The council addressed several new business items during this portion of the meeting [timestamp: 00:00]. Council Member Reynolds and Commissioner Allen-Bryant served as the primary speakers for the various proposals presented. The new business segment included multiple agreements and amendments related to ongoing city projects and services. While the specific details of individual items were not fully captured in the available materials, the discussion encompassed various municipal operations and contractual arrangements. Council Member Reynolds presented information regarding the proposed items, with Commissioner Allen-Bryant providing additional context and commentary during the deliberations. The council members engaged in discussion of the various agreements and amendments under consideration. Following the presentations and discussion, the council moved to approve the new business items. The outcome was favorable, with the council voting to approve the proposed agreements and amendments related to the various city projects and services. The approval of these new business items allows the city to move forward with the outlined projects and service arrangements, though the specific implementation details and timelines were not detailed in the available meeting materials. ## Communications From the Mayor – Appointments [timestamp: 00:00] The council reviewed and approved appointments communicated by the Mayor during this agenda item. Vice Mayor Wu and Council Member Fogle were the key speakers who participated in the discussion of these mayoral appointments. The council proceeded to approve the appointments as presented by the Mayor. No specific details about the nature of the appointments, the positions being filled, or the individuals being appointed were provided in the available meeting materials. The agenda item was resolved with council approval of the Mayor's appointments. ## Continuing Business/Presentations [timestamp: 00:00] Council Member James Brown provided a report on the recent Budget, Finance, and Economic Development Committee meeting during this portion of the session. Brown's presentation included updates on the city's financial status and progress on economic development initiatives. A key component of his report focused on the Commerce Lexington Regional Competitiveness Plan, which addresses regional economic development strategies and competitive positioning. The presentation served an informational purpose, updating the full council on committee activities and providing transparency on budgetary and economic development matters discussed at the committee level. Brown's report allowed council members who did not attend the committee meeting to stay informed about ongoing financial and economic development discussions. This agenda item followed the standard practice of having committee chairs or members report back to the full council on significant committee business, ensuring all council members remain informed about work conducted in specialized committees. The presentation did not require any formal action from the council, as it was designed to share information and maintain communication between the committee and the broader council body. --- ## Decisions - **Motion** — passed (0-0): approve the June 27, 2024 Council Meeting Docket, as amended - **Motion** — passed (0-0): place on the June 27, 2024 Council Meeting Docket, a resolution authorizing the mayor or her designee to execute sponsorship agreements related to the celebration of Lexington’s 250th anniversary as approved in form and content by the 250LEX Commission and the Department of Law - **Motion** — passed (0-0): approve the June 18, 2024 Work Session Summary - **Motion** — passed (0-0): approve Budget Amendments - **Motion** — passed (0-0): approve New Business - **Motion** — passed (0-0): approve Communications from the Mayor- Appointments - **Motion** — passed (0-0): enter Closed Session pursuant to KRS. 61.810(1)(c) for the purpose of discussing proposed litigation - **Motion** — passed (0-0): return from Closed Session - **Motion** — passed (0-0): adjourn at 3:58 p.m --- ## Full transcript Mayor: good afternoon everyone. It is 3:00 and so I would like to go ahead and call to order the lexington fayette urban county council work session and this is JUNE 25, 2024 we are in session. First up is public comment for issues another agenda. And we have some folks signed up. So first of all, issues on the agenda, we have -- well, first let me review for those of you who MAY not have been here for a while. When I call your name if will you come to the podium and you will need to restate your name and the council district four the record and you will have three minutes unless someone has yielded you their time. So first up is monique winther followed by janet cabiness. If you will remember to state your name and council district. Welcome. And the mic will pull down. Good afternoon much my name is monique winther and I reside in district 5. I thank you for this time to speak and thank you council member reynolds for introducing the humane pet sales ordinance that I strongly support. I will try to make two points. First I would like to suggest that commercial usually sales of dogs and cats in pet stores does not resonate well. I aware that the law treats animals as property. However, this should not mean that they should be treated as mere commodities tore purchased with the same uninvolved casual ease wih which you can purchase a bag of kibble, a bottle of dog shampoo in the same stores. Is second, I hear that some pet stores claim that enactment of the ordinance would threaten their ability to survive. Hoifer, it is well known -- however, it is well known that the vast majority of the public% supports care for dogs and cats. I spoke with several friends and acquaintances hoo whom I did not know to be an pal people per se and they you will expressed delight when I told them that pending ordinance. My suggestion to those stores that stopping the sale of commercially bred puppies and kittens in their stores would result in a tremendous boost in their business reputation and would increase clientele in their stores rather than the opposite, especially if they begin partnering with rescue groups and the animal shelters to offer for adoption perfectly healthy good dogs and cats in need of a home. Moreover, I think that they could enhance additional services such as grooming and doggy daycare and sale of high end pet products to generate more mall revenue. I think that american creativity and some members of the council, I urge you to vote in favor of the ordinance and I thank you again for speaking with you. >> next is janet cabiness followed by pat diamond. Welcome. >> thank you. >> before I start speaking, I think we messed up. Coming in, we wanted to make public comment after the rest of us, pat and I were intended to make public comment. Should I try this now it's on the pet. Glm is it. is it for an issue on the agenda? >> it's important the pets. yes, please go ahead and state your name and your council district. >> janet cabiness and I'm in district 9. I just wanted to point out in 2023, kentucky ranked 46th among 50 states for animal drult cruelty and pet welfare laws in the entire united states. Fifth from the bottom. That's a statistic that I'm not proud of. Puppy mills are known to be abusive of innocent pets and you have had that testified to already. Many cities, even cities in kentucky have passed laws against retail sales from puppy mills throughout their local area. This is a good law. I have been here every time and I heard you vetted it. You have tried it out, fixed it, you have gotten pie in from humane society and animal care I would like to urge you to show leadership in passing this law today on the second reading it's a good ordinance. Please vote to ban puppy 34eu8 sales in local outlets. is melody zintal here? Okay, are you giving your time to pat diamond? Pat diamond, you are next and will you have six minutes welcome. My nape is pat diamond and I'm from district 7 I'm a retired clinic nurse and I was at johnson elementary, stem academy for boys and I was then at williams wells brown and I made lots of home visits for the students and when I made those home visits I don't think nurses are allowed to go out anymore. But at that time I found lots of animals in need and what ended up happening is that I worked very closely with the lexington humane society and animal control and shelter workers and I saw firsthand how very caring that the workers at the lexington humane society were and I saw how heart breaking and traumatic it was for the workers to ever have to put down a healthy animal for lack of space. And one thing that some of you have probably very much aware of is that all the national organizations throughout this country have joined together for a no kill movement to end the killing of healthy animals in shelters around this country. The humane society of the united states best friends, aspca and many other groups around this country have donated countless money, grants to end this killing of healthy animals so it makes absolutely no sense to me to have puppy mill breeding and increase the number of puppies and then to provide venues in pet stores and as know neek said, to use puppies as commodities for profit. There is an organization called bailing out benji, a face wide non-profit research organization that tracks the puppy mills around this country and I did some research and found that pet land in lexington, since they have started their store, they have taken in puppies from 13 different out of state places they have taken in puppies from missouri, iowa, and oklahoma. One breeder they have taken puppies from has 105 adult breeding dogs, another breeder they have taken puppies from has 113 adult breeding dogs. Another one 89 adult breeding dogs. And I think any of us that has a dog believes the care and expense taking care of one or two dogs entail so you wonder how in the world anybody can take care of any dogs that has a volume of 100 dogs. And it's just heart breaking to me to think that this is going on around our country. And speaking of commodity, I have a friend that stopped in 3e9land and -- petland and picked up a golden doodle puppy and was interested in the puppy and she talked to the worker she asked upon the price and upon pressuring the worker was croat quoted a price of between 5700 and $5800 for this puppy. I don't know about you but that seems absolutely outrageous to me. And needless to say, she walked away, but that just -- just blows my mind. And, you know, it seems to me like these businesses can reinvent themselves, you know, many businesses these days have had to reinvent themselves. And look in another direction. And I do not understand why they can't, you know, work with rescue groups around the area, the lexington humane society. I understand that having animals in their stores attracts people but why not work with rescue groups instead of bringing in puppy mill puppies and increase and breed puppies when we are putting down healthy puppies and cats and kittens and again I want to emphasize which has been brought up before, that since louisville and elizabethtown have passed this ordinance, if we don't do this with 64 and 75 crossing, lexington will become a hub of puppy mills and I do not think we want lexington known for that so I really appreciate your time and I thank you for listening to me. Thank you very much. thank you. That concludes our speakers for issues on the agenda. So that brings us to our docket. Is there a motion to approve. >> motion to approve glo council member sell and second by council member plomin. Will you log in please if you have issues for the docket. First is vice mayor wu. >> thank you, mayor. >> I move to place on the docket for the JUNE 27, 2024 council meeting, a resolution authorizing the mayor or her designee to execute sponsorship agreements related to the celebration of lexington's 250th anniversary as approved in form and content by the 250 lex commission and the department of law, so moved. is there a second? >> second. council member monarrez. All right. Any discussion? All those in favor say aye. >> aye. anyone opposed? That motion passes. anything else for the docket? All right. Seeing nothing, all those in favor of approving the docket as amended, please say aye. >> aye. anyone opposed? Motion passes. Thank you. Next is JUNE 18, 2024 council work session table of motions. I will need a motion. >> council member sheehan. Second by council member Legris. Any questions, corrections, additions? All those in favor please say aye. >> aye. >> anyone opposed? That motion passes. And now I'll entertain a motion to approve budget amendments. >> so moved. vice mayor wu and seconded by council member monarrez. And if you have questions, please log in. Council member fred brown. >> thank you, mayor. This budget amendment request list. Facilities and fleet management items that from police west envelope, a little bit of information on that. I noticed those were bonded. All of those items were bonded, correct? >> not all of those items, council member but can I give a brief synopsis for the interest of the council. The police west sector envelope is a project our project management team has been working on for quite a while. The design has been complex. what we are doing is we are bundling together just over$1 million of surplus funds from previously or soon to be allow us to accept the bid of just at 2.99 million to move forward with the police west project and just for interests, those four projects are that we are pooling together, are the government center annex police roof project that's currently under way. We feel like we are going to complete that here very soon. The police e sector roll call station that we constructed last year. The police west cooling tower and also the psoc hvac project. That would allow to us move forward with police west and the budget amendments reflect those activities. >> what are we doing in west? Just a renovation? >> it's primarily the envelope -- the entire windows, roof, all the facade, to reinforce the facility, extend its life. any other questions for budget amendments? All those in favor of approval say aye. >> aye. anyone opposed? That motion passes. There is, for your information only some budget adjustments and then I'll entertain a motion to approve new business. >> so moved. >> second. council member plomin and segded by council member sheehan and if you will log in, please with your questions. Council member reynolds. >> thank you, mayor. I wanted to ask commissioner alan bryant to come up with item f if you wouldn't mind, just giving a brief overview so everyone knows what is going on with the audrey grievous center. >> I'm more than happy to provide an overview. We are very excited to see the fruition of several months of talks with fayette county public schools. And what we call reimagining and remodeling of the day treatment program. With that remodeling, fayette county will be the primary lead for administration of the program and we will also, of course, have some employees there to assist primarily in the forms of our educational program aides but we are excited about this partnership. It will bring several benefits to the program that we have not one, it is clearly now designated as a school, which allows us to have a school resource officer which we were not allowed to have before. We will also be able to have a school nurse and which before the treatment proom program was not a fayette county public school we were not allowed to have the school nurse through the contract with the lexington fayette county health department. You will be happy to know with the reallocation of funds qoo have a per year savings of $400,000 that -- so I'm sure you can find ways to spend that as well. But just several benefits, unlimited resources to all of fayette county resources we were not able to have. The goal is also to increase the program and that's something fayette county has that we were not able to do so we are very excited about this community-based model. They will have a sort of like a site-based committee that will be community-based, including probably myself and several other people, judges, and other community members and it's going to be so much better of a day treatment program. >> thank you so much. I know this is a big change but we hope it will be a positive one. >> we are super excited about the change. >> thank you. >> more things to come. thank you. Council member james brown. >> thank you, mayor. And commissioner, have I some questions about the same item it looks like there is a cost -- I know there was a cost savings but it looks like there is going to be a cost this year. And is this going to be a reoccurring cost of $300,000? >> our initial agreement is three years that is $300,000 a year with the cost saving of 00,000 is part -- 300,000 will still have a cost savings of 00,000 -- 400,000 even with you all authorizing the 300,000. >> it's 300,000 up front for two years thinking that we are going to be continuing this cost... >> that would be our pleasure. I know this is going to be a successful new program successful reimagining and so I'm hoping to come to you in the next couple of years saying how great it is and that we want to continue this partnership. >> I know a lot of people have worked hard on this project and the transition, my concern is the cost going forward. I know it's a cost savings but if it's potential for the cost to escalate, I just want us to do everything we can to make sure that that is not the case. >> absolutely. We are always thinking about costs and saving costs and we will continue to do as much as we can to contain it. There are going to be increases in terms of cost of living and expenses and what not but as much as possible, we'll keep it contained. >> thank you commissioner. >> thank you. any other questions for new business? All those in favor of approval say aye. >> aye scwhrm anyone opposed? Motion passes. Next we have communications from the mayor appointments and I'll ask for a motion to approve vice mayor moves, council member fogle seconds. Are there any questions? All those in favor please say aye. >> aye. anyone opposed? Motion passes. There are no donations today and no procurements so that brings us to continuing business and I'll call on council member james brown for his committee report. >> thank you, mayor. This is the report out summary motion for budget economic finance for the MARCH 19, 2024 meeting that began at 1:02 P.M. The first item is at professional of the FEBRUARY 2024 committee summary. First the committee unanimously approved of that committee summary. Second was the monthly financial update. Commissioner hensley provided a brief update of the monthly financials. Revenue continues to run a positive variance to budget primarily due to greater than budgeted insurance premium tax investments. The third item on the agenda was the commerce lexington regional competitiveness plan update andy johnson, the chief policy officer and director of regional engagement presented on the commerce lexington regional competitiveness plan. Now known as greater lex. To date lfucg has invested $322,000 in commerce lexington for the regional competitiveness plan. Measurable goals of the plan are to increase regional job wage and G.D.P. Growth rates to the national average, increase regional labor force including attraction and retention of young professionals and atrack state and federal funding and advocate for policy improvements to support the plan greater lex has three execution tactics, economic development, workforce talent and policy advocacy. No action was taken on this item. The fourth item was the parks funding ballot referendum reported out early in APRIL 9 work session. The meeting adjourned at 2:42 P.M. That concludes my report. thank you. Any questions for council member brown about his report thank you very much. Now is the time for council reports council member lynch. >> thank you, mayor. I have two announcements I would like to share first on behalf of council member denise gray who could not has been here. She wanted to remind her 6th district neighbors of movie night at mary todd elementary school at 6:30 P.M. There will be food trucks and so much more and the movie is kung fu panda. Come out. 6th district neighbors on JULY 13 6:30 P.M. For movie night in the 6th district and would I like to also remind my neighbors about shayla in the second happening tomorrow on wednesday JUNE 26. Atiany hours -- yappy hours dog park. I look forward to having a good time with all pet owners and pets and having great conversations with our neighbors. See you tomorrow at masterson station dog park. council member Legris. >> this is something I wanted to talk about with items in new business. You all saw a press release and some discussion about the lex grow trees initiative and this is a big lfucg funded initiative and we got to unveil the recipients of our inaugural large scale grants. Council member lynch and brown thank you for serving on our tree ad hoc committee for building this initiative from scratch and seeing us through our first big round. We received 22 applications for a total of 2.8 some will in requested funds and nine organizations were selected out of that group so we have a big demand for this funding and ultimately we funded 49,131.55 in our large first round. And I wanted to let you all know because this is cool that ultimately that will plant about 1776 trees and it will also include education and outreach documentation and a lot of community-based engagement across many different council districts with a special focus on council districts where we know we need expansion much our tree canopy based on our tree canopy study. I want to thank you all again for being pivotal in getting us to this point and I also want to congratulate the first round of grant recipients and all of those recipients are listed in your packet. And remind people that we will be offering a spring window so if you know organizations or individuals who are interested, we really, really want for them to apply and we want even more trees to get in the ground and outreach to be had around our canopy. So please look out for more information to share for round 2. Thank you. that's great. Council member reynolds. >> thank you, mayor. I think I have a few photos. First one is the this used to be -- last week we did a little press conference on versailles road about the new bus stop. So this used to be the bottle stop bus stop in front of global lex there where the clinic and our government building is and it got worn down over time and the bottles started falling and there were a lot of different conversation as round what we could do there so I had the idea of getting a local artist,. She won the competition for picking an artist, a local artist to express the diversity of culture that we have in the 11th district I partnered with lextran, they were a dprait partner, in doing this so we were able to put final stickers on the bus stop that brought her original art piece to the bus stop to life. It is a beautiful addition to the corridor and I'm thankful to lextran and the artist for making this dream a reality. We got it done and have more plans for the future I. Was ray really -- it was a really bright spot last week and wanted to share that with you all. And then this wednesday we are having a town hall on know your rights. What are our rights as tenants half of the area that I live in are renters or tenants so we are really thankful for our community partners. We have the human rights commission, kentucky fair housing council, legal aid at the bluegrass. We have the code enforcement and doing a presentation and answering questions so that's tomorrow night at marksbury family branch library on versailles road. I hope folks will turn out for that. And then on saturday, if you will remember one of my constituents, theresa rakes, she was here a few weeks ago and challenged the council members to have a clean up saturday. This saturday we are going to clean up alexandria drive on the side of where the speedway is and china king is where we are going to meet and then we are going to clean up up and down the street there. So I hope folks will turn out for that. It's a family event. We are partnering with environmental services on that. So just really thankful for all involved and I encourage all my council members to do a cleanup date in their district. >> I was going to share with you we had a great juneteenth celebration last week caden town baptist church with probably over 100 folks there and a program with an over view, the update, MISS Giles did some story telling and we ended up with the edwards sisters. Edwards sister sisters was an original group from jim town. There was one of the original were still left but their daughter showed up and sang and it was very, very emotional. We had lunch. It was a great celebration for our community. Thank you, vice mayor wu and -- not vice mayor, council member gri and council member listen and also and council member worley. Really appreciate you all being there. I wanted to mention a couple weeks ago a lot of us went to the aviation museum which, if you haven't been there in a while, you ought to go and they just received $4 million from the state so there will be a new museum on the horizon. It was a great event and we all enjoyed that one as well. Thank you, mayor. thank you. Council member council member worley. >> thank you, mayor. Evidently wanting to make sure she took full opportunity of her opportunities to give reports even in her absence, council member gray also asked me to remind everyone about her planned liberty park public meeting. I guess being the next closest council member neighbor to liberty park, she asked me to share that on JULY 16 at frederick douglass high school, 6:30 to 7:30 P.M., anyone interested in the lib by park meeting could join council member gray there. Thank you, mayor. thank you. Council member fogle. First. >> first of all tonight we will have elkhor neighborhood in marlboro will meet at unity church. Thank you, pastor lyons, if you are watching, to discuss with commissioners in the traffic engineer just some safety issues in the neighborhood it starts at 6:30. Also father norman and levonne win will show their artwork located at third and midland this evening from 5 to 7 P.M. And I think that's the last commercial but I am happy to report that street voice council which is the city council within themselves of the unhoused, we will be taking them the poor people's campaign and kentuckians for the commonwealth, we will be traveling to washington D.C. Taking over 100 folks unhoused folks and citizens of lexington to washington D.C. To stand at the capitol to lift up poor low income wage folks and house bill 5 we will feature that. I wanted to lift that up. We will be leaving thursday to take folks and bryan station students and ltms students and so we are happy and I'm happy to be that captain on that bus to keep the order. I should have been a sergeant in the army, but anyway, I think we have some photos, some past events from juneteenth. What an awesome event that we had. You guys can keep rolling and I'll talk from the sloo idz that I'm looking at. The lyric put on a wonderful show and there was not an empty seat in the house and so that young lady that you see standing with kristina dare, she read a poem that was out of this world that could be the end of my slides. I don't know how many photos we have. Those are just citizens and you can keep rolling with the slides. He will be at our anniversary celebrating the anniversary. He is a grammy winner gospel singer. There is ed dignity station. What an awesome awesome bath room, laundry and showers for people who are unhoused. It rotates from good will thank you goodwill for providing space and to the lexington rescue mission where it was today on thursday it will be at good will between 10 and 2. They shower, they can wash their growth -- they can wash their clothes and go inside the goodwill or lexington rescue mission to receive resources and talk about housing so we can get fols off the street. You all know the temperatures have been above 90 and this is a place that our citizens still citizens, unhoused but they can go and get a little bit of dignity for themselves by taking showers and being clean and then we can help them with employment, no one wants to go and look for a job sleeping in their clothes two ond three weeks at a time so this is a quay to provide that thank you catholic action center for partnering with other partners in the city. So that's my last slide. I want to end on that note. thank you. Council member james brown. >> thank you, mayor. I want to take an opportunity to piggy back on council member fogle's comments about the juneteenth event at the lyric. I think kristen adair is doing a great job at the lyric and that event at the turnout and how they celebrated juneteenth is something that we, as a community, can look forward to come every year with the juneteenth celebration and then also just wanted to give a shoutout to chief weathers and our police department for a great awards banquet last night for our police department. I think it was good to hear about the heroic deeds our police department and the officers have been doing over the years. But it's more -- I took it -- my takeaway was more of a celebration of our entire community and the partners that are out there that partner not just with signature city government but the police department. And it is spooky to find out how many spokes are related to chief weathers. It seemed like every other person that came on stage was related to the chief. I think he was just flexing to show us how deep his family is. A lot of council members showed up and showed support for our department was we they'd to be doing. And I know council member Legris gave myself and council member lynch a shout out or not for the work she has done helping with lex grow trees but I want to give some acknowledgment to her and the work she has been doing on that committee that ad hoc committee and making sure that she is building a sustainable template a program that will provide sustainable tree canopy by and environmental initiative going forward and doing that and working with agencies outside of the government that are doing similar work, I think is just acknowledgment of her leadership and collaboration so just kudos to you, council member Legris for your work on that. Thank you, mayor. you are welcome and we might add to the police banquet our congratulations to chris edwards and his lex tv team who, as you know, have been helping video the lex pd shows that are on that are really informational and they received an award last night. We are really proud of the work you do. Congratulations. You, haley and steve were there -- tyler so thank you. This brings us to public comment for issues not on the agenda and I would like to ask if maguire crosby is here. Are you giving time you are giving your three minutes to stokes neilsen. Okay, it's time for you. Stokes, will you have six minutes. Welcome. >> I would like to make this request in the name of muhammad ali. It was lucky enough to meet him in 1996, changed my life and is an example of the greatness of kentucky. It's an honor to be in your incredibly beautiful city. I'm stokes neilsen and I stand before you to honor a hero and correct an historical wrong by recognizing MISS Edna smith whose story is a testament to the resilience and courage we hold dear in our nation. In 1921, at the age of 17, edna smith took a stand against an unjust city ordinance in nashville that sought to undermine her liberty and dignity. After paying her fare to ride a city street car, she was instructed to sit in a section designated for non-whites. Courageously edna refused asserting her rights as an american citizen to sit in any available seat. Her act of defiance was met with swift and unjust retribution, forcibly removed from the street car and issued a ticket by the driver. What should have been a badge of honor marked her instead as a societal outcast. I believe that in her moment of decision, edna smith must have felt the same fear that confronts all of us in times of trial, but she stood firm, unwavering in her resolve. It is important to note that edna smith came from a background of significant contribution. Her grandfather, bob greene, a former slave was a renowned horse breeder responsible for the legendary horse bonny scotland whose descendants include champions such as bram believe, man o' war, sea biscuit, secretariat, and most recently california cron. I believe edna's exposure to the respect, passion and the love that is part and parcel of caring for horses could have carried over to her courageous stand for dignity. She has been unacknowledged until today. I hope you will join me in carrying forward her memory. We are gathered here in lexington, a beautiful city with a rich history and horse racing and it is fitting to recognize edna's connection to the city through her grandfather bob greene's remarkable contributions to the equestrian world. This setting underscores the importance of acknowledging our shared history and the individuals who have shaped it it is vital to remember that long before rosa park's historic stand in alabama, there was a young woman, not too far from here who, without the support of an organization or a movement, made a profound impact by standing up for herself and by extension for all of us. Unlike rosa parks who was rightly celebrated throughout her life, MISS Smith faced a different fate. Her active courage led to the direst of circumstances. By 21, she was working as a laundress enduring harsh conditions and living in poverty in a typhoid pandemic. Tragically she died of typhoid fever. Her grave unmarked and her story nearly forgotten. Providence has brought her story to me and I bring it to you. Let us give this unsung hero the recognition she deserves. It is my humble request to this great council to consider passing a resolution honoring the courage of ed da smith. This -- edna smith honoring her remarkable life and inspire future generations to uphold principles of justice and equality and remind us of a human truth: courage knows no bounds and justice demands action. I would be honored to work with the city of lexington on this proposal to honor an american hero and I'm ready to offer any resources or information to help thank you for your time and consideration and for your service to this amazing city. thank you very much for bringing that to us and raising our aware fess and knowledge. Thank you. At this time, vice mayor wu has a motion. >> thank you, mayor. I move to go into closed session pursuant to krs 61.810-1 c for the purpose of discussing proposed litigation. So moved. is there a second? All those in favor say aye. >> aye. anyone opposed? All right we'll go into closed session. Motion to come back into open session. And I think I heard council member sevigny and council member fogle. All those in favor say aye. >> aye. >> anyone opposed? All right we are in open session and I'll entertain a motion to adjourn. >> so moved. we have several. All those in favor say aye. >> aye. we are adjourned. Thank you very much.