Urban County Council Meeting

Summary

Meeting Overview

The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government Council held a meeting on April 14, 2011, at 6:00 P.M. in Lexington, Kentucky, with Mayor Gray presiding. The council considered two informational presentations during the session. The first presentation covered the Keep It Real Video Campaign, and the second addressed the Lexington Parking Authority. The council took three motions and votes during the meeting and heard two public comments from citizens.

Attendance

Present: Mayor Gray, Myers, Stinnett, Beard, Blues, Ellinger, Farmer, Ford, Gorton, Henson, Kay, Lane, Lawless, Martin, McChord

Absent: Crosbie

Late: None

Votes and Decisions

Approval of Minutes 2:07

The Council voted unanimously to approve the minutes from the February 3 and 17, and March 3 and 17, 2011 Council Meetings. Motion by Ellinger, seconded by Gorton. The vote passed 15-0 with all members voting in favor: Myers, Stinnett, Beard, Blues, Ellinger, Farmer, Ford, Gorton, Henson, Kay, Lane, Lawless, Martin, and McChord.

Ordinance for Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Grant 35:01

The Council approved an ordinance authorizing a grant from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet for the Lexington Traffic Movement and Revitalization Study. Motion by Ellinger, seconded by Stinnett. The roll call vote passed 14-0 with the following members voting in favor: Myers, Stinnett, Beard, Blues, Ellinger, Farmer, Ford, Gorton, Henson, Kay, Lane, Lawless, Martin, and McChord. No votes were cast against the ordinance.

Resolution on Internal Position Advertising 1:12:12

The Council passed a resolution authorizing the Division of Human Resources to internally advertise for all vacant positions. Motion by Gorton, seconded by Lane. The voice vote passed 14-0 with all members voting in favor: Myers, Stinnett, Beard, Blues, Ellinger, Farmer, Ford, Gorton, Henson, Kay, Lane, Lawless, Martin, and McChord.

Budget and Financial Actions

The meeting included approval of the following financial actions:

Kearney Hills Golf Course Irrigation Replacement

A contract valued at $109,791 was approved with The Southern Group, Inc. for irrigation replacement work at Kearney Hills Golf Course.

Grant from Kentucky Transportation Cabinet

The city accepted a $490,000 grant from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet designated for the Lexington Traffic Movement and Revitalization Study.

Public Comment

Two members of the public addressed the meeting with concerns about municipal projects and planning decisions.

Bernard McCarthy 2:03:55 spoke about budget and street capacity issues. He expressed concern that the budget was based on lower revenue projections. McCarthy also suggested that changing one-way streets to two-way could reduce street capacity.

Mr. Keston 2:07:11 commented on the Tate's Creek sidewalks project. He criticized the decision to build sidewalks on Tate's Creek, arguing that the project was unnecessary and would result in the destruction of trees.

Appointments

The following appointments were made during this meeting:

• Doug Martin was appointed to the Transportation Policy Committee
• Peggy Henson was appointed to the Transportation Policy Committee

Contested Items

Economic Contingency Fund Usage

A heated discussion arose regarding the procedures for accessing the Economic Contingency Fund. The core disagreement centered on whether council approval was required before the fund could be utilized.

Council members raised concerns about budget balancing and transparency in the fund's deployment. The debate reflected broader questions about fiscal oversight and the appropriate checks on executive authority in managing contingency resources.

The specific outcome of this contested item is not documented in the available meeting records.

Keep It Real Video Campaign Presentation

Arthur Rouse and Howard Rupert presented the "Keep It Real" video campaign, an initiative designed to reduce underage drinking through videos created by students 2:07.

Presenters and Approach

The campaign leverages student creativity as a core strategy, with young people developing video content to address underage drinking prevention. This approach engages the target audience directly in creating messaging around the issue.

Outcome

The presentation was informational in nature, providing an overview of the campaign to the meeting attendees.

Lexington Parking Authority Presentation

Gary Means presented the Lexington Downtown Parking Demand Study to the board 13:47. The presentation focused on current parking availability in the downtown area and assessed future parking needs for the community.

This was an informational presentation intended to provide the board with data and analysis regarding downtown parking conditions and demand projections. The outcome was informational, with no formal action or decision required from the board at this time.