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City to issue RFP for Blue Sky small area plan; $500,000 allocated for study of 301-acre industrial area
Summary
Staff told commissioners the Blue Sky small area plan RFP will be released Jan. 24 and that the fiscal year 2025 budget includes $500,000 for the study. The plan will analyze infrastructure constraints, land-use options, and strategies to support industrial and economic development in the 301-acre area near I-75.
The Division of Planning will release a request for proposals for a Blue Sky small area plan on Jan. 24, and staff told the Planning Commission the work is funded at $500,000 in the fiscal year 2025 budget.
Eve Miller of Long Range Planning said the study area covers about 301 acres near the I‑75 interchange off Athens-Boonsboro Road and is primarily zoned I‑1 for industrial uses, with pockets of B3, B5P and P1 zoning. "The goal of the small area plan is to provide an analysis of existing conditions and to identify opportunities for the Blue Sky area to help Lexington meet its current and future industrial land use needs," Miller said.
The scope staff seeks from consultants includes an inventory of existing conditions, evaluation of sanitary sewer and stormwater infrastructure and public-safety access, land-use and redevelopment strategies for industrial growth, environmental protections and sustainable building practices, and ways to connect Blue Sky with adjacent new growth areas identified in the city's Urban Growth Master Plan.
Timing and budget: Miller said proposals will be due on Friday, Feb. 14. Staff will review proposals for two weeks and, contingent on contract approval and council acceptance, expects to issue a notice to proceed around April 24. The planning staff aims to complete the study within one year and will provide periodic updates to the Planning Commission.
Commissioners asked why a separate small area plan was needed rather than including Blue Sky in the urban growth master plan. Miller and a planning manager explained the UGMP work focused on greenfield expansion and that Blue Sky's intensive, existing industrial development required a deeper, longer study to address infrastructure and redevelopment constraints; the master-plan timeline did not permit that level of analysis. Miller said staff can provide more detailed vacancy and utilization numbers to commissioners upon request and confirmed the site is "not greater than 50% vacant" and is currently heavily used for light industrial purposes.
Ending: Commissioners and staff discussed the cost of the separate study; one commissioner noted the budget allocation and questioned whether excluding Blue Sky from the UGMP created the additional expense. Staff said the separate, funded study is intended to produce more focused recommendations for industrial land needs and infrastructure options than the UGMP could in its timeline.
