Council reassigns $1.25M in surplus, approves $500K for road salt as city continues storm response

Lexington officials told the Urban County Council on Jan. 14 that crews remain active clearing streets after an “unusual” winter event, and the council approved a $500,000 budget amendment to buy additional road salt and other budget reallocations to cover storm and infrastructure needs.

Storm response and operations: Mayor and city staff described the storm as a multi‑phase event that began with roughly seven inches of snow, was followed by an icing event, then more snow. Nancy Albright, commissioner of Environmental Services and Public Works, said crews continued treating roads and working from lists of Fayette County Schools’ bus routes to prioritize clearing those corridors. “We have treated almost 200 miles of unranked roads so far since Thursday of last week,” Albright said, and she told council staff had received nearly 200 tree‑removal calls that temporarily pulled crews off snow operations.

City staff emphasized the limits of plows on hard ice and the need for temperatures to rise before some surfaces will clear. Albright also said the new salt storage dome at Old Frankfort Pike will substantially increase under‑roof salt capacity at that campus and is in the final punch‑list stage.

Council budget actions: Council member James Brown moved to add a budget amendment to pages 5–7 of the work session packet to authorize $500,000 for additional salt deliveries through the remainder of the fiscal year; Council member Reynolds seconded the motion and the council approved it. Separately, Commissioner Ford told the council staff had identified about $1,400,000 in surplus from a Police Headquarters HVAC capital project; the council agreed to reallocate $1,250,000 of that surplus to several needs:

- $500,000 for the fire training site development project - $200,000 to cover contingencies on the police west roll‑call envelope project - $300,000 to replace overhead doors at the fleet maintenance garage - $250,000 to support relocation and build‑out costs for the community paramedicine program to the HANDS Annex

Commissioner Ford said the city hopes to avoid borrowing or new lease costs by using existing city facilities and that the $250,000 for paramedicine may not be fully expended. He added that the reallocation allows the administration to move quickly to bid and start projects.

Community paramedicine and facilities: Council member Reynolds asked about the space for the paramedicine program. Commissioner Ford described changes to the Family Care Center and said that, as a result, the HANDS Annex is available for paramedicine. Ford said the HANDS Annex is “about 23,100 square feet” as stated in the meeting and that staff and paramedicine leaders had toured the site and supported the move. Ford and other staff described the paramedicine unit as largely mobile and said the annex space will be sufficient for the program’s needs while avoiding new lease costs.

Salt and equipment: Council members and staff also discussed salt inventories and storage. Commissioner Albright said the new dome at Old Frankfort Pike will nearly triple the amount of salt stored under roof at that campus and that the facility is in the final punch‑list stage; she said the city continued to receive deliveries and had enough salt on hand for the next storm event or two while deliveries continue.

Other operational notes: Council members asked for an after‑action briefing and public explanation of how the city handled the multi‑phase event. Council members requested a work‑session presentation next week to review operational decisions, shift patterns, how unranked roads were added to treatment plans and how the city communicates with Fayette County Public Schools about bus routes.

Ending: The budget motions passed at the Jan. 14 session; the city will continue road treatments while crews finish tree removals and finalize work on the salt dome and other facilities.