Planning commission recommends rezoning of 722-acre Lexington Road site for regional business park after heated public hearing

The Madison County Planning & Zoning Commission recommended approval on July 21 of a request to rezone 2494 Lexington Road — a 722.14-acre tract — from UC-7 agriculture to UC-5 industrial to enable a proposed Central Kentucky Business Park Authority site.

Applicant attorney Preston Worley told the commission the property lies inside the countys urban corridor, is within roughly 2.5 miles of the interstate exchange and can be served by water and fire flow. He said the state has allocated $20 million through House Bill 900 to help acquire the site and noted additional matching and site-development programs that could bring another several million dollars to initial infrastructure costs. "This is a generational decision," Worley said, urging the commission to view the request against the county's comprehensive plan and long-term fiscal needs.

Lucas Witt, a consultant for the Central Kentucky Business Park Authority, described the authority as an interlocal economic-development entity covering Madison, Berea, Lexington-Fayette (urban county) and Scott counties and said the park is planned as a multi-user site, not a single mega-user. "We're estimating about 3,000 jobs across a 20-year buildout," Witt said, adding the intention is to attract a mix of research, engineering and light manufacturing employers.

Neighbors and residents testifying at the public hearing told the commission they supported economic development but urged caution. Mary Kearns, who cited a geotechnical report, said the preliminary engineering identified karstic conditions and sinkholes and asked that the commission table the request until additional studies are completed. "Sinkholes, caverns and subterranean water bodies are in this piece of property," Kearns said, and she argued the county lacks a cost estimate for site preparation. Several speakers raised traffic, stormwater and school-capacity concerns; Rona Conley and other residents said Lexington Road has narrow stretches, limited sight lines and has been routinely used as an interstate detour, and asked for detailed traffic and runoff studies before approving the change.

Worley and other project representatives responded that traffic and stormwater engineering will be required during later, technical phases and by the state highway traffic engineer, and that building placement, buffers and conservation easements in the concept plan would reduce impacts on surrounding properties. Worley said the concept shows roughly 25% of the acreage dedicated to building coverage with large buffers, walking trails and conservation areas retained or protected.

After public comment and applicant rebuttal, a commissioner moved to recommend the land-use map amendment from UC-7 to UC-5. The commission recorded the motion and a second and then voted in favor; the clerk announced the commission's recommendation will be forwarded to the fiscal court, which has the final approval authority.

What happens next

The commission's action is a recommendation. The rezoning will be heard twice by the Madison County Fiscal Court before a final decision. If the fiscal court approves the change and subsequent development follows, detailed traffic, stormwater and construction-phase geotechnical plans will be required and evaluated as part of the development-plan and site-plan reviews.

Speakers quoted in this article are limited to those appearing on the meeting record; public commenters' statements are reported as sworn testimony given at the hearing.