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Basics: A guide to finding necessities in Lexington

NAVIGATING THE CITY'S STREETS | back to top

Lexington's city layout confuses some drivers because, outside downtown, it is not based on a grid plan. Evolving from the horse-and-buggy days, the city's major roads are more like spokes of a wheel with downtown as the hub. Each main spoke is named after its eventual destination (e.g., Nicholasville Road eventually leads to Nicholasville).

New Circle Road is the inner ring road; most of it is an expressway, but on the northern half, it is a regular street with stoplights. Man o' War Boulevard is a partial ring road on the outskirts of the city's south side; it is a regular street with low speed limits.

Lexington's place in the horse industry is reflected in its streets, many of which are named after great thoroughbreds: Man o' War Boulevard, Citation Boulevard, Sir Barton Way.

Streets frequently change names as they meander, perplexing drivers. For instance, Cooper Drive begins in the Chevy Chase neighborhood and travels through the University of Kentucky campus; when it crosses Nicholasville Road, it is renamed Waller Avenue, which continues until Harrodsburg Road, where the road is renamed Mason Headley Road until it ends at the intersection with Versailles Road.

One main thoroughfare that is a nightmare to navigate for residents, not to mention visitors, is Nicholasville Road. There are up to eight lanes of traffic; depending on the time of day, the middle ones can change direction, as designated by lights above the roadway.

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MAIL & DELIVERY | back to top

• U.S. Postal Service: The main Lexington office of the U.S. Postal Service is at 1088 Nandino Boulevard, in an industrial park. The downtown office is at 210 East High Street. Locate more branches.
• FedEx: A FedEx Kinko's is at 145 Rose Street. Call (859) 253-1360.
• UPS: A UPS Store is at 838 East High Street. Call (859) 268-6231.
• DHL: There are drop-off locations at various locations. Call 1-800-225-5345.

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LIQUOR LAWS | back to top

In Kentucky, liquor laws are governed by municipalities, so the state is a patchwork of rules. That means some places are "wet," meaning they allow alcohol sales; "dry," meaning alcohol is banned; and "moist," meaning alcohol may be sold in some places but not others.

In Lexington, alcohol can be bought at bars, restaurants, hotels, groceries, pharmacies and liquor stores. Alcohol may be sold in bars and restaurants 6 a.m.-2:30 a.m. Mon.-Sat. and 11 a.m. Sun.-2:30 a.m. Mon. Package stores may be open 7 a.m.-2:30 a.m. Mon.-Sat. and 1-9 p.m. Sun. In Central Kentucky, alcohol sales of some form are allowed in Lexington and the surrounding counties. But Scott, Jessamine and Madison counties are not completely wet.

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SMOKING | back to top

Lexington, in tobacco country, made national news in 2003 when it instituted a ban on public smoking. The countywide smoking ban includes bars and restaurants. Smoking is allowed on patios and sidewalks. Among surrounding communities, only Georgetown has a smoking ban — it is stricter than Lexington's.

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HEALTH | back to top

Emergencies: Call 911 from any phone. You will be connected to emergency responders.

Non-emergencies: Most hospital emergency rooms will treat these situations, but there are Urgent Treatment Clinics throughout Central Kentucky that accept walk-in patients: North Park, 1498 Boardwalk Street, (859) 254-5520; Lansdowne (open every holiday except Christmas), 1055 Dove Run Road, (859) 269-4668; Park Hills, 3174 Custer Drive, (859) 272-4882; Georgetown, 100 Eastside Drive, Suite B, Georgetown, (502) 863-6400.

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GOVERNMENT SERVICES | back to top

For questions about Lexington government services, call LexCall at 311 or (859) 425-2255.

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MEDIA | back to top

Newspapers: The Lexington Herald-Leader, the second largest paper in the state, is the mainstream daily. It's available seven days a week throughout Central Kentucky and beyond (50 cents daily and $1.75 Sundays in most places). It also operates the Web sites Kentucky.com (news), LexGo.com (entertainment), BluegrassMoms.com (parenting) and KentuckySports.com (University of Kentucky sports).

Also available are several free publications, including Ace Magazine.

TV: All five major networks have affiliates in Lexington. Each has newscasts at noon, 6 and 11 p.m., except for WDKY, which has only a 10 p.m. newscast. They have newscasts other times, too.

• ABC: WTVQ, Channel 36.
• CBS and CW: WKYT, Channel 27.
• Fox: WDKY, Channel 56.
• NBC: WLEX, Channel 18.

Radio: Lexington's radio scene is dominated by three companies: Clear Channel, Cumulus and LM Communications. Country stations are the most popular, with 98.1 The Bull on top followed by 92.9 The Bear, according to spring 2008 ratings information from Arbitron. WUKY-91.3 FM, which plays adult rock, is the public radio station in Lexington; WEKU-89.9 FM is a public classical station.

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CHURCHES | back to top

There are hundreds of churches in Lexington, not to mention throughout Central Kentucky. Nearly every Protestant denomination and major faith is represented. Because of the plethora of churches, the best way to find a place to worship during your visit is to thumb through the Yellow Pages. The Lexington CVB also has information about the area's churches; call 1-800-845-3959 or (859) 233-7299 or go here and search for "Churches."