Judge dismisses lawsuit over Lexington’s growth plan. Why it’s a win for the city
A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed by local builders challenging the legality of Lexington’s 2018 Comprehensive Plan, which guides growth in Fayette County.
In March 2019, the Building Industry Association of Central Kentucky, also known as the Home Builders Association, filed a lawsuit in Fayette Circuit Court, alleging the city’s newly adopted comprehensive plan is not in compliance with state law that guides local zoning. The lawsuit was eventually transferred to federal court in Lexington.
At issue was a section of the comprehensive plan called Placebuilder, which requires developers to address several criteria when filing for a zone change application.
Developers and builders pushed back against Placebuilder at the time it was being discussed, saying it was too vague and too restrictive. The 2018 Comprehensive Plan, which guides development for the next five years, was approved by the Urban County Planning Commission in February 2019.
U.S. District Judge Gregory Van Tatenhove ruled Monday the home builders association lacked standing to file the lawsuit because it could not show it was an injured party.
“BIA (Building Industry Association) fails to establish that it has suffered a particularized and concrete injury,” Van Tatenhove wrote.
“While the BIA is disappointed in the court’s ruling, we must stress that the federal court did not address the BIA’s claims that the Comprehensive Plan is unlawful,” said Nick Nicholson, a lawyer for the Building Industry Association. “Instead, the court simply determined it couldn’t review the legality at this time.”
Nicholson said it’s likely the Comprehensive Plan will be challenged in state court.
“The federal court’s decision likely ensures that another legal action will be filed in state court as regards the lawfulness of the 2018 Comprehensive Plan,” Nicholson said. “The 2018 Comprehensive Plan does not serve the best interests of the community.”
The city declined to comment on the judge’s ruling.
In court documents, BIA had said the 2018 Comprehensive Plan was ambiguous, unlawful and confusing, making it impossible for the association to educate its membership on how to file for a zone change.
In its lawsuit, the BIA pointed to a 2019 zone change by Ball Homes, one of its members, that was delayed because of questions about how to file the alteration under the new criteria. But Van Tatenhove said Ball Homes did not try to file the zone change using the 2018 Comprehensive Plan. That zone change was ultimately approved using different criteria.
Ball Homes or the BIA could not argue the Placebuilder criteria had caused Ball Homes or the building industry harm when it did not try to comply with the new criteria, Van Tatenhove wrote.
This story was originally published May 20, 2020 at 3:50 PM.
