‘COVID-19 has rocked’ Lexington. Mayor Gorton on the city’s future, finances after virus
Despite a global pandemic, Lexington is making substantial progress on major construction projects, is working to rectify long-standing racial inequalities and is attracting businesses and adding jobs, said Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton.
Nearly a year after Lexington’s first positive coronavirus case in March, the city is still reeling from the pandemic. But with vaccines being administered daily, Gorton said Tuesday she’s hopeful that COVID-19 will soon be in Fayette County’s rearview mirror.
“As we administer vaccines, perseverance and patience pave the road to get to the goals we all share — in-person schools, an open economy, an open society, life without COVID-19,” Gorton said during her third State of the City/State of the County address.
Typically, the address is given at the Hyatt Regency in front of the Lexington Forum. This year, the address was given virtually via video conference. The speech is an annual update to the citizens required by the merged government’s charter.
Gorton urged the public to be patient with the vaccine rollout. There is a limited supply and hundreds of thousands of Lexingtonians who want the vaccine.
“The vaccine distribution process isn’t perfect, but it’s improving,” Gorton said. Gorton initially declined a vaccine in December, when it was offered to public officials. Gorton said Tuesday she has since received one now that the vaccine is available for people over 70. Gorton is over 70.
Much of Gorton’s nearly 45-minute speech was an update on key construction projects, economic development initiatives and steps the city has taken to address long-standing and stubborn racial inequalities.
Central Bank Center, trails move forward
“I’ve learned that COVID-19 has one and only one positive side: It tends to speed up construction projects,” Gorton said, laughing.
Some of those projects include the following.
- The city replaced an 85-year-old sewer line pipe along Euclid Avenue and Avenue of Champions in December, a year ahead of schedule. The project is part of the city’s $590 million Environmental Protection Agency consent decree upgrades to sewer and stormwater systems. The city has spent over $281 million and is currently $83 million under budget.
- A nearly $300 million overhaul of Central Bank Center, which includes the convention center and Rupp Arena, is one of the largest public projects in the city’s history. It is currently expected to be open by January 2022. The city had to okay $34 million in new bonds or borrowing in June 2020 to help the project make its debt payments.
- 2020 was a banner year for trails, Gorton said. A long-delayed section of the Legacy Trail was finally completed along with a connector between the Town Branch Trail and Legacy Trail, the city’s two largest trail systems. Work continued on the Town Branch Commons, a two-mile section of the Legacy Trail that stretches from Central Bank Center to the Legacy trailhead on Midland Avenue and Third Streets. That two-mile section will be completed in 2022.
Baptist Health, Amazon to create hundreds of jobs
Businesses continue to build and expand in Lexington despite the pandemic, Gorton said. Some of the new projects and businesses that announced expansions or new operations include:
- Baptist Health started construction last year on a new Hamburg campus that is expected to create 600 new jobs and will include a total investment of $1 billion.
- Amazon will open a second location at the Lexmark campus with up to 600 jobs.
- Georgia-Pacific is expanding its Dixie cup manufacturing facility in Fayette County, adding 50 jobs.
- Summit Biosciences, a Lexington-based pharmaceutical business, is adding 78 new jobs.
The city built its current-year budget expecting revenues to nose-dive due to coronavirus-related job losses. The bulk of the city’s revenues are from taxes on jobs and on company profits. The city clamped down on spending — freezing hiring among other initiatives — and has not seen the dramatic revenue losses it predicted in March 2020, Gorton said.
Finance Commissioner Erin Hensley told a Lexington council committee later Tuesday the city is currently running a surplus of $21 million for the first six months of the fiscal year. Hensley said that is largely because of the spending restraint and higher than expected tax revenues from jobs. However, finance records show those taxes on jobs trail 2019 collections.
“We are cautiously optimistic,” Hensley said. However, the city may not end the fiscal year on June 30 with a surplus as revenues have continued to fluctuate.
The city has received millions of dollars in federal coronavirus relief money. That money helped the city pay for police, fire and other coronavirus-related expenses and provided millions of dollars in rental and other assistance to Lexingtonians who have been most affected by the economic downturn, Gorton said.
Yet, the economy is fragile, and the city’s next budget — Gorton will unveil her budget proposal in April — will likely be sparse, Gorton warned.
“Looking forward to our next budget, we expect money to be tight, but, with continued strong fiscal management, I anticipate we will be able to provide the services our citizens want, meet our responsibilities, and live within our means,” Gorton said.
Former councilwoman tapped to oversee racial equality initiatives
During Tuesday’s speech, Gorton also announced former Lexington-Fayette Urban County Councilwoman Lisa Higgins-Hord will spearhead the implementation of more than 54 recommendations of the Racial Justice and Equality Commission, a group of 70 volunteers convened by Gorton to address racial inequalities in government, education, health care and public safety.
Gorton appointed Higgins-Hord last year to finish the term of Angela Evans, who stepped down from the council to attend graduate school. Higgins-Hord did not run for election in November.
Gorton appointed the commission this summer after protesters took to Lexington streets for 59 nights, prompted by the police killings of George Floyd in Minneapolis and Breonna Taylor in Louisville.
The city has already addressed some issues raised in the commission’s report, Gorton said.
Some of those initiatives include:
- Buying police cameras for all Lexington police.
- Funding a disparity study to determine whether minority contractors are getting city contracts and how to address that disparity.
- Putting mobile COVID-19 testing units in largely minority neighborhoods. COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted minorities.
- Partnering with New Vista to provide mental health professionals to help first responders with crisis calls that do not require police or fire intervention.
“We’ve made progress, but we have a long way to go. I want to move faster,” Gorton said. That’s why Higgins-Hord has agreed to return to help the city spearhead those efforts, she said Tuesday.
Gorton said she knows the past year has been trying. People want to get back to normal. But normal will take time.
“COVID-19 has rocked our community. But we’ve maintained a laser focus on our people and the services they need,” Gorton said. “ But the minute COVID-19 is in our rearview mirror, I predict we will soar.”
This story was originally published January 26, 2021 at 12:51 PM.
