Shake up at Lexington City Hall: Council committees get new leadership, duties
The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council started its new year by elected new chairs for council committees on Tuesday.
Every council committee will have new leadership in 2023.
In addition, the council has a new leader.
Vice Mayor Dan Wu, who has never served on council, took over the the council’s top position from outgoing Vice Mayor Steve Kay, who served in the position for eight years. Kay could not run again due to term limits. Wu got the most votes in the November at-large race.
As vice mayor, Wu appoints members to committees, can put issues into committees without a council vote and can establish subcommittees and task forces. Wu also oversees the day-to-day operations of the council.
Six new members were elected to the 15-member council in November. Many former chairs of council committees are no longer on council.
The council also recently changed areas that those committees oversee so committees have more equal work loads.
Committee chairs control when an issue, such as potential changes to ordinances, are heard in committee.
Councilwoman Liz Sheehan, who was first elected to council in 2020, was elected the new chair of the Environmental Quality and Public Works Committee. The committee has oversight of the city’s $590 million Environmental Protection Agency consent decree, which required the city to fix its sewer and stormwater systems. The committee also oversees other large infrastructure departments such as garbage pick up, recycling and streets and roads.
Sheehan appointed Councilwoman Hannah LeGris, who was elected in 2020, as vice chair. LeGris can serve as chairwoman if Sheehan is absent.
Councilwoman Jennifer Reynolds, who was first elected to council in 2018, will chair the new Social Services and Public Safety Committee. That committee oversees police, fire, corrections, 911 and the city’s social service programs. Staffing shortages in police, 911 and corrections has been an ongoing problem for Lexington and other cities. Another key issue in this committee — Flock license plate reader cameras. The council recently approved an expansion of the cameras that read license plates and then compare those license plates to certain databases, including stolen cars and missing persons.
Reynolds said she was excited to chair the committee. She appointed Councilwoman Whitney Elliott Baxter as vice chairwoman.
Councilman Preston Worley, who was first appointed to council in 2017, will take over the General Government and Planning Committee. All issues that have to do with government operations — including buildings and personnel issues — are discussed in that committee. All planning and zoning items, including zone text amendments, typically go through this committee.
Councilwoman Kathy Plomin was appointed vice chairperson.
All three chairs were elected unanimously.
The council is expected to elect a new chairperson for the powerful Budget, Finance and Economic Development Committee on Jan. 31. Amanda Mays Bledsoe, who chaired the committee for four years, was elected to the state senate in November and is no longer on council. The budget committee oversees all major spending in city government.
