Lexington agrees to reduced fine for apartment owner months after fatal gas leak
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- City and owner agree to reduce fine from $10,025 to $7,500 and dismiss suit.
- Owner must fix all 35 code violations before allowing tenants back in.
- Council advances ordinance to require CO detectors where gas appliances or attached garages exist.
The owner of a Lexington apartment complex where a fatal gas leak occurred last summer has agreed to pay a reduced fine to the city more than eight months after the building was condemned.
Two days after the fatal July 7, 2025, incident at Oxford Circle Apartments, a code enforcement inspection found 35 violations at the two-story, 32-unit apartment building. About a month later, with only patchwork fixes made, city code enforcement fined the building’s owner $10,025 — the largest amount the division can hand out.
The owner, Oxford KDR LLC, appealed the fine in Fayette District Court. Friday, the owner and the city agreed to reduce the fine to $7,500 and dismiss the case.
“To avoid the cost of extended litigation, the Urban County Government agreed to a settlement reducing the penalty from $10,000 to $7,500, which the owner has agreed to pay,” Susan Straub, a spokesperson for the city, said in a statement to the Herald-Leader.
Oxford KDR LLC is registered with the Kentucky Secretary of State’s Office out of Trenton, N.J., under registered agent CCS Global Solutions Inc. The company bought the building in 2019 for $1.1 million. The attorney representing the company, Ian Ramsey, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Property management must fix all code enforcement violations before allowing tenants back into the building. Straub said the building remains condemned, and will only reopen after the violations are fixed and the building passes inspection.
Court documents state paying the fine and dismissing the lawsuit does not waive the owner’s responsibility for fixing the errors. Straub said the building will be monitored as “related court matters and ownership changes are resolved.”
“Because those court actions affect both the fines and the owner’s ability to make repairs, this settlement was the most expedient way for the city to hold the owner accountable, while still facilitating repairs and the eventual reopening of the property,” Straub said in the statement.
The 35 violations found during code enforcement’s July 9 inspection included a variety of issues with the building, such as interior and exterior damages, plumbing and electrical system hazards, a broken HVAC system and missing smoke detectors. Straub previously told the Herald-Leader one of the biggest problems was an inoperable boiler and exhaust system, which is believed to have caused the fatal gas leak.
The leak left 62-year-old Samuel Gross dead and 11 others injured. The Fayette County Coroner’s Office found a carboxyhemoglobin level of 59.3% saturation in Gross’ system and determined he died of carbon monoxide poisoning. Carboxyhemoglobin levels more than 50% are generally considered fatal, according to the National Library of Medicine. Normal saturation levels are less than 3% for nonsmokers and less than 12% for smokers.
Oxford Circle Apartments was condemned following the incident, with an expected reopening timeline of roughly a week.
The building was built in 1965, meaning property management is not required to install carbon monoxide detectors. Straub previously said the building would only require detectors if it underwent extensive, permit-required renovations.
Recently, 11th District Council member Jennifer Reynolds sponsored a proposed city ordinance to require carbon monoxide detectors in all Lexington apartment units and houses with gas-burning appliances or attached garages. The ordinance was approved by the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council’s social services and public safety committee Jan. 13, and the council later unanimously moved to hold a vote on the ordinance in March.
This story was originally published March 16, 2026 at 12:22 PM.
