Fayette Board of Education files suits to take property for new school by eminent domain

The Fayette County Board of Education has initiated court action to take property in a west Lexington neighborhood by eminent domain.

The board is trying to secure a right of way near the new Rise STEM Academy for Girls, which is slated to open in fall 2026, at 2160 Versailles Road off Mason Headley Road.

Thursday, the board filed four separate suits in Fayette Circuit Court petitioning for condemnation of the property. Each of the documents says the property is part of a private right of way created in 1941, and additionally contend each of the joint owners hasn’t used it “since at least 2006.”

Myron Thompson, chief operating officer for Fayette County Public Schools, said Monday filing for eminent domain is not something the district wanted to do.

“I hope that negotiations will continue and that we are able to reach a compromise before the legal proceedings would occur,” Thompson said at a news conference.

School district officials invited local media outlets Monday to view the property associated with the eminent domain court filings. The curb already in place acts as the property line, but the school district is looking to expand the road by approximately 8 feet for maintenance and security purposes, Thompson said.

In August, when the board voted to pursue eminent domain, officials said the land runs along the backyards of properties on Fair Oaks and Port Royal drives. Thompson said the proceedings involve five property owners.

The district maintains the property is needed for expanded bus lanes leading up to the new school, and it is more cost effective to take the property by eminent domain than to move the utilities and a retention basin on the other side of the road.

“There is existing infrastructure that’s in place for drainage,” Thompson said. “It would require us working with the state to move all of that over, it would impact all of this retention area here.”

The district previously said it has attempted to negotiate with the owners unsuccessfully.

Four property owners filed a lawsuit against the board, saying it or its agents were “trespassing on, destroying and unlawfully taking” their property. That suit is still pending.

“I think bringing in these changes has created some issues and some concern,” Thompson said Monday. “I think it’s a project that’s going to be useful for us, but it has definitely had an impact for them. They had a pretty rural area before, and as you can imagine, there’s going to be a little bit of bus traffic in the mornings and afternoons.”

In October 2024, the landowners’ attorney, Bruce Simpson, sent a cease and desist letter to the district saying officials were trespassing on the homeowners’ property along the driveway used by former owner Dudley Webb and his family.

“There is no recorded easement or right of way for this driveway,” Simpson wrote. “The School Board has plenty of vacant land on which it can construct access to Versailles Road without unfairly and impermissibly burdening the lives of these citizens and their families.”

The legal petitions filed by the board this week ask for the appointment of commissioners who would award the amount of compensation the property owners are due.

The board also asks a judge to issue an order finding that the board has the legal right to condemn and take possession of the property and conveying the title to the board.

This story was originally published November 22, 2025 at 8:09 PM.