Smart growth in Lexington takes a lot of work and may need more | Opinion

I want Lexington to continue to grow and be a thriving, vibrant community. But, it must be done in a smart way, supported by research, data, and good policy. As a retired owner of a company started in Lexington in 1948, Chair of Town Branch Park, past Chair of Commerce Lexington, as a member of the Triangle Foundation and Lexington Industrial Foundation, I have dedicated much of my life to seeing this community succeed. So many of my fellow community members have spent many hours working together to create metrics, research, and recommendations to help the city create a data-driven process to guide our future growth.

I served as Co-Chair of the Sustainable Growth Task Force with developer Greg Padgett, which was established to collect data on what land we have available for development and what the city’s real needs are in different categories like housing, retail, jobs, and more. I am proud of our work and that of the consultant that assisted us — it gave us a foundation for annual updates and transparency around development. Then, the Goal 4 Workgroup under the leadership of then Vice Mayor Steve Kay and Councilmember James Brown continued that work, focusing their efforts on recommendations for a process to guide growth outside the Urban Service Boundary once the data told us it was necessary. And these extensive efforts over the past four years revealed that still, additional work was necessary. The Goal 4 Workgroup recommendations still need public input to inform them and research to support them. While this may be frustrating to some, it’s important to note that we have made significant progress. Growth is complicated, but this work is vital to the success of our community and ensuring future development truly meets our needs. The efforts we spend related to growth and the Urban Service Boundary are worth it for our future.

Now, we look forward. With additional data from the studies that are already underway (a study of sewerability and how much it will cost in the rural service area and updates on metrics of existing conditions and growth trends), and by providing dedicated time for public input on the recommendations for a new growth process, Lexington has an opportunity to continue our legacy of growing smart. We are so close. I hope that as our elected officials consider the Goals & Objectives on Tuesday, they will not overlook all the good work that has been done in order to entertain an irresponsible proposal for expansion of the USB that is not grounded in data or research. Our community deserves better. We deserve a data-driven approach to growth and the time to create one we can be proud of.

Ann Bakhaus is the Chair of Town Branch Park, a past Chair of Commerce Lexington, and a member of the Triangle Foundation and the Lexington Industrial Foundation. Most recently, she served as Co-Chair of the LFUCG Sustainable Growth Task Force.

This story was originally published May 22, 2023 at 10:23 AM.