A Note From Amanda

Happy New Year! No doubt, 2018 is starting off with a blistering cold winter. Even with the freezing temperatures, I am excited about the new year and the opportunities for the 10th District. One of the strengths of this district is the high level of civic engagement. Being accessible as your district Councilmember has been a priority of mine from the beginning. This year in particular, we have encountered through social media and in person more of your ideas, concerns, issues and priorities than before. I will continue to focus on the areas that I hear from you are the most important—public safety, jobs, budgeting, parks and infrastructure. 
 
For instance, at the neighborhood meeting at Hill-n-Dale Park, we addressed concerns with break-ins and park nuisances. Together, we worked with the city to improve lighting in the park, added patrol and discussed other options to improve public safety. I am working with other agencies on a few of those ideas and I hope to present them this spring. Additionally, I shared your frustrations with HB463 with our state delegation as the issues were state related. HB463 is Kentucky state law adopted in 2011 that lead to unintended consequences that limited police officers ability to take criminals into custody. Just this week, Rep Stan Lee and Rep Robert Benvenuiti have introduced legislation in the House to address some of those concerns. 
 
Another small but simple illustration of results from your initiative is the new bus stop by Harrodsburg/Corporate Drive. I had a number of calls from individuals who were concerned about the safety of those waiting in the snow and rain. I reached out to First Southern National Bank and the Corporate Center Association to see if they would be willing to contribute to a sheltered bus stop. Both jumped in to make it happen. Your input matters to me and I hope you will continue to reach out to me.
  
Basic infrastructure is very important to the success of the district.  I have pushed for several years to get Pasadena on the paving list. This fall, the entire section was repaved and has greatly improved the driving experience for those in the district. We have a long way to go but we are making progress in paving the side roads and neighborhood streets. Remember that most of the neighborhood roads are paved in the spring. Infrastructure also means improving our parks, fiber and network capability, and trails so be sure to check out the number of improvements in the district within the last year.
 
It’s an honor to serve you and I hope to see you soon out and about.

Amanda

In 2017 Councilmember Bledsoe sat on a variety of council and city boards to represent both the 10th district and Lexington constituents. 

• Budget, Finance, & Economic Development(Vice Chair)
• Environment Quality & Public Works 
• Planning & Public Services
• Corridors Commission
• City Employee Pension Fund Board
• Lexington Area MPO
• Mayor's International Affairs Advisory Commission
• Southland Association
• Economic Development Investment Board
• Parks Master Plan 
• Aquatics Master Plan 
• Bike & Pedestrian Master Plan 
• PDR Planning Subcommittee

• Southland Lunch and Learn
• Southland Sign Ribbon Cutting 
• Neighborhood Leaders Public Safety Meeting 
• Hill N Dale Public Safety Meeting 
• Beaumont Traffic Study Public Meetings & Listening Tour
• Coffees with Your Councilmember
• Lexington City Flag Presentation

The 10th district has six public parks: Dogwood Trace Park, Harrods Hill Park, Cardinal Run North Park, Hill N Dale Park, Beaumont Park, and Southland Park. In 2017, the following projects were accomplished in district parks:

• Harrods Hill Basketball Courts were resurfaced.
• The Merry-Go-Round was replaced at Hill N Dale park.
• Park planners are installing shade at Moondance Amphitheater.
• A new field was completed at Cardinal Run North. 
• New shade was provided at Southland pool. 
• An expression swing was installed at Southland Park. 
• Tennis Courts were repaved at Southland Park.
• Councilmember Bledsoe, the Moondance Foundation, and the Division of Parks & Recreation hosted the first Taste of Beaumont. 
• Parks and Recreation hosted record crowds for the first annual "Friday Flicks" series at Moondance.

What's next: Councilmember Bledsoe serves on the Parks Master Plan. The consultant drafted projects for the 2018 budget process. These priorities will guide funding for the next five years. The proposal focused on prioritizing short-term capital improvements of existing parks. 

Councilmember Bledsoe continued to advocate for sound fiscal policy placing emphasis on infrastructure, safety and parks. Councilmember Bledsoe was involved in both the aquatics and the parks master plan in order to focus on the best use of taxpayers dollars to meet the challenging needs of the city. She served as Vice Chair of the Budget Committee and chair of a budget subcommittee focused on economic development.  Councilmember Bledsoe will continue to focuses on ways Lexington can grow and prosper as well as champion the job training grants. 

Public Safety is the biggest priority for the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government and Councilmember Bledsoe's number one priority as a representative and as a mother of young children. In 2017, Councilmember Bledsoe read your frustrations on social media and heard directly from many of you in person at neighborhood meetings.

Car break-ins continue to be the biggest concern from 10th District residents. In response, Councilmember Bledsoe's office held several meetings in the district with Lexington Police Department West Sector Commander, asked for additional patrol, and hosted all the neighborhood presidents at the sector headquarters for a meeting with the Chief. In 2017, council supported several long-term solutions to systemic crime, supporting a fourth sector allowing police on patrol to cover smaller areas as well as an increase in the police force to over 600 police officers. $72 Million dollars was allocated to the Division of Police in 2017.  The Lexington Police were recognized nationally for community building and community policing also promoting partnerships with social service agencies to focus on the root causes of crime.   

Above all else, Councilmember Bledsoe believes in being there for constituents either to navigate city services or to assist with information. Through several coffees with the councilmember, school visits, and neighborhood meetings the 10th district office is able to engage with the public and know what is happening in your neighborhood, park, and on your street. 

Councilmember Bledsoe has focused on capital infrastructure projects that will provide long-term benefit to the daily lives of constituents. After two years of planning and persistance, several of these projects will begin the construction phase. 

LFUCG’s consultant (Banks Engineering) on the Southland/Wolf Run Stormwater Project has completed the initial modeling of the stormwater system in the project area.  Using this model, Banks has developed the initial concepts for flood mitigation in the project area.  On January 17th, our city representative has a meeting planned with the consultants. 

What's next: LFUCG expects to conduct stakeholder meetings in the next months to present the alternates and receive resident input.

City's Snow and Ice Contol Plan 2018

The city has a comprehensive snow and ice plan designed to keep winter road and walk ways safe.

For the most up-to-date information on snow and ice removal during a winter weather event, watch the local news, visit the snow updates page, or follow the city on Facebook and Twitter.

During peak travel hours, the Traffic Management Center will provide current information on road conditions and traffic flow through the Real-Time Traffic Ticker and the LexWreck Twitter feed. A live video feed of key intersections is available 24/7.

Questions and comments about snow and ice removal should be directed to LexCall at 311 or (859) 425-2255. LexCall hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. LexCall will open 24-hours when there is a full mobilization of the snow removal team. You can submit a service request online or using the mobile app anytime. 

Leaf Collection Complete

Lexington’s vacuum leaf collection program finsihed in early December.  We do our best to try to publish the dates in our newsletter, facebook, text alerts, and website. Council has discussed in detail the schedule of leaf collection and every year the start date is a discussion point. We did observe most leaves fell the weekend of November 11th. The crews are also responsible for paving and snow removal and vacuumed over 2,500 homes a day in the month of November in order to have all the leaves collected before the first snow in early December. Leaf collection service, labor, and contractors are estimated to cost $400,000 in addition to $250,000 budgeted for the leaf bag coupons. 

If you or your neighbors still have leaves piled near the street, residents can use grey yard waste bags and paper yard waste bags. Vacuum collection is a supplement to the weekly yard waste service offered by the city’s Division of Waste Management.  

Chief Barnard to Retire

Police Chief Mark Barnard announced his retirement, effective Jan. 7. During his 31-years career at the Lexington Police Department, Barnard has been a strong supporter of community policing. As Chief, he put an even stronger emphasis on reaching out and working with the community, building connections and has been at the forefront of policing in the 21 century.  

In a statement, Councilmember Amanda Mays Bledsoe said: "As a mother and Councilmember, I have always believed public safety is the number one priority of City government. He is the only chief that I've had the privilege of serving with and I am grateful for his 31 years of service to our community. He was the right person at the right time as our country struggled through policing and trust within communities. He's always put our men and women in blue first and I know the police department and our community are better for his dedication and service to us. We wish him the best."

Read the full list of Chief Barnard's accomplishments. Assistant Chief Ron Compton will serve as interim chief, pending the appointment of Barnard’s successor.

Neighborhood Resources

In 2017 Councilmember Bledsoe compiled the most frequent questions her office receives and a list of neighborhood resources in order to make information citizen-centric and user-friendly.

MetroNet set to make Lexington a gigabit city

The Council approved a 10-year franchise agreement with MetroNet, an Indiana-based cable and Internet provider. MetroNet will use the city right-of-way (utility strip) for the initial build out which will cover 70% of the city. According to the chief innovation officer, the remaining 30% of the city, all outside of the urban service boundary, will be installed as the company reaches subscriber benchmarks. MetroNet has started the full build-out will take about four years and it is not clear what sort of rates it will charge. The city is not legally allowed to regulate rates.  

MetroNet will officially begin construction in the city of Lexington in January 2018. Residents will see a series of messages before construction activity begins in their neighborhood, including a letter, postcard, and yard marker. Check MetroNet's website for additional planned construction. 

One last thing. There is a flag for that.

As we wrap up 2017, we can't forget the introduction of the new city flag. Lexington is full of amazing people doing incredible things. So to introduce our new Community Flag design (inspired by dozens of Lexington middle school students and firefighters), it seemed fitting that we tell the story through the lens of those within our creative community. So, we challenged twelve Lexington cinematographers to capture the people and places that make us all proud to call Lexington home. We love it! Get your flag at the VisitLEX Visitors Center to show your pride and #sharethethelex