Specialized Focus Areas Map

In creating the overall vision for Lexington, there are several locations, ranging in scale from neighborhood to countywide, that require additional considerations when approaching any form of community development. To capture these unique, location-specific factors, a set of specialized plans have been created in order to outline long-term goals that promote the appropriate development and stabilization of these different sectors. 

Site for which a specialized plan exists include those within the boundaries of the 2007 and 2013 Small Area Plans, the 1996 Expansion Area Master Plan, and the Rural Service Area.

Using this map, you can explore data relating to the different areas within Lexington for which a specialized plan exists. The map will provide a view of the boundaries within which these unique areas are located as well as a link to a downloadable version of each plan.

Small Area Plans

A fundamental goal of Imagine Lexington is to revitalize our city’s neighborhoods in ways that make them more sustainable and livable. In some areas, achieving a neighborhood’s vision for improvement requires an informed, strategic approach scaled to that specific community.

Responding to this need, a set of small area plans were adopted as elements of the 2007 and 2013 Comprehensive Plans and have since taken effect in six Lexington neighborhoods within the Urban Service Boundary.  

Based on an extensive community engagement process, the small area plans identify community needs, opportunities, and other planning issues of their respective communities, which help to inform strategies for undertaking policy changes and project implementation. 

Expansion Area Master Plan

Adopted by the Planning Commission in 1996 as an element of the Comprehensive Plan, the Expansion Area Master Plan (EAMP) is a regulatory document that is intended to guide growth within the identified Expansion Areas along the periphery of the Urban Service Boundary.

The EAMP sets up standards and criteria that act as land use regulations to control the character, location and magnitude of development within the designated land use categories. 

Rural Land Management Plan

The Rural Land Management Plan (RLMP), which originated in 1999, is dedicated to the planning and management of land uses in the Rural Service Area. The plan presents the case for the preservation of our rural land and suggests the implementation of an extensive land capability analysis. The plan also makes several recommendations that relate to rural land uses, such as greenways, recreation areas, and rural settlements.

The RLMP also paved the way for Fayette County's Purchase of Development Rights program.