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Lexington-Fayette County, KY Overview
Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government Code of Ordinances
CHARTER AND CODE OF ORDINANCES LEXINGTON-FAYETTE URBAN COUNTY GOVERNMENT
SUPPLEMENT HISTORY TABLE
LEXINGTON-FAYETTE - URBAN COUNTY GOVERNMENT CHARTER
Chapter 1 - GENERAL PROVISIONS
Chapter 2 - ADMINISTRATION1
Chapter 2A - AIRPORTS AND AIRCRAFT1
Chapter 2B - CODE ENFORCEMENT ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING BOARDS
Chapter 3 - ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES1
Chapter 4 - ANIMALS AND FOWL1
Chapter 5 - BUILDINGS AND BUILDING REGULATIONS1
Chapter 5A - CIVIL DEFENSE: CIVIL EMERGENCIES
Chapter 6 - EMPLOYEES AND PENSIONS1
Chapter 7 - FINANCE AND TAXATION1
Chapter 8 - MINING AND/OR QUARRYING1
Chapter 9 - FIRE PREVENTION1
Chapter 9A - FIREWORKS
Chapter 10 - FOOD AND DRUGS1
Chapter 11 - HEALTH AND SANITATION1
Chapter 12 - HOUSING1
Chapter 13 - LICENSES AND REGULATIONS1
Chapter 13A - MINIMUM WAGE
Chapter 14 - OFFENSES AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS1
Chapter 15 - PEDDLERS AND SOLICITORS1
Chapter 16 - SEWAGE, GARBAGE, REFUSE AND WEEDS1
Chapter 16A - HAZARDOUS MATERIALS1
Chapter 17 - STREETS AND SIDEWALKS1
Chapter 17A - SUBDIVISIONS1
Chapter 17B - STREET TREES1
Chapter 17C - PUBLIC RIGHTS-OF-WAY
Chapter 17D - DOCKLESS VEHICLES
Chapter 18 - TRAFFIC1
Chapter 18B - SNOW EMERGENCIES1
Chapter 18C - EMERGENCY AMBULANCE, TRANSPORTATION AMBULANCE LICENSING, REGULATIONS1
Chapter 19 - WEIGHTS AND MEASURES
Chapter 20 - ZONING1
Chapter 21 - COMPREHENSIVE PLAN FOR CLASSIFIED CIVIL SERVICE SYSTEM1
Chapter 22 - UNCLASSIFIED CIVIL SERVICE1
Chapter 23 - DIVISIONS OF FIRE AND EMERGENCY SERVICES AND POLICE1
Chapter 24 - DETENTION CENTER1
Chapter 25 - ETHICS ACT
Chapter 26 - RURAL LAND MANAGEMENT
APPENDIX A RULES AND PROCEDURES OF THE LEXINGTON-FAYETTE URBAN COUNTY COUNCIL1
CODE COMPARATIVE TABLE - ORDINANCES
STATE LAW REFERENCE TABLE
Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government Zoning Code
Sec. 12-8. - Minimum design standards.
The following minimum standards shall be met in the design of a planned commercial center:
(a)   Height Requirement. There shall be no height limitation.
(b)   Required Setback.
(1)   Streetfront building setbacks (Four-story buildings and below), the building setback line shall be:
(i.)   Arterial street: Fifteen (15) feet minimum.
(ii.)   Collector street: Fourteen (14) feet minimum.
(2)   Streetfront building setbacks (buildings above four (4) stories), the building setback line shall be:
(i.)   Arterial street: Eighteen (18) feet minimum.
(ii.)   Collector street: Sixteen (16) feet minimum.
(3)   Side and Rear yard building setback: Ten (10) feet, unless adjacent to a residential zone, then a 3:1 height-to-yard ratio.
(c)   Screening.
(1)   No residential dwelling shall be developed so that the rear of the structure abuts an arterial or collector street unless the dwelling is located not less than two hundred (200) feet from the arterial or collector street.
(2)   Any commercial center which directly adjoins any single-family residential zone shall be required to provide a buffer yard of six (6) feet in width, with one (1) tree for every thirty (30) feet of linear boundary from Group A, B, or C of the Plant List, as referenced by Article 18 of this Zoning Ordinance; plus a six-foot-high fence, wall or earth mound. The responsibility for such a buffer shall be the B-6P property, although the buffer may be shared as provided in Article 18.
(3)   Pedestrian and/or bicycle connections and programmed amenities (such as seating, canopies, pergolas, and/or patios) which integrate the commercial center with adjacent residential zones shall be incorporated into the development plan at appropriate locations along the required buffer.
(d)   Lot Coverage and Floor Area Requirements. The ground area occupied by all the buildings shall not exceed the maximums noted below, based upon the minimum floor area requirements. Parking structures shall not be considered as a building for the purposes of this section.
(1)   Community Commercial Center.
(i.)   For a proposed development that meets the following locational criteria:
A.   Ten (10) acres or larger;
B.   Smaller than thirty (30) acres;
C.   Contains frontage along a collector street.
(ii.)   The following Lot Coverage and Floor Area Ratio (F.A.R.) shall apply:
A.   The minimum F.A.R. shall be 0.30.
B.   The maximum Lot Coverage shall be 0.35.
(iii.)   For a proposed development that meets the following locational criteria:
A.   Ten (10) acres or larger.
B.   Smaller than thirty (30) acres.
C.   Contains frontage along an arterial street.
(iv.)   The following Lot Coverage and Floor Area Ratio (F.A.R.) shall apply:
A.   The minimum F.A.R. shall be 0.4.
B.   The maximum Lot Coverage shall be 0.30.
(2)   Regional Commercial Center.
(i.)   For a proposed development that meets the following locational criteria:
A.   Thirty (30) acres or larger.
B.   Contains frontage along an arterial street.
(ii.)   The following Lot Coverage and Floor Area Ratio (F.A.R.) shall apply:
A.   The minimum F.A.R. shall be 0.5.
B.   The maximum Lot Coverage shall be 0.3.
(3)   Special Provisions for All Centers.
(i.)   Increases in floor area over and above the minimum shall grant an increase in the maximum lot coverage at a rate of 2 to 1.
(ii.)   Increases in floor area for residential uses shall grant an increase in the maximum lot coverage at a rate of 1 to 1.
(iii.)   Minimum Open Space: See Article 20 for open space regulations.
(e)   Maximum Required Parking. Notwithstanding any other requirements of this Zoning Ordinance:
(1)   For any commercial center that is located on a transit route, there shall be a maximum of four (4) surface parking spaces per one thousand (1,000) commercial square feet.
(2)   For any commercial center that is not located on a transit route, there shall be a maximum of five (5) surface parking spaces per one thousand (1,000) commercial square feet.
(3)   For any commercial center containing residential use(s), the residential use(s) there shall be a maximum of one (1) surface parking space per dwelling unit.
(4)   Structure parking shall not count toward any maximum parking requirement.
(f)   Loading Areas. Notwithstanding any other requirements of this Zoning Ordinance, there shall be provided one (1) off-street loading space for each twenty thousand (20,000) square feet, or fraction thereof, of aggregate floor space of all buildings in the center. At least one-third (?) of the space required shall be sufficient in area and vertical clearance to accommodate trucks of the tractor-trailer type. Such loading facilities shall be permanently and fully screened. The exact type and nature of such screening shall be determined by Article 18.
(g)   Lighting. Exterior lighting shall be regulated by Article 30 and restricted as follows:
(1)   Wall mounted lamps that use the equivalent of one thousand, two hundred (1,200) lumens per bulb or greater shall be shielded or equipped with cutoffs so that the light sources are not visible from a public street. Spotlights without shielding devices are prohibited.
(2)   Wall mounted light fixtures shall not extend above the height of the wall to which they are mounted.
(3)   Lighting that is positioned to highlight a building shall be aimed at the object to be illuminated and not directly aimed into the sky.
(4)   Any light fixture intended to illuminate walkways or other outdoor areas shall not exceed fifteen (15) feet in height unless specifically used to light an outdoor recreation facility such as a tennis court, ball field, or similar use.
(5)   Any light fixture intended to illuminate a parking area shall not exceed twenty-five (25) feet in height, and shall be shielded or equipped with cutoffs so as to prevent undue light spill onto adjoining properties.
(h)   Multi-Modal Accommodation. The applicant shall, on the submitted development plan or on a separate exhibit, provide a proposed multi-modal improvement plan designed to accommodate all users for the entirety of the property, as well as connecting to any planned and/or existing public facilities. For redeveloping or infill sites, the multi-modal improvement plan shall also be a guide for future improvements as redevelopment occurs.
(i)   Transit Facilities.
(1)   For all commercial centers located along a transit route, a transit shelter and seating shall be required and indicated clearly on the development plan to the approval of the local transit authority. Adequate pedestrian facilities to serve the required transit infrastructure, both along the right-of-way and internal to the site, shall be to the approval of the Metropolitan Planning Organization (MPO). It will be strongly encouraged that the development plan afford appropriate facilities and accommodations for additional ridesharing services.
(2)   No zoning compliance permits shall be issued for the commercial center until all approved transit infrastructure is constructed in accordance with the approved final development plan.
(Code 1983, § 12-8; Ord. No. 263-83 , § 1, 12-15-1983; Ord. No. 37-2000 , § 1, 2-24-2000; Ord. No. 147-2000 , § 1, 6-1-2000; Ord. No. 114-2003 , § 1, 5-29-2003; Ord. No. 3-2004 , § 1, 1-15-2004; Ord. No. 129-2009 , § 25, 7-2-2009; Ord. No. 155-2013 , § 1, 12-10-2013; Ord. No. 166-2017 , § 6(12-8), 11-16-2017; Ord. No. 5-2018 , § 1(12-8), 2-8-2018; Ord. No. 85-2018 , § 1, 11-1-2018; Ord. No. 004-2023, § 30, 1-31-2023; Ord. No. 079-2024, § 1, 7-9-2024)
Editor's note(s)—See the editor's note to § 12-4.