LexRides

[elzie5000]

141, or whatever it was called more recently had the front taken out and the roof caved in when I went by there a few hours ago.

[catamount]

In HL today - http://www.kentucky.com/591/story/475403.html

Burgoo Something to stew over

Seems to us there's a certain irony afoot in downtown Lexington right now. As the bulldozers claw away at the block that is supposed to birth CentrePointe, three very visible signs of why that development is so questionable are on display. On Main Street between Mill Street and Broadway and on Mill between Main and Vine Street are three Webb Companies billboards advertising ”Space Available“ in the Radisson and the Big Blue/Fifth Third buildings. At least it seems ironic to those of us who have wondered ever since Dudley Webb sprang CentrePointe on an unsuspecting Lexington whether there is truly a market need for a development of that size downtown when the core already appears to be swimming in Space Available.
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"The path of least resistance is what makes the river crooked!” - Utah Phillips

[mtlb]

They just closed the starbucks that was supposed to go in it.
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Synthetic Weed

[brokebike]

the Starbucks in the "Center Court" development (South Hill @ Euclid and Upper) is definitely closing according to this recently updated list:

[mcrib]

now how will I find the new Kenny G cd for sale next to the new york times or have a place to sit in a big chair and try my best to look intelligent. what is the world coming too when lexington only has 75 starbucks and the company decides there isn't room for one more.
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Albert Einstein trembled when he found out time was water. Seeping through the rafters to put out this burning world.

[Rowbear]

[brokebike]

does this mean I won't get to curl up next to the warmth of the JumboTron with an $8 grande cappucino?
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------------[] O

[mtlb]

drew, if you need, I can burn you a copy of Rhythm and Romance.
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Free themes

[elzie5000]

Today's lunch ride update:

Signs being carefully stripped off Rosenbergs, moving company guys carrying furniture out of the architectural illustration place, disco ball crushed to dust in the rubble of 141.

[davem]

Did anyone else get this email from the Mayor? Stating how he has always supported CentreeeePointeeee and why we should support it too! I've already sent back a response. It seems pretty obvious now that there really never was a chance to stop this from happening. I'm curious to know what "myths" about CentreeePointeeee he is referring to. Maybe why a building design originally destined for Atlanta has an olde English spelling? Just how many e's are too many?





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[haumanjoy]

Bill Johnston had a thoughtful reply to the Mayor on the above letter. He shared it with his Western Suburbs list:

Jim,

I don't know to whom this reply is really going. But I am distressed at this message. Knowing I am wasting even more time than I have already expended on this losing cause, I will respond to your email anyway.

I have been angry and depressed at what I see occurring. Seeing the Dame terminally damaged and looking for Morton's row to go any day is like seeing a member of my family executed for a crime they did not commit. This is something I don't think I - or many others - will ever forgive, let alone forget.

Let me remind you, that we all thought we dealt with the downtown development issues with the competition of the Downtown Master Plan. I do not know if you are familiar with it, but this project ignores it, completely. This was not a casually developed plan; but one that many of us spent many hours on. To have it ignored and trampled on so soon is incomprehensible! The citizens that cared enough to respond to public notifications to participate in the plan's development have been pushed to the sidelines. But those that didn't, the Webbs, Joe Rosenberg, and even your office rule the day. I have a large file of plans dealing with downtown that I have been involved with - or at least close to - over the past 30 years. They all basically say the same thing, and they have ALL been largely ignored. Why should any of us bother to participate in future citizen input driven projects like Destination 2040? I, for one, do not plan to; because it is apparent that whatever is laid out will be cast aside the minute a good-old-boy money-laden developer walks through the door.

Let me comment on the points in your emailed position. It is important that you keep in mind that NONE of the dissenters regarding CentrePointe have any disagreements regarding the need for development on that block. We only disagree with the method selected.

NEW JOBS

Of course there will be new jobs both during construction and afterwards. There would also be new jobs created to restore the buildings that the owners (who have owned these buildings in some cases for 10 years and as long as almost 60 years) had elected to NOT keep in keep in good repair. Historic Preservation is labor intensive. Historic Preservation jobs typically require higher grade skills and are done with personnel that are locally based. In many or most cases more jobs - and at a higher skill level (a good thing) - are created in restoration than are generated with the tear-down and build-new approach. Regarding jobs that occur after the construction is complete. They have a greater probability of occurring if the resulting architecture is appealing. This architecture is not. It is out of scale, and repetitive; and these developers have a horrible track record when it comes to understanding what makes people want to come to their projects. Their greatest success has been parking garages - which occupy a good portion of our Main Street. (Try eating at Sawyers sometime and looking out the window across Main Street. The view is boring to the point that one wants to doze off in one's lunch.) Thie Woolworth's block was already coming back. With a little creativity, it could have generated many additional jobs without destroying the jobs that were already there. The economics supporting the new project are not there and do not make sense. The greater risk is that this building will be an albatross, and the jobs will be those that guard a largely empty building. We would be so much better off with several developers working together on an overall plan, than putting all of our eggs in this one poorly woven basket.

MIXED USE

I have no problem with mixed use, other than we have a large number of empty residential units downtown. Many of these are high-end units. In fact, some of the sold units have at least been appealing enough for former Governor Brereton Jones to purchase; so they are not unappealing to society's higher echelon. But the need for many additional units that are priced in substantial excess of many of the great units that are sitting empty,needs to be better understood. We already have a record high in office availability, and hotel availability. And we don't need boring anywhere USA architecture to provide for economic stimulus downtown. It may receive initial interest. But, when was the last time you went to the Glass Garden, or the most recent "new" Coach House? Most regular people feel more comfortable in accessible, non-challenging environments like Ramsey/s, Natasha's, and even the more upscale a la Lucie, or Bellini's. (Woodford was seen at Bellini's last week.)

GREEN BUILDING

It may be worthwhile to become more familiar with the LEED program. It is not the end-all. It is relatively easy to get the entry level LEED Certification.. But to tear down over a dozen historic buildings (whose existence contained the stored energy of the work that went into the creation of their materials and construction) cannot be construed as "Green". While LEED does not address the removal of existing buildings at this time (as I am told), that doesn't mean that tearing down restorable old buildings makes ANY sense from the "Green" perspective. In fact, if this project can be certified as "Green" by anyone's standard, that standard needs to be closely examined. Destroying those buildings will add substantially to our landfills, and require that new energy be expended to put new structures in their place.

BLIGHTED BUILDINGS

Many of these buildings were not in the best of conditions. But we have seen MANY buildings in Lexington successfully restored that were in FAR worse condition than any of these. With the exception of a few that were purchased recently, most of the Woolworth block buildings had been owned by companies controlled by one individual for almost 60 years. If they were blighted, why were they? Is it possible that the longtime owner didn't properly maintain them? Where was Code Enforcement in the past several years? These buildings were in use, leased at market rates (or at least could have been), and there were no code enforcement violations logged on many if not all of these buildings since 2006. Buildings used for public purposes, owned by the same parties for many years, having no code violations, rented, yet being declared blighted? The first building removed for this project had been recently remodeled. It took over a million dollars to dislodge the owner from that building. No way was THAT building blighted! But it still is not there anymore. At least a dozen buildings were designated as eligible for placement on the National Register by our State's historic preservation office. But since even qualified properties require the owner's permission before being placed on the National Register, that was not feasible with these owners. In addition, Morton's Row was removed from the Courthouse Area Review area right before the CARDB was passed by Council. Its removal did NOT make it less historic. It has been historic by ANY standards for decades. The Council does NOT determine historic significance. And certanly the Webbs, Joe Rosenberg, the Downdown Development Authority, or the Mayor's office don't either.

SAVES FARMLAND

After the horse farms and Horse Park, my understanding is that Lexington's history and historic properties are the item that attracts the most tourists to our fair city. If we have to tear down our historic buildings and remove the historic character that makes us a unique community (less unique today, than a couple of weeks ago, by the way) to save the horse farms, that doesn't seem to make good economic sense. Following that logic, we should agree to tear down all of old Lexington to be replaced by condos so that we may save even more horse farms. I don't think so. I understand that only some 10% of the land that is vacant for development is within New Circle Road. The rest is outside of New Circle Road - but still in the Urban Service Area. So why are we tearing down historic buildings (one of our main attractions) for new development? (By the way, "infill" development means filling in where voids exisit. It is NOT the removal of existing buildings to build anew. Look in Websters and on the Internet for confirmation of this.) Of course we want to save the farmland. It is vital. But not at the expense of our history and of what identifies us and makes us unique.

PUBLIC IMPROVEMENTS

Public improvements means TIF financing. Great! But unless the city and current owners get in the way, that block will grow anyway over the next 30 years. It already was - in spite of its property owners' best efforts. That being the case, why should we take the increased taxes from that whole project and use it to finance the TIF bonds? The requested improvements are all geared toward making CentrePointe more of a success. Let them pay for the improvements. I have been told here is excess capacity at record levels in downtown. If CentrePointe is successful if will be stealing from existing venues - robbing Peter to pay Paul. If CentrePointe is a TIF, then the Commonwealth will not receive the taxes on the income it used to receive taxes on.

SUMMARY

CentrePointe is out of scale (I have scale drawings that show existing buildings looking like ants next to the proposed.) It is devastating to a significant portion of our historic fabric. It ignores our now defunct Downtow Master Plan. It has already destrolyed an important resurgence that was occurring to entertain the very people we think are our future, and that we are desparate to keep in Lexington. The buildings were old, but not blighted. This destruction will have no impact on the horse tarms, and the same jobs - if not more - would be created with an enlightened approach. I believe that the Downtown Development Authority, the Courthouse Area Design Review Board, the Council and you have made a horrible error on the most important downtown related decision in recent decades. All have been blinded by the $250.000,000 investment the Webbs are making in our downtown. What good is such an investment if it accomplishes the wrong thing? Ford invested millions of dollars in the Edsel. It was the wrong thing. It was not helpful.

Bill Johnston

[brokebike]

fucking A-Men.

this letter should've been delivered up Newberry's ass. Oh wait, at least one of the Webb's is already up in there...

Good point about this whole fiasco tainting the Destination: 2040 project. I feel bad because many of my good friends are heavily involved with this, and many of us spent precious time on the first round of meetings, carefully and consciously discussing our ideas. Now, I honestly have little desire to take part in further meetings because the Centrepointe decision has definitely given me and many others a newfound distrust of our civic leaders and disillusionment with the local political process as it concerns the future direction of our city.

What impact can we have when everything we say and do is ignored?
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[mcrib]

I would love to read a response but being a politician probably means that Newberry's backbone and balls were already removed so I won't hold my breath. great response to a bullshit email.
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Albert Einstein trembled when he found out time was water. Seeping through the rafters to put out this burning world.

[elzie5000]

What chaps my ass is that after all the other businesses on the block are gone, and even as buildings 20 feet away are being knocked down, Rosenburg's is still open.

[mcrib]

Newberry is turning out to be quite the fool apparently: from today's paper.

But there are a couple of things I'm very skeptical of. The first is a proposed two- or three-level parking garage below Phoenix Park, with as many as 331 parking spaces costing $30,000 each. That could cost $10 million, plus a few million more to put Phoenix Park back together.

The garage would be good for CentrePointe, but is it a wise investment for the city?

Street parking downtown is popular and limited. But there already seems to be plenty of available space in downtown parking structures. In general, people don't like parking structures, and they like underground parking even less. Before city officials invest millions in this costliest form of new parking space, they should do a thorough study of downtown's parking inventory and anticipated needs.

It's also worth asking whether those millions might be better spent on downtown public transportation. Trolleys? Streetcars?

But the thing I'm most skeptical of is a proposal for $3 million worth of ”pedways,“ also known as skywalks, to connect CentrePointe to the proposed parking garage and the garage at the Webbs' Financial Center (”the big blue building“) across Upper Street.

If CentrePointe's design looks like something out of the 1980s, skywalks are an idea from the 1960s that have been widely discredited since then. Why? Because they take human activity off the street. (See my blog on Kentucky.com for links to several related articles.)

One of the biggest complaints many people have about CentrePointe's design is that it isn't friendly to street activity. Pedways would make it even less so.

The first public hearing about a CentrePointe TIF was held after Tuesday's task force meeting. It was lightly attended, and only a handful of citizens spoke. Maybe that was because it's early in the process, and people have little information to react to.

Our elected city officials have provided a great forum for discussing these issues. They, and Lexington citizens, should make the most of it — and soon.

30,000 per parking space is insane. what is also crazy is that the amount of money for these proposed projects (again the biggest of which is a parking garage) is dependent of the success (or lack there of) of centerpointe which as we all know is unlikely. fuck this city is going to hell in a hurry.
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Albert Einstein trembled when he found out time was water. Seeping through the rafters to put out this burning world.