Zoning

The Winchester Board of Commissioners and the Winchester-Clark County Planning Commission will both meet this week. The meetings are open to the public. The Planning Commission will meet tonight at 7 in the Fiscal Court room. The agenda includes a public hearing on a proposed zoning amendment and preliminary development plan for single family housing on 208 acres of land at 2299 McClure Road and 3550 Colby Road. Planning Commission meetings are held the first Tuesday of every month.

The messy legal battle between Robert Hamlin and Boyle County Planning and Zoning officials over the condition of his Stewart's Lane property finally got a court date, but it was set well into the future in hopes that it might be cleared up before trial. Hamlin is charged with violating a Danville city ordinance by failing to clean up his property, which is strewn with vehicles and farm implements. Hamlin has been challenging city and P&Z officials for nearly five years and now faces fines ranging between $50,000-$250,000, said Boyle County Attorney Richard Campbell.

STANFORD - Lincoln County's new planning and zoning ordinance received a first reading from the Fiscal Court Tuesday night at a public hearing, where it was met with the usual questions, slight concern, but general acceptance. "It went well. We had several people here, had some questions. It was a tie vote, and Buckwheat broke it," said Rhonda Brown, county building inspector, referring to Judge-Executive Buckwheat Gilbert. Magistrates Mark Denham and Bill Dyehouse voted in favor, with Earlin Cress and Terry Wilcher voting against, following the consensus of their constituents.

The Jessamine County Fiscal Court voted Tuesday to renew a contract with the Bluegrass Area Development District and the Jessamine County/Wilmore Joint Planning Commission to conduct a professional planning study. The contract is renewed every year and consists of an agreement between BGADD to continue to provide support and assistance to the planning commission on matters of planning. The way it works, Kentucky's counties are grouped into 15 regions known as Area Development Districts, or ADDs.

LANCASTER - The Garrard County Planning Commission discussed some objectives Tuesday night with the group involved in six previous public discussions. The focus was on what the citizens of the county want. Several members of the community were on hand to remind commission members of just that. After the commission discussed the community's wish to protect their land but refrain from instating land-use regulations, one audience member spoke vehemently against dismissing the benefits of regulations out of hand, calling the ordinances "property insurance.

LANCASTER - After a bruising two months of meetings with residents angry at the prospect of zoning in Garrard County, the Planning Commission took stock of itself Tuesday night and decided it isn't going to slink off into oblivion. The panel's gut check came after some members apparently said the nasty political atmosphere surrounding the commission might have made it a lost cause that should just disappear. "We've taken a lot of flak," said Ronnie Lamb. "If the board dissolves, I think we've really let the people down.

A Boyle Circuit Court ruling last week gives Robert Hamlin two months to remove the junked vehicles from his Stewarts Lane property that have been the subject of a long-standing dispute with Danville-Boyle County Planning & Zoning Commission and his neighbors. In an order entered Tuesday, Judge Darren Peckler directs Hamlin to take the more than 50 old vehicles and other clutter from the property within 60 days. If the "offending personality" is not gone within 60 days, the order authorizes P&Z to go on to the property and remove the vehicles at Hamlin's expense.

The primary fo the Danville City Commission election will be Tuesday. Voters can select up to four candidates. One of the nine candidates will be eliiminated in the primary, and there will be a runoff election on Nov. 2 during which four positions on the commission will be selected from the remaining eight candidates. Kevin Caudill Where should the city allow commercial development? Preferably in downtown and in areas that are zoned for commercial development. Each situation should be taken on its own merits.

A recommendation for the Industrial Development Authority to extend its recruitment efforts to include commercial development during a trial period has been endorsed by the Winchester-Clark County Committee to Review Planning and Zoning. Keith Roberts, chairman of the local Restaurant and Retail Recruitment and Retention Task Force, made the recommendation Wednesday in response to suggestions from officials to formalize the recruitment process. The task force, loosely composed of volunteers from various sectors in the community, has been meeting every month for nearly a year in an effort to attract new dining and shopping establishments and provide a point of contact for developers.

Junction City Council - 7 p.m. Thursday for a special meeting at City Hall. The agenda includes discussion on a cruiser and 2006-07 budget. Mercer County Board of Education - 5 p.m. today for a special meeting at the central office for executive session to perform superintendent's annual evaluation and an open meeting. Danville-Boyle County Planning and Zoning - 9 a.m. May 3 at city hall to discuss minor plats for Barrick estates on Harrodsburg Road, Ivan Gardner on U.S. 68 and Brumfield Road and Danny Holt on Curtis Road; and preliminary plat renewal for Shelby Land Plaza and Davco.

The Nicholasville City Commission approved a zone change request for approximately 6.03 acres of property located at the corner of East Brannon Road and Lauderdale Drive. The change moves the property from P-1 (professional district) to R-3 (multi-family residential district). The commission approved zone changes for .30 acres of land in the same area from R-1T (townhouse residential) to R-3. The commission also approved an annexation request for the Delores M. Singleton Trust Property, 18.245 acres adjoining the Central Industrial Park.

Dozens of city residents who packed Nicholasville City Hall on Monday evening to speak against a zone change from agricultural to light industrial for land near their properties were disappointed. The commission voted 6-1 to approve the change. The zone change was for a little more than 18 acres at 255 Canter Lane in Nicholasville. The applicant, Kimberly Laynne Smith, trustee of the Delores M. Singleton Trust, plans to sell the property, according to attorney Bruce Smith. An annexation committee designated by the Nicholasville City Commission had recommended to that body that the land be annexed into the city limits, subject to the planning commission's approval of the zone change, Bruce Smith said.

A zone change to allow for a new 246-unit multi-family housing complex at East Brannon Road and Lauderdale Drive that developers say will be unique in Jessamine County received conditional approval Monday from the Nicholasville Planning Commission.  The zone change affects a little less than half of the 20 acres slotted for the estimated $23 million project, changing a little more than six acres from P-1 (professional district), and less than half an acre from R-1T (townhouse residential)

LEXINGTON¿ - Louisville didn't feel any pressure as the overall No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. The Cardinals (31-5) rolled to easy double-digit victories in the second and third round of the Big Dance while playing in front of mostly red and white clad fans at Rupp Arena and will take on Oregon in the Midwest Region semifinals in a 7:15 p.m. tipoff Friday night at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Despite never being threatened in the first two games of the tournament, Louisville's Luke Hancock said the Cardinals aren't completely satisfied.

After several years on the drawing board, engineers have identified eight possible zones that may be the route selected for the proposed connector road that will directly link Jessamine County to I-75 in Madison County. “From our professional judgement, these are the eight zones that would have the least impact on the area,” said Jerry Leslie, project engineer with the Lochner Design Team. The eight zones will be presented to the Citizens' Advisory Committee (CAC), made up of 19 public officials and residents from Jessamine, Fayette and Madison counties, on March 26 at Jessamine County Cooperative Extension Office near the fairgrounds.

CAUTION! You are about to enter the Twilight Zone. doo, doo, doo, doo. … I have enjoyed reading recent letters from various writers about the wonders of ObamaScare. As I have read them, I have wondered where these people went to school; did they graduate? And I have been reminded of a TV series in the late 20th century, “The Twilight Zone.”  I watched a couple of episodes in the 1980s, and they were either tragic or comedic. I don't remember much about them, but I do remember they were about things that were not real, but they appeared to be, on TV. In one or maybe two of the letters, the writer(s)

Some city officials say they want to see more work done before signing off on a key piece of the Danville-Boyle County Planning and Zoning Commission's five-year comprehensive plan. Danville City Commission voted 3-2 last week against approval of P&Z's goals and objectives when the group's director Paula Bary presented them to the commission.  Bary acknowledged the only significant changes made to the goals and objectives since the last version were the dates and removal of references to Junction City, which has dropped out of P&Z. Bary said there was a public hearing on the document July 3 - attended by Mayor Bernie Hunstad, one of the “no” votes - where the public had the opportunity to offer input.

STANFORD - Lincoln Fiscal Court has approved changes to its planning and zoning ordinance intended to make county regulations more business-friendly. Planning and Zoning attorney Jeff Ralston told magistrates Tuesday that relaxing the requirements for paving parking lots and other spaces used by vehicles would lower costs for new businesses and simplify enforcement for the county. "We have worked with the current ordinance for several years. We have found that it doesn't suit our situation in many instances," Ralston said.

The Winchester-Clark County Planning Commission denied a zone change request for a quarter-acre plot on West Broadway Tuesday. Paul King, owner of Paul & Son Auto Recyclers & Sales, requested the plot at 239 W. Broadway be re-zoned I-1 for light industrial use. Currently, the property is zoned R-4 for multi-family residential use. King said he wanted to use the property as an overflow lot for used cars. King operates a salvage yard on West Broadway, which is considered an industrial use. He said the lot would function as commercial property, and would not have any industrial use. Robert Blanton represented King at the public hearing and said King did not request B-3 zoning, highway business, because light industrial was more congruent with zoning in the area, and all B-3 uses are allowed within the light industrial zoning classification.

LEXINGTON - Kyle Wiltjer hit three 3-pointers - the fourth time he's done that in a game this season - during Kentucky's 79-49 win over Georgia Tuesday. The freshman is hitting 40 percent from 3-point range going into today's game at Florida. Here are thoughts he shared after UK's win over Georgia about the team as well as his play: Question: Do you remember the Old Dominion game back in November when a zone defense really stymied Kentucky's offense? Wiltjer: “We have come a long way, but we have put a lot of work in it. Back then that was the first time we saw zone, so we struggled a little bit in it. Coach Cal has done a great job with zone offense and we have really picked up on it. Not only when we are shooting the ball well, but we can throw the lobs on the back line.