Yes to Parks? Group pushing for new tax for Lexington’s 100 parks launches campaign

A group pushing for a new property tax to help pay for capital improvements in Lexington’s 100 parks launched its official campaign Wednesday.

Under the towering trees of Woodland Park near downtown Lexington, the “Yes For Parks!” campaign unveiled its efforts to persuade Fayette County residents to vote in favor of a new tax that the group says would generate up to $8 million per year.

Woodland Park was an appropriate place for the launch of the initiative. It’s one of Lexington’s first parks, designated as a park in 1904.

“And it has been one of the central heartbeats of our city for over the past century and I think there’s an opportunity to make it a gathering place for the next century,” said Griffin VanMeter, one of multiple supporters who have signed on to the Yes To Parks campaign.

More than 90 businesses and community leaders, including VanMeter, are supporting the effort that would cost the average homeowner about $52 in additional taxes per year.

The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council voted unanimously in April to allow voters to decide Nov. 5 whether to support the additional tax. If approved by Lexington’s voters, it will be the first new taxing district created in more than 20 years.

During Wednesday’s press conference, speakers discussed the importance of the city’s green spaces and consistent funding for them.

Victoria Meyer is the chairwoman of the parks advisory board, a city board that helps advise the parks department on various issues. Meyer, a founder of the parks ballot initiative, is also a retired community health nurse. Parks provide play spaces for all of Lexington kids to exercise, play sports, grow and get away from screens. But parks are also important for seniors.

“Some people say we have an epidemic of loneliness and parks are places — some call it the living room of our community — where people can gather,” Meyer said. “Finally, those in the workforce need a place to reduce stress.”

Former Lexington-Fayette Urban County Councilwoman Jennifer Mossotti said if the city has surpluses, council members typically put that money toward parks due to constant maintenance needs and changes in recreation. For example, the city is in the midst of a pickle ball court-building spree due to the surge in the popularity of the sport during COVID.

Mossotti is also a real estate agent. Green spaces, up-to-date parks and trail systems, she said, are what companies want when they are looking to relocate or start a businesses.

“When we look at site selection for jobs for companies, we look at recreation. We look at parks,” Mossotti said. Great parks are key to “keeping our city vibrant and growing.”

A 2018 Lexington parks master plan identified more than $123 million in improvements fore more than 400 projects. The $8 million a year will help chip away at those needs, said David Lowe, who is on the parks advisory board and helped spear-efforts to get the parks tax on the ballot.

The dedicated tax will only pay for capital improvements. It will not pay city parks and recreation staff salaries or other operating expenses. For the fiscal year that ended June 30, the parks department’s total budget was $27 million.

Most ballot initiatives supporting parks are successful

Roughly 83% of similar ballot initiatives that designate taxes to parks or green spaces have passed, said Lowe.

Still, this year’s effort will likely face some opposition from voters. The merged government’s portion of local property taxes is a small percentage of overall property taxes. The bulk of those property taxes go to the Fayette County Public School district, which has raised property taxes multiple times over the past decade. To boot, home values have skyrocketed, driving up property tax bills.

Lowe said they have spent months talking to business leaders and members of the community and have met little resistance.

“I think folks in Lexington in particular are really enthusiastic and excited to invest more in our parks,” Lowe said.

Yes To Parks has already raised close to $200,000 and is planning to raise $300,000. Lowe said they will be at this weekend’s Woodland Art Fair, other community events and plan to run advertisements leading up to Nov. 5.