Last year, we began a series breaking down the city’s newly adopted comprehensive plan, Imagine Lexington 2045 .
The 349-page plan focuses on long-term planning + urban growth to address the needs of all Lexingtonians. Pro-tip: Catch up on the first two iterations building + sustaining successful neighborhoods and protecting the environment .
The first lesson of 2024 brings us to the third theme: creating jobs and prosperity. More specifically, how livability, diversity, and prosperity can boost Lexington’s workforce.
🏠 Livability
Studies have long supported the correlation between quality of life and higher employment
, but how can the city support this? The plan lays out the following policies that aim to make Lexington more livable:
- Bolstering opportunities within agritourism while preserving + being mindful of our rural landscape
- Expanding sports tourism in east Lexington
- Improving downtown livability, by increasing access to transit and walkable paths for citizens
- Constructing more affordable housing
🤝 Diversity
Tapping into the diversity of our community can look like many things: promoting small business (which 63% of Lexingtonians are employed by), opening opportunities for disadvantaged communities, and creating a culture of inclusivity. Lexington hopes to do this by:
- Making better use of vacant office space + expanding incubators for small businesses and entrepreneurs
- Support funding + staffing for the Minority Business Enterprise Program , which bolsters minority-owned businesses
- Increasing infrastructure + reviewing zoning to support remote workers
💸 Prosperity
Happier workers means higher retention
, which leads to economic prosperity. But that also means being able to attract and retain top talent, which the city aims to do through:
- Promoting, hiring, and recruiting the local workforce
- Installing fiber-optic internet to improve availability + access
- Encouraging the use of locally-made services and products
- Collaborating with local entities to ensure the workforce has adequate access to affordable living, food, and transportation