April 23, 2024

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Today’s Forecast

68º | 15% chance of precipitation
Sunrise 6:50 a.m. | Sunset 8:21 p.m.

Civic engagement, meet Lexington

An upwards angle of a the Lexington Fayette Government Center building

The doors of civic engagement await you. | Photo by LEXtoday

Ever wanted to share your thoughts with our city council, but couldn’t find a way to make it to meetings? A new website is about to simplify the process.

Engage Lexington is a new platform that wants to do just that — engage the public. Here, Lexingtonians can provide comments, ideas, suggestions, and feedback as the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council makes decisions.

“Our responsibility as councilmembers involves both listening to constituent input about our city, and accurately informing the public about the issues and processes of governance,” Councilmember Hannah LeGris said. LeGris is the chairperson of the Council Public Input Subcommittee, which was established to learn about new ways for the public to take part in the government’s decisions.

From there, Engage Lexington was born. The website features different avenues to connect with the council including registration for public input, where your thoughts can be delivered online, by voicemail, or live during in-person meetings. Plus, you can also find progress on specific projects like short-term rental regulations and the proposed 2024-2025 budget, plus opportunities to share feedback.

Downtown Lexington with curly street lamps and the big blue building — Haivng your voice heard has never been easier thanks to Engage Lexington. | Photo by LEXtoday

Not only is this a platform for Lexingtonians to stay up-to-date on the happenings within council chambers, it also also provides a step-by-step process of how certain projects are worked through. For instance, there’s a fully fleshed timeline outlining the budget process, which includes:

A winter retreat where councilmembers can discuss priorities with the Mayor
The Mayor proposing the budget to council
The Committee of the Whole and councilmembers discussing the proposal
A public hearing on Thursday, May 9
Recommendations from the council due by Wednesday, May 15
Readings of the amended budget

All of this leads to the final vote on the budget, which must be in place by Sunday, June 30.

Asked

Will Engage Lexington encourage you to give council input?

A. Yes
B. No
C. Maybe, I’ll have to do more research

Let us know

Events

Tuesday, April 23

Public Art Workshop | Tuesday, April 23 | 5:30-7:30 p.m. | Pam Miller Downtown Arts Center, 141 E. Main St., Lexington | Free | Artists and organizations curious about participating in public arts projects can learn more about how to get involved.

Wednesday, April 24

Yappy Hour | Wednesday, April 24 | 6-8:30 p.m. | Phoenix Park, 100 E. Main St., Lexington | Free | Bring your furry bestie downtown to mingle with new four-legged friends while enjoying food trucks, music, frozen desserts, and cold drinks.

Thursday, April 25

Randy Feltface | Thursday, April 25-Saturday, April 27 | Times vary | Comedy Off Broadway, 161 Lexington Green Cir., Lexington | $25-$35 | See the purple puppet as he brings his surprisingly observational comedy to town.

Friday, April 26

Spring Night Market | Friday, April 26 | 5:30-9:30 p.m. | Pivot Brewing, 1400 Delaware Ave., Lexington | Price of purchase | Browse handmade accessories, vintage clothes, and other quirky goods while sipping on ciders.

Saturday, April 27

Same As It Ever Was: A Talking Heads Tribute | Saturday, April 27 | 8 p.m. | The Burl, 375 Thompson Rd., Lexington | $20-$25 | This must be the place to groove to the sounds of this iconic 1970s avant-funk band.

Sunday, April 28

Reflections: A Drag Show | Sunday, April 28 | 5-7 p.m. | Lyric Theatre and Cultural Arts Center, 300 E. 3rd St., Lexington | $7-$10 | The Lyric Theatre and Bluegrass Black Pride present this drag show featuring 20+ performers to benefit local scholarships.

Events calendar here

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Community

🐴 Meet your cutest “neigh-bors” during a horse farm tour

a gif featuring photos of people petting horses

In addition to previous winners, nine out of the top ten horses on the leaderboard for the Kentucky Derby have called Horse Country home. | Photos provided by Visit Horse Country; GIF by LEXtoday

Louisville may be home to the Kentucky Derby, but Horse Country is home to Kentucky Derby winners. Did you know that 115 out of 149 Kentucky Derby winners have been Kentucky-bred? And eight winners of the Kentucky Derby reside in Horse Country, including:

Mage, last year’s winner
Triple Crown winners American Pharoah and Justify
and Street Sense, the 2007 winner

Lexingtonians can get up close to some of racing’s best on a horse farm tour.

Explore options + book a tour

News Notes

Open

Get ready to shake, rattle, and roll. Shake n Crave is now open near campus at 535 S. Upper St., Ste. 175. You’ll have no problem satisfying your sweet tooth with treats like the Oreo crepe, pistachio waffles, or a 12-piece of Lokma, deep fried dough smothered in syrup.

Sports

Amari Willliams, the 6-ft-10-inch transfer from Drexel, has committed to Kentucky. Williams spent the weekend exploring Lexington and visiting Keeneland, where the three-time Coastal Athletic Association Defensive Player of the Year met with Coach Mark Pope. (LEX 18)

Shop

Need plans before Billy Strings’ two-night stint at Rupp Arena? The Void Sake Co. is hosting the Shakedown Street Market on Saturday, April 27, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Shop from vendors, get ink from the Keyhole Tattoo crew, and pre-game with Restless Leg String Band.

Pets

There’s no better way to welcome in the dog days of summer than with the annual Mutt Strut on June 8, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Fidos are invited to play, walk/run a 5K, and bring their owners along to browse vendors — all in support of the Lexington Humane Society.

Read

Looking for a bit of light reading during National Poetry Month? We recommend checking out these four poems written by our readers, which were submitted in our LEXtoday Poetry Contest. Then, vote on your favorite. We’ll announce the winner in a newsletter later this week.

Outdoors

According to the Old Farmer’s Almanac, the pink moon will take to LEX’s skies today at 7:49 p.m. The moon gets its name from its slightly pink-ish hue, as well as inspiration from April’s blooming wildflowers. (Lexington Herald-Leader)

Read

📖 Take a look, it’s in a book

Joseph-Beth Booksellers always has a dedicated section of Kentucky-based books. | Photo by LEXtoday

This Saturday, April 27 is Independent Bookstore Day, and Lexington booksellers are ready to celebrate all things literature. Support your neighborhood bookstore at these shops:

Black Swan Books, 505 E. Maxwell St.
This Woodland neighborhood book shop has been a champion of all things Kentuckiana and literature for over 30 years.

Glover’s Bookery, 862 S. Broadway
Explore over 80,000 volumes of books ranging from equestrian education to Kentucky history.

Joseph-Beth Booksellers | 161 Lexington Green Cir.
Throughout the day, visitors can enjoy free coffee + lemonade, a chance to win free books, children’s story hours, and more.

sQecial Media | 371 S. Limestone, Ste. 220
If you’re looking for anything metaphysical, spiritual, Charles Dickens, or cookbooks, sQecial Media has you covered.

The Buy

The Maizie Clarke Collection. If you’re looking for ways to prepare for the Kentucky Derby, this brand has the sweetest derby-inspired products.

The Wrap

Today’s edition by:
Aayat

From the editor

I couldn’t help but think of “Pink Moon” by Nick Drake when I was learning more about the actual pink moon. If you haven’t heard it and are a fan of folk, I can’t recommend it enough.

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