Lexington gives green light to new Wawa, apartments and mixed use development

Wawa will soon be coming to Lexington.

The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council voted 11-1 Tuesday to approve a zone change from a highway business zone and agricultural zone to a community development zone for a Wawa, apartments, townhouses and a restaurant off of Athens Boonesboro Road near Jacobson Park.

Neighbors of the 4075 Old Richmond Road project opposed the zone change, saying the apartments and townhomes were too large and traffic in the area was already problematic. Dozens of people spoke against the zone change during the four-hour meeting.

The Urban County Planning Commission voted 8-2 in August to approve the zone change for approximately 8 acres.

The city’s planning staff recommended approval of the zone change.

Anderson Communities’ proposal includes townhouses and five, four-story tall apartment buildings on the property for a total of 139 living units.

The property, which also fronts Athens Boonesboro Road, would have a convenience store and gas station on the Athens Boonesboro Road side as well as a restaurant. The plans call for 184 parking spaces.

Wawa, which started in Wawa, Penn., is known for its food and coffee, selling more coffee per day than Starbucks, Wawa officials have said. Hoagies and sub sandwiches also are top sellers.

There will be eight gas pumps.

A Wawa has been approved in northern Jessamine County. Another store has been approved in Louisville. Wawa has said it plans to open 40 stores in Kentucky over the next eight to 10 years, said Lisa Corpus, a Wawa representative.

“We have a cult-like following,” she said.

The apartment buildings would be located toward the center and back of the property, said Dick Murphy, a lawyer for Anderson Communities. The two-story townhomes will be on the perimeter of the property.

A restaurant has not yet been named, he said.

Murphy said they have reduced the number of apartments due to concerns from neighbors. There will be a swimming pool, dog park, indoor fitness facility, a central lawn and walking trails.

The 2018 Comprehensive Plan recommends more dense developments along major corridors, Murphy said. The roughly 8 acres is in the expansion area, which was part of the more than 5,000 acres added to the urban service boundary in 1996. The community center zone in the expansion area allows for a mix of commercial and residential development.

Traffic changes

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, which oversees Athens Boonesboro Road, is proposing putting an “R”-cut at the intersection of Athens Boonesboro Road and Aphids Way.

The R-cuts are designed for right-turns only, city engineers said. People leaving Aphids Way will only be able to turn right toward the interstate. A signaled intersection not far from the Aphids Way R-cut will allow people to make a U-turn back to town.

There will be two entrances into the Anderson development from Aphids Way, Murphy said. As part of the transportation cabinet plans, Aphids Way will be re-aligned and widened.

“This was not planned by Anderson Communities, we are adapting our plans to the R-cuts,” Murphy said.

The R-cuts are designed to avoid collisions at major intersections. In some areas, they have decreased crashes by as much as 84%, city engineers have said.

Old Richmond Road, which runs behind the property, will eventually be closed between Richmond Road and Aphids Way as part of the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s plans, Murphy said.

Anderson’s development will not be built until the R-cut project is completed. Murphy said he was told state highway officials should begin buying easements for the project soon. Construction on the road project could begin as early as spring and will take 18 months to be completed, likely the end of 2025, city officials said.

Others who oppose the development told the council the apartment buildings were too tall and would change the character of the neighborhood. Some neighbors also worried about additional traffic on sections of Old Richmond Road and Jacks Creek Pike.

Elisabeth Jensen operates a farm off of Old Richmond Road that sells to local restaurants.

“This will affect our ability to load cattle trucks,” Jensen said. “This is not the right project for this area.”

Alston Kerr, who lives in the area, said the neighborhood has pushed back against the state’s proposal to put in R-cuts. The traffic into and out of the development is based on those R-cuts going in.

“I think it’s going to go on pause,” Kerr said of the state’s proposed changes at Athens Boonesboro Road.

Neighbors push back

Bruce Simpson, a lawyer who represents members of the Old Richmond Road Neighborhood Association, said an expansion area master plan developed in 1996 clearly shows that area should be low-density housing — or roughly three houses per acre.

“It has not been changed,” he said of the 1996 expansion area master plan, and the city must follow it.

The 2018 Comprehensive Plan, which determines what development can go where, calls for amending the expansion area master plan three different times. “It’s not been done,” he said.

Anderson Communities must amend the expansion area master plan first to change the density of the housing there, he said.

“You have to follow the law,” Simpson said. “The map shows low-density housing.”

Murphy argued there have been many changes to the 1996 plans.

For instance, Cabela’s was not originally proposed for the expansion area around Polo Club Boulevard. Proposed campuses for Baptist Health and University of Kentucky Healthcare on Polo Club Boulevard were also originally not allowed in the 1996 master plan, Murphy said.

Bo Fisher, an engineer with Shield Environmental Associates, an expert hired by Old Richmond Road Neighborhood Association, also said there are concerns about having a gas station in an area that is so close to the Jacobson reservoir, which supplies some of the city’s water.

In 2022, there were 397 gas spills reported in Kentucky and 24 were in Fayette County, Fisher said. The proposed gas station would be in the drainage area for Jacobson reservoir.

Wawa has had zero underground gas storage leaks since it started serving gas in 1980s, Corpus said. It has an excellent of reputation with the Environmental Protection Agency, she said.

‘Encroachment’ or ‘needed middle housing’?

Daniel Crum, a senior planner, said the expansion area master plan can be changed. Many properties in the expansion areas have asked for different zone types than what was listed in the 1996 expansion area maps.

The 2018 Comprehensive Plan and the expansion area master plan must be looked at together, Crum said.

Councilwoman Kathy Plomin said the area is a “gateway from the city of Lexington to our rural area.”

Plomin was the only member to vote against the zone change.

Plomin represents much of the area.

“It’s an encroachment on the rural area,” Plomin said.

Councilwoman Whitney Elliott Baxter said it’s an infill project within the urban services area.

“This property has frontage on a major corridor,” Baxter said. Baxter said people want more housing but Fayette County can’t provide it because people are opposed to so many infill projects.

“I won’t be intimidated by anybody,” Baxter said.

Councilman Preston Worley said the land is part of the 1996 expansion area that has not been developed.

“This provides more housing while respecting the neighborhood,” Worley said, who lives in a nearby neighborhood. “We need housing of all types.”