The CentrePointe project angers many Lexington locals

Downtown Lexington is home to many beautiful and spectacular places like Triangle Park and Rupp Arena. There can never be too much beauty for one place, and that is what CentrePointe was supposed to be for the city of Lexington.

Now there is the enormous hole where CentrePointe is supposed to be. Originally, CentrePointe was intended to be an integral part of the business sector related to the 2010 FEI World Equestrian Games. We now know that this did not happen.

While several architectural plans have been submitted and changed over the past eight years regarding this property, all of the plans have included commercial building spaces, as well as residential areas. At this time, a partially completed three-level underground parking garage is the only proof the project has even began.

For the development of CentrePointe, construction workers had to tear down Morton’s Row, which was the city’s second oldest commercial district. In addition, one of Lexington’s most popular hotspots, The Dame, was housed within the destroyed buildings, which led to a major outlash from locals. Lexingtonians were livid at this chain of events and are still livid because there is nothing to show for.

Many citizens are looking to the city government to solve this issue but the city’s hands are tied, as it is a private development project. However, at one time the city did negotiate with the property owners, The Webb Company, and both parties agreed that if the developers do not work on the site within any 60-day period, then the city is permitted to fill the hole in to restore it to its original grassy field. With the grassy field, downtown would look a lot cleaner and maybe the land could be used for festivals or other activities.

As of late, the developers have publicly stated that they are continuing work on the project, as they’ve already spent $28.0 million. While it appears they’ve struggled with securing financing for the project, as several financial backers have pulled out of the project over the years, they are now directly blaming the city for making it difficult for them to gain investors.

The city council has questioned the Webb Company’s intentions on several occasions, but states it only interfered when it appeared taxpayers were at risk. Meanwhile, there have been multiple campaigns on social media to suggest more attractive ways to develop the space, including the idea of building a public park or an amphitheater.

With the hope of work restarting at the site soon, the Webb Company issued a public statement, declaring they would not be utilizing the property for anything other than business purposes; specifically stating the ideas of a park or amphitheater being built would never be a consideration.

While a public park or amphitheater would be great in downtown Lexington, a parking garage would be very helpful with the growing population of the city. Whatever the Webb Company is planning on doing, they better do it quickly before the citizens of Lexington speak up.