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A painter friend of mine was hired to paint the interiors of newly-constructed McMansions in a rather prominent subdivision off Tates Creek Road, about fifteen or twenty years ago. He resigned after painting a couple of houses, as he soon realized how very cheaply and badly the houses were constructed, and the foreman was not happy that he was painstaking, using the best quality paints and working carefully.
Rather than be associated with shoddy work, my friend quit. Kudos to him. Would that everyone were so conscientious about their work.
Well they're not all poorly constructed, sheesh.
Ever hear of Jimmy Nash Homes? They are very well built houses.
I did say, "would that everyone were so conscientious about their work", InLondon. No doubt some of those involved in the building trade ARE conscientious and do outstanding work, just as did my friend. Why are you so defensive about those who clearly did NOT do good work?
Right now, I'm dealing with a leaky ceiling on a fifteen-year-old addition to my 70+ year old house, constructed by a supposedly reputable remodeling company. The ceiling is drywall, and without my knowledge, the tape was left on around the edges of the ceiling when it was painted. Now water is getting in around my brick fireplace's border with the ceiling. It's a mess, and will cost me time, inconvenience, and $$$ to repair correctly. No doubt the company who did the work will disclaim all responsibility. Meanwhile, the 70 year old original portion of the house is just fine - no leaks anywhere, the plaster walls are fine, and while its roof is older than that of the addition and will need to be replaced within the next two years, there are no leaks at all.
I've also had to have the addition's roof's connection with the brick chimney repeatedly sealed to attempt to stop the leaks which are affecting the incorrectly done ceiling.
It all looked great initially, and I did my homework about this company, whose workmen did show up on time, were mannerly, kept my property clean, etc. - it's just that someone's work was incorrectly done and the foreman didn't catch it, evidently. That's two issues - for which I am now paying the price. I doubt if I am the only one, as many of the workmen who were involved in the addition/remodel of my house also worked in new construction.
People need to take pride in their work and correct any errors for which they bear responsibility.
Ummmmmm, they are building an ice skating rink downtown.....the same people that built the one at Rockefeller Center in NYC are building this one. It's almost finished being built.
Some things Lexington has working against + some decisions that were made that would be hard to reverse such as:
No waterfront attraction; some of my favorite cities have nice waterfront attractions & offer very nice places to just walk around.
We probably could have toned down Hamburg and focused more on downtown but now we have Hamburg as a destination for some residents and many visitors; it detracts from downtown traffic and money that could have been spent there.
No interstates going through the city (which I understand was to preserve the horse farm area) + no traffic grid; both lead to a lot of traffics on streets w/tons of stoplights. Lexington doesn't have heavy snarling traffic you might find in bigger cities but it is a very annoying place to drive (although they have supposedly tried to implement some improvements w/a new traffic mgt system).
It's a mid-size tweener city 1) we aren't going to attract nice venues @ Rupp altough occasionally we get one here & there; most will go to L'vill or Cincy. 2) more expensive and fewer flight options.
IMO we can go on about commuter rails but I doubt it would be cost effective. I don't even see many people using the bike lanes so we can talk about adding more (and we have) but where's the demand? You see high demand in big cities for such offerings b/c it's expensive to park in the city, tons of people work downtown, the spaces are few and it's a hassle. Not as much of a case in Lexington.
Easy zoning that happened over the real estate boom; many houses were built in record time to cash in on the buying frenzy & now you have huge tracts of nearly identical houses w/o anything nice to break up the eye sore. It's ugly.
It def feels like the Bible Beltish & has tons of churches
Things that could be done just off the top of my head:
A) Personally, I would like to see Lexington diversify the economy a bit more. People say we have a great economy and point to low unemployment but it is heavily built around education & healthcare & some service businesses. We don't seem to harvest any of the talent from UK & people move on. I think we lack high tech jobs & could do much better. Coldstream largely seems to be a bust thus far and perhaps UK just doesn't offer enough research capabilities.
A long time ago, city officials in Austin and Raleigh-Dur set up some policy that would attract high tech companies & jobs. Slowly, over time, it worked & both places have great economies w/high paying jobs and diverse talent pools. They have been able to attract some residents from out of state - people looking to escape CA, for example, which adds to diversity. They were able to do all that in addition to the employment colleges and universities offer.
B) do something w/CentrePointe; the city idiots wrecked the area for months, harmed business traffic in downtown and shut down The Dame (a local business many loved for its live music) for an empty lot w/a fence around it. Nice move!
C) turn Southland Dr into a place like the Highlands/Frankfort Ave/St Matthews in L'ville. Southland has quite a few little indie businesses already there, caters to some hipsters w/Good Foods, is in a older area w/decent homes & huge trees, right near a couple of high schools, offers the Farmer's Mkt on Sundays, etc. But it also has some dumpy looking and nearly vacant looking commercial buildings. I think, with more city support and effort, Southland could be a very neat little area but is often overlooked as a place to go in favor of downtown bars, the mall, Hamburg, Lex Green, etc.
D) we always hear about how there are job openings at all these companies but they often say the workforce is not trained to do the job they need filled. Figure out what skills all these companies need and offer solid programs that will prepare a person to fill the job @ Bluegrass Tech. I'm a big believer in community college and tech schools & all the offerings there seem dated + seem to be the same offerings you find in every state. Be different, think different.
E) ramp up tourism marketing towards Bourbon Tours. Attract tourism dollars, diversify the economy, create jobs & companies in Lexington that offer packages so people have nothing to worry about but arriving, touring, buying and drinking. The bourbon tours are actually nice experiences, people who appreciate the drink would go for it. I have seen the tours/trail mentioned in a few magazines but oftentimes when I see a marketing ad for Lexington it's just a pic of a horse + a website or phone number. That's not real aggressive.
F) whatever happens w/the idea of a new arena (or not), keep it downtown!
G) don't construct any more parks next to smelly water treatment plants, it can kind of take away from the pleasantries of being outside
Once again we have the same old complaints of what individuals feel is missing or wrong about Lexington. It always seems to be that the infamous "they" either have done something wrong or have not done what is thought to be right. I keep seeing a smattering of supposedly entitled youth want someone else to make the city to suit their wants/desires.
The question in the topic line is not "How can they make our city better?", but "How can WE make Lexington better? WE all have gifts and talents yet we casually sit back and wait for the "magic" to be performed where our city is desirable to everyone. What efforts will each of us, as individuals, go to in order to make the changes that we each would like to see.
If there is something "missing", then what are you doing to fill the gap? I if the Distillery District or Southland Dr need enhancement, what are you doing to give other shop owners a reason to invest there? If you think that more people should be riding in the bike lanes or on transit, are you cycling or using Lextran more than your auto?
Change does not come about because we ask for it, but because we individuals provide that something that someone else asked for.
If there is something "missing", then what are you doing to fill the gap? I if the Distillery District or Southland Dr need enhancement, what are you doing to give other shop owners a reason to invest there?
I spend $ @ the Southland pubs/eateries. There is already an association. Maybe they just need someone to do a better job promoting it.
If you think that more people should be riding in the bike lanes or on transit, are you cycling or using Lextran more than your auto?
I have used bike lanes before recreationally but do not use 'em on a daily basis as a commuter might. I don't care to use Lextran and it's not something I am begging to use. I think most just like the sound of it. I have a fuel efficient car (ULEV) and I use it more than anything.
Like I have said before, the thing/s I would like to see most aren't gonna happen. It's still not a bad mid-sized city.
IMO we can go on about commuter rails but I doubt it would be cost effective. I don't even see many people using the bike lanes so we can talk about adding more (and we have) but where's the demand? You see high demand in big cities for such offerings b/c it's expensive to park in the city, tons of people work downtown, the spaces are few and it's a hassle. Not as much of a case in Lexington.
Biking in a city doesn't work like that. You have to build the road before the car will drive on it, you have to build bike lanes that go places before people will ride on them.
Biking in a city doesn't work like that. You have to build the road before the car will drive on it, you have to build bike lanes that go places before people will ride on them.
You missed my statement of - we have built bikes lanes and I don't see many people using 'em. So when will people start using the lanes we have already built? It's not cost effective to tear up a road, add a bike lane & pave it again if there's no demand.
Since you don't seem to be very familiar with Lexington I will help you. How many bike lanes have you used? Probably none since it doesn't come close to your parent's house in Nicholasville so Lexington fails, right?
Last edited by easydoesit; 11-18-2011 at 06:42 AM..
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