Lexington, KY and suburbs (Louisville, Owensboro: neighborhoods, property tax, commute)

[TPetty]

Does Lexington have suburbs?

[LEXpert]

Not really. We have suburban areas, which is just the newer outskirts of town. I don't know how most people define suburbs, but I tend to think of something like Louisville with St. Matthews, Shivley, etc around it. The closest thing we have to a suburb is Nicholasville, IMO.

[blossom4792]

I consider myself to be in a "suburban-type" neighborhood, although I may not technically be in suburbs, depending on the definition. I'm in Fayette County, but close to Jessamine County (Nicholasville) in the SW quadrant. I think as soon as you get outside "New Circle Road/4" you hit a lot of neighborhoods resembling suburban settings.

[EclecticEars]

Lexington doesn't really have suburbs, except for northern Jessamine County/Nicholasville (US 27, US 68, Brannon Road corridors).

Lexington is basically a suburban-feeling community outside of its central core. All of these developments are encompassed by the city of Lexington (urban service area, lol.)

It does have more exurban communities, well detached from the central core of Lexington, yet still very close-by and resembling decent-sized suburbs. These communities heavily rely on property tax dollars from residents that commute, for the most part, to Lexington. They also have their own central historic districts unlike many "soulless" American suburbs. Examples include Georgetown (pop. 23000), Winchester (17000), Richmond (33000), Lawrenceburg (10000), and Berea (10000). (I don't count Frankfort, it's more reliant on itself and state government.)

[timelesschild]

jcm is correct. You can drive to the small bedroom communities - easy 20-30 minute commute - and be in small town/suburban towns on all sides. What makes them seem like not-suburbs is the beautiful farmland you cross to get to them.

Blossom and Lexpert are also correct - there are thick fringes of newer development all the way around Lexington, especially on the south and east sides. Very, very, very suburban.

[EclecticEars]

Yeah, Louisville (i.e. St. Matthews,) Covington/Newport (i.e. Florence,) and to a lesser extent Ashland (i.e. Russell) and Paducah (i.e. Lone Oak) are the only three areas of Kentucky that have definition "suburbs." By that, I mean communities that are first- or second-ring yet label themselves differently from the core city.

Lexington doesn't have "true" suburbs except for Nicholasville, as pretty much the whole city away from Chevy Chase and Downtown is suburban in nature.

Owensboro, Bowling Green, and Elizabethtown doesn't have real suburbs, either.