Fayette Alliance Blog

Local Food is a Big Deal

By Knox van Nagell | August 3rd, 2011 | See all in Fayette Alliance Blog

Chef and restaurant owner Ouita Michel | Photo by Robbie Clark | BizLex.com

Slow & Steady: A conversation with local chef and restaurant owner Ouita Michel

By France Figart, 7.7.11, BizLex.com

Lexington, KY – One can’t have lived in Kentucky and been interested in local cuisine for very long and not have become familiar with the name Ouita Michel (pronounced Wee-ta My-kal). She and her husband, Chris, own and operate the historic and critically acclaimed Holly Hill Inn in Midway, Ky., the popular Wallace Station Deli and Bakery just outside Midway and Windy Corner Market and Restaurant in Lexington. Michel also serves as chef-in-residence at Woodford Reserve Distillery outside Versailles. She has been featured in radio, television and print and has appeared in publications such as Bon Appetit, Food & Wine, Wine Spectator and Southern Living.

Michel recently joined Business Lexington contributing writer Frances Figart to discuss her work and the state of Kentucky’s local food economy… Read the interview at BizLex.com

LIFE Zone Initiative Envisions a Healthy Local Food Economy

Mayor’s Healthy Hometown, Louisville Putting Prevention to Work Parner News, 8.2.11

The CDC has given approval for a new addition to the LPPW stable of strategies for creating a healthier Louisville.

The LIFE Zone project is designed to create a more integrated food economy in Louisville. That means more food will be grown and processed locally, eliminating transportation and storage costs and bringing fresher, healthier food to Louisville’s consumers. The LIFE Zone (Local Integrated Food Economy) will be a planned development district in the Shippingport/Portland neighborhood located just west of downtown along the Ohio River (see map below). Special permits and incentives will be given to businesses and non-profit organizations involved in the production, processing and distribution of healthy food. The zoning category will allow uses such as greenhouses and distribution facilities…View a PDF of the newsletter to read more

Learn More,

Slow Food Bluegrass

Tags: Health Initiatives, LIFE Zone, local food, Louisville, Ouita Michel, slow food, Sustainability No Comments »

Lexington Proposes Study of One-Way vs. Two-Way Streets

By Knox van Nagell | August 1st, 2011 | See all in Fayette Alliance Blog

Main Street in Downtown Lexington

One Way or Another: Debate returns over one-way versus two-way traffic in downtown — $465,000 study in the offing

by Erik Carlson, 7.21.11, BizLex.com

Lexington, KY - While discussions about the direction of traffic in Lexington’s downtown have gone back and forth over the past few decades, traffic has not. It’s headed just one-way throughout the core of the region’s business district.

When Mayor Jim Gray served as vice mayor, he pushed for the quick transition of three pairs of one-way streets through the downtown to become two-way thouroughfares. Now as mayor, Gray and his administration are about to embark on a $465,000 study of converting Lexington’s one-way thoroughfares into two-way roads, with the aim of making the downtown district more a destination than a pass-through

“There’s never been a complete cost analysis and complete traffic flow analysis of what going to two-way streets will do. There’s been some piecemeal studies, but there’s never been a total comprehensive study,” said Geoff Reed, Gray’s senior advisor for policy and government relations…Read more at BizLex.com

Tags: downtown, Mayor Gray, One-Way Streets, Traffic, Two-Way Streets No Comments »

Alliance Helps Bring Omar Blaik to Lexington… Will You Help Too?

By Knox van Nagell | July 18th, 2011 | See all in Community Outreach, Fayette Alliance Blog, How We've Made a Difference

Omar Blaik, president of U3 Ventures, and Henry Ford Health System CEO Nancy Schlichting bask in a beautiful day in Midtown Detroit at the Avalon Bakery on Tuesday. They are working on Midtown's resurgence. | KATHLEEN GALLIGAN | Detroit Free Press

Omar Blaik: Universities and Communities Working Together

Bluegrass Community Foundation, 7.14.11

As Lexington and the Anchor Institutions have grown over the years it has impacted the Universities, the city, and the region. It is time for us band together and recognize we are interdependent and look at how we can move our economy, sustainability, community, regional health, and Anchor Institutions toward excellence. A first step it to hire Omar Blaik of U3 Ventures, a consultant, to help us with a road map for success.

Anchor institutions, better known as higher education institutions and healthcare facilities, are an often-overlooked as an integral part of communities and regions they occupy and vice versa. These institutions, which hire and employ thousands and purchase hundreds of millions of dollars in goods and services annually, can have an important economic and physical impact on their surrounding neighborhoods and host cities. In addition the health and economy of the host communities and neighborhoods impact these institutions. Working together benefits everybody.

Lexington and its anchor institutions – The University of Kentucky, The UK Healthcare campus, and Transylvania University and BCTCS- are inextricably linked to each other and the fate and destiny of all are critical to each other’s success. While these anchors and the city are geographically linked, they have neither unlocked the potential economic opportunity, nor developed a sustainable physical connection associated with a truly integrated campus and community.

Omar Blaik, President and CEO of U3 Ventures have a track record of turning ideas into reality for campuses and communities across our country. U3 Ventures proposed to start working in June 2011 with the City of Lexington and its anchor institutions to define and implement a strategy that will leverage the institutions’ economic impact and improve the quality of life for all residents. They envision this engagement as a long-term partnership that begins with the first phase being a thorough analysis of the local context, and a definition of the potential impact of coordinated economic development strategies.

Our community is ready to move forward with this progressive proposal. To do so we need your help. Please join the University of Kentucky, the Blue Grass Community Foundation, and Transylvania University, BCTCS, citizens across Lexington and the region as we join together in supporting this effort .

With your contribution our future starts today. This link will allow you to make an on-line contribution or get information for sending a check through Bluegrass Community Foundation. All contributions are tax deductible and any amount will be appreciated.

For More Information,

“Penn Offers Example of Effective Town-Gown Integration,” 3.18.11. FayetteAlliance.com

“Town and Gown III: The University-Neighborhood Connection”, by Omar Blaik, 2.16.11, 2011 Lafayette Seminar in Public Issues

2011 Lafayette Seminar “Town and Gown III: The University-Neighborhood Connection”, 2.15.11, FayetteAlliance.com

Tags: BCTC, Bluegrass Community Foundation, lexington, Omar Blaik, Town and Gown, Transylvania University, U3 Ventures, University of Kentucky 1 Comment »

5th Annual Bluegrass International Cup: An Incredible Success!

By Knox van Nagell | July 14th, 2011 | See all in Events, Fayette Alliance Blog, Past Events

The Fayette Alliance and Bluegrass Conservancy would like to thank our sponsors and patrons for making this year’s Bluegrass International Cup the best yet! Over seven hundred people came out to support farmland preservation and sustainable growth in the Bluegrass, and enjoyed an exciting polo match between Team USA and Team South Africa, delicious food, good cheer and libations, and live music by Motown band 24/7. We are incredibly appreciative of the community’s support, and look forward to a wonderful event next year!

Team USA, Winners of the 5th Annual Bluegrass International Cup

On Saturday, July 16th 2011 tent patrons and tailgaters gathered to watch Team USA and Team South Africa square off to raise money for Bluegrass Conservancy and The Fayette Alliance at the 5th Annual Bluegrass International Cup at Polo in the Park presented by UK HealthCare.

Visit polobenefit.com to learn more.

5th Annual Bluegrass International Cup from Bluegrass International Cup on Vimeo.

Thank you to our sponsors,

Title Sponsor-

Team South Africa –

Team USA –

Platinum Sponsors – Three Available

Gold Sponsors – Multiple Available

Silver Sponsors –Multiple Available

John Phillips Racing

Sequoia Farm

Tailgating Sponsors –Multiple Available

Media Sponsors-

In-Kind Sponsors –

Click Here to to learn more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities at the 5th Annual Bluegrass International Cup at Polo in the Park.

Photos from last year’s event.

Learn More.

For more information please contact Charlene Mingus at charlene@fayettealliance.com or (859) 281-1202

Tags: Bluegrass Conservancy, Bluegrass International Cup, Polo, Polo In The Park, South Africa, UK Healthcare, USA No Comments »

Dudley’s Uses Innovative Adaptive Reuse to Create Rooftop Patio

By Knox van Nagell | July 13th, 2011 | See all in Fayette Alliance Blog

Debby Long, owner of Dudley's at her new location on Short St. in Lexington, Ky., Thursday, April 1, 2010 | Photo by Pablo Alcala, Lexington Herald-Leader Staff

The Fayette Alliance congratulates Alliance Board Member Debbie Long, owner of Dudley’s on Short, on the opening of the new rooftop patio. Dudley’s is adaptive reuse at it’s best!

Up on the Roof: Dudley’s takes its dining experience to the top

by Lissa Sims, 7.7.11, BizLex.com

Lexington, KY – A picnic may sound fabulous, but often it only seems that way while planning it. In fact, swatting mosquitoes while sitting on the ground, juggling a flimsy paper plate and a paper cup, may not be one’s idea of fun after all.

The best part of a picnic is breaking the rules by eating outside. It is special, in the same way that eating pancakes for dinner is special when you are eight.

The newly opened rooftop patio at Dudley’s offers all the joy that comes from eating outside with none of the hassle. Eating outdoors is most pleasant when dining at a table — preferably with tablecloths and china, while someone else serves and cleans up… Read more at BizLex.com

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Who We Are

The Fayette Alliance is your voice at city-hall advocating for sustainable growth in Lexington…to achieve a world-class city in our world-class Bluegrass landscape.

Since 2006, the Alliance has worked with local government to usher over 50 major land-use policies into law that promote farmland preservation and our signature agricultural industries, responsible development, and improved water quality and infrastructure in Fayette County.

We are charting Lexington's future by positively impacting local zoning and policy decisions—the very building blocks of our community. Although many challenges still remain, we are accomplishing sustainable growth in Fayette County for a better quality of life, economy, and environment for all of us.