Advocacy Alert: Mint Lane Pump Station

The Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government is currently evaluating how and where to make upgrades to the Mint Lane Pump Station.

• Until last year, LFUCG was planning to upgrade the Mint Lane pump station in its current location to comply with the EPA Consent Decree.

• As a result of a proposal from a private landowner, LFUCG is also exploring relocating this infrastructure to land located outside the Urban Service Boundary (USB).

• This is concerning because placing taxpayer-funded, city-serving infrastructure outside the USB goes against Lexington-Fayette County policies that have been in place since 1958, which is to keep urban services inside the USB.

Click the button below to email our Councilmembers about this issue, and keep reading for full details. ⬇️

Full Details

The Mint Lane pump station needs to be upgraded and expanded by approximately one acre to meet the requirements of the EPA Consent Decree.

• Dig Deeper: In 2006, the EPA sued the City of Lexington for violating the Clean Water Act. The City did not adequately update its infrastructure while rapidly growing, and the aging sewer system was releasing raw sewage into streams.
• Consider: Neighborhoods are still dealing with the effects of irresponsible growth from more than two decades ago.

The Mint Lane pump station is currently located behind Dunbar High School and could be updated and expanded in its current location. This will involve  LFUCG purchasing the additional acreage (~ 1 acre) needed from Fayette County Public Schools.

• However: A proposal was brought forward last fall to consider re-locating the pump station to a property located outside the USB and owned by Mill Ridge Farm on Bowman Mill Road.

LFUCG allocated $2M for a site analysis to study the feasibility, costs, and environmental impacts of the infrastructure location options.

• Results: The study ultimately shows that expanding the pump station in its current location would be the cheapest option.

Additionally, the study specifically states that an acknowledged risk of moving the pump station is the potential to expand the USB an additional 500 acres.

• This is in direct conflict with the recently adopted LP&GMP Fayette Alliance supported passing just a few months ago, in February 2026, to guide future decisions about the USB.

Council will learn more about the results of this study and all other options available for updating the Mint Lane pump station at the Council Work Session on Tuesday, April 14th at 3 p.m.

Concerns

Historically, Lexington-Fayette County’s policy has been to keep urban service infrastructure inside the USB.

• A few exceptions have been made for community driven-purposes, businesses, and landmark institutions, including Keeneland, Bluegrass Stockyards, and the Kentucky Horse Park. In those instances, Council passed a resolution approving the placement of the infrastructure outside the USB.

This instance is different because the infrastructure can be upgraded at its current location and the additional cost of relocation is being driven and lobbied for by private parties.

• Important detail: The same landowner lobbying for this infrastructure to be relocated on their property, which is located outside the USB, also lobbied for their property to be included inside the USB during the 2023 expansion process.

Here’s What We Think

Cave Creek features two different underground springs and unique karst topography that could potentially be impacted by constructing a new pump station on Bowman Mill Road.

• Council should vote to affirm its longstanding policy that city infrastructure should be located inside the USB.
• Relocating the Mint Lane Pump Station to another location outside the USB undermines the USB itself, the recently adopted P&GMP, permits private interests to guide taxpayer funded infrastructure investment, and indirectly and directly supports expansion of the USB in the location of the proposed infrastructure investment.
• The Mint Lane pump station should not be relocated to private property outside the USB because it can be expanded in its current location to serve the community’s needs.
• Our community and its resources should focus on developing inside the current USB, updating its infrastructure to meet existing community needs, and utilizing the land it has for development in the most efficient way possible.

Get Involved

We hope you will consider attending the Work Session on Tuesday, April 14th at 3 p.m.

• Pro tip: Arrive by 2:30 p.m. to get a seat in Council Chambers and sign-up for public comment

If you can’t attend the meeting, please consider writing to your Councilmembers about this important development taking shape at City Hall.

• Click the button below to make your voice heard — it only takes 60 seconds.