Author: Tom Eblen

Correction: Mentelle Mardi Gras is Saturday at 1 p.m.

The annual Mentelle Mardi Gras celebration begins at 1 p.m. Saturday in the second median of Mentelle Park.  This year’s event will feature the Yellow Dog Jazz Band playing dixieland music on the porch of trumpeter Andrew Mooney, 24 Mentelle Park.

There will be New Orleans food and plenty of beads. Bring your own drinks and chairs to enjoy the music. Costumes are encouraged. Kids who parade with decorated bikes and wagons will be eligible for prizes. (It will be over in plenty of time to watch the Cats play Gonzaga in Rupp Arena at 4 p.m.)

The celebration is free for Mentelle neighborhood residents and their families. Donations accepted to help pay for the band and decorations. If you aren’t a member of the Mentelle Neighborhood Association, we encourage you to join and support more fun events like this.

MNA board opposes more un-hosted short-term rentals in neighborhood; Hambrick neighbors launch petition

The Mentelle Neighborhood Association board has voted unanimously to oppose an application to convert a single-family home at 714 Hambrick Ave. into an un-hosted short-term rental property.

Here are details of that application. The city’s Board of Adjustment will consider the application at a public hearing at 1:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 12, in the Council chambers at City Hall, 200 E. Main St.

The MNA board took this step after the city completed the process of registering existing short-term rentals to be “grandfathered-in” under a new law regulating them.

The MNA board has been concerned for some time about the number of owner-occupied homes and long-term rental properties in the neighborhood being converted into short-term rentals. But it wasn’t until this month that the new law allowed neighbors to learn exactly how many are operating. According to the city Division of Planning’s website, there are at least 19 short-term rental units at 14 addresses inside or within a block of Mentelle neighborhood. The board thinks that is more than enough, and no more should be allowed.

This application has generated strong opposition from nearby neighbors on Hambrick Avenue. Several of them have launched a petition to the Board of Adjustment, urging it to reject the application. If you wish to see what they have to say and sign the petition, click here.

MNA board members emphasize that they are not opposed to “hosted” short-term rentals, where the owner lives on the property. And they certainly have no problem with long-term rental property, so long as it is well-managed.

Mentelle was one of Lexington’s first neighborhood associations to welcome renters and businesses located within the neighborhood as members. Our neighborhood includes many renters, businesses and non-profit organizations, as well as three houses of worship and an elementary school. All are valued neighbors.

An un-hosted short-term rental property is different; it is vacant unless occupied by a transient renter with no stake in the neighborhood’s quality of life. The board also has concerns about our neighborhood being “hollowed out” by too many un-hosted short-term rentals that also would have the effect of driving up long-term rents and property values for would-be homebuyers.

For more information about the new city law, un-hosted short-term rentals in our neighborhood and other news and background on this subject, click here.

 

Un-hosted short-term rental proposed for 714 Hambrick Ave.

The owner of 714 Hambrick Ave. has applied to the city for a conditional use permit to convert the single-family home into an un-hosted short-term rental property. Permission is now required under a new city law.

The Board of Adjustment will hold a public hearing on the request at 1:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 12, in the Council Chamber at city hall, 200 E. Main St.

Click here to view the notice of application. The city planning staff hasn’t decided whether to support or oppose the application, but a report of its recommendation to the Board of Adjustment will be available at the end of the day Feb. 5. To obtain a copy of the report, call the Division of Planning at 859-258-3160 or email planningmailbox@lexingtonky.gov.

Midland Avenue apartment project is getting bigger. Here are the plans.

Scott Shapiro and his team planning an apartment complex on the former stone yard at the corner of Midland Avenue and Winchester Road made a presentation to the Mentelle Neighborhood Association board at its monthly meeting Wednesday to give an update on the project.

The group has acquired additional property along Winchester Road beside the stone yard that is now occupied by a vacant metal industrial shed. The additional property will allow them to expand the complex from approximately 180 units to approximately 260 units.

Plans call for the two apartment buildings to be five stories tall, with parking and a 2,000-square-foot retail space on the first floor and apartments on the upper floors. With those spaces and a parking lot at the rear, there will be about 1.1 spaces per unit on the property, Shapiro said.

Shapiro said he expects construction to begin this summer and the project to be completed by late 2026 or early 2027. Projected rents range from about $1,500 for a one-bedroom apartment to about $2,500 for a two-bedroom unit.

Shapiro provided some maps, proposed designs and other information in a handout that can be downloaded here. If you have further questions, you may contact him by email.

The city Planning Commission will have a hearing on the developer’s request to rezone the additional parcel from I-1 (industrial) to B-2A (commercial) on Feb. 22 at 1:30 p.m. in the Council Chamber at city hall, 200 E. Main St.  The meeting is open to the public.

 

Ashland estate needs volunteers

From Jill DeBolt, Mentelle Median Committee chair:

If you enjoy meeting people from all over and sharing some of the history and beauty of our bluegrass area,  please consider this volunteer opportunity.

There will be an interest meeting on Thursday, October 19, 2:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Ashland, the Henry Clay Estate.  Please contact Ian Paine at ipaine@henryclay.org or call (859) 266-8581 x207 for more information.

Several of us from MNA serve as volunteers.  I would also be happy to speak with you about it. Email me here.

MNA annual meeting is Wednesday

The Mentelle Neighborhood Association’s annual membership meeting will be at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 18, in the meeting room at the rear of the Children’s Advocacy Center of the Bluegrass, 162 North Ashland Ave. All MNA members are welcome to attend, as well as those who would like to become members. You may join here or at the meeting.

At the meeting, you will hear updates and get a chance to ask questions of our district City Council member, Hannah LeGris, who lives in the neighborhood, as well as Chad Walker, owner of the Warehouse Block development along National Avenue.

The meeting also will include the election of officers and board members, all of whom serve one-year terms. We anticipate one vacancy among the board members, but any association member interested in running for any office is welcome to submit their name for the ballot. If you are interested, please email your name, details and any questions to MNA President Tom Eblen by the end of the day Monday, Oct. 16, so ballots can be prepared. Nominations also are accepted from the floor before the vote is taken.

The meeting is a good opportunity to ask questions, as well as to suggest social activities and neighborhood improvement efforts you would like to help organize and work on. We hope to see all members there!

Southern Living magazine features the renovation of 18 Mentelle Park

Southern Living magazine has a new feature about Hannah and Corey Maple’s fabulous  renovation of their home at 18 Mentelle Park. They saved one of our neighborhood’s oldest and most-neglected houses and turned it into a showplace — and a comfortable family home. Click here to read the article. Want to see what the house looked like when they bought it in March 2020?  Click here. Congratulations to the Maple family!