Lexington budget keeps eviction aid, adds ADA and public-safety spending

Lexington-Fayette Urban County Council gave final approval to the FY27 budget on June 9, and the plan begins July 1. One of the clearest takeaways for renters is that the city kept $400,000 for the Housing Stability Services program, which funds Legal Aid of the Bluegrass for eviction prevention, eviction-court representation and mediation for tenants of the Lexington Housing Authority.

Local reporting said this is the first time the program has been built into the budget at the start of the fiscal year, after the city previously had to patch it together with federal money and other funding. That matters because the program has been a key backstop for people facing eviction, especially when rent, legal help and court appearances all become hard to manage at once.

The adopted budget also added targeted money for other resident-facing items: public-space work to meet ADA standards, Police Activities League support, mental health support for public safety professionals, a nature trail at Coldstream Park, and added security and support for the Citizens’ Advocate office at Government Center. The budget highlights also include $13 million for paving, $5 million for the Affordable Housing Fund, $2.2 million for winter warming operations, $1.66 million for homelessness prevention and intervention, and $2.6 million for police technologies.

For Lexington residents, the practical effect is not one big new program but a set of continued and added spending lines aimed at housing stability, accessibility, streets, safety and basic city services. The next thing to watch is how quickly those allocations turn into services and projects over the summer and early fall.

Sources

• City of Lexington — FY27 budget approval
• Lexington Urban County Council — June 9, 2026 docket
• Lexington Herald-Leader — eviction-support coverage
• WKYT — eviction-prevention coverage
• City of Lexington — FY27 Budget Process