LEXINGTON, Ky. (FOX 56) — Members of a local nonprofit said a multi-billion-dollar private equity firm’s demolition of 17 century-old properties after city leaders reversed the decision to rezone the area “should trouble all Lexingtonians.”
On Sept. 16, the Blue Grass Trust for Historic Preservation wrote on social media that National Register-listed buildings had been included in Core Spaces’ 2025 purchase of an entire city block from East Maxwell Street to Rose Street.
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Preservationists in Lexington wrote that initially, Core Spaces had planned to build an 8-story University of Kentucky student housing complex on the purchased land, but Lexington’s city council reversed the city’s rezoning decision after listening to “extensive public comment” on the matter.
Despite this, and without a plan going forward presented by Core Spaces, video posted by the trust on Wednesday shows crews razing the 17 historic buildings.
“It is highly unusual for a developer to proceed with acquisitions after a rezoning is denied,” Blue Grass Trust officials emphasized. “Core Spaces made no attempt at further community outreach; instead, it directed property owners on that block and the adjacent one to demolish the buildings prior to a sale.”…