Staff from Lexington and Lexington City Schools will be hosting three community conversations over the next month to allow citizens with questions or concerns about the proposed local option sales tax referendum that will be on the ballot in November.
The first will be held on Sept. 23 in the Waddell Elementary School cafeteria from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. The other two are scheduled for Oct. 20 and 29 and will be held at Lylburn Downing Middle School and at City Hall on Washington Street, respectively. The Oct. 20 event will run from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. and the Oct. 29 event will run from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Lexington City Council will also hold a joint work session with the Lexington City School Board on Oct. 1 at 6 p.m., prior to council’s regular business meeting. During the regular business meeting, Lexington Finance Director Jennifer Bell and LCS Business Manager Erin Gregg will make a presentation to city council which will include information about the proposed ballot measure.
The proposed tax would be an additional one percent sales tax collected in the city, the proceeds of which would be used to help pay for school construction projects. The city has approximately $7.5 million in school-related projects planned over the next five years, including a $1.37 million cost for the city’s share of proposed improvements at Rockbridge County High School in the current fiscal year. There is also an additional $4.3 million in work planned at the high school for FY29, as well as at $1.8 million for work scheduled at Waddell Elementary School and Lylburn Downing Middle School in 2030 or 2031.
The proposed tax will generate approximately $1.33 million on top of the $1.4 million generated by the already existing one percent sales tax. The local option sales tax that is on the ballot will expire in five years and is estimated to generate more than $6.6 million over that time if approved.
A similar measure is on the ballot for citizens of Buena Vista and Rockbridge County is considering one for the 2027 election.
