The CivicLex Podcast

In this episode, we'll walk you through the financial details of campaigning based off of our campaign financing workshop led by our director of programs, Megan Gulla.  We'll walk you through the filing details to begin raising money for a campaign, how and where a candidate can and can not use that funding, and every other regulation for campaign monies. Later on in the episode, our Civic Journalist VISTA Gillian Stawiszynski sits down with Courtney Daniel, who has had experience working in campaigns. She'll talk through the financial elements of campaigning and describe some of the inner workings of running a local campaign based on her own expertise. Election Day is just around the corner on May 17, so stay informed and get ready. Thank you so much for listening!

Welcome back to the CivicLex podcast!  Come listen to our Director of Programs, Megan Gulla, interview the Fayette County Clerk Don Blevins. She'll ask him some crucial questions about voting and the upcoming election. Today, we're going to walk you through these questions and Blevins' answers so you'll be able to understand the need-to-know voting details of the primary election! We'll chat about absentee ballots and who are eligible for those, voting locations, and new voter technology you'll be seeing at the polls on May 17, 2022! We won't be doing CivicLex Weekly Episodes like we did in the past, but we'll post intermittently when something we find important to get into this podcast comes around. Thank you so much for listening!

Here’s one thing this week to watch in city hall… a presentation on the impact of the Fayette County Mental Health Court. 📺 - Watch this presentation live on March 9 at 1:00pm. Why should you care? If you care about reducing homelessness, prison recidivism, or addressing community mental health, you should pay attention to this meeting. With the increased, bipartisan national focus on criminal justice reform and reducing incarceration rates amongst communities of color, and many places are looking for solutions. Mental health courts are one of the many tools available to build a more humane criminal justice system. Nationally, Mental Health Courts have shown to be effective tools at addressing the recidivism rate, or the rate at which individuals return to the criminal justice system after being released from prison. However, the consensus around their impact on mental health status among participants is less certain, as is their impact on police recontact. During this annual update from Fayette County Mental Health Court, NAMI Lexington, who administers the program, will ask the council and the administration to continue funding its operating costs. This would have a $200,000 impact on LFUCG’s budget. Plus: That thing, last week and more updates from city hall. Read more about these issues and more at civiclex.org

Here's one thing this week to watch in city hall... a presentation in the Planning & Public Safety Committee on the Imagine Nicholasville Road project and changes it may bring to one of Lexington's busiest streets. 📺 - Watch this presentation live on Tuesday, March 2nd, at 1:00pm. Why should you care? Have you experienced traffic on Nicholasville Road? We sure have! Nicholasville Road traffic is one of the most talked-about congestion issues in the city. This presentation will highlight some potential changes that could alleviate that traffic - including enhanced pedestrian and mass-transit connectivity and contemporary development styles. If you have ever been frustrated sitting in traffic on Nicholasville Road, you should pay attention to this presentation. Plus: That thing, last week - Rental Assistance during the COVID-19 crisis - and more updates from city hall. Read more about these issues and more at civiclex.org

Here's one thing this week to watch in city hall... a presentation in the General Government & Social Services Committee on the Mayoral Administration's proposal to create a new Department within LFUCG - the Department of Housing Advocacy. Watch this presentation live during the General Government & Social Services Committee Committee on Tuesday, February 9th, at 1:00pm. Why should you care? Lexington's linked housing crises - affordable housing shortages, rising homelessness, and evictions - have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 crisis. Housing prices are rising across Lexington; homelessness cases pose massive local public health challenges; and, despite a national COVID-related eviction moratorium, evictions are still a major issue in Lexington. These problems are rooted in a history of racialized housing policies that have exacerbated income and many other inequalities among non-white communities. Local government and policymakers can have a significant influence on creating more equitable housing policies. If you care about any of these housing issues, you should pay attention to this conversation. Plus: That thing, last week - How does the Detention Center cooperate with ICE? - and more updates from city hall. Read more about these issues and more at civiclex.org

Here's one thing this week to watch in city hall... a presentation in the Planning & Public Safety Committee on how the Fayette County Detention Center cooperates with Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE). Watch this meeting live on LexTV on Tuesday, February 2 at 1:00pm Why should you care? You should care about this if you are interested in the relationship between the City of Lexington and the federal Immigration and Custom's Enforcement (ICE) agency. A history of controversy has long surrounded ICE. As ICE's tactics have fallen under increased scrutiny in the past decade, pressure has mounted on cities to review how they cooperate with the agency. Cities from Birmingham, Alabama to Portland, Oregon, have either refused to work with the agency or have made significant changes to how their relationship works. This presentation will detail the relationship between the City of Lexington and ICE. Plus: That thing, last week - Will the City of Lexington sell some of its properties? - and more updates from city hall. Read more about these issues and more at civiclex.org

This week, we’re covering a presentation in the Budget, Finance, and Economic Development Committee on Tuesday, January 26. This presentation will focus on current plans for the uses of buildings the City owns. Watch this meeting live on LexTV on Tuesday, January 26 at 1:00pm Why should you care? City Government owns a significant amount of property and real estate across Lexington. While the City Government does use most of them for internal uses, many are public-facing, and some even house organizations or businesses outside of the City Government. With the City’s financial prospects still uncertain, selling some of the City’s properties could ease expenses and bring additional revenue. At the same time, this could cause dramatic shifts in services and, potentially, the displacement of organizations that rent from the City. Plus: That thing, last week - Environment & Energy Programs at Risk? Read more about these issues and more at civiclex.org

This week, we're covering two presentations happening in this week's Environmental Quality and Public Works committee meeting on Tuesday, January 19th. These presentations involve ways that the City reduces its carbon footprint, although that isn't the presentations' explicit framing. Watch this meeting live on LexTV on Tuesday, January 19 at 1:00pm Why should you care? With the pace of climate change accelerating and green infrastructure costs dropping, cities across the country are finding it makes good financial and societal sense to focus on reducing their carbon footprint. These two presentations present two different approaches the City is taking to reduce its footprint. One of these processes is internal, and it is indeed lowering costs for the City. The other strategy is more external (resident-facing) and is at risk of becoming financially unviable due to some residents' misuse of the program.  Plus: That thing, last week - Updates on Lexington's New Council Read more about this issue and more at civiclex.org

We're back (again)! The CivicLex Team is starting out the new year with an audio version of our weekly newsletter. This week, we're discussing the new Lexington Urban County Council - what challenges they face, and how new members could change the conversation. Read more about this issue and more at civiclex.org Support CivicLex by becoming a member.

Welcome to a new version of the CivicLex Radio Hour!  We've been away from the microphone for a while, but today, we're coming back with a new podcast experiment - The CivicLex Weekly. Now that name might sound familiar to some of you, and for a good reason! It is also the name of our newsletter that goes out every Monday. Now, we're going to release a short companion podcast at the beginning of each week to help you understand what is happening in city government that you need to keep your eyes on. It will go slightly more in-depth than our weekly posting, referencing other meetings throughout the week, but much of the content will be the same. For now, we'll be releasing the CivicLex Weekly on our old CivicLex Radio Hour feed just to see how it goes. If it gains some traction, we'll start a new podcast feed and keep this up. --- This week on CivicLex Weekly: Revenue in Review: Will the city increase revenue rates? Other city meetings to keep an eye on Don Blevins Jr. announces 2020 General Election plans for Fayette County

In April 2020, Mayor Linda Gorton has announced a $40M Budget shortfall for the upcoming FY21 Budget due to Tax Revenue losses from the COVID-19 Crisis. In this Digital Town Hall, we discussed the implications this had on city services with Council Member Amanda Bledsoe, Chair of the Budget, Finance, and Economic Development Committee and Tyler Scott, Chief of Staff to Mayor Linda Gorton.

In times of crisis, the need for support systems for Basic Needs becomes can become more acute and clear to a wider audience. In this Digital Town Hall, we were joined by Sharon Price of Community Action Council and Michael Halligan of God's Pantry Food Bank to discuss how they are responding to this pandemic and what we can do to build a more resilient society once the threat of COVID-19 has cleared.

The entire purpose of most Performing Arts Organizations and many Visual Arts Organizations is to gather people together and share in the same cultural experience. In a time of social distancing, this becomes nearly impossible. In this Digital Town Hall, we discussed how the COVID-19 Crisis is impacting Non-Profit Arts Organizations, and what strategies organizations are using to still fulfill their mission. This Town Hall featured Allison Kaiser of the Lexington Philharmonic, Bo List of Athens West Theater, Emily Moses of the Kentucky Arts Council, and Ame Sweetall of LexArts.

News and information is an essential part of the public health landscape, especially during a crisis. The Lexington Herald-Leader has provided robust coverage of the COVID-19 crisis and has removed its paywall for any article related to the issue. In this Digital Town Hall, we'll talk with Peter Baniak, the Executive Editor and General Manager of the Lexington Herald-Leader about the steps they've taken to ensure information is reaching people and the challenges they face in this ecosystem moving forward. This part of a series of Digital Town Halls that CivicLex has developed to keep people informed, engaged, and connected during a time of social distancing. All Town Halls are open to the public and are facilitated by CivicLex Staff. During the forum, participants will have opportunities to talk with each other about the topic at hand. Our Digital Town Halls have a maximum participation of 250. ---- CivicLex: https://civiclex.org Subscribe to the Herald-Leader: https://account.kentucky.com/subscribe

The CivicLex Radio Hour is back!!! ...Sort of.  CivicLex has launched a new program focused on bringing together people to discuss the impacts of COVID-19 on our community in a way that is safe for everyone. While primarily a video service, we're distributing the recordings from the Town Halls via video on the web, and via audio on our podcast feed. This CivicLex Digital Town Hall features Alexandra Canada from A Cup of Common Wealth, Dan Wu from Atomic Ramen, and Rebecca Self of Foodchain discussing the impact of the COVID-19 health crisis on the Local Food Service Economy. For more information on this episode's guests, visit the links below. ### Links ### A Cup of Commonwealth: http://acupofcommonwealth.com Atomic Ramen: http://www.theatomicramen.com CivicLex: https://civiclex.org Foodchain: http://foodchainlex.org LEE Initiative: https://leeinitiative.org/#lex

The CivicLex Team discusses what's new at CivicLex - including CivicLex's new blog, and its participation in the national program Let's Make a Mark. CivicLex is a non-profit organization that is working to build a more civically engaged community by providing better access to information and building stronger relationships between citizens, those who serve them, and the processes that impact them.  This podcast is brought to you by The Blue Grass Community Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Lexington Community Radio, Anchor, and CivicLex Member Support. Links links links: CivicLex -> civiclex.org Let's Make Mark National -> https://letsmakeamark.org CivicLex Blog -> https://medium.com/@CivicLex Support our work -> patreon.com/civiclex 

The CivicLex Team sits down with Christian Motley of the New Leaders Council and Russell Allen of The Plantory and Take Back Cheapside to reflect on our joint 2019 On The Table... tables. We talk about Belonging in the context of Data, Nonprofits, Boards, and Journalism. CivicLex is a non-profit organization that is working to build a more civically engaged community by providing better access to information and building stronger relationships between citizens, those who serve them, and the processes that impact them.  This podcast is brought to you by The Blue Grass Community Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Lexington Community Radio, Anchor, and CivicLex Member Support. Links links links: CivicLex -> civiclex.org New Leaders Council -> newleaderscouncil.org/kentucky#fellows Plantory -> plantory.org CivicLex/NLC/Plantory On The Table notes -> civiclex.org/on-the-table Get On Board -> plantory.org/get-on-board More about On The Table -> bgcf.org/onthetable Support our work -> patreon.com/civiclex 

CivicLex Radio Hour is back in 2019 with a new live show format, developed in partnership with 93.9FM Lexington Community Radio! CivicLex Radio Hour airs live every Friday at 11am on WLXU. This episode, recorded on March 15th, features Andrea James talking about On The Table, and Graham Pohl talking about the Board of Architectural Review and the Lexington Planning Commission.  CivicLex is a non-profit organization that is working to build a more civically engaged community by providing better access to information and building stronger relationships between citizens, those who serve them, and the processes that impact them.  This podcast is brought to you by The Blue Grass Community Foundation, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Lexington Community Radio, and CivicLex Member Support. Support our work at​ patreon.com/civiclex

In November of 2018, CivicLex distributed a city-wide survey asking what residents considered to be major issues within twelve sectors of city government and policy.  When we looked at the survey responses, we  found that respondents placed wage growth for low wage workers in Lexington as their priority issue.   In this episode, we interviewed Dustin Pugel, a policy analyst at the Kentucky Center for Economic Policy, about wage growth in Lexington and the state, and Elodie Dickinson, the city's Workforce Development Program Manager, about the program and how it's helping workers in the city.  Read more about the issue at our website CivicLex.org Visit KCEP and learn more about their work. Check out Lexington's Workforce Development Program and their partnerships with businesses and organizations throughout the city. 

We're recording the issues from our website's Issue Hub into short, easy to digest Minicasts: all the information you'll need in just 10-15 minutes. In this first episode, we're talking about LexArts- what it is, what it does, and why its' important to Lexington. Listen to find out!