The Lextran Board of Directors voted in June to enter into an agreement with General Electric for the purchase of the 13.69 acre tract of property at 200 West Loudon Avenue, former site of the GE Lighting Kentucky Glass Plant. The purchase, which was contingent upon approval from the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) and the completion of the 90-day due diligence period, is now complete and Lextran has assumed ownership of the property.
Lextran will use this property to construct a new facility just steps away from their current location at 109 West Loudon Avenue. The move to the GE site will allow Lextran to develop a cost-effective and efficient operations and maintenance facility that will meet the future needs of Lexington. In addition, the move will consolidate administrative functions which are currently housed at two locations.
Rocky Burke, Lextran’s general manager, welcomed the completion of the purchase. He stated, “We are so excited to have taken another step forward in this process. This move is critical for Lextran’s continued advancement and our ability to provide first-class bus service to the people of Lexington.”
Lextran’s purchase of the GE site utilizes a vacant industrial site in Lexington. Consistent with trends around the country, GE’s clean-up and Lextran’s redevelopment plans for the site have been studied and approved by the KY Department of Environmental Protection as eligible for the Kentucky Brownfield Redevelopment Program, which promotes the re-use of former industrial sites.
The GE Lighting Kentucky Glass Plant opened in 1946 and manufactured several different types of glass for light bulbs prior to its closing in July 2010. Since the plant ceased operation, the property has been vacant.
