Council District 3

Candidate in the race: Jon Larson / Griffin VanMeter

Other Districts:
District 1 / District 2 / District 4 / District 5 / District 6 / District 7 / District 8 / District 9 / District 10 / District 11 / District 12

Jon Larson

Jon Larson is running for election to his first term as the District 3 Council Representative. Jon has previously held the office of Fayette County Judge Executive. He has a professional background as an attorney.

Information:

Campaign Finances:

Vote Local Questionnaire responses:

Candidate responses have not been edited.

  • Practicing attorney (52+years)

  • Most experienced (Council is a legal job)

    Better educated [3 university degrees (MBA

    George Washington U, BA & JD UK) Military Veteran (initiator Veterans

    Treatment Court, mentor 12 years)

    Government experience (Fayette County

    Judge Executive, 2 terms)

    Career of working for minorities, mentally

    ill, immigrants, handicapped

    No conflicts of interest

    Older & wiser

  • 1) Watchdogs for taxpayer money.

    2) Preserving neighborhoods through affordable housing and traffic planning projects.

    3) Protecting green space/horse farms through expansion limits and regional planning.

  • More emphasis on basic infrastructure.

    Gun violence prevention.

    Reducing impediments to affordable

    housing.

    Better regional traffic management,

    connectivity to interstates.

    Downtown developments, involving parking

    & mass transportation improvements.

    Town & Gown revitalization.

  • My connections are with the homeless, impoverished, handicapped and downtrodden-and they know & trust me.

 

Griffin VanMeter

Griffin is running for election to his first term as the District 3 Council representative. Griffin has a background in community investment and organizing.

Information:

Campaign Finances:

Vote Local Questionnaire responses:

Candidate responses have not been edited.

  • I'm a small business owner and community advocate.

  • For 20+ years I've worked alongside my neighbors to build a healthier, more connected, more joyful Lexington— co-founding cultural institutions like Kentucky for Kentucky, Stella's Deli, Bullhorn Creative, NoLi CDC, & the Night Market. I co-led Yes for Parks, creating the Park Fund: over $8M a year for parks in every neighborhood. I co-lead the Ashland Walk N Roll Bike Bus & I'm completing an MPA at UK. I have the relationships across this city to turn big vision into action.

  • 1) Street safety: 87,000+ crashes in Lexington from 2020–2025, 225 fatal— draining $3.7M from our community daily. We have the plans; we need the urgency to build them.

    2) Social disconnection: loneliness is a public health crisis. I'll keep investing in parks, schoolyards, & public spaces where neighbors connect.

    3) Housing: Lexington is short 22,000+ homes, yet the near-campus pipeline is almost all luxury student beds. I'll champion balanced growth and a real city-UK housing partnership

  • 1) Safe Streets: lower neighborhood speed limits to 20 mph, apply Complete Streets design— safer crossings, protected bike lanes, traffic calming— to district road projects.

    2) Public space: open schoolyards as community playgrounds, win capital & maintenance dollars for our parks, & build greenways connecting neighbors to civic spaces.

    3) Housing: establish a formal city-UK housing partnership, adopt community benefit agreements so neighborhoods share in the growth around them.

  • I'll continue the weekly Word from the Third newsletter my predecessors built— it's full of ways to engage, please sign up. I'll show up to neighborhood meetings, hold office hours in parks & local shops, lead walk & bike audits so residents can show me problems firsthand, & use social media to explain complex city issues simply. I'll help rebuild our neighborhood associations. Strong associations mean neighbors who know each other, belong to something together— & are heard at City Hall.