Locksmith Services in Lexington, KY

Homes and locks in Lexington

Lexington has had local historic districts since the mid-1950s. The city's H-1 overlay page lists districts including Ashland Park, Bell Court, Gratz Park, South Hill and Western Suburb, all under the Board of Architectural Review.

Ashland Park, one of them, was laid out in the early 20th century by the Olmsted Brothers and named for Ashland, Henry Clay's estate. Its National Register district, listed in 1986, is roughly bounded by Ashland Avenue, Richmond Road, Chinoe Road and Fontaine Road, with American Foursquare, Craftsman, Colonial Revival and Tudor Revival houses.

Mortise locks, set in a pocket cut into the door's edge, turn up on buildings older than the bored cylindrical lock. An original door here may still carry one, so mention it.

Businesses and buildings

The Downtown Commercial District, on the National Register since 1983, sits in the oldest part of a street grid first platted in 1780. Its 70 contributing properties date from about 1805 to 1955, mostly commercial buildings on Main, Short, Upper, Mill and Limestone streets and Cheapside. Some replaced buildings lost to fires in 1875 and 1917.

A storefront here may keep an older wood door or have a later replacement entry, so describe the door and frame when requesting commercial locksmith help.

Car trouble in Lexington

LexPark enforces downtown meters Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., but not on weekends or LFUCG-designated holidays. The surface lot at 168 North Upper Street, at Church Street, is enforced on weekends and holidays too.

LexPark's four downtown garages are 350 West Short Street, the Transit Center on East Vine Street, Helix on Main and the Courthouse garage on Barr Street. For a car lockout in one, give the garage and level.

The city ranks streets for plowing in five tiers. Rank 1 includes Main Street, Harrodsburg Road and Newtown Pike, and most Rank 1 roads are also snow emergency routes. The city says vehicles parked along snow emergency routes may be removed if the Mayor declares a snow emergency, as may vehicles stalled in the roadway, and asks residents not to park along ranked roads. If a lost key leaves a car on one before a storm, arrange car key replacement early.

Local rules worth knowing

Section 13-7 of the Lexington-Fayette zoning ordinance requires a Certificate of Appropriateness before exterior changes to a property in an H-1 overlay. Ordinary maintenance is exempt if it repairs existing features or uses identical replacement pieces and does not change the exterior appearance.

The city's Review of Elements in H-1 Districts chart sorts door and storefront work three ways:

• No approval required: repairing existing doors, windows or storefronts with matching materials and configuration.
• Staff may approve: replacement doors or windows of similar materials and configuration, storm windows and doors, security grilles and replacement storefront components.
• Board of Architectural Review: new openings, removal or installation of new windows or doors, and major storefront rehabilitation.

Before replacing an original exterior door or adding a storm door or grille in an H-1 district, ask the Division of Historic Preservation about a Certificate of Appropriateness. This is general information, not legal advice. Lock repair or rekeying works on the lock and leaves the door unchanged.

Requesting service in Lexington

Give the neighborhood or cross streets, and say whether the building is in an H-1 district and the door is original. For a car downtown, say whether it is at a meter, in the Upper Street lot or in a garage. Kentucky Locksmith Pros takes service requests from homes, businesses and drivers in Lexington.