Renovations on the Kentucky State Capitol building are set to begin and are expected to take three years or longer.
The Capitol, which opened in 1910 to replace the Old State Capitol Building, needs major infrastructure improvements to the dome, wiring changes, updated pipes and code improvements.
Already the building is largely cleared of furniture and staff. The part-time legislature will instead meet in temporary chambers set up in the Capitol parking lot.
Normally, the legislature would reconvene in January 2026 to draft the two-year budget, but Gov. Andy Beshear has signaled he might call them back early for a special session to address natural disasters in the state. Beshear told the Lexington Herald-Leader last month that a special session to allocate more money for communities hit by tornadoes and flooding this year is a “likelihood.”
GOP Senate President Robert Stivers from Manchester said the legislature stands ready and that the temporary chambers are nearly complete.
“We're always ready in the Kentucky General Assembly,” Stivers said. “If you're talking about the physical structure we are currently in, yes, it will be ready July 1 to flip the switch and have anything necessary done in it that we need to do.”
Remarkably solid looking for a temporary structure, the chambers have enough room for the Senate and House to formally convene, a few conference rooms and offices for staff and leadership.
Visitors to the state Capitol have likely noticed the scaffolding around the dome for years — the first phase of the larger renovation project.
In 2022, the General Assembly appropriated $260 million in bond funds to the second phase of the renovation project. The multi-year project involves both the State Capitol and the Capitol Annex Building. Mostly, Stivers says the goal is to fix up the existing infrastructure.
“There's going to be a couple of things that will look different. There will be more bathrooms for women, but the layout will be substantially the same,” Stiver said.
Visitors and legislative watchers are usually able to view legislative proceedings via a gallery in both the House and Senate. To save money on building a second story, Stivers said the public will not be able to enter the temporary chambers. Instead, proceedings will be livestreamed, and a room designated in the Capitol Annex building for public viewers. Press will still be allowed into the temporary structure.
The Kentucky Supreme Court and various executive branch offices are also forced to relocate because of the renovations. The state Supreme Court and the State Law Library have already relocated to the same building as the Kentucky Court of Appeals in Frankfort. They’re holding August oral arguments in the Lexington courthouse.
State government and politics reporting is supported in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
