LEXINGTON, Ky. — Republican Kentucky State Senators representing Fayette County, celebrated major investments into the county and city from the state budget at an event Thursday afternoon at Blue Grass Airport. 

Kentucky’s Senate majority highlighted over $109 million worth of investment in education, nonprofits and infrastructure. It was just a portion of the total funding to Fayette County in the entire state budget.

“We’ve got to enhance Lexington and really Lexington has grown so much that we really have to do these things to improve our infrastructure,” said State Senator Steve West, R-Paris.

UK for nuclear energy research will receive $40 million. Another $11 million is going to the Kentucky Cattleman’s Association to build an innovation center at the University of Kentucky’s research farm.

“If you’re going to be a state that is going to be able to pull down federal dollars and involved in high-level research that will pull companies in you have to have high-class, high-level research university,” West said.

Recipients of the funding celebrated at Lexington’s Blue Grass Airport which will receive $5 million from the state. The money will go toward expanding parking and roadways around the facility as they continue to see a record number of travelers taking off from Lexington.

“Central Kentuckians are flying so they want to be able to meet that demand so airlines added more seats to the market to accommodate a traveling public,” said executive director of Blue Grass Airport, Eric Frankl.

Frankl said the project will make the airport more convenient to travelers.

“We want to create a parking situation where people are closer into the terminal building so we’re excited about doing that,” Frankl said.

The Aviation Musuem of Kentucky is getting $4 million for relocation. The city is getting $10 million for an affordable housing project at an abandoned baseball field.

The Nest, a nonprofit supporting women, children and families of abuse, is also getting $200,000 for operational support.