Franklin County, KY Building Safety: Childcare Center Rules (2026)

Section 155.110(A)(2) lists the PO, CL, CG, CH, IC, IG and AG Zone Districts as places where day care centers, nurseries or kindergartens are permitted for up to 35 children, provided the applicant complies with every requirement of the section. Two triggers convert the permitted use into a conditional use permit: the center abuts property zoned or used for residential purposes, or it proposes to have over 35 children. The same rule appears as note (22) to the use table in § 155.089.

The physical standards are specific. Under (B), the application must include a site plan showing all ingress and egress, parking, structure site and playing area. Under (C), the total lot area cannot be less than 5,000 square feet. Under (D), the center must provide a fenced play area of 1,500 square feet for the first ten children, with 100 additional square feet for each additional child, and no portion of the play area can be closer than 35 feet to any public street. Under (E), usable interior space within any child care facility must be not less than 35 square feet per child, and a kitchen, bath restroom or passageway is not counted as usable space.

When the Board of Zoning Adjustments hears a conditional use, § 155.105 adds the general findings: adequate street or road capacity, available public facilities, no adverse effect on adjacent property, and appropriate screening or buffering. The Fiscal Court's definition in § 155.010 sweeps in any facility that regularly provides care for four or more children away from their own home, so the same section governs small and large programs alike. Residential districts have lower caps in § 155.110(A)(1), and the building itself is also subject to the building plan review and inspection rules of Chapter 150.