Cardinal Valley, Lexington: homes, schools, parks and commute

Last checked Oct. 16, 2026. Sources: the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government’s Cardinal Valley Small Area Plan and open data (small area plans, neighborhood association registry, parks and address points), Fayette County Public Schools’ current attendance boundaries, the Kentucky Department of Education’s 2025-26 accountability data, Lextran’s schedule data, OpenStreetMap and Zillow Research.

Cardinal Valley is the west side neighborhood along Versailles Road (US 60), inside New Circle Road. The urban county’s Cardinal Valley Small Area Plan, adopted in 2015 as part of the 2013 comprehensive plan, covers about 1.2 square miles with “approximately 12,605 residents” and a mix of housing types, according to the city’s summary. The city’s address points put about 4,100 residential addresses inside it, all in ZIP code 40504.

What this means for you

• Zoned high school: split between Paul Laurence Dunbar High (about 58% of homes) and Lafayette High (about 42%). Check an address in the SchoolSite Locator.
• Home value: $269,418 in ZIP code 40504 in September 2026, according to the Zillow Home Value Index.
• Nearest freeway exit: New Circle Road Exit 5B, Versailles Road (US 60), about 1.4 miles by road.

Part of our Lexington neighborhoods guide.

Where it is

The plan area straddles Versailles Road west of the Picadome area, with homes on Versailles Road, Alexandria Drive, Hill Rise Drive, Maywick View Lane, Fair Oaks Drive, Terrace View Drive, Dunkirk Drive and Cross Keys Road, according to the city’s address points. OpenStreetMap names Cardinal Valley, Pine Meadows and The Lane as places inside it.

The plan’s goals include conserving neighborhood housing, making the Versailles Road corridor safer for walking, biking and driving, advancing the “Alexandria Drive International District,” redeveloping the Oxford Circle neighborhood center and improving the open space network. The city also published an Oxford Circle redevelopment feasibility study in 2015. Three groups here are on the city’s neighborhood association registry: the Cardinal Valley Neighborhood Association, The Lane Neighborhood Association and the Hamilton Park-Westgate Neighborhood Association.

Schools

Cardinal Valley is in Fayette County Public Schools, and it is split between zones. We checked 411 residential addresses in the plan area against the district’s current attendance boundaries:

• Elementary: Cardinal Valley Elementary, inside the area, about 54%; James Lane Allen about 31%; Picadome and Harrison about 8% each.
• Middle: Leestown Middle about 54%; Beaumont Middle about 31%; Jessie Clark and Lexington Middle about 8% each.
• High: Paul Laurence Dunbar about 58%; Lafayette about 42%.

Ratings are the overall indicator from the Kentucky Department of Education’s 2025-26 accountability data, on a five-step scale from very low to very high; full reports are on the Kentucky School Report Card. Because the zones split the area, check every address in the SchoolSite Locator. More in our schools guide.

Home values

The Zillow Home Value Index is a modeled typical value for the middle third of homes, not a sale price. Zillow publishes no figure for Cardinal Valley alone.

Trends are on our home prices page.

Parks and trails

From the city’s park data, inside the plan area:

• Valley Park, 2077 Cambridge Drive, about 19 acres.
• Preston’s Springs Park, 1937 Dunkirk Drive, a natural area of about 16 acres.
• Wolf Run Park, 1618 Maywick View Lane, about 10 acres.
• Addison Park, 1150 Garrison Ave., about 8 acres.
• Pine Meadows Park, 1631 Tazewell Drive, about 2 acres.

At its edges: McConnell Springs, 416 Rebmann Lane, about 25 acres, and Cross Keys Park, 1240 Cross Keys Road, a natural area of about 11 acres. More in our parks and trails guide.

Getting around

• New Circle Road (KY 4): Exit 5B, Versailles Road (US 60), about 1.4 miles by road, and Exit 5A, about 2 miles.
• I-75 and I-64: Exit 113, Paris Pike (US 27 and US 68), about 6.1 miles.
• Downtown (old courthouse on Main Street): about 3 miles by road.
• Blue Grass Airport: about 5.7 miles by road.
• Buses: Lextran Routes 8 (Versailles Road) and 15 (Red Mile) and night route 58 stop in the area, according to Lextran’s schedule data for Oct. 5 to Dec. 19, 2026.

Distances were measured with the OSRM routing engine on OpenStreetMap roads from a point in the middle of the area to the end of each exit ramp. They are distances, not drive times. More in our getting around guide.

Groceries and everyday stores

OpenStreetMap lists these inside or next to the area:

• Supermarkets: FoodLand, 1414 Versailles Road; Save-A-Lot and Mercado Aguascalientes, both inside the area; Kroger, 1080 Alexandria Drive.
• Pharmacy: Kroger Pharmacy, about 0.9 mile from the middle of the area.

Frequently asked questions

What high school is Cardinal Valley in Lexington zoned for?

It is split. About 58% of homes in the Cardinal Valley Small Area Plan area are zoned for Paul Laurence Dunbar High and about 42% for Lafayette High, in FCPS’s current boundaries.

Where is Cardinal Valley in Lexington?

On the west side, along Versailles Road (US 60) inside New Circle Road. The city’s 2015 Cardinal Valley Small Area Plan covers about 1.2 square miles with about 12,605 residents.

What ZIP code is Cardinal Valley?

40504. Zillow’s Home Value Index for 40504 was $269,418 in September 2026, up 4.9% from September 2025.

What parks are in Cardinal Valley?

Valley Park, Preston’s Springs Park, Wolf Run Park, Addison Park and Pine Meadows Park are inside the plan area, and McConnell Springs is at its edge, according to the city’s park data.