Saturday December 6, 2025
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Photo: Louisville Metro Council
The third time is the charm and the forecast shows this Saturday will be good weather for the postponed Spring Cleanups in and around District 6.
“I want to thank everyone for their patience. It appears the weather is on our side this Saturday so I am asking everyone to come out and join us as we make District 6 a better, cleaner place for everyone,” says President James. “We are fortunate to always have great volunteers for these events and I am hopeful everyone will help us out.”
Volunteers need to show up at 12:00pm for the cleanup which is scheduled to last through 3:00pm.
There are three areas set for a cleanup this Saturday. One is Dumesnil between 17th and 18th Streets; the second is at West Ormsby between the 1500 and 1800 blocks and finally the California neighborhood. . Volunteers should meet at the corner of 18th and Dumesnil and then the cleanups will begin.
There will be a limited number of shovels, rakes and brooms, gloves and bags. If any volunteers have their own yard equipment please bring it with you.
“So if you have the time, come join us and have some fun and help us make a difference in our community,” says President James.
For more information about the cleanups, contact President James Office at 502-574-1106.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced that Louisville is ranked 3rd on the list of top U.S. mid-size cities with the most ENERGY STAR certified buildings. Louisville ranked 7th last year and this year, ranks behind only San Jose and Virginia Beach. On the list of all U.S. metropolitan areas, Louisville ranks in the top 25.
“When property owners make the choice to invest in energy efficiency, they are not only making an environmentally conscious choice but also a smart financial choice,” Mayor Greg Fischer said. “I encourage all building owners to use energy efficient systems because they will see a reduction in operating costs and help make Louisville a healthier city.”
Louisville earned its ranking with 86 ENERGY STAR buildings, which includes office buildings, schools, banks, and retail and grocery stores. Energy efficiency saved Louisville ENERGY STAR building owners $6.6 million in 2017.
Since 2013, the Louisville Metro Office of Sustainability has offered free verification services from a licensed architect or engineer to validate ENERGY STAR Certification submission data for eligible buildings.
Louisville Metro Government (LMG), led by the Office of Sustainability and Office of Management & Budget, has implemented energy efficiency measures, which in 2017 saved the city $2.7 million and reduces greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to removing 5,300 vehicles off the road.
ENERGY STAR certified buildings use an average of 35 percent less energy and are responsible for 35 percent fewer greenhouse gas emissions than average buildings. Also, ENERGY STAR certified buildings cost $0.50 less per square foot to operate than average buildings.
LMG partners with the Louisville Energy Alliance (LEA) to promote energy efficiency and conservation efforts. The LEA hosts the annual Kilowatt Crackdown Awards, a city-wide competition that challenges building owners and operators to decrease energy use in their buildings. The Kilowatt Crackdown winners listed below were recognized last week for leadership and excellence in energy conservation.
- Norton Audubon Hospital – 2017 Kilowatt Cup Winner
- Oxmoor Center – Innovation Award
- Tully Elementary – Best K-12 School Facility
- Jefferson Community & Technical College Shelby Campus – Best College/University Facility
- First Unitarian Church – Best Church/Worship Facility
- Southeast Christian Church – Best Large Church/Worship Facility
- Norton Women’s and Children’s Hospital – Best Healthcare Facility
- Sealed Air – Best Manufacturing Facility
- The Presbyterian Center – Best Office Facility
To become ENERGY STAR certified, visit https://www.energystar.gov/buildings/facility-owners-and-managers/existi….
For more information on energy efficiency opportunities in Louisville, please visit https://louisvilleky.gov/government/sustainability/energy-efficiency.
For the complete city rankings, visit www.energystar.gov/TopCities
The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources has opened more land for public use.
Old Trace Creek Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is a 323-acre property near the community of Emerson in Lewis County. Hunting on the WMA is allowed under statewide regulations.
The property was purchased with Kentucky Wetland and Stream Mitigation “Fee In-Lieu of” (FILO) Program funding for stream restoration. The FILO program is required by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to permanently protect stream restoration project sites through the acquisition of properties like the Old Trace Creek area. No general fund tax dollars or department license dollars were used.
“With the stream restoration project almost complete, the area is being opened for the public to enjoy,” said Mike Hardin, assistant Fisheries Division director with Kentucky Fish and Wildlife. “Not only is this project improving stream habitat, hunters and outdoors enthusiasts are being provided with a new place to enjoy.”
Old Trace Creek WMA is about 95 percent forested with the remaining open land primarily being creek drainages where stream restoration efforts are nearly complete. Visitors will encounter moderate to steep terrain with forested ridges and benches.
“There is abundant opportunity for game species as most of this track is made up of upland oak forest,” said Nathan Gregory, coordinator of Kentucky Fish and Wildlife’s Northeast Wildlife Region. “Turkey, squirrel and deer are going to be the big three. There’s the possibility of some rabbit and grouse, as well.”
To access Old Trace Creek WMA, take Exit 156 off Interstate 64, turn left on KY 59 and travel about six miles to Old Trace Creek Road/Old Trace Hill Road. Turn left and travel approximately one mile. The property is mostly on the right, with one small tract on the left that offers access to the creek. The property features three small parking areas off Old Trace Creek Road.
The property is free for the public to access. Hunters must have the proper license and permits. These are available online at fw.ky.gov, or at numerous vendors where sporting goods are sold.
Kentucky’s spring turkey season opens April 14 and continues through May 6. Kentucky’s spring squirrel season opens May 15 and continues through June 15.
Thousands of Louisvillians will be volunteering and participating in acts of compassion — from neighborhood cleanups to donating canned foods for the hungry – as part of the Mayor’s annual Give A Day Week of Service, which kicks off Saturday.
Give A Day week, which runs April 14-22, has become the city’s annual showcase of compassion and service. Started in 2011 as a one-day call to serve others, it has extended to more than a week. Last year’s Give A Day Week produced a record 180,000 volunteers and acts of compassion. Mayor Greg Fischer said this year’s goal is to top that, with even more volunteers, donations and other good deeds.
Give A Day is also an official Kentucky Derby Festival event, and kicks off the festival season. Companies and organizations of all sizes will have employee teams in action, including Humana, LG&E, Brown-Forman, GE, UPS, Computershare and Coca-Cola Bottling Consolidated. So will churches and community groups. Also participating will be students, who will be doing everything from collecting personal items for donation to cleaning neighborhoods. This year, every student from JCPS, Archdiocese and private schools will have the opportunity to participate in a kindness project.
The Mayor said there are countless ways to participate, such as donating food and personal items to the Ronald McDonald House, helping serve dinner to kids at the Boys & Girls Club of Kentuckiana and even donating a story of cancer survival to Hope Scarves, whose mission is to share scarves, stories and hope with women facing cancer.
“We have made compassion one of our city’s core values, with the aim to lift each other up as a community,” the Mayor said. “The Give A Day Week of Service is the time for Louisville to shine and build on its reputation as one of the most compassionate cities in America.”
The Mayor will start the week visiting a series of projects Saturday, including one of the largest, the Brightside & Passport Health Plan Spring Community Wide Cleanup. It takes place at locations across the city to help make Louisville a greener and cleaner community, by picking up litter and debris from neighborhoods, greenspaces and roadways.
Other weekend events include the annual Build a Bed on Saturday at Thomas Jefferson Middle School, a food truck event for the homeless and an Eastern Cemetery cleanup on Sunday.
Volunteers are still needed for projects of all kinds. To register, go to the website: www.mygiveaday.com and click on “volunteer for an existing project.” In addition, groups and individuals are urged to use the same website to report projects and good deeds they are doing on their own.
“We’re proud to support our community in solving problems through volunteer service all year round,” said Theresa Reno-Weber, president and CEO of Metro United Way. “As a part of that continuous work, we are excited to again serve as the backbone of Mayor’s Give A Day by connecting volunteers to meaningful opportunities to give back and address the needs of our neighbors. Connecting people with the passion, expertise and resources needed to get things done is at the heart of what we do in our fight for the education, financial stability and health of every person in our seven-county region.”
The Mayor will also participate in the student-led WE Day Walk of Compassion through downtown as a Give A Day event on April 17. WE Day Kentucky, in partnership with WLKY, celebrates student service projects and invites the public to join thousands of students in a lunch-time walk, carrying signs of compassion.
“The Mayor’s Give A Day initiative is a great opportunity for our students and staff to make a difference in their schools and community,” said JCPS Superintendent Dr. Marty Pollio. “I’m proud that 100 percent of our schools will once again be participating in this weeklong initiative – committing more than 1,100 days of service doing everything from cleaning up parks, playgrounds and roadways, to collecting food and toiletries for local food banks and shelters, to recognizing veterans and their families, among dozens of other projects. It says a lot about the culture of our schools and the commitment of our students and staff that they remain so dedicated to making an impact in their city.
Louisville Metro Government (LMG) has been awarded a $450,000 grant by the U.S. Department of the Interior and the National Park Service to stabilize the former Quinn Chapel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church at 912 W. Chestnut Street. LMG’s Office of Redevelopment Strategies has added $150,000 to the stabilization effort bringing the stabilization investment to $600,000.
In 2002, the property was sold to the YMCA, which has a Chestnut Street location just west of the Church, and it has remained vacant. In 2010 and 2011, the YMCA invested $400,000 for stabilization that included a new roof for the Church and support beams as well as brick repair. The current Quinn Chapel AME Church congregation resides at 1901 W. Muhammad Ali Boulevard.
“In its many years, Quinn Chapel has played a vital role to the Russell neighborhood and in the fight for civil rights in our city. The fight for equity and improved quality of life for all Louisville residents is a fight that goes on today,” Jeana Dunlap, Director of the Office of Redevelopment Strategies said. “The city and YMCA value its importance and want to preserve its legacy for future generations to come.”
“With the new interest and investment in west Louisville, it is appropriate that Quinn Chapel stand and represent the rich heritage of the community and serve as a gateway into the area’s renewed future,” Steve Tarver, President & CEO of YMCA of Greater Louisville, said.
The Church was built in 1884 and originally housed the Chestnut Street Baptist Church until 1910 when it was purchased by the Quinn Chapel AME Church. Quinn Chapel takes its name from Bishop Paul Quinn, who was the fourth bishop of the AME Church and the first to visit Kentucky. The Church was a focal point for the civil rights movement in Louisville in the 1960s. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke at the Church in April 1961. It was the starting point of nightly marches for open housing in 1967 and the reason for Dr. King’s second visit to Louisville.
Quinn Chapel has retained its integrity in design, materials and craftsmanship. The eastern steeple has been removed but original stained glass windows and decorative masonry features are still intact. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. Essential repairs needed include installing a new roof for the rear portion of the building, stabilizing walls, repairing foundation, repointing mortar joints and repairing subflooring.
After stabilization, the city and YMCA will seek future redevelopment partners to bring back life to this historic structure. Quinn Chapel is a prominently featured structure on the southwest corner of 9th & Chestnut within eyeshot of the future mixed-use, mixed-income redevelopment of Beecher Terrace. Due to its proximity to 9th Street, the Church’s redevelopment will also benefit from the city’s Reimagine 9th Street plan, which will be complete in 2018.
Photo: Kentucky Department Fish and Wildlife
The fisheries division of the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources recently added some bigger rainbow trout to its usual stockings at streams in three popular tourism destinations.
Areas receiving the upsized fish include the Middle Fork of Red River near Natural Bridge State Resort Park, East Fork of Indian Creek in the Red River Gorge National Geological Area and in Rock Creek in the Daniel Boone National Forest in McCreary County.
“We are trying to stock an average of 12-inch trout instead of the usual average of 9-inch trout,” said Tom Timmerman, Northeastern Fisheries District biologist for Kentucky Fish and Wildlife. “When we stock 12-inch average trout, some of them are larger.”
Crews stocked the Middle Fork of Red River and East Fork of Indian Creek April 4 and Rock Creek April 5. They placed 650 rainbow trout in the Middle Fork of the Red River and 850 trout in the East Fork of Indian Creek, with 100 of those fish in each stream of a larger size. Rock Creek received 2,075 trout with 275 of those fish of a larger size.
The increased size of the stocked trout is part of an effort to lure more anglers to these streams. “We want to make these destination streams and give someone incentive to come to Kentucky and trout fish the Red River Gorge area or Rock Creek,” said Justin Heflin, assistant fisheries biologist for the Northeastern Fisheries District. “If you are coming from a good ways, you want to catch a good fish.”
The stockings of larger trout will continue in October on these streams. “When we stock larger fish, it does slightly reduce the total number of trout stocked, but should not impact fishing success,” said Ron Brooks, director of Fisheries for Kentucky Fish and Wildlife. “We are limited on the number of big trout available and are concentrating on these three streams with these stockings.”
Anglers may keep up to eight rainbow trout a day from these waters from now until Sept. 30. There is no size limit for rainbow trout in these waters. Anglers keeping their catch must have the appropriate fishing license and trout permit. Trout permits are $10 and may be purchased wherever fishing licenses are sold, or bought online at fw.ky.gov.
These waters fall under special catch and release regulations for trout from Oct. 1 through March 31. During this fall/winter season, all trout caught must be released immediately.
Photo: Kentucky Department Fish and Wildlife
Wildlife biologists conducting a new study want to examine at least 30 turkeys taken in Livingston and Crittenden counties during this weekend’s opener of the spring turkey season.
Zak Danks, turkey biologist for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, said concerns voiced by local hunters spurred the research.
“Folks in this area are saying they haven’t been seeing as many turkeys as in the past, and I can attest to that,” he said. “The recent downward trend in spring harvest in these two counties is puzzling, considering that in most counties, harvest – our best measure of overall abundance – has been stable or increasing.”
Biologists want to examine hunter-killed turkeys to check the body condition and look for parasites. Researchers also want to obtain samples of each animal’s blood, organs and other tissues to test for disease or other issues.
Participating turkey hunters can keep the meat, beard, spurs and tail fan. Kentucky Fish and Wildlife staff will breast out birds and answer questions from hunters.
Hunters willing to participate in the survey should take their turkeys to the inspection area at Tambco gas station, 354 West Main Street, in Salem, Ky. Kentucky Fish and Wildlife will staff the area from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. (Central time) April 14-15.
Participating hunters must still check their birds either through the TELECHECK phone system (1-800-CHK-GAME), or online at fw.ky.gov.
“Right now, we have no evidence to suggest a disease issue or any specific threat,” said Danks. “Disease is one of many factors that make turkey populations fluctuate, along with habitat conditions, weather patterns, predators and hunting pressure, both legal and illegal.
Danks said voluntary participation by hunters allows will allow researchers to assess the baseline health of harvested birds, which is largely unknown to this point. “It’s a first step in what we hope can become a comprehensive research effort to inform our management of a resource so dear to local hunters and citizens,” he explained. “It also gives us a chance to hear from hunters directly, and to explain what we know and don’t know.”
Kentucky Fish and Wildlife plans to notify a number of hunters licensed in Crittenden and Livingston counties by mail or through email. Danks also is developing a turkey hunter survey to gather additional information from hunters.
For more information, see https://fw.ky.gov/Hunt/Pages/Spring-Turkey-Hunting.aspx, or call 1-800-858-1549 or 270-965-3921 ext. 110.
