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On Saturday, July 1st, Southwest Louisville is once again ready to celebrate the Fourth of July Holiday weekend with fireworks and fun as the 6th Annual Riverview Independence Festival, presented by Brown-Forman, Kosair Charities and Metro PCS, gets underway.
“I invite everyone from across Louisville to come to the Riverview Festival to see the fun and festivities we have to offer,” says Councilman Rick Blackwell, D-12. “I am proud of this event as it continues to grow each year and has become a point of pride for our Southwest community.”
It’s a patriotic celebration of music, entertainment, and family fun at the beautiful Riverview Park along the scenic Ohio River. Then, at night, spectacular lights of fireworks will emanate from a barge on the Ohio River for a stunning display with a picturesque backdrop.
“Brown-Forman is a proud supporter of the Riverview Independence Festival – a treasured Southwest tradition that provides an opportunity for our community to gather together in one of Louisville’s most beautiful settings as we celebrate the birth of our nation,” says Carly Launius, Community Relations Manager for Brown-Forman. “We are so please to be a part of this annual event and look forward to seeing its continued growth and success.”
“The Riverview Independence Festival has become a hallmark event in Southwest Louisville,” says Randy Coe, Kosair Charities Board President. “This family-friendly event provides free activities and entertainment for both kids and parents. We are excited to be a part of the fun and community it helps to build.”
“MetroPCS is proud to be a sponsor for the 4th year in a row. Each year we look forward to spending time with our neighbors at the festival,” says Leigh Anne Burke-Schaad, Field Marketing Manager for Metro PCS.
The Riverview Independence Festival will begin at 3:00 pm and will cap off with the Fireworks show at 10:00 pm. It is a free event.
Among the highlights of this year’s Festival:
- Appearances by Abe Lincoln and Col. Sanders from Squallis Puppeteers
- Mad Science experiments to make your own slime and cotton candy
- Mingle with Louisville League of Mascots
- Beat the heat with the Riverview Sprayground
- Bring your refillable water bottles to fill up with “The Bubbler”
- Enjoy fair food from Kentuckiana Catering and Hot Diggety Dogs
- Dawne Gee, Kayla Vanover, Julian Glover from WAVE 3 News will be our emcees for the festival activities
- Musical performances by The Louisville Crashers and Sobourbon Shooters
- Fantastic Fireworks show on the River at 10:00 pm!
Limited parking is available at the event site. Additional parking will be available at LG&E, located at 7301 Distribution Drive. A shuttle service from the school to the park will be provided by TARC for attendees from 4:00 to 10:45 pm.
“Come join us for some patriotic fun at a festival that has quickly become a great tradition and is a great way to celebrate the holiday while enjoying one of the best parks in Southwest Louisville,” said Councilwoman Cindi Fowler (D-14).
“Another fabulous free event for families to enjoy our beautiful riverfront along with music, booths, and food options! Bring a chair or blanket and have fun!” said Councilwoman Vicki Aubrey Welch (D-13).
“This Festival is a great way to just kick back with family and friends and enjoy the 4th of July weekend,” says President David Yates (D-25). Community spirit is built when both public and private sectors come together to give the community a free event to celebrate our country’s rich heritage.”
In addition to this year’s Presenting Sponsors, the Riverview Festival is supported by many local businesses whose commitment to our community is essential to the success of the Festival. Lead Sponsors this year include WAVE3 News, LG&E, Atlas Machine & Supply, Café Press and Signarama Dixie. Algood Food Company and Owen Funeral Home have signed on as Proud Patrons.
Joining Blackwell, Fowler, Welch, and Yates as sponsors are Council members Marianne Butler (D-15), Madonna Flood (D-24), Mary C. Woolridge (D-3), Dan Johnson (D-21), Jessica Green (D-1), David James (D-6), Angela Leet (R-7), and Barbara Sexton Smith (D-4).
Chairs, blankets, and coolers are allowed. No pets, outside alcohol, tents in the event area, drones or flying objects or glass containers are permitted.
To see a listing of all the activities at the 6th Annual Riverview Independence Festival presented by Brown-Forman and Kosair Charities, and Metro PCS go to: www.RiverviewFestival.com/ or Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/riverviewfest/
Attorney General Andy Beshear and Woodford County Sheriff Wayne “Tiny” Wright said a group of door-to-door blacktop contractors are targeting elderly residents in Woodford County, and possibly families in the Central Kentucky region.
Beshear said Sheriff Wright contacted his office after a Woodford County resident was pressured into overpaying contractors to seal her driveway. Sheriff Wright said the woman initially received a low quote of $1,400 to complete the work and after complete, she was told she owed $25,000. Ultimately, the woman paid $14,000 for a project that should have cost around $4,000.
“Thanks to the quick work of Sheriff Wright’s office payment was stopped on the check and the citizen avoided losing her money,” said Beshear. “We appreciate the Woodford County Sheriff’s Office for reporting this scam and we want to make sure more Kentuckians know the signs to watch out for when it comes to avoiding door-to-door scammers.”
“Community awareness is key to stopping these predatory scammers,” said Sheriff Wright. “Whether they offer to seal your driveway, paint your fence or any other odd job, contact your local sheriff’s office immediately if you suspect suspicious activity.”
Beshear said not all door-to-door salespersons are scammers and many are honest trying to make a living. Nevertheless, before you commit to a door-to-door sales pitch take time to follow these tips:
- Be wary of a low price quote
If you receive an unusually low price quote be suspicious. Before you complete any large home improvement project, consider getting multiple quotes from different contractors. - Verify and check online reviews
Verify that the contractor or business is registered to do business in Kentucky on the Secretary of State’s website, also check business licensing requirements with your city or county government. Verify online reviews through the Better Business Bureau, and ask for ID and contact previous customer references. - Avoid upfront payment
If a contractor asks for upfront payment for a small home improvement job this should trigger a red flag. Often times, very large projects require some type of upfront payment, but only after the contractor is properly screened and a guarantee contract is signed. - Do not fall for high-pressure tactics
Do not rush into making a decision. Tell the salesperson you need to discuss with your family, or you are not interested. Ensure any agreement is in writing and tell the salesperson you will review the agreement and get back in contact with them.
One of Beshear’s top priorities is to protect Kentuckians, especially senior citizens from scams, abuse and exploitation. Beshear said the best way to stay ahead of con artists is to be aware of new and trending scams by signing up to receive Scam Alerts from the Office of the Attorney General.
Scam Alerts provide Kentuckians a direct alert, including tips on how to avoid scams reported in Kentucky. To enroll, text the words KYOAG Scam to GOV311 (468311), or enroll online at ag.ky.gov/scams and select text message or email alert.
To report a scam contact the Attorney General’s Office at 888-432-9257 and file a complaint online.
Photo: Kentucky Derby Museum
The Kentucky Derby Museum is now offering Race Day Golf Cart and Walking Tours to compliment the list of growing tour options for guests! Hop aboard the Museum’s deluxe 6-person golf cart and experience a whole new way to enjoy live races from various viewing points around Churchill Downs Racetrack.
This exclusive tour takes you through the history, pageantry and legacy of Churchill Downs Racetrack and the Kentucky Derby. Guests will have a unique experience at the home of the “Greatest Two Minutes in Sports,” from the grandstand to the backside and everywhere in between. Led by a knowledgeable Museum guide, the tour provides an unparalleled view of the track and famed Twin Spires.
Suggested itinerary:
11:00 a.m. – Check-in to the Museum
11:10 a.m. – Viewing of “The Greatest Race”
11:30 a.m. – Self-guided exploration through two floors of exhibits
12:30 p.m. – Proceed to box seats
12:45 p.m. – Enjoy first race from box seats
1:00 – 4:30 p.m. – A Museum Tour Guide will pick guests up from assigned box seats and begin the tour from the outside grounds, travel to the Paddock, through the famous infield tunnels to the backside to enjoy an up close and personal view of the horses, jockeys and trainers and see the barns that once were home to Thoroughbred legends like Secretariat, and American Pharoah.
“Watching a race from the backside and exploring the historic grounds through this new tour is a one-of-kind experience, with access to areas many visitors never get to see. We are excited to offer this exclusive tour in partnership with Churchill Downs Racetrack to enjoy the home of the Kentucky Derby in a new light,” Kentucky Derby Museum President Patrick Armstrong said.
The three and a half hour tour, including a box seat to Churchill Downs, runs from 1:00 – 4:30 p.m. and is available on select days during the living racing meets through the end of the fall 2017 meet. The cost of the tour is $99 per person. The Race Day Golf Cart and Walking Tour is limited to six guests each day, is available rain or shine, and participating guests must be at least 10 years old.
The Kentucky Derby Museum is open Monday – Saturday 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Photo: Kentucky Cabinet For Economic Development
Gov. Matt Bevin, Cabinet for Economic Development Sec. Terry Gill, other state officials and business representatives will attend the 52nd International Paris Air Show in France this week to discuss new business and expansion opportunities with aviation and aerospace executives from around the globe.
“Kentucky is a top location in the U.S. for aviation and aerospace engineering, manufacturing and R&D. We offer formidable advanced-manufacturing resources and experience, plus workforce programs that set the bar nationally, logistics hubs that deliver products nearly anywhere globally overnight, and a network of available sites and buildings in attractive communities,” Gov. Bevin said. “Meetings we have scheduled with corporate executives during the Paris Air Show will give us the opportunity to demonstrate how Kentucky meets their needs and provides the environment for long-term success.”
First held in 1909, the Paris Air Show is the world’s largest aerospace event. It brings together key players in the aerospace industry to pursue business deals, showcase technology and develop industrial partnerships.
“Aerospace has been one of the fastest growing industries in Kentucky for several years now, and it is important we use every opportunity to build upon that success,” Sec. Gill said. “The Paris Air Show provides the greatest opportunity to do just that. The ability to meet in person with aerospace executives from around the world and discuss Kentucky’s many advantages will go a long way toward developing new relationships and strengthening those we have already established.”
Across Kentucky, the aerospace industry is on the rise.
Through May 2017, Kentucky announced more than $1.3 billion in investment by aerospace-related companies. Projects include the nation’s first aluminum rolling mill built on a greenfield site in more than a generation. The Braidy Industries mill, expected to open in 2020, will produce high-strength aluminum alloy sheet for the aviation and aerospace industry as well as other sectors. The investments are expected to create nearly 600 full-time jobs.
Already, the aviation and aerospace sector is a pillar of Kentucky’s economy. It employs nearly 17,000 people statewide at almost 80 different manufacturing, service and technology-related facilities. Advanced manufacturers of carbon brakes, jet engines and turbines, cockpit avionics, wiring and control systems, micro satellites, software development, data analytics, advanced materials R&D, micro-gravity research services, industry logistics and support services and missile defense system manufacturing and overhauling.
Aerospace products and parts continue to be Kentucky’s top export category, with more than $10.8 billion in products shipped abroad in 2016. Nearly $2.9 billion in aerospace products were exported from the commonwealth in the first quarter of 2017, a 9.4-percent increase over the same months a year ago.
To learn more about Kentucky’s aerospace industry, visit http://thinkkentucky.com/Aerospace/.
This year’s Paris Air Show will include more than 2,300 exhibitors with more than 130 aircraft scheduled to be on display.
In 2015, the air show shattered its previous attendance records with more than 350,000 visitors, including more than 4,300 journalists from 72 countries.
To learn more about the Paris Air Show, visit www.siae.fr/en/.
Information on Kentucky’s economic development efforts and programs is available at ThinkKentucky.com. Fans of the Cabinet for Economic Development can also join the discussion on Facebook or follow on Twitter. Watch the Cabinet’s “This is My Kentucky” video on YouTube.
A newly published plan developed by the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources offers a long-range strategy to help ruffed grouse populations rebound in eastern Kentucky after years of decline.
The Ruffed Grouse and Young Forest Strategic Plan looks 10 years out and its success hinges on an array of partners working together to create the young forest habitat on which grouse and other woodland species can thrive.
“This will be an ambitious effort, aimed at turning the tide for the ruffed grouse,” Kentucky Fish and Wildlife Commissioner Gregory K. Johnson said. “There is no doubt this is a challenge that can become a real opportunity. We are accepting this challenge with every intent to be successful. We will need your help – our sportsmen, our partners, our colleges and universities, and our forest products industry. Only together can we be successful restoring this magnificent game bird to our landscape.”
The strategic plan, more than two years in the making, incorporates input received from the public and other stakeholders. It is available on Kentucky Fish and Wildlife’s website at fw.ky.gov.
Grouse are upland birds that spend much of their time on the ground. Prized by hunters for the challenge it presents, and renowned for its explosive take-offs when flushed, the species needs a mosaic of habitat.
Hunters in Kentucky enjoyed decades of high grouse densities last century; a direct result of the timber harvest, farm abandonment and surface mine reclamation that took place in preceding years.
Much of eastern Kentucky’s forests have matured since then into more open stands that do not provide the dense protective cover or food sources grouse need to survive and reproduce. At the same time, in many forests a lack of management has favored red maples in the understory. Maples do not produce the protein-rich nuts like the acorns that mature oak trees do. The hard mast helps grouse survive winter in better condition, leading to better reproduction in spring.
“The ideal recipe for grouse is a landscape that is at least 75 percent forested, at least 5,000 to 10,000 acres, and at least 20 to 30 percent young forests. The bigger and more diverse in terms of forest stand ages and species diversity, the better,” said Zak Danks, ruffed grouse and wild turkey program coordinator with Kentucky Fish and Wildlife. “A large clear-cut that is 10 years old is prime for grouse, but only for another 10-15 years. They also use older forest for nesting and foraging. You need that mix of young and old forest together. Patches of cutting don’t have to be that big – 20 to 40 acres is ideal – but you need a lot of those patches clustered within an area and across the surrounding landscape.”
The strategic plan covers the next 10 years and lays the groundwork for success far beyond that timeframe.
“The department is committed to working on grouse,” Danks said. “Over the next 10 years, we need to take a targeted approach for grouse. The objectives outlined in this plan will not be easy to accomplish, but provide the only real way to get grouse back.”
A collaborative, science-guided approach to habitat management is at the heart of the new strategic plan.
It calls for Kentucky Fish and Wildlife working with federal, state and local agencies, as well as corporations and private landowners to manage forests on focus areas by creating habitat beneficial to grouse and other wildlife. Focus areas may include wildlife management areas, state forests, the Daniel Boone National forest and private lands.
A successful outcome will require a commitment to sustainable forest management. This includes commercial timber harvests and noncommercial habitat treatments designed to stimulate plant growth for grouse broods, high stem densities for year-round cover and oak regeneration for the future forests, while maintaining select mature, acorn-producing trees to help boost oak stands in the forest. Public outreach to promote the importance of young forest habitat for woodland species will be key.
“In the grouse woods, a hunter often gets only a fleeting glimpse of his flushing quarry, and shots are often taken on faith,” Danks said. “We must embrace the challenge of grouse restoration now, and on behalf of grouse, blue-winged warblers, oaks and the suite of other species that cannot lobby for their own existence.”
Photo: The Kentucky Center
Dixie Longate, the fast-talking Tupperware Lady, packed up her catalogs, left her children in an Alabama trailer park, and took Off-Broadway, the United Kingdom, and Australia by storm!
Join Dixie as she travels the country throwing Tupperware Parties filled with outrageously funny tales, heartfelt accounts, FREE giveaways, audience participation, and the most fabulous assortment of Tupperware ever sold on a theater stage.
See for yourself how Ms. Longate became a member of the illustrious “#1 Tupperware Seller in the World” club, as she educates her guests on the many alternative uses she has discovered for her plastic products.
The Kentucky Center is the official Ticket Service for this production. Tickets go on sale to the public Friday, June 23, at 10 a.m. online, by phone (584-7777), and at the box office (501 W. Main Street, Louisville, 40202). Ticket prices start at $27.50 reserved seating, fees apply.
DIXIE’S TUPPERWARE PARTY
- Thursday, October 26, 8 p.m.
- Friday, October 27, 8 p.m.
- Saturday, October 28, 8 p.m.
The Kentucky Center, Bomhard Theater
The World’s Championship Horse Show (WCHS) returns to Freedom Hall Aug. 19-26 and tickets go on sale Wednesday, June 21 at 10 a.m. The event is held in conjunction with the Kentucky State Fair.
Recognized as the richest and most prestigious Saddlebred show in the world, WCHS features 2,000 horses competing for Grand Champion titles and more than $1 million in awards. Saddlebreds take center stage during the show, with harness and hackney ponies and roadster ponies and horses competing in show ring as well. Divisions include three and five gaited, fine harness, Saddlebred pleasure, equitation, Hackney/Harness pony and Roadster.
Show days, hours, parking and ticket prices vary. Gate admission to the Kentucky State Fair is required for all performances: Show date Time Advance ticket After Aug. 17 Aug. 19 7 p.m. $14 $18 Aug. 20-24 6:30 p.m. $14 $18 Aug. 25 6:30 p.m. $20 $25 Aug. 26 7 p.m. $20 $25 Aug. 20-26 Morning Free, upper-level seating only Parking $5 $10
All-week seats are $192 and include Kentucky State Fair gate admission for all 14 performances, morning and evening.
Purchase tickets at the Kentucky Exposition Center Ticket Office, online at www.ticketmaster.com, by phone at 1-800-745-3000 or download the advance tickets order form at www.kystatefair.org/wchs/prices.html.
The World’s Championship Horse Show offers pay-per-view coverage. Each day of the show is broadcast live and available for purchase at $25 per day or $150 for the entire week.
For more information about WCHS and a schedule of competitive events, visit www.kystatefair.org/wchs.
Competitors can register using the new online entry system or download the forms at www.kystatefair.org/wchs/forms.html. All entries are due July 1. The WCHS premium book is available online or by request: call (502) 367-5300 or email horse.show@kyvenues.com.
The 2017 Kentucky State Fair is Aug. 17-27 at the Kentucky Exposition Center. For more information, visit www.kystatefair.org or find the Fair on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or its blog.
