Wednesday January 28, 2026
Local Connection
Weather
Traffic
@LouisvilleDispatch
@LouisvilleDisp
Subscribe
Mayor Greg Fischer and Councilwoman Barbara Sexton Smith joined the Louisville Affordable Housing Trust Fund (LAHTF) as it celebrated a ribbon cutting and open house at its first major project.
“Housing is a basic need for all people in our city and I want to thank the partnership of the Affordable Housing Trust Fund and YMCA of Greater Louisville for preserving these 41 units at the Chestnut Street YMCA,” Mayor Greg Fischer said. “Over the last two years, the city is proud to have made an unprecedented investment of almost $30 million in affordable housing. I look forward to celebrating more groundbreaking and ribbon cuttings of affordable housing opportunities across the city.”
The LAHTF provided $477,000 in forgivable funds to the YMCA for major deferred maintenance repairs for its 41-unit permanent supported housing program. The program is the only such program in the city that provides housing for men moving towards self-sufficiency.
“This is a great day for affordable housing in Louisville,” proclaimed Councilwoman Sexton Smith. “The renovation of these apartments was very much needed and thanks to the collaboration and leadership of so many people, it a reality for those that depend on us.”
The renovation included upgrading plumbing and bathroom facilities, laundry facilities, individual HVAC units for residents and common areas and new appliances in the main community room. This renovation has enhanced not only our facility, but the self-worth and hopes of every man that lives here,” said Leah Mullaney, Senior Program Director for Housing at the Chestnut Street YMCA.
In total, LAHTF was allocated $2.5 million for the 2017 funding period. Other projects funded last year are in various stages of progress.
“We are excited to be able to fund the types of projects that have been presented and also understand that, without the flexible type of funding available through the Trust Fund, programs like the YMCA would not receive the funds needed to continue to provide these services in our community,” said Christie McCravy, Director of the Louisville Affordable Housing Trust Fund. “This is just one example of what is possible when the Trust Fund receives funding. Next year the impact will be even broader and greater.”
For more information on the Louisville Affordable Housing Trust Fund, please visit https://louisvilleky.gov/government/housing-community-development/louisv…
The Louisville Resilience team is asking citizens to complete a short web-based survey to help craft the city’s strategy for withstanding “shocks and stresses,” such as economic downturns and natural disasters.
“Louisville and its citizens can only reach their full potential if we’re prepared for disruptions that might come our way, both sudden and long-simmering,” said city Chief Resilience Officer Eric Friedlander, who is responsible for developing strategies to improve resilience across the city.
“We need input from as many residents as possible. We need to know what Louisvillians in every neighborhood see as our most pressing challenges, so we can work on them together as a community.”
The survey, which takes about 10 minutes to complete, can be taken here.
Louisville Resilience will use the residents’ feedback as the office, in partnership with the community, crafts policies and implementation strategies.
Louisville Resilience launched early last year with support from 100 Resilient Cities – pioneered by the Rockefeller Foundation, an international network aimed at building urban, environmental and economic resilience.
Louisville’s efforts focus on breaking down barriers within city government, developing pre-existing plans, and creating partnerships, alliances and financing mechanisms that will address the resilience vulnerabilities of all city residents, with a particular focus on low-income and vulnerable populations.
Those local efforts include a focus on economic and social challenges, environmental and infrastructure issues, and health and wellbeing.
The Public Safety Committee of the Louisville Metro Council will hold a special discussion at its first meeting of the year to hear about the impact of crime on a specific group that sometime gets lost in the aftermath of violence: crime victims.
“Many times this Committee talks with law enforcement and other agencies to see how we can combat the growing homicide rate and violent crime,” says Councilwoman Jessica Green (D-1) who chairs the Committee. “It is important we also hear about how victims are trying to piece their lives and their families back together after the kind of tragedies we are seeing on our streets. We need to know if we are meeting their needs in healing.”
The Committee will hear from Joshua Crawford of the Pegasus Institute, who is the author of Voices of the Survivors: Louisville Metro Violent Crime Impact Report.
Also invited are Brigadier General Rob Givens, Air Force (Retired), and survivors Micheshia Norment, Nicole Taylor, and Misty Tweedy along with retired LMPD Officer Richard Gibbs.
The Public Safety Committee will meet at 3:30pm in Council Chambers, 601 West Jefferson Street.
All Metro Council Committee meetings are carried live on Metro TV, Spectrum Cable Channel 184 and on UVERSE Channel 99. You can watch the meetings online by going to the Metro Council home page at http://louisvilleky.gov/government/metro-council/metro-council-clerk and click the “Watch Meetings Online” button.
Credit: Louisville Metro Police
Louisville Metro Government has officially started the search for a new Louisville Metro Police vehicle impound lot.
Located for decades at 1478 Frankfort Ave. in Butchertown, the impound lot is the main temporary storage area for motor vehicles that have been impounded by LMPD and other agencies, and is a longer-term storage area for motor vehicles being held as evidence in a legal proceeding. Although technical capacity is 1,800 vehicles, the lot frequently stores in excess of 2,000 vehicles.
Space issues, as well as the impound lot’s negative impact on nearby Beargrass Creek and the Beargrass Creek Greenway Trail, are among the reasons Louisville Metro Government is seeking a new location. The site, a former landfill, is also located in a flood plain and is partially impacted by a high-tension power line crossing it.
As a temporary measure to free up space at the Vehicle Impoundment Unit, LMPD will be changing the location of its auctions to the Newburg Fleet facility. This action will free up approximately 100-150 spaces that can be used to remove wrecked or abandoned vehicles, as well as parking violators, from Louisville’s roadways.
The first step in the process to move the lot is a Request for Information, seeking properties that fit the city’s search criteria for size, location, and other physical and operational requirements. The Request for Information can be found at: https://louisvilleky.gov/government/louisville-forward/impound-lot-relocation-rfi
Louisville Metro Government will also host three public meetings and conduct two tours of the current impound lot. A list of dates, times, and locations of meetings and tours can be found below.
The public is encouraged to provide suggestions on potential locations for the impound lot, as well as offer innovative solutions for the management of the facility. Public input can be made in-person at a public meeting or through an on-line comment portal at: https://louisvilleky.gov/government/louisville-forward/impound-lot-relocation-rfi
“The Louisville Metro Police Department is excited at this opportunity to involve the public in generating ideas for the relocation of the Vehicle Impoundment Unit. The Vehicle Impoundment Unit’s operations affect the lives of our citizens through the removal of vehicles that may be parked illegally, involved in a collision, or have been abandoned in a neighborhood,” said LMPD Lt. Col. Robert Schroeder. “The responsible relocation of the Impound Lot is vital for our community and we look forward to the ideas our community members will provide.”
Louisville Metro Government will close the Request for Information on March 15, 2018. Proposed locations will be evaluated based on their ability to meet operational and locational needs for the impound lot, as well as on their potential cost. If a suitable location is identified, funding for the relocation of the impound lot will be sought in upcoming fiscal years.
Meeting and tour schedule:
| February 15, 2018 | First Tour Opportunity:
Louisville Metro Impound Lot, 1478 Frankfort Ave. 10:00 a.m. RSVP to Robert.Schroeder@louisvilleky.gov no later than February 12, 2018 |
| February 19, 2018 | Second Tour Opportunity:
Louisville Metro Impound Lot, 1478 Frankfort Ave. 12:00 p.m. (noon) RSVP to Robert.Schroeder@louisvilleky.gov no later than February 16, 2018 |
| February 17, 2018 | First public meeting:
Main Branch, Louisville Free Public Library, 311 York St. 10:00 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. |
| February 20, 2018 | Second public meeting:
Oak and Acorn, 631 S. 28th St. 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. |
| February 22, 2018 | Third public meeting:
Butchertown Pizza Hall, 1301 Story Ave. Second Floor 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. |
Photo: Department of Resilience and Community Services
Louisville Metro Senior Nutrition Program invites young people to create handmade Valentine’s Day cards as part of the annual Love Letters campaign. The cards will then be included in meal deliveries to Meals on Wheels recipients and shared with other senior programs to help lift the spirits of older adults in our community.
Now in its fifth year, Love Letters was introduced through a partnership with DoSomething.org, a global non-profit organization which encourages young people to make a positive change, and Meals on Wheels America. Because of its enormous popularity — both with youth and seniors — staff members with the Louisville Metro Senior Nutrition Program remain committed to carrying on this tradition.
“Each year, these handmade cards brighten the lives of hundreds of seniors in our community,” said Faith Aeilts, program manager of Senior Services, a division of Louisville Metro Office of Resilience and Community Services. “We are grateful to the numerous individuals, schools, scout troops and other youth service providers who have contributed cards in previous years and hope we can once again count on an outstanding response.”
“The students at the J. Graham Brown School have participated in this wonderful outreach with Louisville Metro Meals on Wheels for the past few years”, stated Stacey Powell, staff member with the Brown School who champions the Love Letters campaign. “Our students are wonderful, caring, and compassionate. In the past we have submitted hundreds of beautiful handcrafted cards! We are excited to participating again and our students are always eager to have their cards delivered. We hope they bring smiles to the recipients.”
This year’s goal is to deliver at least one card to the more than 400 Meals on Wheels recipients and to also share with the hundreds of participants at one of the 22 congregate meal sites for more active seniors.
To donate cards to the local Meals on Wheels program, feel free to drop off any weekday by Feb. 9 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. at 701 W. Ormsby Ave. Suite 201. Contact Tiffany Woodson, Volunteer Coordinator for the Louisville Metro Senior Nutrition Program at 574-6420 or Tiffany.Woodson@louisvilleky.gov with any questions.
The Louisville Metro Senior Nutrition Program is funded, in part, under a contract with KIPDA and the Commonwealth of Kentucky, Cabinet for Health and Family Services with funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. To learn more about eligibility or how to volunteer, visit https://louisvilleky.gov/government/resilience-and-community-services/senior-nutrition-program or call 502/574-6325.
By a vote of 18 to 2, the Louisville Metro Council on Thursday night retained the current zoning for property at the corner of South Third Street and Kingston Avenue by overturning a recommendation from the Louisville Metro Planning Commission.
“I would like to thank my colleagues for this vote,” said Councilman Vitalis Lanshima (D-21). “Serious public safety concerns were raised by the people who live in the area. Because of those concerns I asked that the current zoning be maintained.”
The property in question is located at 5024 and 5026 South Third Street and 307 Kingston Avenue. A drive thru pharmacy was planned for the property which is currently zoned OR-1 Office/Residential and R-7 Multi-Family Residential. Developers for the project were seeking a change to C-1 on .44 acres
Entrance to the pharmacy would be gained by Third Street. Cars would exit on Kingston Avenue.
Several members of the Council raised concerns that continuous traffic using the drive thru could back up traffic of the people who live in two adjoining multi-plex apartments, since there was no proposed buffer zone in the plan.
Concerns were also raised about traffic and children who might live in the area as well as access by public safety vehicles in the event of an emergency at the apartment buildings.
“I know economic development is important to all areas of the city. However, in this case it was not the right fit for this neighborhood when you consider the traffic and safety concerns,” said Lanshima.
On behalf of the members of the Louisville Metro Council, President David James (D-6) has issued the following statement concerning today’s shooting incident at Marshall County High School:
“The Louisville Metro Council would like to extend our thoughts and prayers on behalf of those at Marshall County High School, specifically the students, teachers and families who were touched today by violence. Everyone should be proud of the first responders who quickly got this situation under control to stop the violence. They, like first responders everywhere, protect us and work to keep us safe. Now that grieving and healing have begun, we want the people of Marshall County to know they are not alone at this time of sorrow.”
