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Cuddle Clones, an award-winning Louisville company that specializes in creating the highest quality custom products made to look like people’s pets, announced its inclusion in the prestigious 2018 Inc. 5000, Inc. Magazine’s annual ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies. Cuddle Clones’ three-year growth of 583% ranked 1st in the state of Kentucky and 66th in their category of Consumer Products, which placed them alongside previous brands as Timberland and Zappos, and 862nd overall in the United States.“Cuddle Clones perfectly encapsulates the success we strive help Kentucky startups achieve,” said Vivek Sarin, co-leader of the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development. “This company began as a small operation in Louisville just eight years ago, so its announcement in February of a substantial $1.3 million expansion that will create 50 jobs is truly remarkable. Cuddle Clones is a prime example of what Kentucky-grown businesses are capable of, and I strongly suspect we have not yet seen the company’s full potential.”
Cuddle Clones growth is primarily a result of investing in new technology for their ecommerce platform, digital properties, and innovating new products. “We couldn’t have achieved this growth without the contributions from our team that include superb customer service and manufacturing the highest quality products for our customers” said Cuddle Clones CEO Brennen Lawrence.
Cuddle Clones expects to be on the list again next year as the first half of 2018 has exceeded expectations. Lawrence continued “We’ve performed very well in the first half of 2018 and will release several new, exciting custom pet products prior to Q’4 that we expect to further enhance our growth.”
This newest accolade comes on the heels of being named Louisville’s fastest growing company in 2017 by Business First. “It’s always exciting when a local company receives national attention for its fast-growth expansion in a global market,” said Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer. “Cuddle Clones’ success exemplifies Louisville’s robust business climate that encourages new start-ups and facilitates quick scale-up of business operations. We are proud to be the home of Cuddle Clones and we look forward to its continued success.”
The gates of the Kentucky State Fair officially opened for the 2018 season on Thursday, marking the 116th Fair since becoming an official state event. Although the Fair did not earn that distinction until 1902, the event was first organized in 1816, just five years after the United States’ first fair was held in Massachusetts.
Tickets and parking can be purchased at any of the Kentucky Exposition Center’s entrance gates or online. The gates open at 7 AM each day of the Fair, with exhibits opening at 9 AM. Daily schedules can be found here. The event features numerous special days, including:
- Today – 811 Day
- Visit the Marathon Pipe Line Booth for a free T-shirt
- Sunday, August 19 – Military Sunday Salute
- Free admission for active military, veterans and families (up to 4). Discounts for Thrill Ville available. Parking not included.
- Tuesday, August 21 – Senior Day
- All seniors age 55 or older receive free admission. Parking not included.
- Kentucky Farm Bureau and Carload Day
- $20 per vehicle and $100 for vehicles with 12+ passengers. Parking included.
The Texas Roadhouse concert series that has usually been held at the old Cardinal’s Stadium has been moved to the new Bluegrass Village, near the entrance to Kentucky Kingdom. The concerts held here in the evening are included with paid fair admission. Tonight, fair visitors will be able to enjoy the music from Great White. Upcoming shows will feature:
- 8/19 – The Oak Ridge Boys
- 8/20 – Casting Crowns
- 8/21 – Happy Together Tour
- 8/22 – Chris Janson
- 8/23 – Chevelle
- 8/24 – Josh Turner
- 8/25 – The Commodores
- 8/26 – Mercyme
Visitors to the fair will also see that the exhibit hall has been arranged a bit differently. Instead of being in the West Hall, the 4H and FFA exhibits have been moved to the main exhibit hall area, in AgLand. The Discovery Farm has also been relocated into this area and features several stations to learn about livestock and a dairy cow demonstration.
Starting tonight, visitors will be able to attend to the World’s Championship Horse Show . Tickets are sold separately. Tonight, starting at 6 PM, is the last night for the Miniature Horse Show. If you have never attended this event, it is very entertaining. Many of the competitions highlight the ability of the miniature horse to be a service animal and it’s a great way for young people to get experience in a competition setting.
Whether you are there for the crazy fair food, like a funnel cake fries burger, the livestock, the music or the market area, there is something for everyone at the Kentucky State Fair.
When Kentucky-native and U.S. Army Specialist Brandon Mullins drove into the desert region of the Kandahar province in Afghanistan on Aug. 25, 2011, he didn’t realize he was in for the fight of his life.
Before heading out on deployment, Mullins left his mother a voicemail saying, “I’m all grown, 21, and living on my own. Going away today for a little bit. Don’t worry. I’ll be back. I’ll be home. I’m going to make it back.” A few months later his unit was attacked with a rudimentary explosive device and he lost his life.
“Brandon was a talented hockey player and very popular with the ladies,” said his mother, Cathy Mullins. “He didn’t just die. He died for his country. People have sacrificed their lives so we can enjoy things like state fairs and going to church.”
On Sunday Aug. 19, the Kentucky State Fair will honor military members, veterans and their families during the Oak Ridge Boys free concert. Cathy Mullins, along with 40 Gold Star families, will attend with the Hershel Woody Williams Medal of Honor Foundation. Gold Star families are those, like the Mullins, who have lost family members during military service. The foundation honors Gold Star families with monuments and memorials throughout the country.
“They sacrificed their son for the freedoms that we enjoy and they don’t really get any recognition for it,” said Brent Casey, director of the Hershel Woody Williams Medal of Honor Foundation. “Our goal at the foundation is to help educate the public that there are families among us who have given a whole lot more than we have, they’ve given one of their own family members for the freedom we enjoy today.”
Ceremony participants include:
- David Beck, President and CEO of Kentucky Venues
- Heather French Henry, Deputy Commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Veterans Affairs
- Brig. General Benjamin Adams, Commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Veterans Affairs
- Troy Yocum, President of Active Heroes
During Military Sunday on Aug. 19, free admission is available online for military members, veterans and their family (up to 4 people). Details are available on GovX.com. Parking is not included. The 2018 Kentucky State Fair is Aug. 16-26 at the Kentucky Exposition Center. To purchase tickets and parking or for more information, visit www.kystatefair.org or download our Kentucky State Fair app.
The Texas Roadhouse Free Concert Series is located at the Bluegrass Village on the west side of the Kentucky Exposition Center.
The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC), in partnership with the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), are seeking public input regarding the proposed construction of a multi-use path in A.B. Sawyer Park, a public-use recreational resource protected under Section 4(f) of the Transportation Act of 1966.
The general project description is to construct a shared use path through A.B. Sawyer Park from Whipps Mill Road to the Forest Green Greenway. The path will traverse under Hurstbourne Parkway and cross over Middle Fork Beargrass Creek to connect with the existing Forest Green Greenway. The project also provides sidewalk connectivity along Hurstbourne Parkway (KY 1747) from Ormsby Station Road to Tamarisk Parkway. This Hurstbourne connection also provides two access paths to the park. It will provide connectivity to existing paths that tie-in to the Limestone Belt Northeast extension of the Louisville Loop.
The purpose of the project is to enhance the park experience by providing connectivity to and within the park. This connection will allow access to existing recreational activity areas. The need for this project is identified through the limited access to the park today. Currently, the only practical access to A.B. Sawyer Park from the east is by motorized vehicle. There is demand for better connectivity to the developed recreational facilities within A.B. Sawyer Park. A.B. Sawyer Park is approximately 47 acres. The path is anticipated to use approximately 0.381 acre of the park. The alignment proposed is consistent with the path identified in the A.B. Sawyer Park Master Plan which can be found here:
Your comments will be used in determining any potential effects the proposed path could have on A.B. Sawyer Park or affect the activities, features, or attributes that make the park a Section 4(f) eligible property.
Please address any comments regarding potential 4(f) impacts anticipated from this project by Friday, August 10, 2018 to:
Lindsay Ashby
Kentucky Transportation Cabinet
District 5 Environmental Coordinator
8310 Westport Road
Louisville, KY 40242
(502) 210-5400
lindsay.ashby@ky.gov
In April 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury certified 144 Opportunity Zones in 84 Kentucky counties as recommended by Governor Matt Bevin under a new community development program, the Investing in Opportunity Act, part of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017. In Louisville, 19 census tracts are designated as Opportunity Zones.
The Opportunity Zones program is designed to spur economic development and create jobs by encouraging long-term investment in economically-distressed urban and rural areas. The program provides a tax incentive for investors to re-invest their unrealized capital gains into Opportunity Funds that are dedicated to investing in Opportunity Zones.
“The Opportunity Zones program establishes the framework for investors to inject investment into projects in our city that will have a significant social impact. Projects like the redevelopment of the Louisville Gardens, the Track on Ali at Heritage West, and projects from Butchertown to downtown to west Louisville are great examples of developments that could benefit from this program,” said Mayor Greg Fischer. “We look forward to continuing our work with our partners at the state and with local investors to strategically grow our city.”
To assist business owners and investors with identifying Opportunity Zones, the city created an interactive map to show exact addresses and boundaries of Louisville’s designated Opportunity Zones.
To search Louisville-specific addresses, visit https://louisvilleky.gov/government/louisville-forward/opportunity-zones-louisville
To learn more about Kentucky Opportunity Zones, visit www.KYOZ.com
To read more about Opportunity Zones in general, visit https://eig.org/opportunityzones
Photo: Louisville Metro Council
In the days before YouTube, Netflix and Pay per View, there was one special place in Louisville’s South End to take the family out for a movie and you didn’t have to get out of the car.
On Tuesday, July 31st Councilwoman Vicki Aubrey Welch (D-13), the Kentucky Historical Society and representatives of the Iroquois Neighborhood Association will dedicate the Commonwealth’s newest Historical Marker at the Kenwood Drive In.
“Sixty nine years ago, the Kenwood Drive In held its Grand Opening and for those of us who grew up in South Louisville and the surrounding area, the Kenwood was the place to go for a fun time with friends and family,” says Welch. “So many people have great memories of the movies shown here and the fun it was to just get in the car, place a speaker on your window, grab some popcorn and watch movies under the stars. From my own family, four generations have enjoyed movies at the Kenwood Drive In.”
The official dedication ceremony will begin at 12:00 noon.
When the Kenwood opened on July 31st, 1949, “El Paso” starring John Payne, Sterling Hayden and Gail Russell was the featured movie of the night.
The Kenwood Drive In Ceremony will be held at 7001 Southside Drive at the entry to the old location which is now Kenwood Business Park.
A special guest will be in attendance at this Wednesday’s evening service at First Gethsemane Baptist Church. Kentucky Attorney General Andy Beshear will be joined by Metro Council President David James (D-6) and Councilwoman Barbara Sexton Smith (D-4).
The Attorney General will be on hand to announce the Church is joining Kentucky’s Opioid Disposal Program.
“We hope the people in the community will come out and learn more about how we can make an impact to keep opioids out of the hands of the unsuspecting,” says James. “General Beshear is taking this program out to the people so they can learn how to protect others from these dangerous drugs.”
Beshear launched the program in August of 2017, and so far it has eliminated more than 2.2 million opioids across Kentucky.
“As we honor and celebrate our seasoned saints this week at First Gethsemane we are delighted to partner with our Attorney General to address the growing problem of drugs, prescription and illegal, getting into the hands of our most vulnerable in our community,” says Dr. T. Vaughn Walker, Senior Pastor. “We as part of the faith community see the absolute necessity of dedicated partnerships from government, the medical community, business and faith families working collaboratively to stop what has become the epidemic cross of racial, cultural, and economic communities.”
With First Gethsemane becoming a partner, the church will distribute 100 safe drug deactivation pouches for use in the community.
“We have seen intense efforts by local, state and federal law enforcement to take drugs off our streets. Now it become our responsibility to make sure the medicine chest in our homes are safe. This program is an effective way to accomplish that goal,” says Sexton Smith.
The Attorney General will be at First Gethsemane tonight, Wednesday July 25th at 6:00pm. The Church is located at 1159 Algonquin Parkway.
