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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…
On Friday, February 23 and Saturday, February 24, the Louisville Orchestra welcomes nationally acclaimed conductor, Thomas Wilkins, to Whitney Hall to lead one of Gustav Holst’s most popular symphonic works – The Planets. This presentation will include HD images from NASA projected on a big screen over the stage. Experience this symphonic powerhouse with stunning images, from the Mars Rover mission and past probe missions Magellan, Voyager, and Galileo. Single tickets range from $27 – $85 and are available by calling 502.584.7777 or visit LouisvilleOrchestra.org.
Created by filmmaker Duncan Copp and produced by The Houston Symphony in cooperation with NASA and Jet Propulsion Laboratories, The Planets: An HD Odyssey is a spectacular presentation of the latest images from modern space exploration projected in high definition on a giant screen over the stage, providing a stunning visual canvas as your Louisville Orchestra performs Gustav Holst’s glorious musical score.
“The images in the movie, produced and directed by Duncan Copp, were often astonishing. Photographs from rovers and satellites, radar images and computer-generated graphics were combined to give the audience the impression of circling individual planets and sometimes flying over their awesomely barren landscapes…There is, of course, a film-score-like quality to the music, and combining it with imagery has been done before, though not to my mind with such sophistication.” – The New York Times
Thomas Wilkins is currently the Music Director of the Omaha Symphony, the Principal Conductor of the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra, and the Germeshausen Family and Youth Concert Conductor Chair with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Learn more about Maestro Wilkins at http://www.kaylormanagement.com/Wilkins_Thomas_bio.html.
PROGRAM: Hilliard Lyons Coffee Concert: Friday, February 23, 2018 11AM
Brown-Forman Classics Concert: Saturday, February 24, 2018 8PM
The Kentucky Center, Whitney Hall Thomas Wilkins, Conductor | Kent Hatteberg, Choursmaster | Women of the University of Louisville Collegiate Chorale
+ CLAUDE DEBUSSY:: Nocturnes
JAMES BECKEL:: Toccata for Orchestra
GUSTAV HOLST:: The Planets
+ Saturday evening performance only
Due to the high demand by school groups, there is limited seating for Friday morning’s Coffee concert.
Opus 3 Artists is the exclusive representative for “The Planets: An HD Odyssey.”
Mayor Fischer today announced the names of seven experts and community leaders who will serve on his new Public Art and Monuments Advisory Committee.
Originally announced in December, the Committee is charged with developing a set of principles for evaluating Louisville’s existing public art and monuments.
Committee members represent a range of disciplines and perspectives, including art, history, community building, business and political science. The members include Tricia Burke, Carolle Jones Clay, Dr. Dewey Clayton, Ashley Haynes, Dr. Tom Owen, Dr. Chris Reitz and Cathy Shannon. Reitz and Shannon represent the Commission on Public Art.
The Committee’s first meeting will be from 5-6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 7 in the auditorium of the main branch of the Louisville Free Public Library (301 York Street). From 5-5:30 p.m., Committee members will available for a meet-and-greet discussion format and the public is also invited to provide written comments during this time. Following the discussion, Committee members will summarize what they heard in the discussion and then discuss future meeting dates and public input strategies.
The scope of work for the Committee for January through June 2018 will include:
- review processes, actions and outcomes employed by other cities;
- develop strategies to receive public input;
- work with Metro staff to gather and review historical research;
- consider public opinion, historical research and the multi-disciplinary perspectives of Committee members in developing principles; and
- produce a report outlining the Committee’s methods of inquiry and findings on the matter of establishing principles to guide decisions on whether to alter, preserve or remove public art and monuments.
The set of principles that the Committee is tasked with developing will acknowledge the complexities of Louisville’s past, as well as the values that matter to us today. They will be comprehensive, rather than specific to current controversies, and informed by the work of the city’s Commission on Public Art, Compassionate City initiatives, and Historic Preservation Advisory Task Force.
The Committee will consider the historical representation of our city’s existing public art and monuments and develop principles that aspire to make public spaces welcoming and reflective of our diverse community. The principles will guide the administration’s deliberation on whether to alter, to preserve or to remove public art and monuments that may be interpreted as honoring bigotry, racism and/or slavery.
As the Committee begins its work, agendas and associated documents will be made available at Louisville Metro Public Art’s webpage: https://louisvilleky.gov/government/public-art
Photo: KFC Yum! Center
Kevin Hart announced he is expanding his widely successful and massively hysterical ‘The Kevin Hart Irresponsible Tour,’ adding over 100 new dates across the U.S., Canada, Europe, Australia and Asia. Produced by Live Nation, the new dates will kick off March 23 in Baltimore, MD and hit all new cities including New York, Atlanta, Chicago, Toronto, Paris, London, Sydney, Auckland, Singapore, and more. See below for full routing and on sale details.
Tickets for the newly added dates will go on sale to the general public starting Wednesday, January 31 at 12pm ET at LiveNation.com
Hart’s last multi-city domestic and international WHAT NOW comedy tour sold out large venues all over the world, including being the first comedian to sell out an NFL stadium, selling over 50,000 tickets in one show at Lincoln Financial Field. Internationally, he sold out over a dozen arenas in the European market, selling over 150,000 tickets, and sold out arenas across Australia, selling 100,000 tickets. Hart’s hit comedy tour grossed over $100 million worldwide.
2017 was a banner year for Hart, his memoir I Can’t Make This Up: Life Lessons debuted at Number One on the New York Times Bestseller list and remained on the list for ten consecutive weeks. The book also topped records on the Audible platform, selling over 100,000 copies in the first five weeks. Earlier in the year Hart voiced a title character in Captain Underpants: The First Epic Movie. To close 2017, Kevin appeared in the Sony reboot of the classic film Jumanji alongside Dwayne Johnson and Jack Black. Jumanji has been Kevin’s highest grossing box office release to date, the movie has made over $800 million worldwide.
Hart’s newest business venture is his digital platform the LOL NETWORK – Laugh Out Loud, the comedy brand and multi-platform network founded by Hart in partnership global content leader Lionsgate. Hart’s next feature film is Night School for Universal, a film in which he co-wrote, produces and stars in – all under the Hartbeat production banner. The comedy follows a group of misfits who are forced to attend adult classes in the longshot chance they’ll pass the GED exam.
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. |
