Tuesday January 27, 2026
Local Connection
Weather
Traffic
@LouisvilleDispatch
@LouisvilleDisp
SubscribeA review of theft from automobiles, stolen vehicles and burglaries in the Highlands for the first quarter of 2018 shows that 34.4% of the crimes committed (55 of 160) were easy targets because the doors were left unlocked, keys were left inside or otherwise made available to thieves, according to Councilman Brandon Coan (D-8).
Councilman Coan strongly urges citizens to lock their vehicles and buildings and take their valuables out of their cars as part of a new campaign called #KeepLouisvilleLocked.
“The failure to lock your doors and take your valuables out of your car not only inflates the crime rate, it gives your neighborhood a reputation as an easy target which, in turn, attracts more crime,” Coan said. “Please do your part and park smart.”
Coan is partnering with the Louisville Metro Police Fifth Division, Louisville Parks and Recreation and others to reduce crime of opportunity in District 8. He tracks “unlocked” crimes in his bi-weekly newsletter and intends to report out the statistics to local media outlets and community stakeholders on a quarterly basis.
To receive District 8 eNews, go to: https://louisvilleky.gov/government/metro-council-district-8/subscribe-s…
For more information about #KeepLouisvilleLocked, contact Councilman Coan’s office at 574-1108.
In 2016, Mayor Greg Fischer created the Building Our Blocks (BOB) initiative as a cross-functional approach to make our neighborhoods clean, green and safe. BOB will begin its second full year on April 13. Last year, the BOB team, which includes many city agencies and community partners, visited seven different neighborhoods. This year, the team will concentrate four events specifically in one neighborhood—Russell.
“Building Our Blocks is the city’s way to deliver on-the-spot services and make a direct impact on residents’ quality of life,” Fischer said. “After reviewing our impact from last year’s events, we determined that we can see even more results if we give continuous focus on one neighborhood throughout the year. With significant investment and momentum in Russell right now, it is a great neighborhood for the BOB team to give longer term commitment to in 2018.”
Events will take place on April 13, June 8, August 10 and October 12. If needed, rain dates are planned for April 27, June 21, August 16 and October 26. Each event will be held from 1-4 p.m. and cover about six blocks of the neighborhood. On April 13, the BOB team will meet at the Oak & Acorn Intergenerational Center (631 S. 28th Street).
During BOB events, residents can expect a group of city employees, including LMPD officers, and community partners, walking the blocks and knocking on doors asking what services they can offer residents, listening and responding to neighborhood issues, and addressing property maintenance.
BOB has many city agencies and community partners participating in this year’s initiative—Brightside, Codes & Regulations, LMPD, Louisville Fire, Louisville Free Public Library, Louisville Water Company, MSD, Public Works, Resilience & Community Services, Vacant & Public Property Administration, New Directions Housing Corporation and Saving Sunny Inc., Park DuValle Community Health Center and OPI².
For more information on Building Our Blocks, please visit https://louisvilleky.gov/government/building-our-blocks. If you are a community organization that can provide on-the-spot services and wants to join the BOB team, please e-mail Robin.Hawkins@louisvilleky.gov
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.
This year’s Republic Bank Pegasus Parade will be a blast from the past for Festival fans. Festival officials announced the Grand Marshals and set the line-up for the parade at a special event tonight at Mark’s Feed Store. In honor of this year’s parade theme “ThrowbackThursday,” former coaching rivals and basketball fan favorites Joe B. Hall and Denny Crum will serve as the parade’s Co-Grand Marshals. It’s a familiar role for the coaches who also participated in the 1975 parade.
“The parade is the event that started the Festival 63 years ago and this year’s march will be a trip down memory lane,” said Mike Berry, KDF President and CEO. “Who better to evoke great memories than two coaches responsible for nine of the Final Four trips and three of the NCAA championships for UofL and UK.”
In addition to announcing the Grand Marshals, floats and inflatable units participating in this year’s parade drew for positions for annual march down Broadway. This year’s theme of “ThrowbackThursday,” will be used by sponsoring companies to help direct the building of floats and costuming of the inflatable handlers and crew. Participants were invited to pick their favorite parade themes from years past to decorate their units. The floats and inflatables compete for various awards based on originality, eye appeal, theme representation, animation, attention to detail and enthusiasm. Marching bands use the theme to help with musical selection and it is the basis of costume and concept design for the other marching units.
The 2018 Parade will feature 10 floats, many of them built by the employees of the companies sponsoring them. The following companies drew for their float position in the parade at tonight’s event, as well as the sponsors of the five participating inflatable character balloons.
Floats:
City of St. Matthews
Grand Lodge of Kentucky
Hwang’s Martial Arts
Kentucky Proud
Kosair Shriners/Kosair Charities
Louisville Parks & Recreation
Norton Healthcare
Second Chance @ Life
Shirley’s Way – Ride to Ride Out Cancer
The Fillies, Inc.
Inflatable Balloon Characters:
CareSource “Cookie Monster”
Horseshoe Southern Indiana “Horseshoe”
LG&E “Louie the Lightning Bug”
Republic Bank “Peggy Bank”
Waystar “Star”
Before the parade, fans can see the floats, inflatables, equestrian units and much more on display at the Pegasus Parade Preview Party Presented by Louisville Mega Cavern on Tuesday, May 1, at the Kentucky Exposition Center, in South Wing C. Admission is a 2018 Pegasus Pin.
Tickets for the Parade are on sale now online at KDF.org. Ticket prices are $10 for bleacher seats, $12 chair seating and $30 VIP seats. Republic Bank is the Title Sponsor of the parade with Contributing Sponsor, KentuckyOne Health. Official Hotel: The Galt House.
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.
President David James (D-6) announces the Louisville Metro Council will hold its next regular meeting at the Academy@Shawnee this coming Thursday, April 12th.
The meeting is the first of what the President hopes will give the public a chance to see the Council in action and talk with members about issues.
“It is my hope that taking the Metro Council on the road will give us as policy makers another opportunity to meet with the public and hear what they have to say about issues,” says the President. “For many people, it can be difficult to attend a Council meeting and it is my hope they will take advantage of this road trip to come and talk with us.”
The Metro Council’s first meeting of the month of April will be held in the Auditorium of the Academy @ Shawnee beginning at 6:00pm. The Council will conduct its regular scheduled meeting at that time and then meet with the public afterwards.
“I am pleased to welcome the first Metro Council meeting offsite in many years to District 5 and the Shawnee Neighborhood. Council members will get a chance to see a great high school and I urge residents to come and join us to get a better understanding of your government in action,” says Councilwoman Cheri Bryant Hamilton (D-5), who chairs the Democratic Caucus.
“Citizen involvement in local government is vital to our success as a community. It’s important that every citizen knows their government and those who represent them are accessible. What better way to achieve this by bringing government into the very neighborhoods we serve,” says Councilwoman Angela Leet who chairs the Republican Caucus.
The Metro Council has held regular meetings outside of its regular chambers located at 601 West Jefferson Street. The Organizational meetings of 2003 when the Metro Council was seated were held at the Kentucky International Conventions Center pending the conversion of the Chambers following merger. Then in 2014, the Council held its organizational session for the year at Memorial Auditorium due to further ceiling renovations in the chamber.
This meeting will not be broadcast live and streamed over Metro TV due to technical challenges at the location. It will be recorded and rebroadcast on Metro TV at a time to be announced at a later date.