Louisville Metro Police Department officers will soon be equipped with body cameras and the program begins in the Fifth Division, which includes Metro Council District 9. We’ll be hosting a public meeting on the program on Tuesday, June 2, at 6:30 p.m. at Field Elementary School, 120 Sacred Heart Lane.

WFPL reporter Jacob Ryan reported what you need to know about Louisville Metro Police’s Body Cameras on May 14, 2015.

“Louisville Metro Police officers in the Fifth Division will begin wearing body cameras in June.

About 100 officers in the division will be the first in the department to wear body cameras in the field. The pilot program in the Fifth Division is expected to last about 45 days, and then the body camera program will expand to other divisions, said Chief Steve Conrad.

Louisville Metro Police has been looking to outfit officers with body cameras since about 2012. Earlier this week, the department placed an order for 988 cameras from TASER, a company that specializes in law enforcement equipment.

The month, city and police officials outlined specifics of how the program will be funded and what will be expected of officers wearing the cameras.” To read the entire article click here.

It’s time to clean house and get ready for another junk collection for the 9th District Urban Services District (USD). You may begin setting out your junk Friday, June 19 in the afternoon. All junk must be set out by Monday, June 22 at 6:00 a.m. For collection guidelines please visit http://louisvilleky.gov/government/public-works/services/junk-and-bulk-trash-disposal. Sign up for junk set out reminders by email and text, click here!

Crescent Hill resident Kirk Kandle is car free – and loving it.  He walks a lot and can be seen riding his fold-up bicycle to work from his Crescent Hill condo to downtown most days. During really bad weather, he often relies on TARC, which he has been using since 1978, putting his bicycle on the bus. 

As Kirk wrote in a recent “chalk talk” for the Forecastle Foundation, “ I choose to live where I’m close enough to just about everything I need so I can get there under my own power, or by transit. My office, coffee shops, markets, hardware, restaurants, pubs, barbers, entertainment venues, and more are all nearby.

As a result of this thinking, I save as much as $11,000 a year in car expenses, while keeping more than 14 tons of carbon out of the air we breathe. When I need a car, I have TARC and Uber on my Trip Planner iPhone app and friends who know I’m always good for a gas fill-up in return for a ride.”

To sum up, Kirk says: “skinny your waistline and fatten your wallet by walking, riding a bike and using TARC as often as possible.”

You can read more about Kirk and see a great video of how a fold-up bicycle works here:  http://www.forecastlefoundation.org/naturally-awesome-blog/2015/4/24/chalk-talk-with-kirk-kandle

Photo: Forecastle Foundation

We’d like to feature your sustainability story - a resident or business doing good things for the environment.  Riding the bus, bicycling, walking, gardening and more - our eNews will feature practices which can benefit all of us.  Send your story to Bill Hollander or Kyle Ethridge. 

May is National Historic Preservation Month and Preservation Louisville used the occasion to list the 2015 Top 10 Preservation Successes.  Two of the top three are in District 9!

Number one on the list is the Louisville Water Company's Crescent Hill Gatehouse on Reservoir Avenue. It is open to the public from 11:00 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. the second Wednesday of every month, June through October, during LWC's Walking Wednesday series.  

Work is underway on a project to install new curb, guttering and sidewalks along Drescher Bridge Avenue, between Brownsboro Road and Delmont Avenue in Clifton Heights. The project, which also includes drainage improvements and repaving, has been in the planning stages for several years.  The approximate $210,000 cost is funded by District 9 Community Infrastructure Funds appropriated in previous years for the project, along with funds from the Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD) and Metro Public Works. The work is expected to be completed by June 30th.  

St. Matthews Elementary School teacher Roberta Ethington was one of four teachers who received awards after being nominated by a student.  Ms. Ethington was nominated by Minal Chintakunta, who wrote that her teacher “always has a smiling face" that puts students at ease.  "She helps me in everything," from teaching students about respect, helping them find friends or aiding them in perfecting fractions and cursive writing.  "She takes care of us with love," Minal wrote, adding, "She is the best!"  St. Matthews Elementary is located at 601 Browns Lane, on the District 9 border. 

The awards program is sponsored by Hilliard-Lyons.  The Courier-Journal’s article on the awards is here: http://www.courier-journal.com/story/education-blog/2015/05/21/jcps-educators-hilliard-lyons-excellence-awards-ceremony/27735367/

The Butchertown Art Fair is scheduled for Saturday, June 6 and Sunday, June 7 on East Washington between Shelby and Wenzel. Hours on Saturday are 10:00 am - 6:00 pm  and Sunday 11:00 am - 5:00 pm.  The fair will include art and craft vendors, kid's activities, and much more.

In doubling the number of booths from 2014, there are plenty of tasks from setup to beer sales to traffic to cleanup to teardown.

Click here and use SignUpGenius to pick a task.

Additionally, the volunteer organizational party has been scheduled for 6:30-7:30 p.m. on June 1 at Play (1101 E. Washington St.). Volunteers will receive free T-shirts along with food catered by the Cheddar Box as well as alcohol, soft drinks and water. Must be 18 to enter. Please RSVP to Stevie Finn for the volunteer party, and she can help with other volunteering questions.

Mini of Louisville Live at the Clifton Center is pleased to present the 23rd annual Taste of Frankfort Avenue on Sunday, June 14 from 4:30 – 8:00 p.m. (VIP Patrons) or 5:30 – 8:00 p.m. (for General Public). Featuring food from more than twenty of Louisville’s finest restaurants, live music, and cash bar, the Taste has become a summertime favorite on Frankfort Avenue. Proceeds from the Taste support the Clifton Center’s programming throughout the year.

For the first time this year, they’re offering an exciting VIP package that provides supporters with extra amenities like early admission to the tasting area before it opens to the general public and table seating on the Eifler Theater stage, where you’ll experience demonstrations by several of Louisville’s premier chefs, special wine and bourbon tastings, live music, and swag bags filled with all sorts of treats and treasures. VIP Patrons are also guaranteed on-site parking, two complimentary beverages, and a chance to win a season pass for the 2015-2016 Live at the Clifton Center concert series. Best of all, your VIP Patron level ticket purchase will help the Clifton Center as it continues its efforts to become one of the region’s premier cultural institutions. Click here to purchase tickets.

Did you know more than 367,000 Louisville residents have library cards, or that free WiFi is available at every library, or that there are more than 2,000 free classes available? Your library card can do so many FREE things! You can borrow books, magazines, audiobooks, DVDs & CDs. Download audiobooks, eBooks and eMagazines for FREE to read on your smartphone, iPad and laptop. Students can practice the ACT & SAT exams online. You can also learn how to design a website or build an app with Treehouse; explore genealogy and steam music for free. Check out the website www.lfpl.org today to see what new services are available. You can also check out upcoming events at specific libraries by visiting, http://www.lfpl.org/events.htm. 

The hugely popular Cultural Pass, created last year to keep children learning and exploring over the summer, is back with an expanded list of participating attractions.

The pass, a collaboration between Metro Government and cultural partners, admits one child/student (ages 0 through college) to attractions as diverse as the Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft to the Kentucky Derby Museum to Yew Dell Gardens. If the child is under 16, one parent or guardian is also admitted.

Passes are available starting today at all Louisville Free Public Library branches and Metro Parks Community Centers. The pass is valid May 31 through August 7. Children who get their pass stamped by at least eight different institutions this summer will be eligible for prizes and other incentives.

This year’s Cultural Pass is being funded primarily by the Gheen’s Foundation, with additional support from Louisville Metro Government and an anonymous donor.

For a list of participating organizations please visit, https://louisvilleky.gov/news/cultural-pass-returns-keep-kids-learning-growing-over-summer. 

Information provided by Metro Public Works

There are many streets in Louisville that have never been dedicated to public use. Maintenance of these private roads is the responsibility of the developer or property owner. Anyone wanting to convert the road to public use and have Public Works take over the maintenance responsibility must follow all the of requirements outlined in Section 151 of Chapter 97 of the Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Code of Ordinances:

• A petition favoring the conversion must be signed by 100% of the adjacent property owners.
• The width of the private road must be no less than eighteen (18) feet, unless the Director of Public Works recommends in writing acceptance of a lesser width for such private road.
• The private road must have only single-family, detached dwellings abutting it and connect directly to a public way.
• A professional engineering report, prepared at the applicant's expense, that demonstrates the private road meets the construction and design specifications set forth in Section 6.2.7 of the Louisville/Jefferson County Land Development Code must be submitted for approval by the County Engineer.
• The private road plus adjacent property must be conveyed in fee simple to Metro Government to provide a right-of-way of the same width as required by Chapter 6 of the Louisville/Jefferson County Land Development Code, unless the Director of Public Works recommends in writing the acceptance of a lesser width for such right-of-way.
• The right-of-way above, is dedicated for public use by a major subdivision plat, which is prepared by and at the expense of the applicant(s) and signed by all property owners abutting the road to be dedicated.

Tree Triage on Thursdays from 6:00-8:00pm May 7 – September 24. Olmsted Parks Conservancy staff needs volunteers to assist in cutting invasive vines to save the trees in Cherokee Park. Timing is critical because vines need to be removed before they seed and produce more vines! To register, visit www.olmstedparks.org or contact Sarah Wolff at 502-456-8125.

Park Stewards Needed! You may enjoy walking your dog in one of the beautiful Olmsted Parks,  riding your bike or reading a book there, but have you ever thought of becoming a Park Steward?  A Park Steward is a volunteer leader who receives in-depth training by Olmsted Parks Conservancy staff in order to help with park projects, volunteer events and/or community outreach.  The training program covers plant identification, best practices for invasive plant removal, proper planting techniques, the history of the Olmsted Parks, and more.  July 7, 2015 is the start of our next Park Steward training.  Register online at www.olmstedparks.org/events, or call 502.456-8125.