Join your neighbors for the bimonthly D9 Community Conversation on Tuesday, August 23.  The meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. at the Peterson-Dumesnil House, 301 South Peterson Avenue.   The meeting will focus on Metro Parks and features Parks Director Seve Ghose.

We are blessed with many parks in District 9, including Champions, Seneca, Eva Bandman, Crescent Hill (home of the Mary T. Meagher Aquatic Center), Beargrass Creek Greenway, Bingham, Breslin, Clifton, Eastover, Irish Hill, Kennedy Court and Story Avenue.  (All Metro Parks are listed here:  https://louisvilleky.gov/government/parks/find-park).  In the last 20 months, we’ve seen new surfaces at the Seneca Park tennis courts, accessibility and security improvements at Bingham Park, a new parking area near the dog run at Champions Park and more funding for planned improvements at Story Avenue Park.  Metro Council has also significantly increased funding for deferred maintenance in the Metro Parks. But there is much more to do. 

Join your neighbors on Tuesday night to learn more about your parks and to let us know what you would like to see in the future. 

We also want to hear from you on any topics - an unscripted, open conversation about D9 and the City. Please mark your calendar and join us – and bring along a friend or neighbor!

On Tuesday, August 16, 2016, the Code Red emergency notification system will no longer provide communications to subscribers in Louisville-Jefferson County. Current subscribers will need to register online for the new emergency notification system called LENSAlert. Click here to sign up.

The new service allows individuals and families to sign up online to receive emergency notifications and to provide key information to 9-1-1 call takers during an emergency. This system will replace the current service provided by CodeRed Alert. 

In addition to receiving notifications, individuals can create a Safety Profile for themselves and their household that can include any information they want 9-1-1 and first responders to have in the event of an emergency. When individuals make an emergency call, their Safety Profile is automatically displayed to the 9-1-1 call taker, allowing them to send the right responders to the right location with the right information. Information about medical history, allergies to medication, number of residents in a home and even a picture of the family dog can all be added to a Safety Profile.

LMPD’s 5th Division has organized a crime and safety walk for Thursday, August 25 from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. Plan to meet at Meadowlark and Godfrey. Please plan to attend to get to know the officers who serve the community and help keep neighborhoods safer!

It’s Margaret Schneider Day in Louisville, proclaimed by Mayor Fischer.Margaret's Consignment, an upscale consignment store located at 2700 Frankfort Avenue, is celebrating 25 years in business with a special event tonight, Thursday, August 18 from 6:00pm to 8:00pm. The event will include raffle drawings for designer handbags, music, refreshments and appetizers, and 10% off all merchandise. Margaret's "Purses for Nurses" program will also kick off at the event, with 100% of sales from donated designer bags going to nurses taking care of the approximately 900 Hosparus patients needing services throughout our community. A portion of the evening's proceeds will also be donated to Hosparus, a provider of premier hospice services and one of the largest non-profit hospice organizations in the country.

The event will also showcase the store's new focus, which caters to shoppers looking for upscale clothing and high-end household items. www.margaretsconsignment.com

Owner Margaret Schneider has a lot to celebrate. She started her business by hitting yard sales, cleaning up her haul, and turning it into inventory. Today, Margaret's Consignment is booming, generating about $1.5 million in annual sales. Schneider also donates to a variety of charities, such as United Crescent Hill Ministries, Hosparus, WaterStep and Dress for Success, on a regular basis. She has also long been active in the Frankfort Avenue Business Association. Congratulate Margaret when you see her next!

Louisville’s efforts to increase solar energy usage are continuing, with the creation of a series of web pages to explain solar financing options and permitting.  The website is here:  https://louisvilleky.gov/government/sustainability/installing-solar-louisville.

One year ago, Metro Council passed a resolution supporting the future of solar energy in Metro Louisville.  I was proud to be one of the original sponsors and pleased that the ordinance was unanimously approved.  Earlier this year, the Louisville Sustainability Council launched its Solar Over Louisville campaign, seeking to increase knowledge about solar options and persuade Louisvillians to install two megawatts of solar capacity this year.  Mayor Fischer signed the resolution and spoke at the Solar Over Louisville kickoff event in March.

Since that time, Metro permitting staff have attended trainings on best practices for permitting solar installations and Solar Over Louisville has held workshops throughout the community, including two in D9.

The  new Metro web pages catalog the activity and are  designed to walk you through the steps necessary to successfully install residential and commercial solar.  Check them out here.

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. 

Please mark your calendars for the 17th Annual Back to School Block Party at the Mary T. Meagher Aquatic Center, 201 Reservoir Park on Friday, September 9th from 6:00 – 9:00 p.m.  Enjoy FREE Mellow Mushroom pizza, swimming, door prizes and family fun!  Make a child ID with LMPD, and check out Fire Engine 4 from the Frankfort Avenue firehouse.

We need VOLUNTEERS to make this event successful. If you are interested in volunteering or if you have any questions please contact our office at 574-1109 or email kyle.ethridge@louisvilleky.gov.

Click here to view our flyer and see a list of sponsors for the event! Youth door prizes are still being accepted. If you are interested in making a donation please contact the office at 574-1109. Thank you to sponsors who have already committed door prizes: A Reader’s Corner, Blue Dog Bakery , Carmichael's Bookstore , Crescent Hill Trading Company, Fierce Salon, Good Garbage, Heine Brothers' Coffee, Just Creations, Margaret's Consignments, McDonalds, Mellow Mushroom, Metro Parks, Red Hog Butcher and Reuse502.

MSD wants you to know that anyone in Louisville Metro can purchase flood insurance. Lenders require flood insurance for those inside the mapped floodplain. Those who live outside of these areas can still be at risk for flooding.

More than 20-percent of all National Flood Insurance Program flood insurance claims are from areas outside the mapped high-risk areas. Just a few inches of water from a flood can cause tens of thousands of dollars in damage. Protect yourself and your home by calling your insurance agent to learn more about flood insurance or by going to www.floodsmart.gov.   

The Kentucky State Fair is again offering reduced price admission to anyone riding a TARC bus to the fairgrounds, and this year there are more ways to take advantage of the savings. TARC passengers will pay $6 in fair admission instead of $10 while also avoiding eight dollars in parking fees.  Regular TARC fares apply on all bus trips.

Last year, reduced state fair admission was introduced for passengers on TARC’s Rt. #2 - Second Street buses entering the fairgrounds. 

For the first time this year TARC will also operate a State Fair Connector route on Friday and weekends during the fair, which runs from Aug. 18 - Aug. 28.  The State Fair Connector will operate on Central Ave. between 7th Street Rd. and Crittenden Dr. Passengers on the route, and on other TARC routes with stops at the fairgrounds, can use walk-up gate entrances to pay the discounted fair admission.

A one-way adult fare on TARC is $1.75.  Students aged 6 - 17 and seniors with a TARC ID can ride for 80 cents. TARC rides and fair admission are free to children 5 and under.

For schedules and fares, visit www.ridetarc.org

The Crescent Hill Community Council has rescheduled the fireworks and some of the other popular 4th of July events for a “Mini Festival” on Sunday, September 4th, noon – 11:00 pm. Free events include fireworks, live music, children’s activities with bouncy houses, and outdoor cinema showing Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.  There will also be 20 juried artist booths as well as food and beer for sale. And don't miss the Silent Auction which benefits the Peterson-Dumesnil House Foundation! Join your friends and neighbors!

Metro Parks has begun accepting team registrations for fall athletic leagues – softball, kickball, flag football, volleyball and dodgeball. Games begin the week of September 12.

Participants must be 18 or older. Registration deadline is September 2 or until leagues are filled. Team registrations typically cost between $375 and $400. For league schedules, click here. 

To participate in an Athletic League, you can preregister online here. 

Payment can be made by credit card over the phone. You may pay by cash or check at the Athletics Office located inside Cyril Allgeier Community Center 4101 Cadillac Court, 40213.

Payment must be made in full at the time of registration in order to reserve a team’s place for the season.  Registrations after the deadline will be subject to a $35 late registration processing fee.