Mark your calendars for this Saturday, October 22nd for a cleanup of Frankfort Avenue between Mellwood and Story Avenues in the Butchertown Neighborhood. Volunteers should plan to meet at 8:30 a.m. at Frankfort and Mellwood for coffee and breakfast sandwiches, and the cleanup will officially begin at 9:00 a.m. We’ll supply bags, gloves, and t-shirts on a first-come, first-served basis. We’ll work to remove overgrowth, mulch, and pick up litter along Frankfort Avenue. Please contact the office if you have any questions at 574-1109 or email kyle.ethridge@louisvilleky.gov. Let’s have a big crowd making D9 a little cleaner!

If you would like to organize your own cleanup team, you can register through Brightside online. 

Please join the Crescent Hill Community Council and the Crescent Hill Garden Club as they work to eradicate the invasive China Berry vines at Barret Traditional Middle School. The ongoing efforts have produced great results in clearing of overgrowth and freeing of the trees!  This event will also involve volunteer children and parents from the school.  They hope for a large turnout for one final push before winter.  The goal is to free two additional trees of the vines and to maintain areas previously cleared.  The work is hard but a great workout and is extremely rewarding.

Volunteers can plan to meet on South Galt Avenue at the steps to the Peterson-Dumesnil House, 301 S. Peterson Avenue. Bring your gloves, pruners, weed eaters, etc. and wear long pants and long sleeves for basic protection and to guard against Poison Ivy and Oak. The chain saws will be running beginning at 8:30 a.m. to get ahead and all helpers are welcome even if you can only give an hour. If you have any questions, please call Judy Gogan at 889-1899.

This is a work at your own risk as the school is not liable for any injuries, so work safely!

From Monday, October 24 through Saturday, October 29, to correspond with Junk Pick Up dates, River Metals Recycling (RMR) is inviting 9th District Residents to receive higher rates for recycling scrap metal: an extra $10 per net ton for sheet metal/appliances and 5 cents per pound extra for aluminum cans and copper.  To participate, print the coupon attached to this email and bring your scrap metal to RMR at 2045 River Road between October 24-29. RMR hours of operation are: Monday-Friday 7:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. and Saturday 7:30 a.m. – Noon.  Thanks to RMR for offering this incentive. Go green with RMR and get your green!  Keep metal out of the landfill by taking it to River Metals to be recycled instead of setting it out for Junk Pick Up. Click here to view a video on how to recycle your metals at RMR.

Absentee voting is underway in Kentucky.  Voters who will be outside Jefferson County on Election Day are among those who can vote absentee.  More information about voting absentee, both by mail and in-house, is here: http://www.elections.jeffersoncountyclerk.org/absentee_voting.shtml.

If you qualify to vote by absentee ballot, you can do that now at the Jefferson County Clerk’s Election Center, which has moved to 701 West Ormsby Avenue, Suite 301.  In-house absentee voting is available for qualified individuals on Monday through Friday from 8:30 am – 4:30 pm, on Saturdays October 22 and 29 from 9:00 am – 2:00 pm and on Saturday, November 5 from 9:00 am – 4:00 pm. 

If you are voting in person on November 8 and want to check your polling place or see a sample ballot, you can do that here: http://ags2.lojic.org/WhereDoIVote/. Exercise your right to vote this fall! 

The Louisville Sustainability Council (LSC) and Louisville Metro’s Office of Sustainability invite you to attend Louisville’s third annual Sustainability Summit on Saturday, October 29, from 8:00 am - 4:30 pm, at Bellarmine University, Frazier Hall, 2001 Newburg Road.  

The event’s theme – It takes a ‘Ville – reflects on the need for everyone to contribute towards a sustainable city. Attendees will hear from a panel of sustainability leaders from across the country, as well as from local innovators and drivers of change. Participants will leave the event with inspiration and tangible options to do their part towards creating a more sustainable Louisville. 

More information, including registration costs and links, can be found on the Louisville Sustainability Council website. Scholarships and student rates are available.  Make your plans now to attend the Summit on October 29. 

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. 

The Office of Planning Permitting and Design--Construction Review has received a demolition permit application for the property, 3919 Shelbyville Rd. Case Number WR1002918. This is the St. Matthews Hardware property.

The above referenced property is listed or eligible for listing in The National Register of Historic Places. Per LMCO (150.110), the requested demolition permit can be issued on the following date: 11/13/16

For additional information regarding this application visit the website: http://louisvilleky.gov/government/construction-review or contact Mike Beard, Plan Review Supervisor at 574-3321 or Cynthia Johnson, Metro Historic Preservation Officer at 574-2868.

For basic details for below case/s please visit http://www.louisvilleky.gov/PlanningDesign/.  Click on “Search Case Information” link on the left navigation bar.  Then select the “home” tab and select the type of case and enter the case number.  For specific case information please call or email the listed case manager.  If you have any questions please contact Planning & Design directly at 574-6230.

Case No. 16VARIANCE1075
You are invited to attend a review of a VARIANCE for the size, placement and number of signs.
Subject Property: 1373 Lexington Road
Case Manager: Beth Jones (beth.jones@louisvilleky.gov)
Date & Time: Monday, November 7, 2016 at 8:30 AM until all cases are heard
Location: Old Jail Building, 514 W Liberty Street

Jack O'Lantern Spectacular
Oct. 13 through Nov. 6 at dusk until 11:00 p.m.
Louisville’s Iroquois Park, 1080 Amphitheater Road

The pumpkins will illuminate a 1/4-mile trail adjacent to the Iroquois Amphitheater. The trail is open Sunday through Thursday, and until midnight on Friday and Saturday nights. Tickets range from $9 to $15, with discounts for seniors and children 12 and under. Proceeds from the event benefit the Louisville Parks Foundation. The event is held rain or shine. Individual tickets may be purchased in advance for specific nights at the Iroquois Amphitheater Box Office or online at www.jackolanternlouisville.com.

The Great St. Matthews Pumpkin Caper
October 15th-31st varying hours
Beargrass Christian Church, 4100 Shelbyville Road

The Great St. Matthews Pumpkin Caper, sponsored by Troop 115 Boy Scouts of America, will run (or until the pumpkins run out!). The pumpkin sale is the major fundraiser for the troop for each calendar year.  Proceeds help the troop pay for operating expenses as well as help fund Scouts' fees for trips, uniforms, and other expenses. Hours will be 4:30pm-8:30 pm Monday-Friday and 9am - 9pm Saturday and Sunday.  Credit cards accepted.

Zombie Park
Friday, October 21 – Saturday, October 22 from 8:00 -11:00 p.m.
Camp Taylor Memorial Park, 4201 Lee Avenue
Hosted by Metro Parks, $5 per adult 13 years and older and $2 per child under 12 years old.

Trick or Treatment with Louisville Water
Wednesday, October 26 from 4:00 – 7:00 p.m.
Crescent Hill Treatment Plant and the Gatehouse at the Crescent Hill Reservoir
Event includes a plant tour, prizes, fun science experiments, snacks, and Zombie Walk around the Reservoir. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Parking available along Reservoir Avenue. 

Free Dive-In Movie
Friday, October 28 at 7:00 p.m.
Mary T. Meagher Aquatic Center, 201 Reservoir Avenue

Enjoy Hotel Transylvania, rated PG. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Concessions will be available. Free and open to the public

Halloween in Brown Park
Saturday, October 29 from 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. 

Event includes games, music, hayrides, with trick-or-treating beginning at 11:30 a.m. Children start at the pavilion in Brown Park and proceed through the “haunted forest” along the path where the participating organizations will be set up in their booths passing out goodies. The event ends at 2:00 p.m.

Halloween on Hillcrest Avenue
Monday, October 31

This time of year, Hillcrest Avenue becomes a destination where visitors can see up to fifty homes between Brownsboro Road and Frankfort Avenue all decked out for Halloween. Bring canned goods or non-perishable foods to donate to United Crescent Hill Ministries at the designated collection bins on each block. Click here to read an article from The Wall Street Journal, Finding the Best Places to Trick or Treat, published on October 5, 2016, and featuring Hillcrest Avenue.

Join me at The Clifton Center Theater, 2117 Payne Street on Thursday, October 27th for the premiere of noted filmmaker Morgan Atkinson of Duckworks’ latest documentary: Beargrass: The Creek in Your Backyard, a film focusing on Louisville’s own Beargrass Creek and the impact that everyone living within its 61 square mile watershed has on the waterway.

This project began as a crowd funded Kickstarter initiative:  The Beargrass Kick Starter Video, and took two years of exploring, filming and editing to complete. Atkinson worked with the Louisville Audubon Society, Metro Council Districts 8 and 9, MSD, and other individual donors to produce a film that will encourage local neighborhood and community association leaders to take action to protect and restore the creek.

Doors will open at 6:00 pm for a public reception preceding the film premiere at 7:30 pm. This is an open community event to support the restoration efforts on our creek.  There is a suggested donation of $5.00 at the door, and proceeds will benefit:  Kentucky Waterways Alliance, Beargrass Creek Alliance, and Salt River Watershed Watch, three groups working to restore the Beargrass.

A trailer for the film can be found here: Beargrass:  The Creek in Your Backyard.    

Yard waste collection within the Urban Service District

Yard waste is once a week on the same day as recycling. Guidelines for collection of yard waste: 

• Yard waste may be set out in garbage cans, paper bags, or compostable bags as long as each can or bag weighs no more than 60 pounds and can be easily lifted by the average person.
• All yard waste must be set out by 6 AM on collection day - no earlier than 4 PM on the day before collection day.
• All containers must be removed from the street or alley no later than 4 PM the day after collection and stored on the property.
• Yard waste such as grass, leaves, or other yard waste must be free of other garbage or plastics flower pots etc.
• Woody waste (such as tree limbs and shrub trimmings) should be less than 2 inches in diameter and should be cut into 4-foot lengths and securely tied into bundles light enough to be easily handled by one individual.

Yard waste collection outside the Urban Service District
Residential yard waste collection within the suburban areas (outside the former City of Louisville) is the responsibility of the individual residents/property owners and is contracted through private waste haulers.

Many suburban cities provide yard waste collection by contract with their waste hauler. Residents should contact their city administrator for yard waste guidelines and acceptable materials. Information about leaf collection in St. Matthews is here: http://www.stmatthewsky.gov/leaf-collection/

Louisville residents are invited to bring unneeded documents and prescription drugs to be shredded and disposed of at a free event on Saturday, October 29. The Drug Toss/Shredding Event is sponsored by Metro Public Works, Metro Police, and Metro Council. Citizens can protect themselves from identify theft and divert unused medications from the waste stream or misuse by bringing items to 1032 Phillips Lane, across from the Kentucky Fair and Exposition Center from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Businesses may not participate in this event. All paper materials will be shredded on site and recycled. Shredding donated by the Louisville Branch of Shred-It Louisville. The Drug Toss will be done as a drive-through event.

Black out all personal information on all medication containers that will be tossed. For safety reasons, we cannot accept sharps, needles, lances, cosmetics, personal care or hygiene items. Medication products should never be flushed down the toilet or drain, burned in the open or thrown in the trash because they can contaminate the environment if they get into the drinking and ground water.

CSX has recently contacted our office regarding upcoming railroad work in D9. CSX is planning to replace the railroad ties along Frankfort Avenue and Westport Road the week of October 31.

From Monday through Friday, a crew of sixty workers will be replacing ties from the Clifton neighborhood to Hubbards Lane and rebuilding crossings at many D9 streets. The crossings will be closed as the work progresses, including multiple crossings closed at the same time, which will force significant detours.  CSX will post closure signage along the tracks beginning next Monday. Based on the below schedule, roads will be closed between 24-48 hours. CSX’s tentative schedule is as follows:

Monday, October 31

• Galt Avenue
• Birchwood Avenue

Tuesday, November 1

• Crescent Avenue
• Hillcrest Avenue
• Pennsylvania Avenue
• Reservoir Avenue
• Blackburn Avenue

Wednesday, November 2

• Masonic Home Drive
• Fenley Avenue (only after Blackburn reopens)
• Chenoweth Lane

Thursday, November 3

• St. Matthews Avenue
• Clover Lane
• Westport Road
• Thierman Lane 

Develop Louisville needs the participation of youth, young adults and young professionals in updating Louisville's Comprehensive Plan.

What is a Comprehensive Plan and why does Louisville have one?

A comprehensive plan establishes a framework to guide public and private decisions about future growth, preservation and changes within a local government. 

Louisville Metro adopted its current comprehensive plan, known as Cornerstone 2020, on June 15, 2000. Cornerstone 2020, which has a planning timeframe of 2000 to 2020, provides the framework for Louisville and Jefferson County’s land development regulations and policies (including the Land Development Code). The document describes the community’s direction for future development and growth. It also recommends policies and projects to achieve its desired results.

Take the survey online at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/9MWVYGK

For the past several years, the District 9 office has hosted a mobile tax preparation site at United Crescent Hill Ministries, offering free tax preparation to individuals and families under a certain income bracket. Each year we depend on volunteers to help prepare taxes and greet clients at our mobile site. We have a few dedicated volunteers that help us out every year, but we need more! This year we’d like to offer additional tax preparation dates and hope you’ll consider joining our team! If you are interested in volunteering for the 2016 tax season (February-April 2017) please contact Kyle Ethridge or call 574-1109. The first volunteer training will be offered in December. Volunteers are needed to help prepare taxes AND greet clients.