A water main break early Sunday morning has caused traffic problems in D9 this week. The break was near the intersection of Frankfort and Pennsylvania Avenues.  Water from the break flowed down several streets, damaged three properties, and reached as far as Grinstead Drive.  The break was one of several in Louisville Metro following a fall in temperatures.  

As repairs continued, Frankfort Avenue became one lane, one way, with traffic westbound in the morning and eastbound in the afternoon.  Westbound travel was particularly difficult in the afternoon as vehicles were diverted to Reservoir Avenue, which reaches Brownsboro Road at an intersection without traffic signals. 

Louisville Water believes repair work will be completed and Frankfort Avenue reopened by Friday, and maybe as early as Thursday afternoon. 

The company is actively replacing older water mains across the city.   A $25 Million project is currently underway to replace one of the company's largest water mains along Eastern Parkway by slip-lining a smaller 42-inch steel pipe inside the 1930 48-inch cast iron main.  A later phase of that project will involve D9 streets closer to Louisville Water’s Crescent Hill Treatment Plant.   

Water main replacement is also slated for D9’s Story Avenue in the coming months, with a meeting scheduled about that for January 3 at 6:30 pm at the American Printing House for the Blind, 1839 Frankfort Avenue. 

It’s hard to miss the shiny new red door at the Engine 4 Fire Station at 2620 Frankfort Avenue but it’s just part of nearly a half million dollar project at the station this year.  The old door was dangerous and the new one is energy efficient and lighter. 

In addition to the door, the dilapidated kitchen and office were gutted and renovated. New windows have been installed throughout the building. The brick has been tuck pointed to last another 30 years.  The renovations also included new siding, a new roof, exterior painting, a new rear fence and paving.  

Washer and dryer extractors were also installed.  The new machines will extract toxins from clothes and provide safety for firefighters, who face a cancer risk from toxins seeping into their skin. 

Still to be installed is new signage.   

The 2016-2017 budget recommended by Mayor Fischer and approved by Metro Council included increased funds for deferred maintenance and infrastructure improvements, including Louisville Fire facilities.  

Trash cans overflow during the holiday season, with one estimate that we generate 25% more waste than usual this time of year.  A good sustainability practice is to divert as much as possible to the recycle bin.   Here are some do's and don’ts about holiday recycling.

DO recycle those cardboard boxes.  They are high-value recyclables but the number of them we have over the holidays and limited space in our bins sometimes means they end up in the trash.  Don’t do that.  If your bin won’t hold all of the broken down boxes you have, save a few for next week or visit a recycling center (D9’s is in the parking lot of the Mary T. Meagher Aquatic Center, 201 Reservoir Avenue).  Don’t worry if the box has some tape on it.  (And don’t assume that pizza boxes can’t be recycled. Many pizzerias now put a sheet of waxed paper between the box and the pizza, leaving the box clean once that’s removed. All you have to do is remove that paper and the clean pizza box is recyclable.)

DON’T recycle glossy or laminated gift wrap or most ribbons, especially those with wire mesh.   You can avoid throwing those away by looking for recyclable gift wrap, or gift bags that can be used several times. Ribbons and bows can be reused too.

DO recycle glass bottles and jars.  Containers need to be empty - you should remove the last of the peanut butter from the jar with a knife or spatula – but washing them clean uses water and energy and is not necessary.

DON’T recycle most disposable plates, napkins and paper towels.  Skip the disposables in favor of reusables when possible.

Look for tips on how to recycle that Christmas tree in next week’s eNews.  

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. 

Effective March 1, 2017, all property located in Louisville Metro and occupied or offered for occupancy in exchange for money or any other consideration must be registered with Louisville Metro Government. Failure to register is subject to a fine up to $100 per day per housing unit.

Registration must include the rental unit street address along with current contact information of the owner and managing operator.

New owners must register within thirty days of any ownership transfer. Any change in contact information must be updated on the registry within thirty days of said change.

Registration requires an account with Develop Louisville. Visit, https://www.louisvilleky.gov/government/codes-regulations, to establish an account and access the registry, or to get detailed information and instructions on registry requirements.

My office is partnering with the Louisville Asset Building Coalition (LABC) to provide FREE tax preparation services again in 2017. The service is FREE if you earned $55,000 Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) or less in 2016 or if you qualify for the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC). Call the office today to see if you qualify and make your appointment! Appointments are available on Fridays (February 3, 17, March 10, 24, and April 7) between 9:15 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Please call the office at 574-3908 to make an appointment.                                                                 

Do you instead file your own taxes? Through the LABC website there are two options to self-file online. The “Turbo Tax Freedom Edition” is available if you have $31,000 or less in income. The software has a well-designed interview process that guides you through the process of making decisions about your filing status, inputting your income and making decisions about deductions and tax credits for which you may qualify. The other option is “My Free Taxes”, which is available if you make $62,000 or less. This program is developed by H&R Block and uses an interview process. Please visit, http://labcservices.org/index.php/free-tax-filing-at-labc-services, for more information.

Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) has a smartphone application. You can find it through iTunes and Google Play “Louisville Metro Police Department”. The app features contact information, voice recording capabilities to send to LMPD, taking photos of crime to send to LMPD, entering a crime tip, services, social media links with updates on crime, and much more. Please consider downloading it today!

LMPD’s 5th Division, which serves the 9th District, has a new contact email to reach all the Division Resource Officers (DRO), 5thdivlmpd@louisvilleky.gov. The newly named DRO for the District is Amy Matthis, and she may be reached at the above email address.

With the arrival of cold weather, Louisville Water encourages customers to take some time and prepare their home for winter.

“Wrap your presents and wrap your pipes” is Louisville Water’s customer information campaign that focuses on how to avoid water pipes freezing and a costly mess.  “Wrap Your Presents and Wrap Your Pipes” includes visuals and videos that illustrate how to prevent freezing water pipes inside the home. The materials are located at LouisvilleWater.com.

Each year during extreme cold weather, Louisville Water receives thousands of calls from customers whose internal water lines have frozen and/or burst.  While Louisville Water doesn’t maintain the internal plumbing, they can offer tips to avoid a costly mess.

Before cold weather lingers, focus on eliminating the amount of cold air coming into the home around water pipes.

1.    Wrap exposed pipes with insulating material purchased at a hardware store

2.    If the home has a crawl space, cover the outside vents to prevent winter winds from freezing the pipes

3.    If the house has a slab foundation, keep the garage door closed.  Some water pipes are located under concrete floors in the garage.

During extreme cold weather, consider running a small, steady stream of water from a cold water faucet in an area of the home where pipes are exposed or have frozen in the past. The movement of the water will help to prevent the water from freezing. Also, open cabinet doors to allow heat to surround the pipes.

Finally, regardless of the weather, locate the water shut-off valve. This is the valve that controls the flow of water into the house.  It’s usually located near the hot water heater, in the basement, or in a utility closet.  Turning off the water in the event of a burst pipe can minimize the damage.  Once you locate the valve, tag it with a waterproof hanger or a ribbon.  Louisville Water has free tags for customers at its downtown office and at Brownsboro Hardware, 4858 Brownsboro Road. 

Tolling on the Louisville – Southern Indiana Ohio River Bridges Project is scheduled to begin Friday, December 30. Tolled bridges include the new I-65 Abraham Lincoln Bridge, the improved I-65 Kennedy Bridge and the new East End Bridge.

Drivers opening their RiverLink accounts online or by phone are encouraged to do so by the end of this week (Dec. 17) to help ensure they get their transponders before the start of tolling. Drivers with transponders will pay the lowest toll rates. Drivers must set up a prepaid account to get a transponder.

All drivers who set up their accounts and have transponders assigned to their vehicles will pay the lowest toll rates on the first day of tolling, even if they haven’t received their transponders.  License plates will be scanned and the transponder rate applied until transponders are delivered. Crossings will not count toward the frequent-user discount until transponders are properly mounted in cars.

Drivers who have their RiverLink local transponders are encouraged to mount them now, so they’re prepared for the start of tolling. Mounting instructions are included with transponders. They’re placed on the inside of the windshield, as high and as central as possible. Transponders should be placed three inches away from any metal, tint, antenna or defroster.

Opening a RiverLink Account
Drivers can open a personal account online at www.RiverLink.com, by phone at 855-RIV-LINK or in person at one of two RiverLink customer service centers. A personal account can include up to four vehicles, with a minimum balance of $20 to open the account. The fastest way to open a RiverLink personal account is online. The website is available 24 hours a day/7 days a week with no wait.

The minimum balance to open a commercial account is $20 per vehicle. Calling a customer service representative (855-RIV-LINK) is the fastest and easiest way for a business to open an account.

Customer service centers are located at 400 E. Main St. in Louisville and 103 Quartermaster Ct. in Jeffersonville. The centers are open 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. Monday – Friday. They are also open 8 a.m. – 2 p.m. Saturday.

RiverLink accounts can also be opened and prepaid RiverLink local transponders can be purchased at two temporary sites, the Nia Center at 2900 W. Broadway in Louisville and the Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles at 2944 E. 10th St. in Jeffersonville. Hours are posted at each site.

Choice of Transponders
A RiverLink local transponder is free, one per registered vehicle. The small sticker adheres to the inside of windshield, is non-transferable and works only on the new Lincoln, improved Kennedy and new East End bridges.

A RiverLink E-ZPass transponder is $15 per transponder. It’s mounted to the inside of the windshield, is portable from vehicle to vehicle registered to a single account and works in all 16 E-ZPass states (https://e-zpassiag.com/about-e-zpass/where-can-i-use-it).

RiverLink E-ZPass transponders will ship by the end of next week, when they’re fully operational in all 16 E-ZPass states. Drivers will pay the lowest RiverLink toll rates until transponders are in hand, as long as license plates are registered to the prepaid account with the E-ZPass transponder.

RiverLink E-ZPass transponders may not arrive before Christmas holiday travel.

RiverLink
RiverLink is the new tolling system making the Louisville – Southern Indiana Ohio River Bridges Project possible. RiverLink is all-electronic tolling, with no toll booths, no coin machines, no lines and no stopping.  Toll rates range from $2-$12.

The new I-65 Abraham Lincoln Bridge, the improved I-65 Kennedy Bridge and the new East End bridge will be tolled. The Sherman Minton Bridge and the Clark Memorial Bridge will not be tolled in connection with the project. Find more information at www.riverlink.com.

TARC and TreesLouisville, Inc. are partnering this year for the 18th annual Design-a-Bus contest, featuring artwork by schoolchildren throughout Louisville and Southern Indiana.

This year’s artwork will highlight the theme “Trees Louisville” to draw attention to the  need to plant trees for a more livable and healthy community now and for future generations.

The Design-a-Bus contest is open to all elementary and middle school students in Jefferson, Oldham and Bullitt counties in Kentucky, and Floyd and Clark counties in Southern Indiana. Twelve winners will be chosen to have their posters displayed on a TARC bus, and winners and their adult guests will be invited to participate in the Republic Bank Pegasus Parade on Thursday, May 4, 2017 celebrating their victory. Artwork becomes the property of TARC.

Art for the contest could underscore the many benefits of trees.  They create stronger, more positive communities with safer streets, less crime and more successful business districts.  Trees also lead to improved health and air quality.  They absorb storm water, prevent erosion, provide wildlife habitat, moderate temperatures, provide energy savings, and reduce noise levels.

For further inspiration, students are encouraged to visit https://treeslouisville.org/ or ridetarc.org

Entries should be in marker, crayon or paint and submitted on 11-by-17 white paper, or digitally through a JPEG or PDF file. Entries will be judged on visual appeal, creativity, originality and message. All artwork is to be produced by the student only. This year's entry deadline is Friday, Feb. 24, 2017.

Entry forms must be attached to hard or digital copies. For copies of entry forms, visit  www.ridetarc.org or e-mail Russell Goodwin rgoodwin@ridetarc.org or Jessica Holman at jholman@ridetarc.org. Digital copies of entries with forms attached can also be sent to Russell and Jessica. Paper entries should be sent to TARC, c/o Marketing Department., 1000 W. Broadway, Louisville, Ky. 40203

More information:

http://www.ridetarc.org
https://treeslouisville.org/