The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) is hosting a public meeting regarding proposed safety and drainage improvements to Chenoweth Lane.  The purpose of the project, from the CSX railroad crossing to Brownsboro Road, is to (1) improve sight distance and safety for all users, (2) improve drainage along the corridor and (3) improve pedestrian safety and mobility.

The public meeting is scheduled for Thursday, November 30 from 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. at the Broadway Baptist Church, 4000 Brownsboro Road.  An open house format will be used, so stop by anytime between 5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. A public comment period will be open until December 14.  If you have any questions, please contact Amanda Desmond, PE at KYTC, District 5, by phone at (502) 210-5400 or by e-mail at Amanda.Desmond@ky.gov.  

• UCHM 22nd Annual Santa Sprint & Stroll
  UCHM's 22nd Annual Santa Sprint & Stroll will take place on Saturday, December 2nd, 2017. Join community members for a 5K (3.1 miles) race or walk along historic Frankfort Avenue to benefit the vital community programs at UCHM.  Registration begins at 8:00 a.m. with the race starting at 9:00 a.m. at Barret Traditional Middle School. Details and registration information can be found online at www.uchmlouky.org. For more information, contact Mark Howell at mhowell@uchmlouky.org or 502-893-0346.
• St. Mark’s Annual Christmas Bazaar - St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 2822 Frankfort Avenue
  Annual Christmas Bazaar from 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. Enjoy a white elephant and book sale, golden treasure gifts, vendor booths, handmade crafts, silent auction, bake sale, pictures with Santa and food.
• Olde Tyme Christmas – Frankfort Avenue
  The event runs from 10:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. and includes free trolley rides from Noon - 5:00 p.m.; free horse and carriage rides from 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. (beginning at Frankfort and Ewing); a dog walk with costumes and picture with Santa at 11:30 a.m.(beginning at Barkstown Road on Frankfort Avenue, 2005 Frankfort Avenue, and continuing to Pet Wants at 1718 Frankfort Avenue); photos with Santa at Margaret's from Noon - 3:00 p.m. with caroling at 1:30 p.m.
• Olde Tyme Christmas Craft & Gift Show – Third Lutheran Church, 1864 Frankfort Avenue
  The event runs from 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. Find hand crafted and unique gifts, homemade bourbon balls, Lionel Train display, strolling caroler performances, tour the Gothic style church, and a visit from Santa.
• Light Up St. Matthews – Brown Park, 1000 Browns Lane
  Light Up St. Matthews has been a tradition for decades for hundreds of residents and visitors to St. Matthews. The event is scheduled from 3:00 – 6:00 p.m. Enjoy cookies and hot chocolate, a live DJ, pictures with Santa and Mrs. Claus, activities for the kids, and fun for the entire family. At 6 p.m., the event concludes with Santa turning on the lights throughout the park.
• Annual Victorian Christmas Tea – 3110 Lexington Road
  Whitehall House & Gardens will host its annual Victorian Christmas Tea at 2:45 p.m. The event will feature Irish tea and a delicious array of tasty sweets and savory tea sandwiches served in a proper formal setting. Tea will be served promptly at 3:00 p.m. Tickets are $40 per person. Space is limited and reservations are required. For more information or to purchase tickets, please contact Whitehall at 897-2944 or email whitehall@historichomes.org.

The following streets will be closed and parking restricted on Saturday, December 2, for the Annual Santa Sprint and Stroll 5k run/walk.

The following streets will be closed during the following times: 

8:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. 

• South Peterson Avenue from Frankfort Avenue to Grinstead Drive 
• Frankfort Avenue from Stilz Avenue to the Railroad Tracks 
• South Galt Avenue from Frankfort Avenue to Rowland Avenue  

The following streets will be designated No Parking during the following times; 

07:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. 

• Frankfort Avenue from Stilz Avenue to the Railroad tracks 
• South Peterson Avenue from Frankfort Avenue to Grinstead Drive 
• South Galt Avenue from Frankfort Avenue to Rowland Avenue

The Friends of the Crescent Library will host a Book Sale at the Crescent Hill Library on Saturday, December 2, from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, just in time for the holidays. There will be bargain books for all ages. This event is part of the Frankfort Avenue Olde Tyme Christmas Celebration. All proceeds will benefit the Crescent Hill Library.

Books will be sold at $2 for hardbacks, $1 for trade paperbacks and children’s books, and 2 for $1 for other paperbacks. Beginning at 3 pm, Bargain Bags of assorted books can be purchased at $5 for a small bag and $10 for a large bag. Please note that all sales will be Cash and Carry.

The book sale will also give an opportunity to help support your Library! Membership forms will be available at the information desk. Participants in the Book Sale are asked to consider becoming members of the Library and indicating Crescent Hill Library in support of their local library. You can also join online at friendsofthelfpl.org/crescent-hill.

For more details call Laura Kelleher, Friends of Crescent Hill Library, at 502-574-1793.

I was recently contacted by a constituent over the weekend regarding significant traffic signal issues. I wanted to share with you contact information on how to report after hours traffic signal concerns that need immediate attention. Members of the public may contact MetroSAFE at 574-2117 to report traffic signal concerns.

As you may already know, MSD reopened Mellwood Avenue between Brownsboro Road and Muncie Avenue ahead of schedule and in time for the holidays! The work along Mellwood was to bury the pipe that is transporting the flow from the Clifton Heights Combined Sewer Overflow Basin towards the treatment plant to get it treated and back in the MSD system. Those pipes are buried underneath Mellwood, Brownsboro and Story. The Mellwood pipe is now complete. The trench is patched with concrete. Once the Basin job is complete, the contractor will do an asphalt overlay on Mellwood. It will not require the road to be closed again.

Brownsboro and Story still have a one lane closure as work continues along Story Avenue. That work is scheduled to be complete in March 2018.

Work on the basin itself, shown here, is continuing and is expected to be complete in 2018. 

The Food Literacy Project provides farm-based experiential education and entrepreneurial youth development programs that bring the Field-to-Fork experience to life for local youth.  It has been based at Oxmoor Farm and recently transformed a vacant former public housing complex in south Louisville into a vibrant hub of fresh food, education and community involvement.

D9 resident Martha Geier began volunteering with the Food Literacy Project in 2010 when she retired from the Louisville Free Public Library.  Since then, she has played nearly every role that exists in the organization: planting in its Youth Learning garden; serving on the Board of Directors for six years, including three years as President; and many, many more.  Martha recently transitioned off the Board but the program is looking forward to her continued involvement in other ways.

You can learn more about the Food Literacy Project here: http://foodliteracyproject.org/.

Thank you, Martha!

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. 

Photo credit: Linda Doane

To have health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act in 2018, you must sign up for it by December 15, 2017. Enroll today at www.GetCoveredLou.org or contact either of the below centers for free in-person assistance.

• Family Health Centers Louisville   772-8182
• KIPDA   266-5571

Louisville Water is in the process of conducting condition assessments of their infrastructure between the Water Tower and the Reservoir.  This work will be performed between now and February and is part of their larger efforts to improve the reliability of service.  It will involve light excavations along Zorn Avenue and one larger excavation on Reservoir Avenue. 

The condition assessment will also involve work at the reservoir.  For the safety of customers, Louisville Water needs to close access to the Crescent Hill Reservoir for two weeks in December from December 4 to December 15.  Starting Monday the 4th, Louisville Water contractors will be on site with equipment performing condition assessments of the piping that serves the reservoir.  After this work is complete it will reopen the reservoir to public access.  

On Friday, December 8, from 8:30 am – 3:30 pm, the 9th District office, in partnership with U of L Hospital and the James Graham Brown Cancer Center, will offer FREE mammograms at the Clifton Center, 2117 Payne Street.  To make an appointment, please contact my office at 574-3908.  Mammograms are for women age 40 and over. There is no cost to eligible women without insurance.  Women with insurance will need to bring their card so a claim may be filed. 

On Wednesday, December 13th, beginning at 6:00 p.m., the Louisville Landsharks will be holding their second annual holiday social at The Silver Dollar, 1761 Frankfort Avenue.  For the second year in a row, charitable donation is the goal.  This year's charity will be Waterfront Park - specifically raising funds to keep parking at the park free of charge for all.  The club will be accepting cash donations.

Additionally, The Silver Dollar will graciously be donating proceeds from the club's social in support of this initiative. 

The Louisville Landsharks Multisport Club is a social club for triathlon enthusiasts.  They have triathlon spectators and participants of all skill and experience levels.  Please visit their facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/louisville.landsharks/, for membership information.  All are welcome.  

Mary T. Meagher Aquatic Center is hosting Gingerbread House Wars, with an entry deadline of Friday, December 15. Registration fee is $5.00. All Gingerbread Houses must be in place at Mary T. Meagher Aquatic Center, 201 Reservoir Avenue, by 10:00 a.m. on December 19. Judging will begin promptly at 11:00 a.m. on the 19th. Must be 18 years and over to enter.

Contestants will be judged on overall appearance, difficulty, creativity and technique. Awards will be given to 1st, 2nd and 3rd place winners and include monthly memberships.

Questions, please contact the Mary T. Meagher Aquatic Center directly at 897-9949.

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 are planning to offer additional tax preparation dates and hope you’ll consider joining our team! If you are interested in volunteering for the 2017 tax season (January 26-April 2018) please contact Kyle Ethridge or call 574-3908. The first volunteer training will be offered in December. Volunteers are needed to help prepare taxes AND greet clients. Click here to view a list of available positions. Click here to fill out a volunteer form.

VITA Tax Volunteer Informational Session on Friday, December 1 from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. with short presentation at 7:00 p.m. at The Edison Center, 701 W. Ormsby Avenue. Plan to drop by to learn more about the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program.