Frankfort Avenue — between Mellwood and Story Avenues — is currently closed to through traffic. Thankfully, it’s the last street closure as part of the Clifton Heights Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Basin project, which will keep sewage out of Beargrass Creek and the Ohio River.  The entire street had to be closed by MSD due to the location of the hatch for the CSO, which is in the middle of the street. The CSO’s opening into Beargrass Creek, directly under the Frankfort Avenue bridge over the creek, is shown in this photo from a canoe trip I took with David Wicks. When the Clifton Heights Basin Project is completed, it will reduce the number of overflows at this and other spots in a typical year from 127 to 4 and the amount from 107 million to about 3.5 million gallons.

The Frankfort Avenue closure is estimated to continue through mid-February. A detour will take traffic around the site via Mellwood Avenue to Brownsboro Road to Story Avenue, although motorists are well advised to find alternate routes, especially during rush hours. Local access will be provided to residences in the 1600 block of Frankfort Avenue and Blue Horse Avenue. 

Story Avenue at the Frankfort Avenue intersection will be reduced to one lane of traffic for a small portion of the work. The north side of Story will always remain open to through traffic.

The entire project has been difficult for all involved and your patience is appreciated.  In an earlier phase of the project, Grace Immanuel United Church of Christ, located on Story Avenue, posted a sign: “Yes- road work is irritating but be thankful for clean water.” 

The MSD construction project designed to reduce combined sewer overflows offered a surprising return as it unearthed a forgotten piece of Louisville history now to be used as a building block for a future project in the city.

Historic cobblestones were discovered by MSD during excavation for the force main required for the Clifton Heights Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO) Basin Project. On Story Avenue — between Frankfort Avenue and Cabel Street — MSD contractor TSI Construction found trolley tracks that were not indicated on the maps, and three layers of cobblestone beneath the tracks, according to Meskerem Eshetu, the MSD engineer overseeing the project. The stones were used for paving roads, and then the trolley track was installed over the original cobblestone road.

Thanks in part to some quick work by Butchertown residents who contacted my office, many of the cobblestones were saved for use at the Waterfront Botanical Gardens, which is under construction on Frankfort Avenue.

To read a MSD Streamline article published last month, click here (and go to page 2).

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 $64,000 Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) or less in 2017 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 every Friday beginning January 26 through the end of tax season between 9:15 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. at United Crescent Hill Ministries, 150 S. State Street, in Clifton. Please call the office at 574-3908 to make an appointment and please share this with anyone you think may be eligible.

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 $33,000 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 $64,000 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.

Join your neighbors and police officers for coffee and conversation on Friday, January 5 at 9:00 a.m. at Heine Brothers’ Coffee, 119 Chenoweth Lane. No agenda or speeches, just a chance to ask questions, voice concerns, and get to know the officers in your neighborhood. Questions, please call LMPD’s Fifth Division at 574-7636.

Don’t throw away that old television, computer or other electronic device that you just replaced. Let Metro Public Works recycle those newly obsolete devices instead.

Free post-holiday electronics drop-off service is available at the Waste Reduction Center at 636 Meriwether Avenue. Drop-off will be available from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on these three Saturdays: January 6, January 13 and January 20.

The special holiday promotion is in addition to our regular year round electronics recycling program. Details on the regular program are available on Metro’s website at https://louisvilleky.gov/recycling.

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 annual program that helps prevent low income residents of Louisville from being disconnected from utility services begins Monday, January 8, 2018.

LIHEAP, the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, is administered by Louisville Metro Office of Resilience and Community Services. The Crisis Phase of LIHEAP will run from Jan. 8 - March 30, or until available funds have been expended, whichever comes first.

This year’s Crisis Program features expanded eligibility which allows residents receiving a current utility bill with a past due amount to apply, in addition to continuing to serve residents receiving a disconnect notice.

Residents wishing to apply must make an appointment utilizing the automated appointment system.  Appointments can be scheduled by phone by calling 502-991-8391 or online at louisvilleky.cascheduler.com.  The toll-free service is currently open and is available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

Applicants must be Jefferson County residents with a household income at or below 130 percent of the federal poverty guidelines (e.g. for a household of four, the gross monthly income cannot exceed $2,665.00). 

Applicants must also have received and/or meet one of the following eligibility requirements:

• Disconnect notice from utility service provider, or
• Current bill with a past due amount, or
• Eviction notice if utilities are included in the rent, or
• Bulk fuel is within four days of running out; or
• Pre-paid electric services is within ten days of running out.

For more information on program eligibility and procedures, click here.

Louisville Parks and Recreation is currently accepting applications for AmeriCorps and VISTA positions.  Positions include service terms of 9-12 months starting now.  They currently have openings in natural areas, forestry and landscaping, environmental education, community centers, and volunteer programming.  Individuals selected will be eligible to receive a living allowance and educational award and may also be eligible for health insurance and child care.  For additional information/application, send an email of interest to Laura.Ryan@louisvilleky.gov and attach a copy of your resume.