Louisville Metro Resilience and Community Services (RCS) is offering pre-registration for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), Subsidy Component. The pre-registration will begin on Wednesday, October. 3, and end on October 31.

Pre-registration is for Jefferson County residents who are elderly (60 years or older) or disabled and receive a fixed income.

 Applicants must provide the following documentation:

• Proof of all household income for the preceding month (Food Stamp award letter, Social Security Award letter, pay stubs, etc. or proof of $0 income. Note: Zero Income forms are available at the Resilience and Community Services office at 701 W. Ormsby Ave., Suite 201 as well as the six LIHEAP locations listed below or by clicking here.
• Proof of Social Security Number or Permanent Residence card (Green Card) for each member of the household.
• Most current heating bill; or statement from your landlord if heating expenses are included in your rent; or statement from your utility company if you participate in a pre-pay electric program. Please bring the account number and name on the account for all heating fuel sources and electric. 

Eligible residents who wish to apply during LHEAP Early Registration are required to make an appointment in advance. Starting today, Sept. 26, the toll-free automated appointment system is available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.

To register, please call 502-991-8391 or visit louisvilleky.cascheduler.com.  

Income-eligible residents who do not meet the requirements for pre-registration (who are not elderly or disabled and on a fixed income) may still apply for LIHEAP benefits beginning Nov. 5.  Appointments will be taken in advance starting Nov. 1 utilizing the phone and on-line appointment system.

Individuals who are unable to apply for this program in person may send a representative on their behalf. Simply provide the representative with the documentation listed above as well as a hand-written note, dated and signed from the applicant, giving them permission to handle their application for services. Residents who are homebound and who are unable to send a representative may call 502/780-7937

The 2018 Brightside & Passport Health Plan Fall Community Wide Cleanup is on Saturday, October 20th! Last year's fall Community Wide Cleanup saw over 8,500 volunteers clean up our city and this year, we want to shatter that number! We encourage all residents to take part in the Community-Wide Cleanup. The event is a great service opportunity for boy/girl scouts, sports teams, faith groups and community organizations. It could also be a corporate team bonding opportunity! 

Cleanups are an integral part of Brightside's mission and without the help of volunteer groups, and many other volunteers throughout the year, Brightside could not achieve their goals of a cleaner, greener Louisville. To register, please call (502) 574-2613 or register online at https://louisvilleky.gov/government/brightside/brightside-passport-health-plan-community-wide-cleanup about two weeks prior to your event to schedule your cleanup and for information about getting supplies. 

Thanks to each and every volunteer who supports the Brightside & Passport Health Plan Community-Wide Cleanup. We look forward to seeing you on October 20th. Thank you for your dedication – we can’t do it without you!

Do you love your veggies? New Roots would love to hear from you!

The Fresh Stop Markets (FSM) are run by leaders in a grassroots food justice movement that operates from the belief that fresh food is a basic human right. FSMs are volunteer, community-driven farm-fresh food markets that pop up bi-weekly at local churches and community centers in neighborhoods that do not have grocery stores or farmers’ markets. Shareholders (“customers”) agree to cooperate and pay ahead of time, on an income-based sliding scale, for ten varieties of seasonal, local, organic produce that can then be picked up at a given time and day, at one of the 17 different Kentucky and southern Indiana Markets. This cooperation and financial commitment ensures that farmers don’t face the same degree of risk as with traditional farmers’ markets. The sliding scale means food is affordable and everyone is included.

WIC participants pay $6, those at or below 185 percent federal poverty guidelines pay $12, others pay $25, and those who would like to invest in the community pay $40. SNAP IS ACCEPTED. Everyone gets the same food! At every Market a chef hosts a cooking demonstration, offering samples and recipes for the very same vegetables and fruits that shareholders bring home. There is a diverse, family reunion atmosphere. Food justice workshops and the Fresh Stop Training Institute (FSTI) organize Fresh Stop Market leaders to unite around the pursuit of a healthy, just food system for all.

The growing season kicks off the week of June 4th. The location and times of the New Roots Fresh Stop Markets for 2018 can be found on our website at https://newroots.org/fresh-stop-markets/ or by calling 502-509-6770, Ext. 0, or by emailing info@newroots.org. We look forward to hearing from everyone soon. Your veggies are waiting!

Sun-Valley Fresh Stop Market Sun Valley Community Center 

Date: October 24th

Time: 4:30 p.m.—6:30 p.m.

Come celebrate a haunted Halloween party at the Sun Valley Community Center! It will include countless games, a hayride, a haunted house, and much more!  *Each child must bring a bag of candy to enter the Halloween party.* 

WHERE: Sun Valley Community Center (6505 Bethany Lane)

WHEN: Friday, October 26th, 2018; 6:30pm - 8:30pm

Maintenance of public trees alongside private property Louisville is the responsibility of the abutting property owners under the Louisville Metro Code of Ordinances. A 2017 update to LMCO Chapter 102 requires a permit from the Division of Community Forestry within the Office of Sustainability/Develop Louisville before pruning, removing, or replacing these public trees. There is no charge for the permits, but the proposed activities must conform to policies established by the Division.

The removal of a Public Tree must also include a replacement. Permits are not required for routine watering, mulching or the pruning of limbs (based on Division standards) narrower than four inches in diameter and less than seven feet above the ground that are obstructing pedestrian traffic.

Additional information about the Division’s public tree standards and permitting process can be found on the Division’s webpage. You may also contact the Division of Community Forestry at 574-3927.

The speed and duration of flooding can vary significantly. Flooding can occur slowly as rain continues to fall for many days. This type of flooding, sometimes called a slow-onset flood, can take a week to develop and can last for months before floodwaters recede.

More danger is presented by rapid-onset floods that occur more quickly, typically developing within hours or days. Some rapid-onset floods known as flash floods occur very quickly with little or no warning, such as during periods of extremely heavy rain or when water volume is beyond system capacity.

In urban areas, flash floods can fill underpasses, viaducts, parking structures, low roads, and basements. This poses particular dangers for travelers.

Motorists should take the following precautions:

• Be aware of the likelihood of flooding in low lying areas and proceed slowly to allow time to react if a road is covered by water.
• If floodwater is blocking your route but you can turn around safely, turn around and go to a building on high ground.
• If your vehicle is trapped in rapidly moving water, stay in the vehicle. If water is rising inside the vehicle, seek refuge on the roof.
• Never drive around a barrier into flood waters

Adapted from the Federal Emergency Management Agency bulletin, How to Prepare for a Flood.

I get calls every week about speeding on our D14 streets - and with good reason. 

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that most people who are speeding through residential areas actually live in the neighborhood! You might be eager to come home after work, but that’s no excuse if a child is hit and injured. Quite literally, speed kills: If you hit a pedestrian at 20 mph, 5% will die. If you hit a pedestrian at 30 mph, 45% will die. At 40 mph, 85% will die. 

Driver behavior is crucial to safety in residential neighborhoods.  When you’re driving, go slow enough to see and respond to every new circumstance. Look under parked cars, and you may see children’s feet from the sidewalk, though you can’t see them otherwise. If it’s dark, take another 10 mph off your speed, just in case. In short, take every precaution necessary to avoid bringing tragedy to your own neighborhood.

Please use good judgment when you are driving and remember that, in most cases, traffic behind you will be forced to slow down if you do.

Requirement went into effect in July

A new Kentucky law that took effect July 14 requires vehicles passing a bicycle to use the adjacent lane if available. If an adjacent lane is not available, then the passing vehicle should pass to the left at a distance leaving no less than three feet between the widest part of the bicycle and the widest part of the vehicle. If the bicycle is in a bicycle lane, the passing vehicle should still be at least three feet from the bicycle. 

If the road is too narrow to give three feet clearance, then the passing vehicle should use reasonable caution. The new law also allows passing vehicles to legally cross a double yellow line to pass a bicycle if there is enough sight distance to safely pass.

Thirty-four states have similar safe passing laws to use the adjacent lane or give three feet or more. Like all states, Kentucky law also requires cyclists to follow the basic rules of the road.  Like any operator of a vehicle, a bicyclist must ride with traffic, obey traffic laws and stop at stop signs and red lights. The three foot law is at KRS 189.300.

We all know that illegal dumping--putting waste on property that is not licensed as a disposal facility--is an eyesore that is expensive to clean up, diminishes quality of life, discourages economic development and even sends plastic debris into our waterways.

That's why people caught dumping along our city's alleys, sidewalks, fields and roadsides are subject to fines and impoundment of any vehicle used in the dumping. That's where citizens can help with the problem. If you witness illegal dumping while it's happening, report it.

We've developed a new online form you can use to tell us where it happened, describe the vehicle(s) involved, preferably with license plate number(s), and even upload pictures. Of course you can always call Metro Call 311 or 574-5000. For more information about illegal dumping, including a link to the reporting form, visit our illegal dumping webpage.