Louisville’s Urban Services District is in the second cycle of the switch to every other week curbside recycling pickup. As part of that process, Solid Waste Management Services (SWMS) is also distributing free 95-gallon blue-topped carts to individuals who were recycling with small orange bins.

The changes are designed to promote more efficiency in our recycling efforts, without reducing recycling citywide. I’ve researched what other cities are doing and every other week curbside recycling in large carts, with weekly garbage collection, is the practice and the growing trend all over the country. Cincinnati, Austin, Madison, Houston, and Chicago (to name just a few) all offer every other week recycling. Nashville collects recyclables once per month! It’s not efficient – or environmentally friendly – to have trucks making weekly trips up and down our streets to pick up recyclables in half empty containers. 

Getting everyone who recycles a blue-topped cart, which Louisville obtained at no taxpayer expense through grants, is a critical part of this change – and an ongoing process.    

The first round of cart deliveries has been completed and residents who were missed have been signing up to request a cart.  If you have already signed up, please be patient and DON’T sign up again. If you have not signed up, you can do that here.

This is NOT a curbside recycling collection week. The calendar is below, with recycling weeks marked in blue.  Garbage and yard waste is still collected weekly.    

Recycling in most of D9 will occur next Friday, August 13, again on Friday, August 27 and so forth. If recycling is missed, please contact Metro311 at 574-5000 or email metro.311@louisvilleky.gov, with your address, where you set out for collection and when it was missed. You can then follow-up with my office, referencing your service request (SR) number. For the SWMS schedule, alerts and more, please click here.

Learn more about the new program, and especially the answers to frequently asked questions, including what you can do if your cart is filling up with the new every other week schedule, at this site.

Later this month, Louisville Water is expected to begin a one-year project near the Crescent Hill Water Treatment Plant to replace one of its oldest water mains and install additional pipes to deliver more drinking water.  The Frankfort Avenue Main Replacement Project will increase the size and reliability of critical water mains near the treatment plant.  This investment includes work on Frankfort, Stilz, and Reservoir Avenues.  The project includes two phases:

Phase I begins on August 18 with the installation of a 60-inch diameter main in the middle of Frankfort Avenue between Stilz Avenue and Reservoir Avenue.  A 36-inch diameter main will be removed.  This pipe was installed in 1877, the same year that Rutherford B. Hayes was president and Thomas Edison introduced the phonograph.  This phase will also involve the installation of a 60-inch main on Stilz Avenue from Grinstead Drive to Frankfort Avenue.  Louisville Water will provide regular updates on the project, including road closures and detours, as plans are finalized.  (We’ll share those in this newsletter and, in between editions, on our social media pages. See below for more information on ways to access those sites).

Phase II of the Frankfort Avenue Main Replacement Project is slated to begin in early 2022 and will involve the installation of a new 42-inch diameter main at Frankfort and Reservoir Avenues.

For more information go to https://louisvillewater.com/frankfort-project.  

Construction is complete on a $13 million backup generator facility at Louisville Water's Crescent Hill Water Treatment Plant. This project began in February 2018. Testing of the generators in the new facility was completed in early 2021, and they are now fully operational.

The Crescent Hill plant handles most of Louisville Water’s daily production of drinking water to nearly one million people. (Louisville Water added standby generators at its smaller facility, the B.E. Payne Water Treatment Plant, in 2005.)

There was a critical need for backup power at Crescent Hill. If both current electrical feeds were lost during a storm or other emergency, Louisville Water would have needed to rely on a more than 50-year-old LG&E gas turbine generator to produce, pump, and deliver drinking water while the electrical feeds were repaired. This gas turbine is not located at the Crescent Hill property and if used, power would have been routed through overhead lines. LG&E has indicated plans to decommission this facility in the near future as well.

The new standby generator facility includes a two-story building in the northwest corner of Louisville Water’s property near Frankfort and Stilz Avenues. The building is designed to resemble the historic buildings on the property.

The northwest corner provides a good location for the facility because it doesn’t interfere with large water mains and other underground lines, but it’s near the plant’s current electrical feeds and a nearby substation.

Louisville Water has also made substantial progress on a $15.4 million backup generator at Louisville Water Tower Park. This project began in November of 2019 and is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2021. The generator will supply backup power for the Zorn Avenue Pumping Station.

To view Louisville Water Company’s Annual Report, please click here.

LMPD’s Fifth Division has noticed an increase in thefts from garages during the daytime. It reminds all residents to close their garages when not actively using them.

Also, please lock your car doors at night and remember to bring in all valuables or hide them in your vehicle when you leave.

To report suspicious behavior, please contact LMPD dispatch at (502) 574-7111.

The Mary T. Meagher Aquatic Center is currently closed for maintenance and cleaning, including replacement of the Olympic pool’s liner. The pool is scheduled to reopen on Monday, September 6, 2021.

Generations of families and friends have met for many years on a summer weekend in August to play games, listen to music and enjoy the famous fried chicken dinner while showing their support for the kids who call St. Joe’s “home.” This beloved community event has been a local tradition for 172 years.  Things will be a little different this year but you can still support St. Joe’s mission of “Giving Children a Home” during this Picnic season. Your support allows St. Joe’s to continue serving nearly 1,500 children and families each year.

Two-Night Live Music Event August 13-14

This year’s 172nd Picnic for the Kids will feature a two-night ticketed, live music event on August 13-14 from 7:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. Friday, August 13 features music by Rear View Mirror and Saturday, August 14 features music by LittleBand.

General Admission tickets are on sale now at $10 each per night for the live music event while limited supplies last. Event tickets must be purchased online here. Tickets are REQUIRED for event entry. Children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult age 25 and over. At least one adult is required per every two children.

Avoid the ticket line and purchase food and drink tickets here. All food and beverages at the event must be purchased with tickets ONLY. Tickets will also be available for purchase during the event. Each sheet of tickets contains 10 tickets valued at $1 per ticket. Tickets will be available at Will Call for pick up on the day of the event. 

Drive-Thru Picnic Event August 14

Join in on Saturday, August 14 from 12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. during a Drive-thru Picnic. Stop by to drop off cash donations and purchase raffle tickets.

Purchase Raffle Tickets for a Chance to Win Great Prizes

You can also visit the online raffle sales page to view this year’s raffle items and purchase tickets. Raffle ticket sales will end at 5:00 PM on August 14th. The drawing for winners will be held at 8:30 PM on August 14th. You can watch the drawing on St. Joe’s Facebook page.

Purchase Picnic Gear or a Handmade Quilt!

Buy a Picnic t-shirt or a handmade quilt or other St. Joe’s merchandise. Visit the online shop for details here.

After a missed year due to COVID-19, the Louisville Independent Business Alliance (LIBA) is pleased to announce the return of its Annual Buy Local Fair on Saturday, August 14th from 12:00 pm – 5:00 pm at Louisville Water Tower Park, 3005 River Road. Presented by Louisville Water Company with support from Amish Hills Furniture, Louisville Metro Council and many sponsors, admission to the Buy Local Fair is free. Parking is $6 in advance or $8 at the gate, and bicycle parking is free.

The Fair will include booths from local businesses, artists and craftspeople, community organizations and farmers. Guests can also enjoy food vendors in the shaded Four Pegs Smokehouse & Bar Dining tent, local libations in the ValuMarket Craft Beer and Heaven Hill Bourbon Tent, and music provided by the Abbey Road on the River’s Beatlemania DJ Kim Sorise.

Those who can’t attend the fair can still support LIBA by participating in the online silent auction, which opens August 11^th and features dozens of packages. 

Attendees are encouraged to B.Y.O.B. (bring your own bottle) to fill with free Louisville Pure Tap®. “Trash Talkers” will help guests sort their trash, recycling and compost appropriately to make the fair a green event, thanks to support from Facilities Management Services. For more information, visit keeplouisvilleweird.com/buylocalfair.

The Louisville MSD Urban Reforestation Grants Program is now accepting applications for tree planting projects. Grants will pay for trees planted within the MSD Drainage Service area, which includes all of Jefferson County except for the cities of Shively, Jeffersontown, St. Matthews and Anchorage. Download the application at https://louisvillemsd.org/trees. The application deadline is Wednesday September 15th at 5:00 p.m. ET. Please contact Jennifer Kern at Jennifer.Kern@LouisvilleMSD.org or (502)540‐6241 with any questions.

The MSD Urban Reforestation Program plants 1,000 trees annually by working with local residents, businesses, municipal organizations and neighborhood associations. These trees redirect an average of 1.35 million gallons of stormwater away from the sewer system every year, which decreases sewer overflows into our waterways. By planting more trees, MSD not only absorbs stormwater but also reduces erosion and flooding, provides shade, reduces noise pollution and carbon dioxide in the air, and provides a habitat for nearby wildlife.

The Chamber of St. Matthews will host free movies in St. Matthews Community Park, 310 Ten Pin Lane in Trinity Stadium. All movies will begin at sundown. Bring a blanket or your favorite stadium seat cushion as all seating will be on bleachers at Trinity Stadium. No alcohol or smoking is allowed. Concessions will be sold (cash) on site.

• Friday, August 20, Toy Story, gates open at 7:30 pm and movie starts around 8:30 pm
• Friday, September 10, Zootopia, gates open at 7:00 pm and movie starts around 8 pm
• Friday, September 17, Mary Poppins Returns, gates open at 6:45 pm and movie starts around 7:45 pm
• Friday, October 15, Goosebumps, gates open at 6:20 pm and movie starts around 7:20 pm

For more information, please visit https://www.stmatthewschamber.com/movies-in-the-park/.

Many D9 constituents – especially in our blind and visually impaired communities – have contacted me about service difficulties with the TARC3 Paratransit Service, which provides public transportation for people with disabilities who cannot use regular fixed-route bus service.

We’ve met with TARC leadership several times and participated in multiple Metro Council hearings on the subject.  A substantial part of the problem is a shortage of drivers, and MV Transportation, which has a contract with TARC for paratransit services, is actively seeking applicants.  See below for more information and help TARC spread the word about the openings!

We publish this newsletter every other week, with the next edition scheduled for August 19. For up to date announcements between newsletters, we update our blog, Facebook page and Twitter feed.  You can access the blog here, and, if you wish, sign up for blog updates by email at that site (they are relatively rare, so we don’t overload mailboxes). You can also like the “Councilman Bill Hollander” Facebook page and follow “Bill Hollander” on Twitter.