Ben's Pen: A Note from CM Reno-Weber

Dear District 8 Residents,

One year after I first took office and with summer just around the corner—bringing increased activity along Bardstown Road and in our beloved parks— we are focused on continuing the build momentum toward a safer, less noisy, and more neighborly district.

During our recent Big Rock Strategy Meeting, we heard specific concerns about how people are engaging with this gem nestled in Cherokee Park.  Thanks to your proactive engagement, we've brainstormed several strategies to minimize illegal parking, keep the park safe and clean, and ensure a delightful experience for all.  Among the commitments made were additional signage, efforts to communicate alternative spots to go when the park is full, prompt ticketing of violators, and other solutions.  I'm grateful to Olmsted Parks, the Parks Alliance, MSD, LMPD, and the several Neighborhood Associations who came together.

For those who couldn't join the Big Rock Meeting or the join us at the Douglass Loop Farmers Market, or the several neighborhood associations meetings we have attended, fear not!  We'll hold our usual monthly community meeting on April 30th at 8:30 AM. We're excited to hold this month's meeting over coffee at one of my favorites- Haraz. You can rsvp for the event via this link!

(Stay tuned for improvements on how we communicate these events; our communications team is developing an events tab on the D8 website in addition to keeping our social media and mailing lists updated.)

We are closely tracking the recent developments related to TARC and JCPS.  Effective public transit, good education, and sufficient affordable housing are key foundations of a community in which everyone can reach their full potential.  While Metro Council does not directly control any of these things, it is important that we raise our voices to support the investments which support our whole community.  I will be sharing more detailed thoughts on this matter later this month, but for now, know that I am actively seeking better solutions and advocating for those most affected.

Your engagement and feedback are crucial to our success. Let's continue to address these challenges together, ensuring that District 8 remains a vibrant and supportive community for all.

Ben in the Wild

Venture Connectors Thank you UofL and the Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport for a fascinating presentation on how our airport is serving as a hub of innovation nationally and locally. It was particularly fun to see students from Atherton's aeronautics program representing. My daughter Sophia still talks about her visit with Atherton's Aerospace program! It’s moments like these that remind us of the power of connecting education with real-world experiences. Here’s to fostering more opportunities for our students to lead, innovate, and inspire.

Metro United Way Community Impact Awards: Shining Beyond Ourselves For 107 years, Metro United Way has been investing in the most vulnerable members of our community! They have focused on connecting so many members of our business community to ways that they can positively impact the causes they care about most. The recipients of the Immie awards, like Da'Marion Fleming of Sowing Seeds with Faith, are just some of the organizations Metro United Way impacts. So proud to be in the room with these amazing people.

Douglass Loop Farmers' Market Opening Weekend As the weather turns, the Douglass Loop Farmers Market will be open now from 10 AM-2 PM every Saturday until December 2024. It's always full of amazing energy, great food, and fun connections. It was particularly great to meet the new Farmers market vendor, Highland Fish Market's co owners Matt & Ashley Bedingfield during the Market's opening weekend!

HotWorx 1 Year Anniversary Celebration One of my favorite things about the Highlands is that our many creative independent businesses have fun supporting one another. I was there at the opening (much sweatier), of HotWorx on Bardstown Road and was excited to attend the one year anniversary celebration! I was happy to see so many other local and independent businesses being lifted up.

Highlands Heroes Spotlight: Necolle Banks

This month, we're thrilled to introduce a new section in our newsletter, "Highlands Heroes," where we celebrate members of our District 8 community who exemplify the spirit and values of our neighborhood. Our inaugural Highlands Hero is a trailblazer and a source of inspiration: Necolle Banks. Necolle is the first Black swim instructor at Lakeside Swim Club, a milestone that marks not just a personal achievement but a significant moment for our community. As a cancer survivor, she has channeled her resilience into a passionate mission to improve fitness and health awareness, especially within Louisville's Black community. Beyond the pool, Necolle is involved in the medical field, assisting her sister at her medical facility. Her dedication to health and wellness extends beyond her professional life; it's a commitment to uplifting others and fostering a healthier community. When asked how District 8 could support her endeavors, Necolle expressed a desire for increased community awareness and engagement. "I'm new in this industry, and I want the community to know I'm here," she said. "I want them to feel comfortable coming to me when I open my own fitness facility." We were thrilled to honor Necolle with an official proclamation earlier this month. Thank you Necolle for your service to the district!

What's Bubbling Up?

Upcoming Events & Opportunities to Engage

Farmington, an amazing resource for history, beauty, and art in our neighborhood is organizing a Volunteer Open House and Information Session! To learn more about the historic museum click here!

The Ken-Ducky Derby is a family oriented festival and an Official Kentucky Derby Festival Event. To learn more about this event click here!

Click here to learn more!

 Click here to RSVP!

D8 Works

Every month we highlight examples of our residents, the D8 office, and other local government agencies working together to improve our community!

On March 3, 2024 we received the following request:

"I have a question about the policy of parking semi trucks on public roadways in neighborhoods. On any given day there are 3-5 semi trucks sometimes with a trailer attached parked on Del Rio Place in front of the Bon Air Shopping Center. It’s causing the roadway to become very narrowed when they are all parked there plus when you pull out of the shopping center or try to cross the street it’s hard at some points to see if cars are coming."

We responded the next day to let our constituent know that these instances were not legal, and we would work with Public Works and LMPD to respond. By the end of the month the constituent wrote in to let us know that they saw LMPD ticketing the semi trucks, which were not there the following weekend. The weekend after that, several were back, and LMPD again responded.

As a thank you, we brought a cake to the station. We are grateful to LMPD for being our partners on this and so many other issues Have a similar issue you want us to help with? Click here to submit a complaint or a question!

On March 21, 2024 we received an email from the Cherosen Hills Neighborhood Association president:

"When we experienced the real bad storm a few months ago that resulted in our area losing power for several days, several large trees went down over power lines. Understandably, just the bare amount of debris was cleared to get power back on and clear the road. But it has been months and folks are wondering when the clean-up will be completed. The trees are actually on the grounds of the golf course but over on the street side where Woodbourne and Cherosen meet. Wondering if your office can be of any help? Who should we contact? Or can your office make a couple of phone calls and get it cleared. Thanks for looking into this for us." We responded by the end of the day to let them know we were on it! The constituent reached back out to thank us for handling the debris in less than a month!

Louisville Parks & Recreation Seeking User Feedback to Make Improvements

Visitors to 30 public parks throughout Louisville will have the opportunity to weigh in on their neighborhood parks via a satisfaction survey during the month of April.  Louisville Parks and Recreation will be placing signage in high-use areas at many heavily-visited parks. The signage will include a QR code linking directly to a survey that will take approximately 5 minutes to complete. “Our goal is to provide better customer service to our users and make sure they’re having the best possible experiences at our outdoor spaces,” said Ozzy Gibson, Interim Executive Director of Louisville Parks and Recreation. An online version of the survey is also available here.

Dad Joke of the Week

I got thrown out of my local park after trying to arrange the squirrels by height. 

I guess they don't like me critter sizing!

Councilmember Ben Reno-Weber  |   Louisville Metro Council   |   District 8

601 West Jefferson Street, Third Floor

Louisville, Kentucky 40202

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