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

As summer winds down, we have many reminders of how transitions can be both challenging and rewarding. My wife and I sent our kids off to middle school, including one for the first time. With them, as with our city, we're focusing on the essentials: safety, connection, learning, and growth. I am grateful for the communities that wrap around our children at JCPS and wrap around our neighborhood through our partnership with neighborhood associations, business associations, ABC, LMPD, and the Ambassadors among so many others.

I got an amazing reminder of how our struggles and successes are grounded in our history, participating in a TARC tour focused on the history of our neighborhood hosted by the legendary Tom Owen.

Looking ahead, I’m thrilled to introduce our new Highlands Hero initiative. One of my favorite parts of this job is shining a light on the incredible people in our community who work ceaselessly to make it better, often without enough recognition. You can find more details in the Highlands Hero section of this issue.

In the same vein, I want to highlight a standout moment from our D8 Works series—the incredible response from our community when we put out the call for donations. We’ve always known that D8 is home to the best community, and this just proves it.

Lastly, I want to address the safety concerns in our entertainment corridor. Violence is never acceptable, and our office remains committed to finding and implementing actionable solutions in our community, to prevent issues in our neighborhood, and in response to crisis. We will continue to work tirelessly to ensure our community is a safe place for everyone.

Ben

P.S- don't forget to read to the end for the punchline to this month's dad joke: What do you call a one-legged hippo?

Around D8

This month, our team was truly all around D8! We had the pleasure of touring Districts 8 & 9 with none other than former Councilman and District 8 legend, Tom Owen. His insight and deep connection to our community was invaluable as we shared memories, visited landmarks, and learned new facts!

A perfect night on Bardstown Road starts with amazing Ramen at Kiwami and ends at the Homemade Pie Kitchen, where we ran into some fire fighters enjoying their ice cream. One of my kids accidentally activated the horn while climbing in the cab of the truck and had to scramble out when they got called on a run.

So happy to help celebrate a community treasure like Carmichaels Kids at their 10th anniversary parade! It's more important than ever to support our local bookstores.

Nominate a Highlands Hero!

We're excited to open nominations for our new initiative "Highlands Heroes," aimed at celebrating the everyday heroes who often go unnoticed, those who demonstrate exceptional service to our community, are committed to building people up, or are forging the way for collaboration and growth.

Each month, we'll feature our Highlands Hero in our newsletter, on social media, and at our community meeting!

Do you know someone that deserves to be a highlands hero? Nominate them here! (self nominations are encouraged)

What's Bubbling Up?

Upcoming Events & Opportunities to Engage

D8 September Community Meeting

Join the D8 team for our regularly scheduled monthly community meeting! RSVP via this link. 

Volunteer with Farmington

TARC 2025

TARC is facing historic financial challenges and a looming deficit. TARC 2025: Moving Forward Together is a key strategy to address this challenge and better meet our community’s shared priorities. It is also an important opportunity to redesign Louisville’s transit network to update and innovate service to better match the current and future needs of the Louisville region. Please participate and take the survey here. 

Neighborfest Fifteen

Waterfront Park Phase IV

Waterfront Park Phase IV is the 22-acre westward expansion of the park between 10th and 14th streets along the river. Once completed, this $50 million project will transform a long-neglected area of our waterfront into a vibrant community amenity and bring Waterfront Park’s world class amenities within a 20-minute walk of more than 10,000 residents. Phase IV is a vital component of Waterfront Park’s mission to transform our waterfront into an accessible community asset that can be enjoyed by the community forever.

Construction is underway on PlayPort at Waterfront Park, a children’s area designed in partnership with Kentucky Science Center. PlayPort will feature large-scale authentic objects – including an excavator, dump truck, boats, river-themed elements, and more – as anchors for an inspired play and learning environment. Construction of PlayPort is expected to be completed by the end of 2024. To learn more and share your thoughts, click here.

Community Ministries Day

Join Louisville Ministries for Community Ministries Day on Thursday, Sept. 5 from 4-6pm as they prepare for the big Together Fest celebration at the Ice House on September 8th. Each of the 13 Community Ministries will be opening their doors for a food drive to help stock our pantries on behalf of our neighbors in need - and while you're there you can take a selfie and enter Dawne Gee’s big giveaway! You can find your Community Ministry by visiting this link. 

The drawing will take place Sept. 6 and the winner will be announced both at louisvilleministries.org and at Together Fest on September 8. Employees of the community ministries are not eligible to participate.

D8 Works

Welcome to D8 Works, we're excited to share some constituent concerns and issues handled by our office! 

We are excited to share the 14 instances of graffiti our office removed in July. See the below chart to find details of the instances removed.  If you see an instance of graffiti you can report it via Metro 311 here.

We also want to extend a huge thank you to all of you for offering your extra exercise equipment. In just a few days, we received offers for donations that exceeded our needs. These donations will help promote the health and wellbeing of our local jail community.

Committee Highlight: Planning & Zoning

The Planning Commission plays a key role in shaping how our city develops by reviewing zoning change requests and holding public hearings. These hearings are a chance for folks to voice their opinions. After the Commission makes its recommendation, the legislative body has the final say, but decisions can be appealed in court if needed.

I'm excited to be involved with the Planning Commission for a couple of reasons:

1) Community Voice: The public hearings are a crucial way for neighbors to have a say in what happens in their area. I believe in making sure everyone has the chance to be heard, even if it means adjusting meeting times to be more accessible.

2) Smart Growth: The subcommittees of the Planning Commission dig into important details like land use and development proposals, which directly impact the future of our neighborhoods. Being part of that process helps ensure we’re building a city that reflects the needs and values of all its residents.

Public Safety Update

We very much hear and are taking seriously the concerns raised by our neighbors, business owners, and others about safety along the Bardstown Road corridor. We have been taking concrete steps to address those concerns, and will continue to build on them, in close coordination with ABC, LMPD, the Ambassadors, and others. Everyone has a right to feel safe in their neighborhoods, and this will continue to be an area of focus.

Over the past few months, LMPD's Entertainment District Summer Surge Patrol has been a key part of our strategy, leading to:

• 27 felony arrests
• 25 bench/arrest warrants served
• 8 guns seized
• 4 stolen vehicles recovered

These actions are focused on making our neighborhoods safer, particularly along the Bardstown Rd/Baxter Ave corridor and in surrounding areas such as Crescent Hill and Clifton.

In addition, ABC has been working to ensure that everyone is following the rules. This has led to several citations, and perhaps more importantly, voluntary reductions in license hours by those whose businesses do not truly need late night operations.

While this is not enough, they do represent real progress in our fight against crime and disorder.

Our Commitment to Safety Continues

As LMPD leadership recently announced, LMPD officers will increase their presence in the neighborhoods even off the corridor, including the presence of additional cameras.

Immediate Proposed Additional Safety Measures

1. DUI Enforcement: specialized DUI details on selected weekends to prevent impaired driving.
2. Nuisance Ticketing: strict penalties for public drinking and disorderly conduct to maintain order.
3. Increased Patrols: increase walking and golf cart patrols on weekends for greater visibility and faster response times.
4. Designated Rideshare Pickup Sites: safe, designated rideshare pickup locations to ensure first responders can access critical areas quickly.

Considering New Ordinances for Greater Accountability

We are exploring new ordinance measures that will hold businesses accountable for activities occurring in lines outside their establishments and introduce licensing requirements for event promoters. These actions are critical to creating a safe environment for everyone in District 8.

These steps are not taken lightly. They are necessary to protect the safety and well-being of our residents. We are committed to acting swiftly and effectively, and we will not compromise on our community's safety. We need your support and engagement to continue making District 8 a secure and welcoming place to live.

Dad Joke of the Month

What do you call a one-legged hippo?

A hoppo. 

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

601 West Jefferson Street, Third Floor

Louisville, Kentucky 40202

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