My fellow Louisvillians…
- Thread starter RexBowie
- Start date
Back on the parade topic, this is my plan to revitalize it.
1) Move mini to Sunday
2) Move parade to Saturday
3) Each neighborhood in Louisville METRO (including surrounding counties and So. Indiana) should have a float. Winning hood gets a cash prize.
4) Any organization in Louisville can have a float
5) Any HS in Louisville can have a float
6) Move parade to Main Street
7) Get the bars / restaurants involved. St Patties shouldn’t be bigger draw than Pegasus
1) Move mini to Sunday
2) Move parade to Saturday
3) Each neighborhood in Louisville METRO (including surrounding counties and So. Indiana) should have a float. Winning hood gets a cash prize.
4) Any organization in Louisville can have a float
5) Any HS in Louisville can have a float
6) Move parade to Main Street
7) Get the bars / restaurants involved. St Patties shouldn’t be bigger draw than Pegasus
I get it but you're preaching to the choir for the most part because I spend lots of time downtown. It's the average person in the suburbs or east end that has the perception of downtown being unsafe. That perception is not completely unwarranted.
That map doesn't show many murders downtown. There's a cluster due to the bank shooting.
I agree and disagree. But I’m also very much a city guy who has toured the biggest cities in US and world. Find city life very interesting and I’m not easily phased by all that.
Perception is what perception is. There’s a lot of studies into whether perception is warranted. Generally, it’s over stated. Of course we can get into specific areas or crime stats, but I have a mixed view on it.
There were 3 murders near 9th and Broadway alone. Keep in mind this is only 4 months of data. My point is downtown was a much safer place 10-15 years ago. The police force was fully staffed and there wasn't near the amount of homeless people (some violent) on the streets. The gangs were not as bold either.
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A map of Louisville population density
You’re making a lot of assertions here with out data to back up. I’m highly skeptical of a correlation between policing and homelessness for instance. That’s more correlative of economic pressure and housing availability. Drug use? Possibly.
Let’s face the facts. Louisville has voted for dem mayors for 60 straight years and that’s not changing anytime soon.
Murder, homelessness, underachieving and I inviting business atmosphere, failure to compete with neighboring similar sized cities, no pro sports teams.
Yet people continue the insanity of voting for the same corrupt immoral leadership and expecting different results.
Murder, homelessness, underachieving and I inviting business atmosphere, failure to compete with neighboring similar sized cities, no pro sports teams.
Yet people continue the insanity of voting for the same corrupt immoral leadership and expecting different results.
Speaking of NYC, we went there awhile ago for my wife's 70th birthday. Stayed at an AirBnb in Alphabet City. Everybody went, "Ooooh. Be careful. Terrible crime. The Homeless. Drug use. Etc." We checked. There hadn't been a murder in the neighborhood in several years.
I am not correlating police and homeless. I am saying that a fully staffed and supported police force was a bigger deterrent to crime than an understaffed force that we have today. As for the homeless problem, a lot of it is drugs and mental health. Meth is one of the cheapest and most readily available hard drugs right now. Unfortunately, the Mexican cartels are now making it using heavy metals which cause brain damage. Lots of these meth addicts end up with mental problems and homeless to boot. It's horrible. Long read but really interesting.
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We've become a society that permits people to shoot people who ring their doorbell. Paranoia is well through the roof and up there with the clouds.
I just went to that area for first time a few weeks ago. I don’t think other than subway there has been time in Manhattan I was concerned. We walked around StuyTown over there near Alphabet City which I think is the biggest area for rent controlled housing around there. You can get a rent controlled apartment there for the bargain of $3500 a month,
I don’t know that downtown was much better 10-15 years ago either honestly. I think that’s incorrect. In fact, I disagree strongly.
Downtown has always had tough areas, but I think there are more gentrified areas downtown than I can ever remember. Even Smoketown has places like Logan Street Market. Paristown (which I don’t even think was it’s name 15 years ago, was brutal) and now is undergoing massive development projects.
Places like Botanical Gardens didn’t exist.
The area where the soccer stadium is was just blight.
Butchertown was not even a fraction of what it is now.
Main Street has always been around but not even close to how it is now.
Just messing with you, man. I haven't lived in Louisville in over 25 years. It is going to crap though. I hardly recognize my hometown anymore. Raised in Okolona. It's a mess at the moment.
There was not the amount of crime or homelessness downtown 15 years ago that there is today. That is undeniable. You must be too young to know.
Homelessness? Probably up. Crime?
No. I’m 40. I remember when I had a job on Clay when I was 21 and dudes at the projects (now torn down) flash gang signs at me for staring at a stop light.
Maybe you’re talking about 1960, I don’t know. But I also remember when Waterfront Park was factories. So, I’m not sure you how you’d argue that was better.
Same god damned streets that bred Muhammad Ali. Wtf are you talking about?
God dammit. Full circle. I outlined my 7 point plan for Pegasus revitalization.
The main goal is this. Make the god damned parade fun and make people want to be a part of it. It was abysmal and embarrassing to watch on TV.
I’m all for diversity but there were 25 step dance groups of 10 year old girls. Just merge them together into one. Every neighborhood should participate. Make it a celebration of the city. That was just embarrassing
I never used the word better (as in venues and things to do). I am talking about safety. Crime is clearly up. Homelessness off the charts compared to 15 years ago.
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And I am saying that’s crazy. Before 4th Street Live, all of downtown as a no man’s land. Now there is 10x more usable areas from arena district to NULU to Butchertown to Paristown to Logan Street. More people having fun downtown than any time since I’ve been alive.
Louisville's downtown revitalization goes back further than 4th Street Live (2004). Think the Kentucky Center, Theater Square, the Humana and Aegon Buildings, Slugger Museum, the Science Center, Slugger Field, Waterfront Park, etc. It started in the 1990's and picked up steam with the city county merger.
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LOL really emphasizes a point. What’s your key moment for downtown revitalization? Can only be two things since 1980…
I liked a lot of your points for improvement. The biggest is probably just moving it away from Broadway no one wants to go to Broadway. Have it on main or river road ending at waterfront and slugger field. Then do a bats game each year right after it’s over. Similar to how Boston does the marathon and Red Sox games. The bats could have special uniforms each year for that game that would be a homage to the last years derby winner.
Would love someone involved with the KDF to actually come up with an original idea for once.
Would love someone involved with the KDF to actually come up with an original idea for once.
I like the Bats idea. I don’t see why not
The waterfront scrap yard being transformed into Phase I of Waterfront Park in the late 90's is certainly one. See my edited previous post for a list of others.
Yes. Waterfront Park. That’d be the other. But also I was responding to a guy talking about downtown going downhill in past 15 years
I barely remember that ******* fountain but I only remember it breaking every other day. It was supposed to be Louisville’s Eiffel Tower
It's all good! Okolona used to be awesome. Cruising down Preston. Nobody shooting at you. It has really changed, unfortunately. Elected officials sold it out.
Crime rates fluctuate. The 80s were peak crime. Things were much worse then.
My friend ran the Derby Mini and said it was disgusting. She was like man, people visiting from out of town will never come back. Way to go on your weekend Louisville.
Got any facts to back that up. There wasn't much going on downtown in the 80's but the number of murders were much lower. The last few years have set records. I don't remember carjackings being a thing back then. We had an epidemic of them recently and the FBI had to get involved. Teen gang bangers with guns is much more common now too.
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I didn't dig deeper than Murder stats. Check out the 70s and 80s
That's irrelevant. We are discussing downtown Louisville not the entire state of Kentucky.
So, when the entire state was experiencing distressing, record levels of homicide, downtown Louisville was experiencing a Golden Age of safety?
The surge in crime in post-WW2 America is largely attributed to lead in the environment -- most gasoline and paint. As lead increased, 20 years later, crime increased. As lead abatement worked its way through the environment, there was a 20 year lag until crime dropped. (The 20 years is the span from birth to the age when most crimes are committed.) Urban areas were hit harder because of the number of cars.
But the crux is anxiety. If you feel it's justified, I sure don't want to talk you out of it, but we were just in Louisville a week or so ago for a meal with our daughter. We ate downtown at the Omni. 2nd and Liberty. The memory of the shooting in NuLu was still fresh. We're in our 70s. Our daughter is in her 40s. At the Omni were 2 large groups of kids: kids going to prom and a bunch of girl volleyball players.