Walking the Walk..... Annual Central Park Improvement and Clean-up Session, April 10 Everyone talks about the weather and in Old Louisville, at least, about the litter. While nothing can be done about the former, residents can do something about the latter: volunteer to help with the annual clean-up and improvement of Central Park at 8:30AM on Saturday, April 10, 2004, rain or shine. Once again, Herb Fink, chair of the Old Louisville Neighborhood Council Property Improvement Committee, is working with Louisville Metro Parks, and Brightside to provide the tools, bags, gloves, mulch, fertilizer, plants, and grass seed to spruce up Central Park for spring, Derby, and the park’s 100th birthday. Thanks to Sixth District Metro Councilman George Unseld, a barbecue lunch with all the fixings from Masterson’s will be provided at noon. The day promises to be one of fun, energy, and comradarie; be there and pitch in to help the neighborhood. Central Park West residents, Matthew and Aleasha Huested, and their daughters, Lydia, Hannah, and Emily, helped at the clean-up of the I-65 ramps and underpasses at Floyd and St Catherine Streets on March 20. Bob Laufer, Rose Grenough Nett, and Dan Borsch pick up trash on Floyd Street.

Centennial Dinners Will Celebrate and Benefit Central Park Friends of Central Park announces The Central Park Centennial Dinners-private gala dinners, held in homes in Old Louisville surrounding Central Park or in homes in close proximity to Central Park-as a culmination of this summer’s celebrations honoring Central Park’s 100th Anniversary. Mark your calendars for Saturday, October 16, 2004, when cocktails, gourmet dinners and celebratory desserts will be one of the high points of the fall season and a stylish premier fundraising event for the fund. Friends of Central Park (FCP) was created as a committee of the Old Louisville Information Center (OLIC) in November, 2003. As a support organization, FCP will aid in the efforts to restore, preserve, and improve Central Park. Through public-private partnerships and creative fundraising, FCP will provide the capital to enable the neighborhood to work with Metro Parks and the Olmsted Parks Conservancy to maintain Central Park as the jewel of Old Louisville. Susan Rostov, proprietor of s.r/p.r, has been selected by OLIC to be the fund’s marketing and events director. A long-time Old Louisville resident and a New Yorker at heart, Susan was so inspired by New York City’s successful fundraising and celebration honoring the 150th anniversary of its Central Park by producing 150 gala dinners city-wide, she wondered, “Why not for Old Louisville?” Throughout initial discussions, all potential community partners have been very enthusiastic, including Bill Samuels, one of the Olmsted Parks Conservancy founders, who remarked, “This is just what Central Park and Old Louisville needs. When we formed the Olmsted Conservancy, we hoped the neighborhoods surrounding the small parks would become actively involved in their well-being and upkeep. We knew that the larger parks would receive more attention. What better time than the 100th anniversary for the Old Louisville Information Center to take this initiative.” Friends of Central Park has sketched out the beginnings of a strategic plan that includes updating the Central Park Master Plan; participating in the CityScape Consulting Program with Central Park Conservancy in New York City; producing the inaugural fundraising event, Centennial Suppers; creative sponsor recognition for the park; launching a capital campaign for horticultural maintenance, building repairs, walkways, lighting, benches and other amenities; educational outreach programs for volunteers, visitors, and children; and the establishment of an endowment fund. Under the guidance of an advisory board headed by Herb Fink, and as a part of the Old Louisville Information Center, FCP is a 501(c)3 organization, relying on private donations, patron gifts, and corporate partnerships. Want to be involved as a dinner host? Want to be sure to get an invitation? Want to contribute and become a friend of Central Park? Want more information? Contact Susan Rostov, s.r./p.r., at 637-7180 or susanlee@bellsouth.net.

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How Does Your Garden Grow?...
Second Street Plant Sale on April 24th Can Help

Not quite ready for spring?

The Second Street Neighborhood Association wants to help at its 17th annual neighborhood plant sale, and they have a bargain for you! Those who order at least 5 standard flats will save $2/flat on each and every flat, making your price $10/flat instead of $12 each.

The popular shade-loving impatiens will be back in white and 5 vibrant colors along with sweet potato vines, 4-inch pots of geraniums, and many other favorites.

New offerings include hanging baskets of Boston ferns and of wax begonias as well as flats of alyssum, zinnias, and ageratum.
We’ll also offer perennials from our own gardens at bargain prices. (Anyone wishing to donate perennials, call Joann Lockhart at 636-1751 for pots.)

An order form is enclosed in this issue of the Old Louisville Journal. Save the top which has the pickup address (behind 127 W. Ormsby) and other details. Mail the bottom with your check by April 17. Questions? Call 636-1751. And thanks for your support through the years.
Nancy Gall-Clayton

You Reap
What You Sow...
Garden plots are available for $10 at both the Limerick Community Garden on Sixth Street and Englehard Elementary School on First Street.
For a plot at Limerick, contact Jerie Britton, 637-9988; for Englehard, contact Matt Nally, 574-1370.

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Jean Crowe celebrated her 89th birthday on March 11, 2004.
Jean has been an active member of the Old Louisville Neighborhood Council
for many years. She attended a meeting of the Council’s Property Improvement Committee on the night of her birthday and was greeted by a chorus of
Happy Birthday and a big birthday cake.

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A Bargain:
The 2004 Garden Tour PASSPORT

Again this year, a Garden Tour PASSPORT will be offered for advance sale. The 2004 Garden Tour PASSPORT will provide admission to three (3) Louisville area Neighborhood Garden Tours for one all-inclusive discount price of $25.00 (a $32.00 value if purchased separately.)
The participating Garden Tours and respective dates are:

• Crescent Hill Garden Tour ~ June 5 & 6, 10 AM – 5 PM

• Audubon Park Garden Tour ~ June 27, 1 PM – 5 PM

• Old Louisville Hidden Treasure Garden Tour ~ July 10 & 11, 10 AM – 5 PM

Check-in information for each Garden Tour will be provided with the PASSPORT. All Garden Tours will be held RAIN OR SHINE (No rain dates.)

Each Garden Tour will feature on average 8 – 12 residential gardens each in a unique and historic neighborhood. As always, this year’s tours offer a wide variety of gardens from which tourists can glean ideas and information.

Individual ticket sales for each garden tour will be offered, but this is a limited-time, advance-sale-only, discount package. Advance sales of 2004 Garden Tour PASSPORT will be of great interest to the avid gardener, whether for personal use or as a great gift idea.

The 2004 Garden Tour PASSPORT may be obtained in person or by mail. Payment may be made in person by cash or check only at:

The Garden Wall
636 East Market Street
Louisville, Kentucky 40202
502.583.9255

The Plant Kingdom
4101 Westport Road
Louisville, Kentucky 40207
502.893.7333

By mail: A money order or check, made to Garden Tour PASSPORT, may be sent to:

Cynthia Johnson
2308 Raleigh Lane
Louisville, KY 40206

$25 for each PASSPORT must be received by June 4. Sorry, no refunds or exchanges.

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Cook’s Corner:
Leah Stewart Featured in Kentucky Monthly Magazine

Stewart is the chef and innkeeper of the Gallery House Bed and Breakfast and Art Gallery in Louisville. She recently graduated summa cum laude from the National Center for Hospitality studies of Sullivan University with a degree in baking and pastry arts.

Stewart spends hours working with sugar, fondant, buttercream and pastillage making a hat box that is really a cake or a Derby Hat cake with handmade red roses. Breakfast at the Gallery House is a delightful experience for the guests. Stewart serves blueberry buckle, Southwest eggs and raisin bread French toast. “I always had the ability to ‘taste in my head,’” Stewart said. “I can read a recipe and I will know immediately what it will taste like, what might need to be changed, or how the addition of a different spice or ingredient will affect the taste of the final dish. It saves a lot of experimentation. This is how I created the Southwest eggs recipe.”

French toast is a specialty at the Gallery House. Stewart creates a lemon-stuffed French toast shaped like a butterfly. Sometimes she will make French toast with caramel and bananas or caramel and apples or a cherry version with eggnog sauce around the holidays.

Three of Stewart’s cake creations have been on display in the Sullivan University Collection—a white chocolate ladies’ hat decorated with handmade dark chocolate roses, gentleman’s top hat, and an art-deco inspired pastillage vase filled with a bouquet of handmade chocolate flowers.
Vivian Perez

Pumpkin Pancakes from the Gallery House
1 ¼ cup flour
1 tbsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
1 tbsp corn meal
½ tsp cinnamon
1/8 whole nutmeg, grated
1 beaten egg
1 cup milk
½ cup pureed pumpkin
2 tbsp vegetable oil
Mix dry ingredients together. Met wet ingredients together. Incorporate wet ingredients into dry ingredients. Bake on a hot griddle.
Serve with cinnamon apples, toasted pecans and real maple syrup.

Excerpt from Kentucky Monthly, Volume 7, Issue 2, February, 2004
Editor’s note: Leah is also an active member of the Old Louisville Neighborhood Council Zoning and Land Use Committee.

 

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Wellspring Hosts Derby Preview Party

Wellspring will host the sixth annual Derby Preview Party at the Kentucky Derby Museum, 704 Central Avenue, on Thursday, April 22, 2004, 6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.
This event will benefit Wellspring’s rehabilitative services and housing programs for persons with severe and persistent mental illness. Wellspring operates 21 facilities throughout Jefferson and Shelby counties, of which two programs are in Old Louisville along with the administrative office.

The event will feature food, drinks, silent and live auction, music, and a Derby-themed program. During the evening, Wellspring will honor historic Claiborne Farm in Paris, one of the most famous farms in the bluegrass and Dell Hancock whose family owns the farm will serve as honorary host.

John Asher, Churchill Downs’ vice president, racing communications, will again serve as master of ceremonies. Bill Doolittle, author of Kentucky Derby Run for the Roses 125 and The How to Be A Better Bettor, will share his perspective on the contenders for the upcoming Derby and tips for making the best wagers. Jim Squires, breeder of 2001 Kentucky Derby winner Monarchos and author of Horse of a Different Color, will also speak. The popular bluegrass band, Next Exit, will provide entertainment.

Benefactor tickets for this event are $85 per person for reserved seating on the main floor. Patron tickets are $50 per person for open seating on the second floor level. Tickets can be purchased by calling 637-4361, ext. 12, or via e-mail at bukszar@iglou.com.

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Old Louisville Chamber of Commerce Plans for a Bright Future

For some time the businesses and professionals of Old Louisville have been working to develop an organization that would represent them and their interests. For several years we were known as the Old Louisville Business and Professional Association. This past year we decided to change our name in order to make our identity clearer. We are now the Old Louisville Chamber of Commerce, and along with our name change we have been working to become more relevant to the needs and desires of the business community, and we believe, in that way to benefit Old Louisville as a whole.

In deciding what we wanted to do, the Chamber first determined that Old Louisville needed a model to follow. We looked to other places, Savannah, Georgia; the French Quarter of New Orleans; the neighborhoods of Chicago and even the neighborhoods of Paris and London (why not think big?), before deciding that the model we wanted to follow was that of a historic village. A village is a rather self-contained and self-sufficient place. Pedestrians hold sway in a village, and a village’s streets are not expressways or expressway ramps to other places, rather they are there primarily to serve the inhabitants of the village. One day we hope everything the residents and visitors to our lovely area might need or want would be available right here in our village.

We envision development here to be in accord with the prevailing architecture. We know that the late 18th and 19th century buildings of Old Louisville are the real draw of the area, and our membership has no intention or desire to change that. Many, if not most, of our membership are either a property owners in, or as residents of, Old Louisville. We know better than to kill the goose that has given us this golden egg.

But that doesn’t mean that everything is great as it is. We believe that Old Louisville needs more amenities to serve its residents and visitors, and that current businesses could do a better job. We see our job as greasing the wheels for improvement.

To this end we sponsored the Oak Street Charrette held February 26-28, 2004, at the Spectrum where exciting concepts for the revitalization of our commercial corridor were developed by the Central Kentucky Chapter of the American Institute of Architects. Last year we presented a forum for our membership to learn about the new Traditional Neighborhood Zoning District (TNZD). Currently we are attempting to develop a more tourist-friendly Old Louisville which might include a TARC Trolley route linking the downtown and airport area hotels with points of interest and museums in and about Old Louisville. Consideration is also being given to establishing a tourist information office near Fourth & Oak where tourists could pick up walking maps, museum brochures and directions to restaurants and shops.

It’s our belief that being a source of information for businesses and helping them through the maze of governmental regulation provides real value to our membership. Soon we will have 100 dues-paying businesses and professionals in our association. While we may not always walk in lock step with the Old Louisville Neighborhood Council (people of goodwill do occasionally disagree), we do sincerely hope to work with the Council to make Old Louisville a vibrant place where businesses and residents live and work in harmony.

We know that we don’t have all the answers; we want your feedback. Visit us at www.oldlouisvillechamber.com.  The Oak Street Charrette power point presentation can be accessed at our website.

Kenneth Plotnik

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April Chair Notes:
Cultural Events Abound in Old Louisville

One of the pleasures of living in an urban neighborhood is the availability of a diverse selection of cultural and social activities often within easy walking distance. In Old Louisville, we have the added bonus of being home to the city’s major university and museum.

On March 30, 2004, a large group of Old Louisville residents and others were treated to a reception and private viewing of old master prints (Nuremberg 1500 to 1550) from the collection of Old Louisville resident, Malcolm Bird, at the Speed Art Museum. The event was sponsored and given by the Friends of the School of Music, the U of L School of Music, and the Speed Art Museum with the hope of encouraging a more active and meaningful relationship between these three organizations and the residents of Old Louisville in particular and the entire city in general.

The Speed Museum has a broad range in its collection spanning 6,000 years and including over 13,000 pieces ranging from ancient Egyptian to contemporary art. It annually presents many special exhibits of world-renowned quality. The Speed Museum continues to loan the Conrad-Caldwell House Museum decorative items from their collection.

The School of Music features a strong curriculum in both the classical and jazz idiom. The $200,000 U of L Grawmeyer Award in Music, one of six categories awarded by the University of Louisville each year, has focused world-wide attention on the School of Music. The school presents 20 to 25 performances per month, most of them free and all available to the public.

The Friends of the School of Music is a volunteer, nonprofit organization whose purpose is to raise funds for student scholarships in the school and to foster the development of music. It is composed of people like you and me. For a nominal fee, become a member and attend some of the concerts to see the good you have done or perhaps what you have been missing.

With all of this in our front yards there is no excuse to not take better advantage of all that is so easily available. In the future look for the monthly schedules for both the Music School and the Speed Art Museum in the Old Louisville Journal. Please be advised and see what you want to attend.

John Sistarenik

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Central Park Centennial...
Let the Celebration Begin!

This is a grand old neighborhood filled with antiquated charm, interesting people and beautiful urban vistas. One of the cornerstones of this area is a preserved green space, Central Park. That little respite of nature turns 100 years old this year and we have plans to celebrate all of the grandeur and vitality the park as meant to the neighborhood for all these years.
An ever-evolving committee has been working on plans for the celebration for well over 18 months. After brainstorming, discussion and budgets, we have realized the very best plans for a Central Park Centennial Celebration are ones with the park and her neighbors as the centerpieces. Many of our existing activities will go on as scheduled but with Central Park as a feature. We have added some new activities to the calendar for 2004 but, again, with Central Park featured.

It is the intention of all of us who love this park and live in this neighborhood to view the upcoming Central Park Centennial Celebration as a means to pull back to the neighborhood those who have contributed their time and talents in the past as well as the active and involved current residents of Old Louisville so we may truly celebrate the beauty and the longevity of our neighborhood.

Beginning with the month of April, you will find something connecting the neighborhood and Central Park through the rest of the calendar year. Our beloved Herb Fink will lead the annual Central Park Clean Up on Saturday, April 10th. Meet us in the park beginning around 8:30 am for this annual event! The Sunday Summer Concert Series headed by Joan Stewart and Mary Martin resumes in May on the first Sunday. The times are from 3:00-5:00 pm. These concerts continue all summer! Mark your calendars now so that you don’t miss a single concert!

The main Central Park Centennial Kick Off celebration is scheduled for the first weekend in June in Central Park. On Wednesday, June 2nd and then continuing through Sunday, June 6th, there will be a tennis tournament running on the courts in the park. Friday, June 4th will be the date for a wine and cheese party. Saturday, June 5th is ”Neighborhood Associations Picnics in the Park” beginning at 3:00 pm. We have a brass band coming and we are encouraging neighborhood associations to decorate their tables in the turn of the century, 1900’s era. Come in costume, if you like! Sunday, June 6th will be our next Sunday Summer Concert Series and an ice cream social. Ehrler’s will be on hand selling their wonderful ice cream for all to enjoy. As you can see, we have a full weekend planned!

We also have a special Central Park Centennial logo designed, a T-shirt ready to go to print, a beautiful commemorative poster and the third in our series of Old Louisville Pins ready for sale. This promises to be a year of events worthy of our time, effort and pride!

The calendar for the rest of the year includes:

June
Photography Contest centered on the theme of “Central Park” with a deadline in August.

July
4th—Sunday Summer Concert Series from 3-5 pm
10th & 11th—Second Street Association annual “Hidden Treasures Garden Tour” with 10-12 gardens in homes ringing Central Park. Ehrler’s will again be on hand selling ice cream that weekend and The Plant Kingdom returns with wonderful and unique offerings.

August
1st—Sunday Summer Concert Series from 3-5 pm
Deadline for Photography Contest to be announced

September
5th—Sunday Summer Concert Series from 3-5 pm
Photography Contest reception featuring winning entries—TBA
National Historic Trust Convention

October
1st-3rd St. James Court Art Show
3rd—Sunday Summer Concert Series from 3-5 pm
16th - Central Park Centennial Dinners

November
20th—Cherokee Road Runners Race in Central Park

December
4th & 5th—Holiday House Tour with homes on tour ringing Central Park


As you can see, it promises to be a grand celebration of our beautiful Central Park and of our vibrant neighborhood for the rest of 2004. Come out and be a part of the fun!
Debbie Powers

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Federal Government Says No
to Weed and Seed Program
for Old Louisville

A proposal to have Old Louisville designated as a site for the Operation Weed and Seed program has been denied. Administered by the U.S., Department of Justice, the program aims to reduce and prevent crime in designated neighborhoods.

Reduced federal funding for the program as well as the fact that Old Louisville did not meet the violent crime levels needed to qualify for the program were apparently causes for the denial.

The Metro Louisville Department of Neighborhoods submitted the proposal after an Old Louisville steering committee met with Department of Neighborhood personnel and representatives from the U.S. Attorney’s office in October, 2003, to prioritize goals for the program. The program would have provided, among other things, overtime pay for more Fifth District policing in the neighborhood.

Ginny Keen and Nancy Woodcock hard at work on St. Catherine St. during the March 20th clean-up.

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Submit Journal contributions to the Editor:
Old Louisville Information Center
1340 S. Fourth St., Louisville, KY 40208.
Phone: (502) 635-5244
E-mail: olnc@bellsouth.net
Advertising rates available upon request.
Please submit “Letters to the Editor” to the above address.
The 15th of each month is deadline for submission of all ads and articles.

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