Here’s what we reported on today:
Steve Shaw has penned a piece for LEO on River Fields. The article looks into how the conservation group has fought the Ohio River Bridges Project and how that has lead to a dispute with 8664 and a compromise that seems to make everyone outside of city and state government unhappy.
If it weren’t for their bridge conflict, it seems unlikely that 8664 and River Fields would be so at odds, give the latter’s cri de coeur, “The river connects us all,” and its key role in the evolution of the Belvedere and Waterfront Park.
River Fields’ cosmopolitan pioneers were inspired by scenic European capitals to enhance the natural beauty of Louisville’s waterfront. Cochran said of her father, “The reason he founded River Fields was that when he went to Paris, he saw the people strolling along the Seine (River). It was an integral part of their urban life.”
Likewise, 8664 co-founders Tyler Allen and J.C. Stites were inspired by cities that had successfully optimized their waterfronts after removing unsightly infrastructure, such as San Francisco and Portland, Ore.
Stites’s father, J.W. Stites Jr., was a River Fields trailblazer who helped founder Archie Cochran draft its articles of incorporation, and he served as River Fields’ president and legal counsel. Stites & Harbison is the namesake of J.C.’s grandfather.
Stites’s plan to world-classify the riverfront seemed like a natural fit for River Fields, so he pitched it to members, including Runyon and Griffith, in 2005; then he resigned himself to irreconcilable differences.
Stites and Lee Cochran are no longer on speaking terms with the conservancy their fathers fueled before green was cool.
Pundits all over the commonwealth have said that Rand Paul’s success in the senate primary will push Trey Grayson to the right. Page One and B&P are keeping track of that.
Grayson would likely benefit from winning over the social conservatives that may be attracted to Paul’s libertarian-style fiscal conservatism. Paul’s supporters like to bring up the fact that Grayson once supported Bill Clinton, but so did the state of Kentucky, too…twice, so it’s not like a Kentucky Republican who voted for Clinton at some point is dramatically out of the mainstream. It’s hard to believe that there has been a sudden shift toward Paul’s brand of Republicanism in the last few years, making Clinton’s wins in 1992 and 1996 irrelevant, but it’s possible. Maybe Grayson is concerned about Paul’s sudden popularity regardless. As Dan in the comments pointed out, this is a primary we’re talking about. I think Grayson’s Clinton support will be less of a factor in the general election (as long as Paul doesn’t run as an independent) but I’m saying that many primary voters are unlikely to see a big scarlet ‘D’ on Grayson’s chest for what he may now call a ‘youthful indiscretion.’
I’d like to see a breakdown of Republican voters in Kentucky. How many of Paul’s supporters are self-identified independents? How many haven’t voted before? Maybe I’m reading too much Nate Silver, but it seems like while Paul’s popularity is real, his lead leans more toward statistical anomaly than conservative uprising.
We know that Louisville is one of the most unsafe cities for pedestrians, but what can be done?
Wired digs into the Transportation for America study a bit further and puts forth a few suggestions for making streets safer and offers an explanation for the mortal threats posed on city streets. In some places a plethora of Robert Moses wannabes made it too easy to drive into foot traffic.
The report finds wide disparities in the amount each state spends. For example, Providence, Rhode Island, spends $4.01 per person to increase pedestrian and cyclist safety, while Orlando spends 87 cents.
“Too many transportation agencies have focused their investments on serving vehicles that result in unsafe, unhealthy environments for walking and bicycling,” said Anne Canby, president of the Surface Transportation Policy Partnership. “It’s time recipients of federal taxpayers’ money were held accountable for addressing this epidemic of preventable deaths.”
The report finds minority and low-income communities are disproportionately impacted. African-Americans, for example, have a pedestrian fatality rate of 3.01; the rate is 2.88 for Hispanics. Nationally, the rate for all people is 1.53. People 65 and older are at a higher risk, too, with a pedestrian fatality rate of 2.69.
The authors offer some solutions that parallel a national trend toward reconfiguring streets to make them safer and more appealing to pedestrians without adversely impacting traffic flow.
By using traffic calming techniques like reconfiguring road alignments and installing barriers like roundabouts to slow drivers, streets become more accessible. Expanding the Safe Routes to Schoolprogram, which installs or improves crosswalks, signals and other features, would make walking and biking safer for children. And more cities are adopting so-called complete streets policies that give all modes of transportation, from walking to driving to riding the bus, equal access and the same priority.
If 43,000 pedestrians dying in 10 years seems like too many to you, what do you think should be done to make roads safer for people who aren’t in cars?
Happy Veterans Day. Here’s what we’re working on:
Rick is covering Senator John McCain’s speech with Senator Mitch McConnell at U of L.
Stephanie stopped by the H1N1 vaccination clinic. She’s also getting an update on the Revive 65 project, which ends Friday.
I’ll go to Greater Louisville Inc’s headquarters today. They’re unveiling a new plan to bring international talent to Louisville.
I’ll also monitor today’s Metro Council Budget Committee meeting. They begin debate on the firefighter pay settlement plan.
Today on SOA…”Grandmother Wisdom”
Louisville Metro Government’s first public H1N1 clinic is open today and tomorrow at Papa John’s Cardinal Stadium. If you miss out, don’t fret, more doses are coming soon. And while the city hasn’t decided where it will hold future clinics, you can keep up to date with this handy Google Map. The blue icons are H1N1 vaccination locations while the red are for seasonal flu. Thanks Google maps…Double true.
Kentucky’s general and road fund receipts for October were down 4% this year compared to 2008. It looks like the General Assembly will head into the next session facing a 1.3 billion dollar shortfall for the next biennium. Will the calls for expanded gaming (again) and higher cigarette taxes (again) will inspire the legislature to pick up the pace for the 60-day session?
We all know Mayor Jerry Abramson is not seeking another term and will instead try to become Lieutenant Governor Jerry Abramson. Abramson helped shape the merged government, and we’ve been looking at what Jefferson County will be like without his presence.
I reported on how Abramson’s absence might or might not sway the vote to a Republican for the first time in decades. The last Republican city mayor left office in 1969. Before merger, the county had a history of electing Republican leaders, but that momentum was more or less stopped by Abramson’s electoral popularity. Without him in the race, the old city and the old county will come to a head politically.
Even though they may vote differently, the city and county are one entity, and Stephanie reported this week on what exactly that means, and what it will mean once Abramson’s last term ends. Many old county residents and politicians are anxious to see how the next mayor handles merged government. Several candidates say the promises of merger must be fulfilled; the old county must feel included in decisions and they need to see the benefits of decisions made downtown. Most of the candidates have said this, but it’s not clear how it can be accomplished by one person in power.
Since Abramson was such a proponent of and influence on merger, it will be interesting to see how candidates from the outside approach a government they didn’t have such a powerful hand in creating.
Rick Redding has a wrapup of some recent TV sweeps stories, including a look at Metro Corrections and another examination into Metro Council funds.
