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I talked with Kentucky May Day Coalition co-convener Stephen Bartlett today about the protest outside of Derby. Here’s the WFPL story:
Drivers and pedestrians heading to the Kentucky Derby may see demonstrators protesting the new immigration law in Arizona.
Among other things, the Arizona legislation allows law enforcement officers to ask anyone for proof of citizenship. The Kentucky May Day Coalition will pass out fliers denouncing the law at intersections around Churchill Downs.
Coalition co-convener Stephen Bartlett says the fliers highlight the role immigrants play in the horse industry.
“The whole Kentucky Derby could not take place without the immigrant workers who work in the horse industry at all levels, including even the jockeys,” he says.
Bartlett says the fliers will encourage people to call Senator Mitch McConnell and ask him to support federal immigration reform that’s friendly to immigrants.
“The system is broken,” he says. “Basically, the Arizona law is a terrible omen on what could happen to tear our society apart. A new Jim Crow Law, in effect, that’s going to take effect in three months in Arizona.”
The fliers will be distributed from 10 am to 1 pm.
Fifty-four years ago, Senator and former Vice President Alben Barkley died. Barkley was a Kentucky Democrat and VP to Harry Truman for his single full term. Prior to joining Truman in the White House, Barkley was Senate Majority Leader.
NPR’s Ken Rudin has a look back at Barkley’s career. Barkley died on April 30th, 1956. He was giving a speech and collapsed after saying, “I would rather be a servant in the House of the Lord than sit in the seat of the mighty.”
Barkley was first elected to the House in 1912 and served until 1926, when he won his first Senate race. A staunch supporter of President Franklin Roosevelt, Barkley was a key backer of FDR’s controversial plan to pack the Supreme Court with ideological allies. In 1938, when Barkley faced opposition in the Democratic primary from Gov. Happy Chandler, Roosevelt actively campaigned on behalf of Barkley, who won.
When FDR died in 1945, Vice President Truman took over. There was no incumbent v.p. in 1948 when Truman named Barkley as his running mate. The ticket won an upset victory in November over Republicans Thomas Dewey and Earl Warren.
Four years later, with Truman surprising the nation by announcing he would not run again, Barkley had hoped to succeed him. But labor was not a fan and many rank and file Dems felt he was too old for the job. In 1954, Barkley returned to the Senate, defeating GOP Sen. John Sherman Cooper.
NPR is reporting that the Mine Safety and Health Administration is one subject of a federal criminal investigation into the West Virginia mining disaster.
Sources familiar with the investigation say the FBI is looking into possible bribery of employees of the Mine Safety and Health Administration, the federal agency that inspects and regulates mining. The sources say FBI agents are also exploring potential criminal negligence on the part of Massey Energy, the owner of the Upper Big Branch mine.
Massey has been cited repeatedly for violations of federal safety regulations and unsubstantiated rumors have circulated for years that mine inspectors and other officials receive payoffs. The FBI declines comment and neither confirms nor denies that an investigation is ongoing.
In a statement to NPR, Massey Energy says it is not aware of the allegations, and is fully cooperating with any investigations taking place. The Mine Safety and Health Administration has yet to respond to a request for comment.
It appears that a push poll was conducted by River City Polling in the 13th Lousiville Metro Council District, where incumbent Democrat Vicki Aubrey Welch faces primary opponent Larry Roger Price. Republican Renay Davis is also running for the seat.
Here is the poll, which includes the following questions:
Second question, if the Democrat primary for Metro Council was today for whom would you vote?
Third question, would you change your vote if you were given proof that Vicki Welch had voted to give millions of taxpayer dollars to organizations like the League of Cities and GLI and then took luxury trips with them? Again, if you were given proof that Vicki Welch had voted to give millions of taxpayer dollars to organizations like the League of Cities and GLI and then took luxury trips with them, would you change your vote? Please press 3 if you would change your vote; please press 4 if you would not change your vote.
Last question, would you change your vote if you were given proof that Vicki Welch had been using taxpayer money to campaign for Metro Council? Again, if you were given proof that Vicki Welch had been using taxpayer money to campaign for Metro Council, would you change your vote? Please press 5 if you would change your vote; please press 6 if you would not change your vote.
Here are the WFPL stories on PPL’s pending purchase of LG&E and KU…
LG&E, KU To Be Purchased By PPL Corp.
Mayor: City/State Prepared Strong Bid For Utilities
PPL Chief: Utilities Purchase “Transformational”
PSC Awaiting Formal Request On Utility Sale
PPL CEO Addresses E-ON Employees
From Governor Steve Beshear:
“Today has been a terrible day for Kentucky and for our coal-mining families. I am very saddened to announce that we have lost two miners, Michael Carter and Justin Travis, in the roof collapse at Dotiki mine in western Kentucky. Our entire state mourns along with their families and friends. Despite our sadness, we must press forward to the work ahead of us – fully investigating what caused this accident and determining ways to avoid such accidents in the future.”
From the AP:
U.S. SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL SAYS ONE MINER HAS DIED IN A COAL MINE COLLAPSE IN WESTERN KENTUCKY.
MCCONNELL ANNOUNCED THE NEWS ON THE FLOOR OF THE U.S. SENATE ON THURSDAY. A MCCONNELL SPOKESMAN SAID IN AN E-MAIL THAT THE SENATOR WAS ALERTED BY OFFICIALS WITH THE MINE OPERATOR, ALLIANCE COAL CO. ALLIANCE DID NOT RETURN CALLS FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS.
ANOTHER MINER IS MISSING AFTER A ROOF COLLAPSED IN THE MINE LATE WEDNESDAY. GOV. STEVE BESHEAR SAID RESCUE CREWS HAD TO PULL BACK AFTER REACHING THE SITE OF THE COLLAPSE WHEN THE ROOF BECAME
UNSTABLE. UNITED MINE WORKERS OFFICIALS SAY TWO OTHER MINERS ESCAPED.
The Kentucky May Day Coalition will lead a protest against Arizona’s new immigration law outside of Churchill Downs on Saturday. The law, among other things, allows law enforcement officers to question anyone about their immigration status, if the officers have reason to suspect the person may be in Arizona illegally.
…demonstrators plan to pass out at least 2,000 fliers Saturday morning at all intersections leading to Churchill Downs to educate attendees about who the law targets.
“The Derby itself would not be possible without immigrant workers and that’s the point we’re going to make this Saturday,” says Stephen Bartlett, a co-convener of the coalition. “If you examine it, the horse farms, the trainers and even a lot of the jockeys are all immigrants. It’s the underground economy of the whole horsing industry.”
It’s been reported and confirmed developer Todd Blue applied for a permit to demolish the Iron Quarter strip of buildings on the 100 block of Main Street downtown. Blue purchased the buildings in 2007.
Mayor Jerry Abramson is reportedly opposed to the buildings’ demolition.
Business First reports that Blue was unable to find a tenant for the space.
The developer had hoped to land Humana Inc., which had been exploring an expansion, as the anchor tenant in what was proposed as a $50 million development.
But that deal never materialized, and the project never happened.
The buildings have fallen increasingly into disrepair, causing concerns about safety and their appearance, given their proximity to the $238 million arena, which is scheduled to open in November.
Several weeks ago, the city erected a fence around the structure to protect pedestrians.
[edit]
[Blue's attorney Glenn] Cohen said his client has no plans to sell the buildings, adding that Blue believes the block has great redevelopment potential, particularly with the arena getting ready to open.
The attorney said Blue would like to save the buildings’ facades but was unsure whether they are salvageable.
Cohen said the developer is “exploring a number” of options for the property and has “pretty exciting” mixed-use plans that he’s not ready to share.
The cost of demolition has not been determined, Cohen said. Clearing the site would take three or four months.
[edit]
Jim Host, chairman of the Louisville Arena Authority Inc., said it would be bad for the arena if Blue’s buildings remain in their current condition.
“Anything is better than (leaving the buildings) the way they are,” he said.
Last month, Broken Sidewalk reported on a study that estimated the buildings could be salvaged for about 3 million dollars total.
The report concludes that the Iron Quarter buildings could potentially be saved despite their level of decay but admits that the economics will have to be evaluated by Cobalt Ventures. Three cost estimates for various stabilization options are included in the report to understand the what stabilization would require:
- Structural stabilization for all facades ($990,000)
- Providing a new roof for the structures ($563,000)
- Structural stabilization and a new roof ($1,455,000)
These numbers are rough and might seem high, but it’s important to remember this small investment today could pay off not only in public safety but in future investment. The value of over half a block of buildings adjacent to the arena is far greater.
The options include stabilization techniques that do not require crews to enter the buildings so as to avoid current structural issues and could safely extend the buildings life by five years while the economy improves and a new plan is put in place for the property.
Known in the preservation community as “mothballing” a historic building, the process is a good way to save unused buildings from collapse or severe decay. One proposed facade stabilization technique in the report involves braces that would buttress the building, extending diagonally from the facade to ground level and allowing sidewalk access underneath.
In the end, however, Cobalt Ventures must make the decision to stabilize the Iron Quarter buildings. Todd Blue notes that the DDC study is preliminary and wasn’t conducted by Cobalt Ventures. He says he personally doesn’t know the condition of the buildings and doesn’t want to undertake any effort that might result in a potential collapse.
