CNU Legacy Projects
The Congress for the New Urbanism (CNU) is a non-profit organization that provides resources, education, and technical assistance to create socially just, economically robust, environmentally resilient, and people-centered places. Each year, as a part of the annual Congress, CNU invites municipalities and community organizations to lead and participate in Legacy Projects, often with pro-bono assistance from some of the nation’s leading planning and design firms. The 27th Annual Congress for the New Urbanism was held in Louisville in 2019 and produced four Legacy Projects, a collaborative effort facilitated by CNU that synthesized ideas from local neighborhood organizations, civic and community leaders, and local and national planning and design firms. Information for each of the four projects, including the full report for each, can be found below.
Restoring and Re-imagining Woodlawn Avenue
Sponsored by the Center for Neighborhoods in close collaboration with the Beechmont Neighborhood Association, this project developed a vision for the Woodlawn Avenue commercial corridor that incorporates the neighborhood’s significant history into its diverse future. Six strategies were developed through in-depth community input: enhance connectivity, improve pedestrian safety, support local businesses, reuse historic buildings, encourage small-scale development, and develop an inclusive identity. Other partners on this Legacy Project include the national firms PlaceMakers LLC, DPZ CoDesign, and Gibbs Planning Group, as well as the local firm WorK Architecture + Design.
Connecting Beargrass Creek
Championed by the Kentucky Waterways Alliance and led by the Louisville office of the national planning and design firm Gresham Smith, the goal of this Legacy Project was to create a cohesive vision for physical connectivity along and adjacent to the South Fork of the creek, from the Louisville Zoo to the Ohio River, through a diverse collection of neighborhoods. The resulting report identifies both short and long-term strategies to advanced education, increase accessibility, and improve the resiliency of one of Louisville’s most vital environmental resources
18th Street Corridor Revitalization
Sponsored by OneWest with collaboration from Louisville Metro Government and the Community Foundation of Louisville, the goal of this Legacy Project is to ensure that 18th Street, in the heart of the historic Russell neighborhood, is a vibrant corridor where residents and businesses have opportunity to prosper. Led by national planning and design firms Urban Design Associates and Zimmerman/Volk Associates, Inc., input from the community guided the project to focus on two key intersections that have the potential to become pedestrian-friendly neighborhood centers with valuable community assets and thriving businesses.
East Portland Connectivity Project
Sponsored by the Louisville Downtown Partnership and organized by the University of Louisville Urban Design Studio, the goal of this project was to develop a complete-streets approach to the West Main Street and West Market Street corridors between Downtown and the Portland neighborhood that would help create a better sense of ownership and place. The resulting strategy was a multi-modal approach that connects West Main Street to east Portland through a series of interventions in the street that create a pedestrian-friendly loop from the intersection of 10th Street and West Main to 15th Street and the multi-modal path along the waterfront. Other partners on this project include Louisville Metro Government and the Waterfront Development Corporation.
