BOB: Meriwether-Fort Hill

COMPLETED: SPRING 2025

Meriwether-Fort Hill At-a-Glance

Meriwether-Fort Hill is a neighborhood in central Louisville. Its boundaries are the CSX railroad tracks to the north, Shelby Street to the east, Brandeis Avenue to the south, and I-65 to the west.

The neighborhood contains notable places, such as Shelby Elementary, Preston Park, Dairy Del, and Jubilee Field.

People practicing yoga outdoors on mats in a park with trees and blue sky.

A quaint ice cream shop with colorful umbrellas providing shade outside. The shop has a vintage sign reading 'Dairy Del' and is decorated with American flags. There are pink flamingo ornaments and lush green plants in the foreground.

A row of houses with front yards, white picket fences, sidewalk, and trees early in spring.

Sign for Isaac Shelby Traditional Academy at 735 Ziegler with motivational message reading "You Got This"; surrounded by green trees and a parked red vehicle in the background.

A grassy park with newly planted trees supported by wooden stakes and ropes, and a neighborhood with houses in the background under a blue sky.

Meriwether-Fort Hill Demographics

Based on 2020 census data; numbers are approximate

A pie chart showing 3.8% for Spanish-speaking population.

Graphic showing 44.8% owner-occupied households with a grid of yellow and teal human icons and three teal houses

Illustration shows the median family income of $47,137 with a graphic of a dollar bill and text highlighting the income amount.

An illustration of two handshake symbols, one in yellow and one in teal, with the text '<1% Receiving Public Assistance' underneath.

A graphic showing 31% minority with stylized silhouettes of three people, one in gold and two in teal.

The BOB Process

Gathering Community Input

GOING OUTSIDE TO GET THE INSIDE SCOOP

We held two community engagement sessions in Meriwether-Fort Hill. One was a standard town hall format, hosted by our friends at The Bard. Our second meet-up to gather community input was a on-foot survey of the community in which participants placed a green dot to show things within the public right-of-way that were favorable and a red dot in areas that were undesirable and in need of improvement. This exercise helped us create a visual inventory of the things we wanted to uplift in the community (protected walking paths, greenspace, a miniature pony) and the things that we needed to change (littered alleyways, people parking in easements, signage that is in ill-repair). We were able to do some things immediately, like call in a sinkhole, and identify things we could work toward in the long term, like improving a vacant commercial lot.

Numerous white tote bags with black handles, stacked on the floor next to a wall, with an American flag and another flag in the background.

A woman standing on a sidewalk, holding two colored balls, near a street sign and a street with traffic signs visible in the background.

Woman with gray hair wearing sunglasses, a blue jacket, and sneakers, picking up trash along a sidewalk beneath trees, with scattered litter including plastic bottles and cans.

A woman with red hair standing outdoors on a street corner holding a pink object. She is wearing a dark coat, plaid pants, and black shoes, with a brown bag hanging from her shoulder. There are street signs, a utility pole, and an overpass in the background against a partly cloudy sky.

A group of ten people standing outdoors under a concrete structure, smiling and holding various items such as a map, a pamphlet, and circular tokens. The background features trees and houses, and the weather appears to be sunny and clear.

A SPECIAL DELIVERY

CONNECTING WITH EVERY RESIDENT

As with every BOB, we knocked on every door and gave every household a BOB Bag filled with resources.

BIG BOB DAY!

A CELEBRATION IN PRESTON PARK

We held our BIG BOB DAY in Meriwether-Fort Hill on Saturday, May 17, 2025 in Preston Park. This family-friendly event brought together neighbors, community partners, and city agencies for a day filled with resources, free services, and fun activities, such as:

Pet Vaccine Clinic with Animal Services including discounted rabies and DAPP vaccinations, pet licenses, and microchipping services.
Free Pet Food Giveaway
Medication Take Back with the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office
Touch-a-Truck, + firefighters, fire safety, and the inflatable Louisville Fire Safe House
Spay and Neuter Vouchers disturbed by Pets 4 Life
Community Art Mural led by local artist Jessica Chao
Gun Safety Resources provided by BeSMART and the Office of Violence Prevention
Health Screening including glucose and blood pressure checks by UofL Health
Voter Registration with the League of Women Voters