News

A Kentucky Republican lawmaker is attempting to end the pension program for legislators.

State Representative David Floyd says Kentucky’s part-time lawmakers shouldn't get pensions. But currently they do, and some lawmakers are able to fatten their pensions by taking higher-paying jobs elsewhere in government, then collecting a pension for the higher salary after they retire.

The Louisville Free Public Library will reopen its western branch this weekend following a $500,000 remodeling project.

The historic location was built in 1908 and was the first free public library in the nation to be fully staffed by African Americans. Included among the renovation projects is the creation of a new reading room for the African American archives, which the library houses.

The Sierra Club is planning a rally at noon today at the University of Kentucky to protest the ties between the school's athletic department and the coal industry.

UK and the coal industry have a fairly close relationship--the men's basketball dorm is called the Wildcat Coal Lodge, after coal industry contributions, and there have been prominent coal advertisements during some athletic events.

A proposed ban on putting yard waste in plastic bags has won the support of several Louisville residents. The ban was one common element in the 23 written and four spoken comments Louisville’s Waste Management Board received Tuesday evening.

The Coalition for the Advancement of Regional Transportation (CART) has filed a new complaint against the Ohio River Bridges Project in federal court. 

"The $2.6 billion Ohio River Bridges Project will provide very little benefit, economic, social, environmental, or otherwise, to the vast majority of residents in the Louisville region and has significant negative economic, social  and environmental impacts on the community as a whole,  and particularly on people living in Louisville’s urban core and west end," says CART in a statement.

A home in Louisville’s Portland neighborhood has been chosen as the first for a restoration project aimed at preserving the city’s iconic shotgun houses.

Shotguns, characterized by a long, rectangular floor plan, are a common sight in Louisville’s older neighborhoods, but many have fallen into disrepair.

Preservation Louisville, Habitat for Humanity and New Directions Housing Corporation are teaming up for a restoration project called Save Our Shotguns.

Louisville's CenterStage theater company continues its season this week with the regional premiere of the acclaimed rock musical “Next to Normal.” The show explores the impact of mental illness on a suburban family.

Brian Yorkey and Tom Kitt’s “Next to Normal” opened on Broadway in 2009 and won three Tony Awards, but when it won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2010, it joined the ranks of only a handful of musicals to earn that distinction.

U.S. Sen. Dan Coats, R-In., joined a chorus of GOP lawmakers who are highlighting that the gross national debt reached $16 trillion on Tuesday.

Several Republican lawmakers have underscored that the debt hit the historic mark as the Democratic National Convention kicks off its re-election pitch for President Barack Obama.

Coast says the trillions in debt is no reason to celebrate and will burden each citizen, adding the the fiscal crisis is also a national security issues.

From Coat's office:

"Today, the United States national debt exceeded $16 trillion for the first time.

Although a historic moment for our nation, this is no occasion to celebrate. Instead, this sobering milestone is an indictment of Washington’s failure to address the most pressing challenge facing our country.

Our federal government’s unsustainable debt is not just a fiscal crisis; it’s a national security crisis as well. Overwhelming red ink jeopardizes the security of our country and makes us more vulnerable to the foreign countries providing the borrowed money used to subsidize our excessive spending. We must stop the bleeding.

The University of Louisville football team has risen two places in the latest Associated Press national rankings.

The Cards are 23rd in this week’s poll, up from 25th going into their season opener against Kentucky.    U of L is 24thin the latest USA Today/coaches poll after being unranked last week.

Third District Congressman John Yarmuth has help secure $375,000 in federal funds to fight youth substance abuse.

The $375,000 in federal funding will be divided up among three different community groups that work to prevent drug abuse among teenagers and young adults in Louisville. The funding is part of a larger $76.7 million investment in the Drug-Free Communities Program, which was established in 1997 to help mobilize local individuals and organizations to prevent youth substance abuse.

Tomy Baker Molloy is coordinator for the Seventh Street Corridor PAL Coalition, which will get $125,000 of the grant. She says the funding is a needed investment that will help turn young people away from harm.

"It’s vital for our organization. We work in the Park Hill, Algonquin and Old Louisville neighborhoods where youth are typically disenfranchised and not so engaged," she says.