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things i like about the ville
1- the dining scene. for a city of this size we have an incredible amount of local fine dining establishments. we were just voted a top five "foodie" city.
2- the art scene. tons of galleries, trolly hop, local theatre groups as well as actors theatre and the ky ceter for the arts.
3-the highlands. i travel a lot and find that very few towns have such a cool, distinctive neighborhood.
now for the bad.
1-the weather. i recently saw a local weatherman comparing our average days of sun to other cities and was shocked at how few sunny days we have. my wife and i both get s.a.d. about this time of year, every year.
if you are a sun worshipper, this is not a great place to live. indy is just as depressing.
2-the amount of trashy people here. don't get me wrong, i'm not better than anyone, i was just raised to be quiet and respectful of others and outside of a few nice parts of town, kentucky in general does not value
being quiet and respectful. my neighborhood (okolona) is a giant jerry springer show on a daily basis.
3- the overall ultra-christian conservative vibe that kentucky has. people act as if i'm satan incarnate when i tell them i'm a non-believer. there is also a strange attitude here that louisville is the entire world. i know several educated people that never go on vacation. they have never been anywhere outside the state. in other cities you tend to meet people from all over and that contributes to a better perspective of the populace, not here. i call this place the worlds largest box!
i can say that i really enjoy some aspects of louisvile and have several great life-long friends from this area. i can also say that i'm counting the days until my house sells and we can move to arizona!
not every place is a good fit for every person, but louisville would have to beat indy hands down.
6)People are starting to move back to the center There is a lot of reinvestment going into downtown residential areas...the new Fleur De Lis residential building downtown looks great. Not sure about the sales. The luxury condo (green) near the river will always hold value in my opinion.
8)Great music scene I somewhat disagree...perhaps it is just my taste, but more established bands don't make it to KY in general, and a lot go to the tasteful college town of Lexington to make money on the college kids there. But there are some really INDIE bands that come to the smaller bars here...a new bar Zanzabar brings in some good music. Public radio here is great!!
9)One of the largest.....I agree that it is pretty diverse!
Things I don't like -
1)The way the majority of people in Kentucky, Louisville, and nearby areas of Indiana say the name of the Derby City. Who the hell cares how people say Louisville...it is somewhat of a tradition. People in San Francisco don't like the city called San Fran...
3)The design of the Museum Plaza...lol...if it ever gets built...that is the price you pay for "growth" and want of a recognition to be a bigger city
4)Growth at any cost with lots of "sprawl architecture" (patio homes, ranch houses etc.)Any city...actually if you can tell me a city without the "patio homes, ranch houses", etc. I would really like to know...not being an ass...Portland? Even SF has the bay suburbs like san mateo, fremont, etc.
7) Way too many people smoke and there seems to be more beer (and bourbon) joints than restaurants (and coffee houses) in some areas KY is #1 in smoking...what did you expect? I absolutely disagree about the more "beer joints" than restaurants...
And I apologize if I have offended anyone with the above comments.Me too!
things i like about the ville
1- the dining scene. for a city of this size we have an incredible amount of local fine dining establishments. we were just voted a top five "foodie" city.Excellent restaurant scene! Right on!
2- the art scene. tons of galleries, trolly hop, local theatre groups as well as actors theatre and the ky ceter for the arts.Also great scene! Doesn't stack up to large cities, but could take on Portland
3-the highlands. i travel a lot and find that very few towns have such a cool, distinctive neighborhood. This neighborhood is incredible!
now for the bad.
1-the weather. i recently saw a local weatherman comparing our average days of sun to other cities and was shocked at how few sunny days we have. my wife and i both get s.a.d. about this time of year, every year.
if you are a sun worshipper, this is not a great place to live. indy is just as depressing.I agree that if you are a sun lover...prob not the place...but I am moving to Tucson...too much sun perhaps? Portland is also on my radar....dreary dreary weather. Louisville is just a midwest city...about a total of 3-4months of dreary weather...the rest is great!
2-the amount of trashy people here. don't get me wrong, i'm not better than anyone, i was just raised to be quiet and respectful of others and outside of a few nice parts of town, kentucky in general does not value
being quiet and respectful. my neighborhood (okolona) is a giant jerry springer show on a daily basis. Somewhat of a stereotype that is true...but it all depends on where you live and what your circles are
3- the overall ultra-christian conservative vibe that kentucky has. people act as if i'm satan incarnate when i tell them i'm a non-believer. there is also a strange attitude here that louisville is the entire world. i know several educated people that never go on vacation. they have never been anywhere outside the state. in other cities you tend to meet people from all over and that contributes to a better perspective of the populace, not here. i call this place the worlds largest box! Somewhat true, but again, it depends on the circle you associate with. It is not an international city in terms of migration to Louisville.
i can say that i really enjoy some aspects of louisvile and have several great life-long friends from this area. i can also say that i'm counting the days until my house sells and we can move to arizona! I'm moving to AZ also! I am going to send you an PM!!
not every place is a good fit for every person, but louisville would have to beat indy hands down.
not every place is a good fit for every person, but louisville would have to beat indy hands down
I really don't know that much about Indy, but from what I've seen its sort of suprising that the place seems so "underdeveloped" when it comes to urban living.
I know Indy has a great economy and is seeing solid population growth (one of the big economic and pop. growth centers in the Midwest outside of Chicago), but you'd just expect "more" there...in the city (in other words, like The Hightlands or the Frankfort Ave corridor), considering how the place has been booming.
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So do you all really think the arts and restuarant/foody scene in Louisville is competetive with other places? Someone compared the arts scene to Portland? Really? Im not asking to be snarky, genuininely curious. I mean, the cultural/gastronomical situation in Louisville seems very "rich" (as in varied, quality, and active), but I am a Lou partisan so have rose colored glasses.
I really don't know that much about Indy, but from what I've seen its sort of suprising that the place seems so "underdeveloped" when it comes to urban living.
I know Indy has a great economy and is seeing solid population growth (one of the big economic and pop. growth centers in the Midwest outside of Chicago), but you'd just expect "more" there...in the city (in other words, like The Hightlands or the Frankfort Ave corridor), considering how the place has been booming.
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So do you all really think the arts and restuarant/foody scene in Louisville is competetive with other places? Someone compared the arts scene to Portland? Really? Im not asking to be snarky, genuininely curious. I mean, the cultural/gastronomical situation in Louisville seems very "rich" (as in varied, quality, and active), but I am a Lou partisan so have rose colored glasses.
obviously our city can't compete with new york, chicago, or the like. but compared to other cities with populations of 1-2 million, i think louisville really does outshine a lot of other places in the aspects of dining and arts. this coming from someone who is really looking forward to leaving, for other reasons,lol.
Great Compliments...and just seeing the way people talk to each other on here gives me much hope for this much smaller city, and closer to home...
I am from Fort Wayne, have been to Indianapolis. It seems the larger cities there have this donut hole effect with growth. The bigger they grow, the more downtown doesn't. I think that sprawl effect is due to people being very agrarian in mindset and tradition and wanting land, something you cannot have in the city. But out here in LA...if you have a 2 feet square of grass you are utterly thrilled. No lanais without money...for sure. Indy seems to me that they are trying with the new stadium and such. But I had less hopes for the stadium in downtown Fort Wayne. They really are not that big of a city!
Just hearing the politeness of people on here brings my heart back to the Midwest. Holding a door out here gets you respect, but also with bewilderment. I just get tired of that quite a bit. I am so friendly to people I often get ignored. But I really don't care...I'm just a thermostat, not a thermometer. My job is to greet people, a downtown program in Santa Monica. Although it's a beach town, they bring their attitude from work with them...and at times it gets old. The homeless thing is just annoying too. Where i come from you work...or die. How is it there?
I feel like a fruitcake playing country out of my window here, but I do it anyway...I'm sure in Looiiieeville...(Ha I'm from Indiana) I would not be so far out of place. The real reward for me would be being closer to family though. I would be starting in your downtown as one of those guides, hospitality people. I hope that there people are friendlier...but than LA? The second most unfriendly city in the US? I think I wouldn't have a problem there...you guys would probably be like angels to me...which brings me to another subject.
We do have our religious zealots here...I apologize if I am offending, what I mean are people who are not accepting of our national right to freedom of religion, or freedom to live without it. But I enjoy the diversity, and am studying Islam right now, although I am a freethinker. I don't really feel like having stones or cow patties thrown at me for my much-researched beliefs...so that is a question I would have. I see people complaining on here about being a non-believer. That shows me there are some there...but please...no public executions...ok? I served my country for 8 years...so being a veteran...I can believe what I want...It's my god-given right...wait...
Off the soap box now...what kind of traffic are we talking about here? I have lived in Denver and LA...worse or better? I'm sure you guys are not LA...so I'd probably think I was in heaven after this crap. Ever done the 405 at 5pm...never forget it as long as I live...20 minutes to go one mile...no joke! I have driven up and down a parking garage for 45 minutes to find a space before...a 9 floor parking garage! I have a lifted truck, which LA is not as forgiving for as Denver was...how is Louisville on that?
Weather...bad, really? I was hoping for typical midwest, long, dreary and grey winters, but some good summers...please tell me sometime you get some sun. Not a sun worshipper...but I've grown accustomed to it...and to be honest, that was one reason I have avoided my much anticipated Portland or Seattle, where a friend lives. I've been told it's as green as Hawaii, but the rain and gloom puts me off...
Cost of living seems great...I pay $675 for a 190 sq ft apartment, and it's a STEAL where I live. Last year I had a 700 sq ft with patio and I paid about $1450 after utilities and internet. Had to leave that with school. But my job pays good out here, and I'm worried about the transition dropping me too far. I make about 25k a year, which is crap in LA...but I know that I wouldn't get paid the same in Louisville...what do you NEED to make to get by there? I have found high-rise apartments overlooking downtown for about $500-700 depending. That seems wonderful after living here...but I have to remember that incomes are probably less too.
I am an Architectural student, hoping to get into UCLA. But the school is enormous and being from a smaller city in Indiana...I just cannot seem to get over the over-crowdedness of LA...sometimes I just stand and watch life whoosh by me and feel like I'm in a music video with time lapse playing around me...it's just crazy...and loud. I have yet to have found an Architect school in Louisville, and think I may have to commute to Lexington. (I like the museum plaza...by the way) Is Louisville quiet, at least later in the evening. How is a commute to and from work, should I decide to live outside of downtown?
I LOVE the projects you have...you have to grow or die slowly...and I think that your city is planning on growing the right way...I like the museum plaza's bold design. Bold is what attracts people. You have some amazing architecture in my opinion. Although it does clash against the skyline...I like that. Sometimes adding something new inspires more new...and it may all blend eventually.
How progressive is your city? I found Denver to be disappointing on that one...although there were pockets. LA is progressive, but surprisingly unfriendly for being so. It's like, wow all of these people have the same ideas I have, and we can talk about it...if only they WOULD talk about it! I know and accept people to believe what they want...but I'm hoping I can find some Maher fans somewhere.
I saw a picture of your park and there was room...I was inspired to move right then...you could actually have 10 square feet of that grass for you...and just you...ahhhh space....(ahhhh espacio)
Friendliness: You hit the nail on the head--I don't think of Louisvillians as embodying Southern friendliness or hospitality so much as Midwestern politeness. It's still a nice place to live; people are quite welcoming.
Religion: Louisville does have a fairly sizeable number of those who would self-identify as conservative or evangelical Christians. The eighth-largest megachurch in the country is here, and it is a huge cultural presence, especially in East End suburbia. On the other hand, Louisville is much more religiously diverse than most cities farther south--there are large numbers of Catholics, lots of liberal Christians, and a fair number of adherents of Eastern religions and nonreligious types. In my downtown office, I'm by far the most religious person, and quite a few of my coworkers don't claim any religion at all. So your perception of Louisville's religious diversity and tolerance, or lack thereof, will largely be colored by where in the city you live and who you hang out with. If you live in Middletown or Jeffersontown, most of your neighbors will probably attend Southeast Christian (the megachurch I mentioned). If you live in the Highlands or Crescent Hill, most of your neighbors will probably be agnostic/atheist, liberal Christian, or generically spiritual-but-not-religious types.
Traffic: Again, depends where you live and where you work, but traffic is generally fine. It is nothing like what you're used to in LA or what I was used to in DC before moving here. The joke is that in Louisville, there's about six ways to get between any two points, and they all take about 15-20 minutes. That might stretch out to 30-40 at peak rush hour, but it's still not bad at all.
Weather: Don't listen to the doomy gloomy types who make Louisville seem like Alaska. Louisville's weather is absolutely typical for cities in this area of the country. Lots of cold gray gloom in the winter, and quite a bit of hot, humid sun in the summer. And it varies from year to year: 2007 and 2010 had very hot summers, while 2008 was pretty average and 2009 was unusually mild. The one thing you may not be used to from Denver or LA is the humidity.
Cost of living IS great. When my wife and I moved here from DC, we cut our rent payment by more than half and more than doubled our living space. We pay $500 a month for 830 square feet now, and that's in a nice, walkable neighborhood that is perfectly safe.
I don't know if I exactly get what you mean by progressive, but I'd say Louisville is about on par with other Midwest cities: Not as liberal/progressive/alternative-lifestyle-friendly as places in the Northeast or Pac Northwest, but more so than the Bible Belt. Again, it depends on where in the city you live and work and hang out.
As for growth and development, that's something of a fraught subject in Louisville. There's lots going on that's good, and some very frustrating things as well. Louisville is consistently ranked among the best foodie cities in the US, and there are always new, interesting restaurants opening. Projects like Museum Plaza bode well for the future of the city if they happen, but it's on hold at the moment with few signs of progress. There's an ongoing debate over the future of Louisville's bridges and freeways, but the mayors and community decisionmakers tend to listen to special interests over public community opinion, and as a result things are (for now) headed in a somewhat backward direction that's out of step with what the best and most modern US cities are doing in urban planning.
I could go on, but hopefully that'll answer most of your questions. Happy to follow up on any of these issues, here or offline.
Wow, I've posted in numerous states...and I am highly impressed with the friendliness and answering power of your group! Thanks again, Org...
Yeah, the problem that I am running into is that I have laid a great foundation out here, and it's starting to pay off after two years of going through some crap. I have to ask myself just how much of last year is speaking instead of this year, and that's true.
I'm also in school, and transferring can be a pain in the butt...not to mention, being from the Midwest, having a Santa Monica College Diploma, while sounding pretentious, would be cool...and then there's that whole...I've been in line to match with the UC's for two years...I am not sure how that would transfer to the Louisville area colleges for Bachelor's status.
While UCLA Architecture sounds amazing and exciting, I cannot surpass my unhappiness for the negatives of this place...no I don't focus on them, but then it's hard not to when that's all you see! I've questioned that I need to get out more, students that work full time often end up in a rut which has you seeing your bed, a computer screen, work, an unhealthy snack, and the cycle begins again.
A lof of the people I've met out here don't know what it's like to go for a drive for fun, and not for traffic, to walk down the street and NOT have somebody bug you for money every block...and to stand at a corner without being drawn to gaze at some jackass who can't spell correctly and felt he had to write his name all over everything. On that note, they don't know what it's like to warm the car up for 10 minutes before you drive it...so I guess some experiences are not everything.
Most NYC people I meet out here go on and on about NYC and then when I ask why they are here? You guessed it...the weather! Of course, right? I'm not going to lie...after KW, HI, and the gulf coast two times, and now LA...I've become kind of a sun worshipper...(not literally though as George Carlin said...it makes sense) and that was proven to be a depressant for me in Denver...although, I missed seeing the beauty of winter, I got over it pretty quick and was wishing for windows down and 75 degrees again.
But you can't go back...can you? Or maybe you just don't have to leave!
Time will tell if I can afford to stay here, or if I want to. But as you said, there are "those people" everywhere. Thanks for not taking my religious comments too badly. Often people do, and I really have just a live and let live, (and less in the government, please) mentality!
For instance, right now, I am studying Islam and also reading The God Delusion. No matter what you believe or do not, having a closed mind just hurts the world...so I try to keep my parachute open. I find beauty in all things human...after all, that's what we are...and all things nature...and though it's out here, swimming through crud to get there is a must...
Sorry about the books...I'm a writer...
I'll bounce in from time to time and comment and ask questions...but try my best not to hijack threads! I was accused for that once...and I really didn't mean to! I really just like to invoke questions from people, and sometimes people wait for you to say something...before they speak at all!
Peace, Louisville!
It's 57 and raining today...you are not far from us!
My husband and I are in our late 30's to early 40's, empty-nesters and needing to get out of Oregon because the economy/cost of living is insane here. We have been debating two cities in which to relocate. Since I am an artist and he is self-employed, we can work from just about anywhere.
I'm drawn to the Louisville area from what I've reasearched and he's drawn to the suburbs of the Indianapolis, IN area. I would really like to hear from people who live in or have lived in Louisville, to hear what they like about living there? Or even dislikes about living there?
Thanks in advance for your help!
I work from home too and found this area to have a lot to offer. I think economically speaking you can get a lot of house for your money. Even utilities are less here than in relation to other places we have lived. Good luck to you! Feel free to email me if you do move here. Maybe we can chat over a cup of joe sometime.
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