The 23
By t. semakula
As usual, I am waiting for the 23, it’s a quarter till eleven at night and my behind is gripping the small plastic seat that is shoved inside a plexi glass bus stop shelter. The bus stop is housed on fourth and Broadway, which sits across from Brown Bros. Cadillac. The famous lot is known for its’ shiny color pallet of blue, brown, red, and white caddies. I am amazed that the lot hasn’t fallen prey to the recession that has placed a choke hold on the once vibrant, river city. From the stop, I can see folk popping out of their cars and strolling up Fourth Street, headed toward one of the many restaurants that decorate the downtown. The pedestrians that flank the well known “Fourth Street Live” give the appearance that Louisville hasn’t succumbed to the recent economic back slap that has left a trail of bankruptcies, foreclosures, and sold out homeless shelters.
The Folk in the City of Cars
The 23 is one of those routes that many working folk depend on to get them to their usual gigs. I watch these folk as they board the bus donning grease stained McDonald uniforms, steel toe boots, or flowered covered nursing assistant scrubs. The route also houses unruly youth who try to impress their friends with four letter words and fancy touch screen cell phones, seniors with monthly bus passes that hang on a cloth chain around their necks, and teen mamas who board the bus with fat strollers, painted on skinny jeans, and short tempers.
As I view the mobile landscape, I attempt to fit myself into this urban community that is held together with paper transfers and updated bus schedules. Let’s face it; Louisville is a city of cars. Even the poor feel that riding the bus is beneath them and they do their best to scrap up change to purchase a “ride.”I have seen folk driving cars with no doors, no windows, no gas, no bumpers, no plates, outrageous dents, and dragging mufflers. To them, a car represents status and mobility.
I long to find a community of writers, thinkers, dreamers, and entrepreneurs, in Louisville, who don’t mind riding the bus. In cities such as Los Angeles and New York, this is the norm. As a budding entrepreneur, the expense of a car is not a priority, as I set my sights on a house, and an office space. I choose to invest in things that would give me a return on my hard earned change. This train of thought has made me an alien to the Louisvillians who cherish their rides, regardless of the expense. Because I ride the bus, I feel more connected to the city and the people. My view is expanded as I take in the sights of Louisville, which I feel would benefit from more enlightened and progressive straphangers.
The West
The route has become a lesson in P.R.E (Politics, Race, and Economics). Tarc, which is the company that manages Louisville’s public transportation, goes on to state that the 23 operates on Broadway from Shawnee Park through downtown Louisville, then over Baxter Avenue and Bardstown Road though the Highlands. Alternating trips operate to…Hurstborne Parkway, to Newburg. The route starts out at Shawnee Park, which sits in the city’s west end. The west end is populated with most of the city’s poor. The community is made up of grand homes that line Northwestern Parkway, single family wooden framed colonials, shot gun houses, liquor stores, community churches, dollar stores, and factories.
Phillip Morris operated a tobacco factory in the west end for half a century. Now the factory has been leveled and it will be replaced with a new retail and business park. This new development will house condos and lease space to new retail stores and businesses. This will be a far cry from the current commercial climate that resides over the west end. Currently, there is an abandoned Winn Dixie that takes up a whole city block and only two major grocery stores that serve the area. A small strip mall called Lyles Mall sits fifteen blocks from Shawnee Park. Some of its businesses include a barber school, a record store, and a beauty supply store.
A community bright spot, the Nia Center, sits inside the neighborhood and has been created as a hub for job seekers, community gatherings, the job corp., and small business resources. Currently, there are no major bookstores in a community where the youth are struggling to compete, academically. According to the Greater Louisville Project, The racial achievement gap permeates all levels. In reading and math, the majority of white and Hispanic students in the Jefferson County Public Schools score at proficient or higher levels, while the majority of black students score lower. The west end lays claim to the African American Heritage Museum, however, this new museum has suffered from ill planning, poor attendance, and low visibility.
The west end has been defined by some foodies as a food desert. This means that folk who reside in the area have little to no access to food needed to maintain a healthy diet; however the area is served by plenty of fast food restaurants. This is important to know since the current mayor has launched a healthy hometown initiative for a city where 59.6 percent of its residents are overweight or obese.
The west end of Louisville is where the great Muhammad Ali was raised. With all its grandeur and ties to a great west end Louisvillian, the Muhammad Ali Museum, a beautiful contemporary structure, was not even put in the west end. The community has received attention from local activists who are acknowledging the city’s disparities. City residents who need affordable and decent housing and communities find that they are somewhat locked into the west end. The Louisville Metropolitan Housing Coalition states that exclusionary zoning land use policies have promoted and sustained racial segregation in Louisville Metro by effectively prohibiting the construction of affordable housing.
As a teenager in the eighties, I remember the west end as being a place of possibility. New young professional black families considered it a somewhat decent place to raise their kids. The houses that outlined Shawnee Park were prominent and folk took pride in the neighborhood. Back in those days, the 23 rolled down Broadway, passing curb front businesses that sold artwork, rugs, purses, hot barbecue, and tennis shoes. There was the annual Summerfest that drew in national R&B recording artists, to another west end park called Chickasaw. The west end was the best end but now it’s just another urban neighborhood sucked up into the vortex of low wages, no jobs, and small opportunities.
Downtown
The 23 rolls through downtown Louisville passing landmarks such as the Brown Hotel, the Courier Journal, and the Heyburn Building. Down town has seen quite a few changes as the city works to create an image that is progressive and cosmopolitan. On a recent fieldtrip to the Brown Hotel, I was shocked to see that past menus that were on exhibition had offerings such as Plantation Cornbread and Mamie Fried Chicken.
Lately, I have never seen so many people flock to Louisville’s downtown. It has taken me some time to get used to folk who seem to enjoy the energy that makes up Louisville’s metropolis. I have to admit, I never thought of Louisville as much of a city. As a matter of fact, I left Louisville, because of that very reason. I spent my time in cities such as Milwaukee, Minneapolis, and New York. I wanted to live in a real city, where there was real culture, and real energy. Where there was a true sense of diversity and where I could be appreciated as a new urban professional, thinker, writer, whatever. Often, when I tell folk that I have relocated from New York, they often ask me “Why did you leave?”
The heart of Louisville can be found in its downtown. As a child, I was scared of it. I felt disconnected from the buildings, the so called traffic, and the people. I can recall the festivals and fire crackers that would decorate the Belvedere. I can recall the Fourth Street strip, before there was the now famous Fourth Street Live. The strip was filled with stores such as McCorys, Dillards, and Bacons, and the now defunct downtown mall, the Galleria. All of these stores have since evaporated into thin air. Believe it or not, the strip was the only place where a man could get a pair of lime green Stacy Adams.
Louisville’s downtown has acquired a new identity and is seeking new and more qualified residents. If you walk down the strip, you will see little flag poles decorated with cloth flags that read “Possibility City.” There is a new initiative that is geared toward attracting more professionals to the Derby town. The Greater Louisville Project is a current endeavor that seeks to compose a greater Louisville in order to attract new families and outside professionals. The project believes that Louisville can become a great city via three major drivers; education, quality of place, and employment.
As Louisville seeks to improve its image, it still is hindered by old practices and issues. Some of the city’s black residents have often felt like they were never apart of the so called new image of the city. Some of the city’s black residents have complained of being harassed by police and business owners when they have ventured downtown. Good old Wikipedia goes on to state, Fourth Street Live! has attracted occasional controversy for its dress code policy enforcement. On August 4, 2006, a judge ordered two clubs to publish their dress code and apply it to “blacks and whites equally”. A federal judge eventually overturned the order to post the dress code, and found no evidence of racial discrimination.
Currently, there is a new case that has come up on the horizon, The Courier Journal states, in its article titled Makers Mark Lounge Sued, The former director of promotions and marketing for Makers Mark Bourbon House and Lounge at 4th Street Live has sued the bar claiming she was instructed by management to discriminate against African-American patrons.
The Highlands
When the 23 completes its journey down Broadway, the city opens up to the Highlands. As a writer and artist, I have always loved the way the Highlands welcomes inquisitives with its varied stores and restaurants. This is the closest I will ever get to my beloved Brooklyn, and I smile every time I enter the neighborhood. The Highlands is a mixture of young and old urban professionals, artists, and business owners. The energy here is higher than the energy that is being reinvented on Fourth Street. Places such as Ear Xtacy, the 24 hour Qudoba, and the 360, have become memorable landmarks in a neighborhood that celebrates creativity and individualism.
The Highlands is the fastest growing neighborhood in the city. Young families are comfortable nesting in this enclave of old historic homes and yuppie values. People are proud to live in the Highlands and the neighborhood boasts Cherokee Park, one of the most beautiful parks in the city. When I pass the Highlands on the 23, I have a strong desire to leap off the bus and wander in and out of the many stores, boutiques, restaurants, and galleries that choke up the block. Wikipedia goes on to state, The Highlands is an area of Louisville, Kentucky which contains a high density if nightclubs, eclectic businesses, and many upscale and fast food restaurants. It is centered along a three mile stretch of Bardstown Road and Baxter Avenue.
Aptly nicknamed “Restaurant Row”, the Highlands is famous for its infamous traffic and noisy nightlife. As I pondered where I would live, I did not choose the Highlands because of the busyness. Instead I chose what I call a copycat neighborhood that resembled the Highlands without all of the fanfare, the Clifton neighborhood.
The Highlands does contain a certain level of diversity and this is witnessed via the many stores and restaurants. As people from other cultures are finding their way into the neighborhood, they are establishing businesses and melding into the landscape. Louisville’s population is growing due to an influx of new immigrant families.
The East
I consider myself to be a city girl and rarely do I like to venture out onto Hurstborne Parkway. I consider this to be “too far out.” A trip out to Hurstborne can try the nerves of the most seasoned bus rider. Rarely, have I ventured this far from the inner city. The last time I traveled this far, via 23 , was when I met someone “halfway”, who lived further out then Hurstborne. I remember getting off the bus and stepping onto some grass. There wasn’t much curb or a bus stop. I got the impression that in this part of town they didn’t welcome bus riders, and they were not trying make it comfortable for us either.
Hurstborne Parkway is a commercial thofare that contains a Super Walmart, Sprint’s corporate headquarters, hotels, a major bookstore, and upscale strip malls. It is the major shopping and business resource for residents of Louisville’s east end. The east end is associated with the middle class to slightly rich folk. I have nothing against rich folk; it’s just that, for me, the city loses some of its character due to all the new housing and developments. I am a sucker for an old house that creaks when the soles of your feet hit the hardwood.
The east end has created somewhat of a new city for itself, so that its residents don’t have to venture far, as it relates to shopping and entertainment. This new city has produced a state of the art movie theatre, posh restaurants, and its own police force. The neighborhood that surrounds the parkway is predominately Caucasian and prides itself on being exclusive. You have to have a car to live out here. I recommend it and I consider myself a staunch supporter of public transportation. The east end , as far as I know, will let you live within its boundaries, as long as you have the cash to hang with the big boys. The east end has been a subject of debate as housing activists work to penetrate the area’s tight zoning policies. The Metropolitan Housing Coalition goes on to state that in Louisville, Zip codes with 80 percent of land zoned single family had an average black population of less than 3 percent and a median household income of $59,309.
Newburg
Newburg is an outer lying suburb of Louisville. Because I am a committed city dweller, I have not had the pleasure of riding the 23 to this neighborhood. I have ventured out to Newburg as a passenger in a car, visiting friends and family. Newburg is steeped in history, as it relates to early black settlers and freed slaves. After the civil war, freed blacks bought land in the area and started farms (Wikipedia/Newburg).
My cousin lived in Newburg. Her family was part of the migration of black families that moved from the west end to a more settled and upscale way of living. Suburban sprawl reached the area by the 1960’s and it became popular with middle-class blacks leaving the city for the suburbs. The area remains predominantly black (Wikipedia/Newburg). My uncle Billy (her father), who was an R.N., lived on street called Quiet Way. I used to love to visit my cousin. She lived in a nice house, in a nice residential neighborhood. Crime was nonexistent and a sense of pride and ownership existed amongst the residents.
My aunt and uncle moved out the neighborhood in the early nineties. Things started to change in Newburg once the nineties came into full swing. Newburg became synonymous with gangs and crime and folk were fearful of visiting their own flesh and blood. Community leaders and activists have worked diligently, to improve the community’s reputation. With the help of the Library Foundation and community support, a new education and technology driven $ 1 million dollar branch library was completed and opened in August of 2009 (Wikipedia/Newburg). Many residents still celebrate the annual Newburg Day festival, which commemorates Newburg’s great history.
Transfers
To me, Louisville is a work in progress. It moves along, like the 23, steadily toward its appointed destination. Its passengers are a motley crew who are increasingly speaking in foreign tongues. Sure, there are cities that are years ahead of Louisville, the city has yet to introduce a subway, let alone a light rail system. I have a feeling though, that one day ,it will be the city of many possibilities, and I will be there to witness it, peeking out the big bus window. No doubt.
So...do you wanna know what's goin on in your city?...check out Louisville's Metropilitan Housing Coalition's special report titled 2010 Metropilitan Housing Report..click here to access it
Posts
