Last week was busy with the launch of our new event series City Explorer Sessions at Monnik Beer Co. on Wednesday, followed by the Society of Urban Perambulators (SoUP) which took us to Frankfort Avenue on Saturday. We had a great turnout with about 35 perambulators showing up for a hot afternoon jaunt down one of Louisville's great commercial corridors.
We kicked off at The Hotel Marty, a coffee shop at Frankfort and William that turned out to be a first visit for many in the group. Hospitable staff, a great patio, and standout corner signage made it a great starting point. This is how most SoUP walks start: a stop at a local coffee shop to give some love to a business in the neighborhood we're about to explore.
From there we headed south to the more than 160 year old institution of the American Printing House for the Blind, where KNBA principal Bob Hafferman met us as our first field guide. As the heat intensified, he walked us through the amazing history of the campus and some of the outdoor design elements, challenges and opportunities the site posed, including the need to accommodate school buses for field trip visits.
Ducking into the building's new lobby was a welcome break from the sun, and a great look at the new addition still under construction. Upstairs, we explored The Dot Experience museum and the thinking baked into its design: high-contrast colors, careful acoustics to prevent large open spaces from turning into a wall of noise. Good reminders for anyone in the design professions, whether or not accessibility is your specialty.
Before we left, architect Steven Ward of Studio Kremer Architects pointed out the campus wide geothermal system they are working on with the Kentucky School for the Blind next door. And as we headed out to the next stop, Louis Johnson of Gresham Smith asked us to carry the day's lesson with us: think about uneven pavement, low branches, and all the small obstacles that make a walk harder for people who are blind or have low vision.
Next was Bingham Park, an Olmsted-designed park tucked onto a quiet residential street, Coral Avenue. From an overlook, Louis Johnson and Jason Hinenach of Olmsted Parks Conservancy talked us through the renovation plans. The Olmsted Brothers laid out the five-acre park in the 1900s, and it hasn't seen a real update since the 1970s. Louisville Parks and Recreation and the Olmsted Parks Conservancy have brought in Gresham Smith to develop the new Bingham Park Master Plan, and it remains very much a neighborhood park, drawing most of its users from the surrounding blocks.
Back on Frankfort Avenue, Mark and Marina Thomas showed us their home renovation and the accessory dwelling unit, or ADU, they're building in the alley behind it. Mark and Marina have logged more SoUP walks than anyone but me, and this time they were the tour. They did all the renovation work themselves, including straightening out a house that was badly racked when they bought it. The ADU is still under construction, but the care they've put into fitting everything to code while making the most of the footprint already shows.
Around the corner, at a pocket park where Frankfort meets State Street, Sav Morris of Louisville Visual Art (LVA) told us about the Clifton Multisensory Art Experience taking shape there. The lead artist of the piece was Liz Richter, and included Kristen Falkirk, Ted Madden and Darren Harbour, commissioned by LVA. The hand-carved tile mosaic depicts the Clifton neighborhood and is a tactile work that provides interest through imagery and touch.
We finished the walk down the hill at Kaviar Forge, tucked behind the storefronts and homes on Frankfort. Artist Craig Kaviar has worked out of the forge for more than 40 years, and he gave us the history along with a look at his work. Then came the surprise of the day: Craig brought us into the forge itself for a live metalworking demonstration, hammering leaves out of raw metal. He also told us about his work with Guns to Gardens Louisville, where he takes guns turned in at church safe-surrender events and forges them into art.
A light drizzle started as we said our goodbyes to Craig. Some of us kept the conversation going over lunch at Vernon Lanes, talking through the walk and what's next, another SoUP tradition: end the day supporting a local spot.
Thanks to Sean Willis for organizing this event, and thanks to our field guides and everyone who attended. As always, if folks are interested in being on the SoUP list to be in the know when the next event comes together, or have ideas for future walks, please email me (patrick.piuma@louisville.edu). Until next time!
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