Olmsted Parks Conservancy raises funds and advocates for investment for Louisville’s parks, and we work to help build community in and around the Olmsted Parks. We center community voices through feedback from park users, neighborhood groups, and other key stakeholders regarding park projects and programming needs in their neighborhood parks.
For example, West Louisville Tennis Club is a nonprofit, dedicated to providing learning opportunities and structured programs that promote the game of tennis, with a focus in the West Louisville community. The members of West Louisville Tennis Club are our eyes and ears of Chickasaw Park, and their recommendations have resulted in improved lighting, planned improvements to the lodge, and most recently we ran a successful campaign to fund restoration for six tennis courts!
Friends of Iroquois Park works to prioritize park needs and advocate for improvements. They have helped to raise funds for permanent trash cans and multi-lingual trash bag dispensers, and even helped with their installation! They also host regular cleanup efforts in the park, with their mascot Skeeter the Skunk, who says, “Litter stinks!”. This year, we have our sights set on funding renovations of the highly used, accessible playground in Iroquois Park.
Friends of Central Park asked for landscaped entrances and restored sidewalks, and a generous donor to the Conservancy was able to help us make that happen. Friends of Central has also helped to inform and fundraise for free community programming in their neighborhood park. Similarly, Friends of Shelby helped to get sponsorships from neighborhood businesses in order to host a Back-to-School celebration and school supply give-away.
Whether part of a Friends of Olmsted Parks group, or an individual park user or neighbor, you can help us improve and activate our parks, creating a positive community impact! Whether you would like to see more government funding go to parks, better transit and pedestrian access to neighborhood parks, or more community access and free programming in parks—we appreciate your help advocating for Louisville’s Olmsted Parks and the communities they serve. Check out our Advocacy Toolkit!
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