Flood-prone green space in Louisville's California neighborhood to be turned into park

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A green space in the California neighborhood was transformed into a park for the community, bringing new life to an area of Louisville once plagued by flooding.

Thirteen years ago, homes near the intersection of South 23rd and Maple streets were underwater as Louisville saw as much as 8.5 inches of rain in about an hour. Dreema Jackson didn't live in the flooded area but remembers it like it was yesterday.

"It got higher and higher and higher and higher, and I'm thinking, 'Can I get out of here? What about these people? Are they out of their houses?'" she said. "... It was scary."

The rain overwhelmed the drainage system. The Metropolitan Sewer District said usually just 3 inches of rain in 24 hours can cause problems.

Metro Council President David James was elected to represent the area the following year.

"There was no smiles," James said. "There were people literally crying, because they lost everything. A lot of these homes were handed down from grandparents and their parents before them, and now, their stuff was floating down the street. Everything they had was absolutely ruined and wiped out."

The city purchased homes in the 20-acre area a few years after the flood of 2009 and underwent a flood reduction project. Now, they're bringing new life to that land, and you could say Jackson was the dream behind it all.

"I'm gonna do what I do, whether I get paid for it or not," she said.

A park is in the works, one that will include a playground, an outdoor classroom and a picnic area. Kentucky U.S. Congressman John Yarmuth secured two federal Community Project Grants totaling nearly $1 million in addition to several other grants to pay for the area.

"It'll be a unifying park where people can just come out and enjoy and not think about divisions and all that stuff," Jackson said.

One-percent of the California neighborhood is green space. People in the area said a park was the only thing that made sense, and it's just another amenity coming to west Louisville that they're excited about.

"Not only the excitement of this park and the new school that's coming and Goodwill's opportunity zone and Norton's hospital," Jackson said. "I mean, there's so much coming to the west end of Louisville, and for me to be a part of it, is just in my fabric."

Work is expected to start in the spring of 2023. The city has asked people who live in the area to give their feedback on what the park should be called.