LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Newburg Days is back this weekend, bringing food, live music, games and local vendors back to Petersburg Park for one of the neighborhood's longest-running traditions.
The annual festival has looked different in recent years. Organizers shortened this year's event, but many people who showed up Friday said they noticed something else had changed: the park felt safer.
Whitney Randall and her daughter were among the first people through the gates.
Randall said she wasn't sure what to expect after hearing concerns about crime in the area over the last few years. She decided to come after learning there would be a stronger security presence.
"I'd say the tipping point for me was when I did hear that they were having park rangers in the park now," she said.
Walking around the festival, Randall said she could tell a difference.
"...I really do. I can definitely see a difference," she said. "It's quieter for me. Crime looks like it's gone down."
Safety has been a major focus in Newburg in recent years.
In 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice awarded Louisville a $2 million grant to launch the Newburg Gun Violence Reduction Project, a three-year initiative aimed at reducing homicides and non-fatal shootings in the neighborhood.
The project expanded the city's violence interrupter program into Newburg, using trained outreach workers to help prevent conflicts before they become violent.
The grant came after years of complaints from neighbors who said they regularly heard gunfire and wanted to see more police officers and resources in the area.
Metro Councilwoman Barbara Shanklin said she's seen progress, but believes the neighborhood hasn't fully benefited from the federal funding.
"Well, I guess it did in some ways, but I wasn't really happy with the grant," Shanklin said. "Some of the programs they had open were not really in Newburg."
Those concerns weren't top of mind Friday.
Uniformed Louisville Metro Police officers patrolled the festival throughout the day, and organizers said additional plainclothes officers were also working the event. Park rangers were also stationed throughout Petersburg Park.
That visible security helped convince first-time vendors Paris McCants and Bianca Green to set up a booth. The pair hope to eventually open a food truck, and Newburg Days gave them a chance to introduce their food to the community.
"We were actually trying to get a food truck, so we've been trying to get a business going," McCants said.
She said they likely wouldn't have signed up if they didn't feel comfortable spending the day at the park.
"That's what actually made us want to do the booth, because we actually felt safe," McCants said. "So to actually be down here to sell all day."
Booths lined the park Friday selling everything from Hermit's Burgers, a Louisville favorite, to handmade crafts and other local food.
For Randall, seeing families filling the park again is what Newburg Days has always been about.
"For me, It's just community," she said. "Getting together with people I haven't seen in a while."
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