Louisville unveils $60M master plan to enhance and protect Jefferson Memorial Forest

The plan calls for new visitor center, ADA-accessible canopy walk and expanded trail system.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — Jefferson County's largest nature preserve could soon get a much-needed upgrade to accommodate the growing population in southwestern Jefferson County and to protect Louisville's most treasured natural areas.

Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg and area councilmembers unveiled a new master plan for the more than 7,500-acre Jefferson Memorial Forest on Friday. As the nation's largest city-managed urban forest, the preserve has seen more than a 20% increase in camping and hiking annually.

"We want to nourish and cherish Jefferson Memorial forest, and we want more people to enjoy this gem in our city," Greenberg said.

Notable features of the plan include a new welcome and environmental education center, an ADA-accessible canopy walk with suspension bridges, expanded mountain bike trails, a glamping area and a destination playground. In addition, the plan includes development of the Moreman Hill area of the forest for the future segment of the Louisville Loop, a more than 100-mile shared-use path encircling Louisville Metro.

The plan also calls for new and improved maintenance and operations facility to better support staff of the site.

Public feedback and ecological assessments were a major part of developing the master plan to make the forest meaningful for all of Jefferson County and preserve the forest's ecosystem.

"There's a lot of trails here, but you just get tired of doing the same ones," Ryan Sutherland, who frequents the park, told WDRB in September when the city was seeking feedback. "Bathrooms would definitely be an improvement, too."

The city paid $107,000 to support design and oversight work, but the project would cost much more to become reality. Aside from city funds, Greenberg said it would require state, federal and philanthropic dollars, too.

"If you add it all up, it's about $60 million-plus dollars for the total implementation of the plan," he said.

Greenberg said he's planning to ask Metro Council for funding for the plans in his upcoming budget.

Another major component of the forest's master plan is to address ongoing efforts to the preserve's long-standing environmental challenges like the Gully of the Drums, an illegal dumping area dating back to the 1960s. Thanks to state funding, Louisville Parks and Recreation is making steps to fully remove the remaining waste and restore the area.

Cleanup is expected to start later this summer and into early fall.

"These are all opportunities that will enhance the forest, that will build new spaces to attract more people to enjoy it, more reasons to come to Jefferson Memorial forest, and that's exactly what we want," Greenberg said.