LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A new project in Chickasaw Park will give people enhanced recreational opportunities while improving safety for the community.

Less than two months ago, two men were killed and four other people were injured after a shooting at Chickasaw Park. The violence led city officials to make safety improvements to the park that overlooks the Ohio River located at 1200 Southwestern Parkway.

Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said 20 lights were replaced and security cameras will be installed at Chickasaw Park and Shawnee Park in the coming weeks.

Dr. Aretha Fuqua, president of West Louisville Tennis Club, said the violence hasn't scared people away from the park.

"In some ways, the west Louisville community is numb to it," Fuqua said. "I think the people that you see in the park every day are not the people creating the problem."

chickasaw 1

Dr. Aretha Fuqua, president of West Louisville Tennis Club, speaks to WDRB News on June 12, 2023.

West Louisville Tennis Club has existed for 100 years. It offers free summer clinics to youth every Tuesday and Thursday from 6-7 p.m. during the summer. Fuqua, who is called the "Mayor of Chickasaw Park" by some, said the tennis club is a vital resource for the community.

"Once we have kids in our hands, we can love them, we can nurture them, we can mentor them," Fuqua said.

Beyond safety enhancements, Chickasaw Park is undergoing amenity improvements. Work has begun on the pond at the park. Bulldozers and fencing now surrounds the one-acre pond for a project that will improve water quality, improve fishing and add canoe and kayak access.

"This is the only flat water park amenity in all of west Louisville and the work we are doing here will make it more accessible and more enjoyable for the people who live in the neighborhood and across the city," Greenberg said.

The project, which was funded by $2.5 million from the American Rescue Plan, is expected to be completed in late 2023 or early 2024. It's a project that has been in the works for several years.

The pond will be renovated and an erosion control will be set up. A canoe and kayak launch will be built, along with new walking paths and benches, lighting and renovations to the parking lot near the lodge. There will also be a butterfly garden and pollinator meadow funded by the Olmsted Parks Conservancy. 

According to a news release, an extensive public input process led by Louisville Parks and Recreation's Natural Areas Division staff happened in 2019 and 2020. The architecture firm Luckett & Farley proposed a design plan in the spring of 2020.

chickasaw park 2

Randall Carter and Darrell Claycomb sit and talk at Chickasaw Park on June 12, 2023.

Darrell Claycomb and Randall Carter stop by Chickasaw Park every day to relax and enjoy retirement. They recall the days when Chickasaw and Shawnee Park would be so crowded in the summer months that people would wait in line to visit the parks.

They agreed the improved lighting and cameras would help keep the park safe after April's shooting.

"It makes you sad because when you come to the park you come to relax, enjoy yourself," Claycomb said. "This is supposed to be a place for relaxation."

While people can feel safer at the park, the renovations are also welcomed.

"It will bring more people out," Carter said.

Related Story:

Copyright 2023 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.