Vacant lot in west Louisville transformed into ‘The Lilypad’

A vacant lot in west Louisville now has purpose, after one restaurant owner decided to open a community gathering place there.

After about a year-and-a-half of planning, “The Lilypad” is ready to be used. It’s an open-air space, complete with platforms, chairs and benches. It’s located behind the Sweet Peaches building near the corner of South 18th Street and West Muhammad Ali Boulevard.
On Tuesday morning, community members, developers, Mayor Greg Fischer and Councilwoman Barbara Sexton Smith gathered to introduce the Lilypad to the community.
It’s one of two vacant lot redevelopments made possible with a Choice Neighborhoods action grant.
The Lilypad is meant to give dozens of people a place to gather, relax, and most importantly, feel safe.
Pam Haines, the owner of Sweet Peaches, is the mastermind behind the project and says she wanted to do something for the people in the Russell neighborhood to make it the area she knows it can be.

“I would sit in my window and I would just see the kids walk by, up-and-down,” Haines said. “I would see adults walk up-and-down. I would say I wonder where they’re going, what they’re doing. And I thought maybe I could think of something where we could watch movies, come together.”

Haines says she plans to host a variety of activities at the Lilypad, with the first one being a hot dog roast on the last Friday of October.
A bulletin board with upcoming events will be posted at the Lilypad.
Haines says she also plans to host healthy cooking classes which will be held right there as soon as her grill and cook top is finished.
Sourced from WDRB: http://www.wdrb.com/story/39295923/vacant-lot-in-west-louisville-transformed-into-the-lilypad