MLILY Mattresses in Louisville, KY

Rep. Morgan McGarvey said the poor conditions and mail delays are the result of disinvestment in the Postal Service.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — U.S. House Representative Morgan McGarvey described the conditions inside Louisville's Gardiner Lane postal facility poorly amid ongoing mail delays.

"I think what you're looking at, honestly, is decades of disinvestment in the Postal Service," he said. "Of having a building, even a facility that's this old, of having machines that require constant maintenance. Not necessarily having all the staffing levels met for the holiday rush."

Staffing issues that continued on Friday.

"Whenever I went in there this morning, there was only one person working," Richard Andres said. "I was like 'oh great, this is part of the cuts, this'll be the constant. Eight people deep and one person working."

Andres sent out concert tickets from Louisville about two weeks ago.

"I'm worried that they're still not there," he said. "When the concert comes, will the tickets be there or not? I'm gonna have to call and cancel the tickets and have them reissued."

McGarvey said the USPS needs more resources. But he worries "that the Trump administration is trying to break things so they can privatize them," adding it would cost citizens more money.

President Donald Trump's recently floated the idea of merging the Post Office under the Commerce Department.

"We want to have a post office that works well and doesn't lose massive amounts of money," Trump said. "We're thinking about doing that. It'll be a form of a merger. But it'll remain the postal service and I think it'll operate a lot better."

In 2024, the Post Office lost $9.5 billion, 81% of that went toward employee benefits and pension funds. That leaves $1.5 billion in losses, separate from those costs, chalked up to day-to-day operations.

"I don't feel that USPS has been transparent in all of these delays," McGarvey said. "They should have been better at that. The nice thing about today was that they admitted it, but now let's be transparent going forward."

The congressman said he'll be back if the issues persist.

A union representing postal workers, the AFL-CIO, has invited McGarvey to attend a rally protesting the dismantling of USPS on Sunday, March 23, from 1-4 p.m. in Frankfort on the Capitol steps.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — A heated discussion took place Thursday night as residents and business owners along River Road voiced their frustrations over a major infrastructure project set to begin in March.

Louisville Water hosted the meeting to address concerns about the upcoming two-year-long residual line replacement project.

The work is slated to start on Monday, March 10 at Zorn Avenue and River Road, gradually progressing eastward to the Louisville Water Prospect plant. The existing water line has reached the end of its service life, necessitating a full replacement.

According to Vince Guenthner, Louisville Water's Senior Utilities Consultant, the project is essential for maintaining the city's water treatment process.

Construction will be carried out in phases, each lasting approximately six months. The first phase will take place between Zorn Avenue and Blankenbaker Lane from March to September.

Blankenbaker Lane to Lime Kiln Lane will be closed September 2025 to April 2026. Crews will work between Lime Kiln Lane and Wolf Pen Branch Road from April 2026 to October 2026. Finally, Wolf Pen Branch Road to Transylvania Avenue will be worked on from October 2026 to December 2026.

For many residents, the project raises serious concerns, particularly regarding access to their homes in emergencies. Ken Rosenbaum, an 80-year-old resident, expressed fears about road closures affecting emergency medical assistance.

"At age 80, I'm concerned about our health," Rosenbaum said. "We often call our children to come get us to the hospital in an emergency. If the road's closed, how do they get to our house?"

Beyond emergency access, the lack of advanced notice was a common grievance among attendees at Thursday's meeting.

Resident Jason Clark voiced his disappointment, stating, "I don't know that fairness was much considered. It's just, it is what it is. They have to do this project. I think it would've been nice to know about the project more in advance than what was the timeline given, but I think that it's gonna happen. We have to figure out the best ways around it."

Louisville Water is advising non-residents and visitors to use alternative routes such as Brownsboro Road or Interstate 71. However, with additional construction projects planned along Brownsboro Road, including the VA hospital opening and a Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) project, traffic congestion is expected to worsen.

Clark highlighted the burden on the community, saying, "The VA's gonna open, the KYTC project on Brownsboro Road and 71, that's gonna start, and so that's gonna be a difficulty. It's gonna put a lot of strain on our residents."

Local businesses, such as Cunningham Creekside, are also feeling the pressure. Owner Brent George acknowledged the challenges ahead, stating, "I can control what I control, which is my employees and access to the restaurant, but I never know about my customers. If you make it more difficult to get to you, that's a concern."

Despite the frustrations, Louisville Water has assured residents that local access will remain available, ensuring people can reach their homes and businesses can continue operating. While the project is necessary for maintaining essential infrastructure, residents are left to navigate the inconveniences and hope for a smoother process than they anticipate.

The project is set to unfold over the next two years, with ongoing updates expected as each phase progresses.

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Copyright 2025 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.

|Updated: Feb. 28, 2025 at 12:01 AM EST

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - River Road, with its scenic views of the Ohio and beautiful homes, will soon be home to a major work zone.

Starting March 10, portions of Road will be closed to through traffic as construction is underway for Louisville Water’s Residual Line Project. It’s going to be completed in phases and is expected to take two years to complete.

There will be hard closures for safety purposes. Only residential and business traffic will be allowed, with detours on Interstate 71, Highway 42, and the Gene Snyder Freeway.

It’s a lengthy process LWC Senior Utilities Consultant Vince Guenthner says has to happen to replace aging pipes, and people have to be patient with.

“In my 30 year experience in working with Louisville Water there’s never the perfect route, right?” Guenthner said.

The first phase, which goes from Zorn Avenue to Blankenbaker Lane will be closed from March 10 until September. The second phase, Blankenbaker to Lime Kiln Lane will be then be closed until April 2026.

Lime Kiln Lane to Wolf Pen Branch Road will be closed from April to October 2026, before the stretch from Wolf Pen Branch to Transylvania Avenue is closed from October to December 2026.

Officials provided information to residents and answered their questions in a community meeting Thursday.

Special thanks to our customers who came out to the Knights of Columbus on River Road to learn more about the River Road...

Posted by Louisville Water Company on Thursday, February 27, 2025

Brent George owns Cunningham’s Creekside, located in the last phase of construction, now has to be concerned whether customers will be as willing to choose his restaurant.

“I mean there’s a number of restaurants in town,” George said. “If you make it more difficult to get to you, that’s a concern.”

Other people worry about limited access in-and-out of the construction zone. Other nearby projects already cause heavy traffic and bottlenecks in the East End.

“At age 80, I’m concerned about our health,” Ken Rosenbaum, who lives near River road said. “We often call our children to come get us in an emergency.”

A constant complaint from residents at the meeting was the lack of notice. Many of them, like Riverwood Commissioner Jason Clark, only found out about the project in recent weeks.

“It is what it is, they have to do this project,” Clark said. “I think it would have been nice to know about the project more in advance than what the timeline given.”

During the closures, Louisville Water said access to homes and businesses will remain open and as the phases are completed, the roads will be paved and reopened.

Louisville Water said customers will not lose water service during construction, and rates will not increase. More information can be found online.

Copyright 2025 WAVE. All rights reserved.

John Gordon has dedicated nearly 40 years in the meteorology field, and spent the last 20 in Louisville.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The beloved Meteorologist in Charge for the National Weather Service in Louisville did his last Forecast Discussion on Thursday. His last day on the job is Friday.

John Gordon confirmed to WHAS11 News on Thursday that he did take the Trump administration's offer.

"The fork in the road gave employees opportunity to leave the government by resigning and in my case resign and retire," he said. "So I get paid from this Saturday through Sep 30, and then retire Oct. 1."

John Gordon has dedicated nearly 40 years of service to meteorology, and spent the last 20 in Louisville.

"In my 20 years at Louisville, we dealt with Hurricane Ike remnants, wind storm of 2008, the devastating Louisville flash flood of 2009, the Massive ice storm of 2009, Henryville IN EF4 outbreak of 2012, Dec 2021 Quad State Outbreak, and Feb 2025 Kentucky flooding event," he wrote on Thursday. "However, the signature event that stands out to me was the Super Tuesday Feb 2008, with QLCS with many tornadoes at night, and long track supercells and surveying for over a week!"

In January, the Trump administration announced it would offer buyouts to all federal employees who opt to leave their job.

A memo from the Office of Personnel Management also said it would begin subjecting all federal employees to “enhanced standards of suitability and conduct” and ominously warned of future downsizing. The email sent to millions of employees said those who leave their posts voluntarily will receive about eight months of salary, but they have to choose to do so by Feb. 6.

In a sign of how chaotic the firings were, some who received layoff notices had already accepted the administration's deferred resignation offer, under which they were supposed to be paid until Sept. 30 if they agreed to quit, raising questions about whether others who signed the deal would nonetheless be fired.

Gordon is a familiar face who has warned the community about severe weather for years, and has always welcomed reporters out into the field while he surveys damage in Kentuckiana.

John Gordon retiring! Who will add spice to the Mayor's weather news conferences!! Thank you John for your tremendous service to Louisville and our safety! (John is on with us LIVE at 5:30pm Monday). @mammatusman https://t.co/jlOqzRx8Yi

— Doug Proffitt WHAS11 News Anchor (@WHAS11Doug) February 27, 2025

Most known for his high energy, Gordon has stood beside Louisville and Kentucky leaders when severe weather was incoming.

In February 2022, he stood with then-Mayor Greg Fischer and warned Louisville about the approaching winter storm. He said the best case scenario then is Louisville gets sleet, but worst case was more ice.

"I like ice for inflammation and margaritas, not for ice storms, they're not good," he said back then.

Gordon loves to education people about weather; he sat down with WHAS11 in April 2022 to debunk common myths about tornadoes.

This announcement comes as dozens, perhaps hundreds, of weather forecasters and other federal National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) employees on probationary status were fired Thursday, multiple sources told The Associated Press.

Federal workers not let go said the afternoon layoffs were in the tens or dozens so far, with people just getting their notices and no firm number available. They include meteorologists who do crucial local forecasts in National Weather Service offices across the country.

A National Weather Service spokesperson said they're unable to comment on "internal personnel and management matters" but they continue to "provide weather information, forecasts and warnings pursuant to our public safety mission."

"Never forget some of the Gordonisms: play offense, own the short tern, pay it forward, it's not what you think or feel, we must think impact-based weather, keeping service in weather," Gordon said. "After almost 40 years...Auf Wiedersehen (until we meet again)."

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The left three lanes of the Kennedy Bridge will be closed for an extended period so crews can make immediate repairs to the bridge's expansion joints.

The closures took effect at 9:30 a.m. on Feb. 27.

In a news release Thursday morning, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet officials said the left three lanes of the bridge that carries Interstate 65 South over the Ohio River are closed. Two lanes will remain open.

The lane closures are needed to repair a damaged expansion joint as crews continue to prepare for a long-planned project to replace all expansion joints on the bridge. Major construction is scheduled to begin this summer, according to the release.

This isn't the first time the left three lanes of the bridge have been closed for immediate repairs to the expansion joints. Three lanes were closed in May 2024 after several vehicles were damaged.

The expansion joints resemble interlocking fingers and connect slabs on the 1960s-era bridge's deck, which allow the structure to expand and contract while preventing concrete from cracking.

A 2021 WDRB investigation revealed there were "errors in construction" at the expansion joint when the bridge got a $22 million facelift as part of its conversion to one-way traffic during the Ohio River Bridges Project.

Two months after the work, an inspector noticed that the joint was misaligned and moving when trucks passed over it. The Transportation Cabinet told WDRB in 2021 that air pockets developed when the new concrete deck was poured and were not "visible or detectable."

"They have been making different temporary repairs — in 2021 and last year, for example — while they were working on a full replacement project," Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said Thursday. "Repairs help, but the cycle of trucks hitting the joint, especially on the Indiana side, means the whole joint structure needs to be replaced."

The replacement expansion joints are currently being fabricated. Hall Contracting of Kentucky Inc. is heading up the project under a $6.9 million contract.

"... we're manufacturing steel joints now, and once that is complete, full replacement will start by this summer," Beshear said.

The repairs are expected to be fully complete by April 2026, according to the news release. Intermittent lane closures are expected as the project continues. KYTC will provide additional details on future lane closures and traffic impacts as they become available.

Motorists traveling southbound on I-65 from Indiana should be ready for merging traffic and expect delays.

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