West Louisville Outdoor Recreation Initiative

The West Louisville Outdoor Recreation Initiative (WLORI) is Louisville Parks and Recreation’s drive to increase equitable access to nature for Louisville children and families. The WLORI master plan proposes nearly $15 million in park infrastructure improvements to create “nearby nature” opportunities for west Louisville youth and families.  This asset-based community development project seeks to celebrate and invest in the rich natural assets, including the woodland areas within Chickasaw and Shawnee Park local and aquatic resources such as Chickasaw Pond and the Ohio River.

The most significant investment is the to-be-constructed Shawnee Outdoor Learning Center in Shawnee Park.  This facility is planned as a regional center to provide for expansion of Louisville Parks and Recreation’s Louisville ECHO programming.  This center promises to create opportunities for local residents to lead programming and create partnerships and build greater community connections to the outdoors.

Beginning in the fall of 2019, Louisville Parks and Recreation, supported by Wilderness Louisville, created a temporary program office in Shawnee Park to expand Louisville ECHO programming and take advantage of recently completed WLORI-related projects including the new boat ramp and bicycle pump track in Shawnee Park.  Meanwhile, Louisville Parks and Recreations has completed improvements in Chickasaw Park that will support enhanced programming once completed. These include restoration of Chickasaw Pond for safe community use and creation of the Chickasaw Park Forest Play area in the southwestern corner of the park.