Windy Hills council hears 2025 survey results, prioritizes lighting, sidewalks and traffic monitoring

John Buchanan, Community & Economic Development Advisor for the Kentucky League of Cities, presented the City of Windy Hills’ 2025 strategic-planning survey results to the council on March 10 and said a PDF of the presentation will be posted to the city website on March 11, 2025. Mayor Dr. John Roberts and council members then opened a broad discussion of priorities identified in the survey.

Survey respondents ranked public safety highest. Councilman Steve Teaford said an inventory of about 144 street lights is underway to identify dark areas, verify LG&E billing and estimate costs to update fixtures; he said older sodium bulbs are being replaced with LED fixtures when they fail. Teaford and council staff are also cataloging street signs and said they will consider repainting letters on the Signature Entrance Sign for greater visibility.

Sidewalks and pedestrian safety drew several comments. Teaford described narrow sections of the walking loop in Coach Gate that are hazardous and noted some requested sidewalk work falls outside Windy Hills’ jurisdiction and has been declined previously by St. Matthews or Metro Louisville. Resident Joyce Bridge suggested adding a blind-curve warning sign, a walkers-warning sign, and fresh center striping to improve safety; Teaford said he will investigate.

Traffic and policing were also discussed in the context of survey responses. The council noted Lyndon Police typically patrol Windy Hills roughly 82–85 hours per month and that speed mitigation devices on Ambridge Drive and Indian Ridge are collecting data to inform targeted radar monitoring. Mayor Roberts said the council will share that data with Lyndon Police to schedule enforcement at peak times identified in the reports.

On beautification and urban forestry, Councilwoman Kate Greer described resident interest in curbside leaf pickup but said the city is unlikely to provide the service because of cost and flood-control concerns; MSD and LG&E discourage curbside piling because leaves can block drainage. Greer also outlined proposed Tree Board changes discussed later in the meeting to reduce barriers to planting; the Tree Board is proposing a rebate of up to four trees for eligible residents.

Councilwoman Julie Theiler said the city is working on a website site map after residents reported difficulty finding ordinances and other documents; she asked for specific examples so staff can make targeted improvements. The council urged more residents to sign up for the official Reach Alert system for emergency notifications and said the city’s Facebook page is maintained as a community outlet rather than an official communications channel.

The council did not take formal action on these survey topics at this meeting but directed staff and council liaisons to follow up on identified priorities, to continue the lighting and sign inventories, and to coordinate data-sharing with Lyndon Police for speed enforcement.