After a tumultuous Final Four round of the BS Neighborhood Derby, we’re down to two final neighborhoods vying for the coveted BS Crown (and there will be a crown) and title as the Nabe of the Year, or something.
There are no longer any one or even two seeds left in the final battle after Germantown-Schnitzelburg-Paristown knocked off the Highlands. New Albany topped Butchertown-NuLu-East Market with its typical sunny-side fervor. But now the real match-up begins. The poll will be up until Friday afternoon, at which time we’ll crown a new neighborhood darling.
[poll id=”20″]
New Albany
New Albany?
New Albany still retains the small town atmosphere that larger cities lose all too often. I have always enjoyed driving down Main and Spring Streets to see just how bucolic life can be in a large metropolitan area.
New Albany?? They must have set up a software program to vote for them repeatedly… and their whole city almost got beat by a neighborhood?
Yes, NewAlbanians have nothing better to do then design software for HUGE contests like this. lol
and FWIW our “whole city” is about the size of most neighborhoods we were up against. Plus, I’m pretty sure he was referencing the downtown areas of NA as opposed to the entire annexed area.
New Albany is receiving votes because New Albanians have pride in their city and are excited by the many revitalization efforts being made here. The New Albany downtown area has made tremendous strides since I moved to New Albany in 2007. Toast on Market and Wicks Pizza both are expected to open new locations in downtown New Albany over the next few months. Many downtown buildings are receiving their first fresh coasts of paint in decades. The regions largest YMCA/natatorium opened last Fall. The city already has invested $10 million in the riverfront Greenway and will invest another $6-10M over the next few years. And that’s just the start.
The city of New Albany is on the verge of a major renaissance with almost limitless potential. Huge steps towards revitalization have made New Albany a very desirable place to live, work and play. As a citizen of New Albany, I am extraordinarily proud of the steps that have been taken and look forward to being on the cutting edge of the resurgence.
I also direct you to the comments on the prior bracket thread. Lot’s of great reasons to choose New Albany.
I’ve always been a big fan of pre-conceived notions a-bursting.
I moved here from near Nashville and prefer New Albany to most anywhere in Louisville. We get basically all the benefits of a big city, but we don’t have to take the bad parts home with us(accept after a long night of drinking at Jim Porters, nevermind, long story).
Since everyone is sharing about the great venues downtown, I will speak to the community. New Albany is an active and caring community. We had a major loss this year and I was continually contacted by various neighbors (by neighbors I mean people throughout the downtown area) offering support. It is a great place to live.
New Albany has some of the most architecturally significant buildings in this region. What a prime location. It is a diamond in the rough. I welcome its resurgence. I am sure that the good work of the Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana (largest statewide, non-profit preservation organization in the U.S. I believe) and other Southern Indiana preservation organizations are a big reason why this renaissance is occurring. Kudos to them all!
I love both of these places and for roughly the same reasons–they’re gritty, got history out the wazoo, and a funky atmosphere that which includes residents who care about things even if it means being out of step with more gentrified folk.
Great bars and joints to eat? Yep. Plenty of creatives? Check. A bunch of different churches that care why they’re there and have members coming in from the burbs. You betcha’.
I frequently go to Sunergos for my beans, like Check’s and Flabby’s because they remind me of good old N’Awlins places and was sorry to see the Germantown Cafe close because Steve really did make the best fried chicken.
But you can stretch out more, get a view, and find more choices in the little places in New Albany. Studios has a better beer selection and a menu that lets anybody in your group be happy. We have mo’ better beer, and make it here. I can go the Preston’s on Pearl St. to buy my pens and walk over to Destinations for a better selection of good reading than any Borders holds. The Carnegie Center is a jewel, literally, and all this being on the river caters to some water rat spirit in me, here where I can’t have the sea or mountains.
I’m delighted these two odd neighborhoods made the finals, because they’re scrappy, hard-working, and full of promise, and so often overlooked by more gentrified folk who think the sun must revolve around their center of the universe.
Well said, Mr. G.
I lived in Old Louisville for 9 years. The houses and very walkable broad sidewalks were great but I didn’t feel safe walking late at night. In New Albany, I have the old houses and sidewalks and also feel perfectly safe walking my dog at 2:00am.
For more on New Albany activities, check out: http://www.historicnewalbany.com & http://www.developna.org