The LouCity & Racing Foundation has the stated mission of using “soccer to give young people a safe space to dream, grow, and succeed.”
Last week, that mission was accomplished.
Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg, LouCity & Racing Foundation executive director George Davis IV and other officials, including representatives from the Humana Foundation, were on hand Friday, Oct. 30, to unveil the new futsal court at Clifton Park.
Previously an underutilized tennis court, the surface has been transformed into a hard-court futsal court, complete with new goals, nets and a protective acrylic coating, ensuring the playing surface can be enjoyed by Louisvillians for years to come.
The court at Clifton Park is one of three which Louisville Parks and Recreation has upgraded as part of the project, joining surfaces at E. Leland Park and Wyandot Park.
“When the foundation started, the most important thing to us was to build collaboration and build community,” Davis said at the unveiling. “And when you look around, this project exemplifies everything that we stand for.”
All three courts feature eye-catching artistic designs, including a stunning rose mural on the surface at Clifton Park, created by local muralist Wylie Caudill — also known for his work with the 150th Kentucky Derby.
“At each of these unique locations, we took something that was in need of some love and made it into something new and incredibly special,” Mayor Greenberg said.
At E. Leland Taylor Park, an existing basketball court has been transformed into a hybrid court accommodating both basketball and futsal. And at Wyandot Park, the existing futsal court has been renewed and upgraded.
“Humana believes that people’s surroundings, relationships, and access to opportunities all play an important role in their health,” said Jessica Klein, of the Humana Foundation. “That’s why partnerships like this one with LouCity & Racing Foundation and Louisville Parks and Parks and Recreation are so important.”
The collaboration combines public art with health and wellness through sports, exemplifying the LouCity & Racing Foundation’s mission.
And that mission might have been best illustrated one morning at Wyandotte Park, in a story told by Davis.
As Davis, LouCity & Racing Foundation staff, and artists arrived at Wyandotte Park one morning to begin work, a group of around a dozen children were having a kick-about on the freshly paved — but as yet unpainted — surface.
It was 9 a.m. on a weekday — the kids were on their way to school.
“It brought a feeling to me that this is why we do what we do, and not only at Wyandotte, not only here at Clifton, not only at Leland Taylor, but there’s an opportunity to provide beautiful, well-curated spaces that people are proud of, that people want to be a part of, and it gives them access to play the game,” Davis said.
