This article appeared in the October 2010 issue of Louisville Magazine. To subscribe, please visit loumag.com.
The word “neighborhood” has always been an elastic term, and
especially so in a city that until seven years ago was a whole county.
It can mean, to some, a single street, or a group of streets whose homes
were built about the same time, or a section of the city drawn around a
central focal point, or a suburban subdivision, or section of a
subdivision, or even a fifth- or sixth-class city inside the big city.
Throughout October we will feature 16 of Louisville’s neighborhoods —
not necessary the “goes without saying” selections that come up time and
again, but pieces of real estate and social fabric inclusively chosen
for their beauty, value, character, amenities and, well, neighborliness.
To follow along with this series, please visit the Neighborly 'Hoods section.
It’s not just that the golf course is a real player — the best subdivision links in the area — but it’s also the location of those 18 holes: They occupy much of the lower-elevation acreage, leaving naturally contoured hilltops to lend visual drama to the residential streets. Mature landscaping and stately trees provide a sense of permanence, and the emphasis on traditional architecture registers as more timeless than dated. But the real visual winner is the rolling terrain, which, in many areas, partially hides houses below road level on one side and elevates them on the other. This is one late-20th century subdivision with true eye appeal.
With some townhouse and condos sprinkled in near the gazebo-marked central green space, this neighborhood of approximately 1,000 residences is inhabited by a mixture of young families, near-empty-nesters and retirees. Many residents meet on the streets and sidewalks during evening strolls or for annual events such as the October Punkin’ Paintin’ or the Fourth of July parade and fireworks. Original deed restrictions banned any new home from looking exactly like one already built in a section of the development, assuring diverse styles and everything from brick and stone to stained wood and painted wood siding. With all of its attributes, this Prospect neighborhood feels like it could be situated near Cherokee Park, but with more open space for all.
- Boundaries: US 42 (west), Covered Bridge Road (north), Oldham County line (north and east — though portions of the Estates of Hunting Creek extend across the county line), Fox Harbor subdivision (south).
- Housing price range: $225,000 to $1 million-plus.
- Nearby schools: None nearby.
- Sidewalks: In some sections.
- Architecture: Varied, with a high number of Colonial- and Federal-inspired homes, particularly in the older sections.
- Age of Housing: Hunting Creek, from mid-’60s; Estates of Hunting Creek, from late-1980s.
Photo: John Nation
