

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.
Long before the advent of McMansion-lined subdivisions, Plainview — among the first neighborhoods to call itself a “planned unit development,” combining owner homes with rental and commercial properties — was thought of as a kind of Pleasantville off Hurstbourne Parkway (and still is by many). The main Timberwood Circle boulevard loop, with its pretty, nicely spaced maple trees and brick two-story and ranch homes, is indeed a pleasure to drive, and its north side leads to what used to be a private tennis and swim club but now is public, maintained by the city of Jeffersontown, of which Plainview is a part. Another plus: You’re not funneled out a single entryway; there are five entry/exit connections to major roadways.
The sizable neighborhood (about 850 homes) has its own shopping district for both necessities and notions, and numerous restaurants and shopping centers are just a short drive away. The Plainview Residents’ Association uses annual dues to keep the medians on several streets colorfully supplied with plantings.
- Boundaries: South Hurstbourne Parkway (west), Linn Station Road (south), Moser Road (east), Shelbyville Road (north).
- Home price range: $190,000-$340,000.
- Nearby schools: Plainview: Plainview preschool, Lowe Elementary, Crosby Middle.
- Sidewalks: Yes.
- Architecture: Varied (Neocolonial, Colonial Revival, Ranch)
- Age of housing: 25-35 years.
Photo: John Nation