News

An economic development official from Houston has been selected as the new president and CEO of Greater Louisville Inc., the metro’s chamber of commerce.

Craig Richard will lead the business group starting January 7.

He’s been chief economic development officer of the Greater Houston Partnership since 2008, and has held similar positions in Dallas and Arlington, Texas and in Virginia.

Richard succeeds Joe Reagan, who left GLI at the beginning of the year to lead the St. Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association.

A new report by Kentucky's Justice Cabinet advocates the elimination or limiting of Kentucky's constable offices.

The office is established  in the Kentucky Constitution, but the report said constables no longer help law enforcement -- performing but .02 percent of all recorded law enforcement in the state --  and are often liabilities to counties.

“For the most part, constables perform security guard functions, direct traffic at events or serve civil process," the report said.

Of the 114,265 votes cast for Jefferson County’s three school board seats, nearly 30 percent went to candidates who strongly support some form of neighborhood schools.  

Half of the 14 candidates that vied to serve the Jefferson County Board of Education supported reverting back to neighborhood schools. Currently, Jefferson County Public Schools bases assignment on criteria including race, income and educational attainment to meet diversity guidelines set by the board.

In the end, none of the candidates supporting neighborhood schools won a seat.

Kentucky Democrats successfully defended their control of the state House -- but they're now stranded on a political island.

It appears that Republicans will take control of the Arkansas House of Representatives, leaving Kentucky as the only southern state with a Democratic-controlled House.

And that will make Kentucky House Democrats a big blue target in future years.

This week on our audio diary series "The Big Break," Louisville Ballet trainee Claire Horrocks gets a nice surprise during her last public performance. Actors Theatre apprentice Samantha Beach closes "Dracula" without ever going on for the role she understudied, but she already knows she'll take the stage in "A Christmas Story" during student matinees. In "Cinderella," Kentucky Opera studio artist Brad Raymond learns there's no such thing as a small role. 

For the past four years, officials in Kentucky’s coal industry have fought President Obama’s steps to further regulate emissions from coal plants and pollution from coal mining. Now that the president has won re-election, they wonder if anything will change in a second term.

President Obama’s administration has put into motion numerous regulations that affect the coal industry. But many of these aren’t actually in effect yet…they’re still moving through the rule making process, or are tied up in court.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky, has extended congratulations to President Obama on his re-election, but argues the White House needs to moderate and that voters have not given the president a mandate.

Mr. Obama defeated Republican nominee Mitt Romney on Tuesday in the popular vote and soundly in the Electoral College, winning most of the battleground states. It was two years ago when McConnell said that his main objective was to ensure that Mr. Obama would be a one-term president.

But now McConnell says Republicans are eager to hear from the president on how to resolve problems such as the looming fiscal cliff, but he

warns Mr. Obama should propose a way for both parties to work together.

"Now it’s time for the president to propose solutions that actually have a chance of passing the Republican-controlled House of Representatives and a closely-divided Senate, step up to the plate on the challenges of the moment, and deliver in a way that he did not in his first four years in office," he says.

After receiving roughly $30 million in public subsidies, and after nearly a decade in business, Fourth Street Live hasn't turned enough of a profit to pay Metro Government any dividends.  The entertainment district is run by The Cordish Companies, a Baltimore-based developer. But by their calculations and accounting practices, Fourth Street Live isn't profitable -- at least not to the city per se.

Indiana Governor-elect Mike Pence says he’s wasting no time getting started on his transition to office.

Pence and current Governor Mitch Daniels held a press conference today to discuss the process.

The Republican congressman defeated Democrat John Gregg in the gubernatorial race.

The GOP also gained enough seats in the Indiana House on Tuesday to have supermajorities in both legislative chambers, meaning they can conduct business even if no Democrats are present.

When Bellarmine University theater professor and playwright Carlos Chavarria decided to write a play about Frida Kahlo, he immersed himself in the celebrated surrealist painter's life and work.

“I submerged myself for a year and a half in Frida, Frida, Frida," says Chavarria, who heads up Bellarmine's theater program. "My life has been Frida ever since.”