DESIGN GUIDELINES
The purpose of the Louisville Loop Design Guidelines Manual is to find a balance among design intents such as defining a unique and unifying character , building an affordable and maintainable system , and creating a project with world-class identity . These key factors are reinforced through standards that serve to “ brand ” the Loop by using local materials and consistent amenities through the system to unify its character and establish a unique identity . One of the main elements of this unique and unifying character is the use of Louisville ’ s five physiographic regions as a materials , interpretive , and educational component throughout the Louisville Loop .
Ohio River Valley - Much of Louisville exists within this valley which “ is characterized by level , to sloping alluvial soils on terraces and bottoms along the Ohio River .”
Knob Hills - Found mostly in the southwestern portion of the City , these areas include the ridges and steep hills adjoining the Ohio River Valley . The Jefferson Memorial Forest and Iroquios Park are examples found within this region .
Slack-water Flats - This is an area of level , poorly-drained soils which occur on the former site of an ancient lake bed to the north and east of the Knob Hills region .
Limestone Belt - This region is characterized by level to steeply sloping soils formed from limestone and covers a major portion of Jefferson County . Included in this region is Cherokee Park .
Floyd ’ s Fork Drainage Area - this region is characterized by “ diverse landscape of gently sloping to steep uplands in the extremely eastern portion of the County .”
The trail has the opportunity to function as a walking story board as the trail passes from one section of the city to the next , or as specific geological features are crossed . In addition , the guidelines outline educational and interpretive components highlighting cultural and natural history along with the inclusion of public art as an integrated part of the design that adds educational , recreational and aesthetic value to the trail . All of these elements aim to assure the Louisville Loop becomes a “ Monument to Merger ” and distinguishes itself like no other trail system in the world .
The Manual ’ s six sections address many elements of trail development from general definitions , signage and branding strategies , engineering , and amenity design for the entire project . At build-out , the Louisville Loop will transect various areas and contexts of the community including urban , suburban , and rural portions . Each of these areas will require unique treatment , yet be unified through consistent standards that meet the guidelines unique to the Loop as well as state and federal standards . It is critical the Louisville Loop guidelines use these external standards as a baseline for minimum conditions as well as qualifying to meet state and federal funding requirements .
Louisville Loop Wayfinding Master Plan
The Louisville Loop Wayfinding Master Plan builds upon the vision , community ideals and principles set forth in the Louisville Loop Design Guidelines Manual . The Wayfinding Master Plan is intended to supplement the Design Standards Manual and not supersede or replace it . It was funded as a portion of the $ 7.9 million Louisville Putting Prevention to Work ( LPPW ) grant , an anti-obesity effort from the U . S . Department of Health and Human Services and managed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Louisville Metro Department of Public Health and Wellness . The master plan and implementation has already provided fruit in the details used to install and implement the signs along the constructed portion of the Loop . It guides the placement of signage , destinations to be included on directional signs , and locations of the wayfinding elements . This plan also outlined new interpretive and educational opportunities along the Loop , defining the content and locations of these signs .
The goal of the wayfinding signs along the Louisville Loop is for all signs to be informative , functional , and to capture the identity of the Louisville Loop . There is also a need to identify the unique segments of the Loop with a color coding system , designed with elements to reflect the physiographic region for which it is posi-
54