Early Thursday morning in Louisville, a sign descended from the sky at the corner of Logan Street and Broadway.
It happened when workers for Rueff Signs lowered an archway reading “Smoketown” into place atop tall steel poles as the morning sun peeked above the rooftops, shining on the sign. Alan Rueff stepped back to admire it.
“I like the shadow on the wall,” Rueff said. “If you look at it, the signs are backwards, and then you'll see the shadow. It's correct if you're standing behind it. It's kind of neat.”
That shadow’s mirror image might be important since, right now, all but this block of Logan Street is currently one way traffic. It means most drivers will see this sign as they head out of the Smoketown neighborhood — not when they enter it. Rueff knows that might be a little confusing at first.
“[We] had to put it at the entry point, yeah, and this is actually going to be two-way here shortly, I believe,” he said, with a somewhat sheepish laugh, referencing the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s long-awaited redesign of the street.
KYTC’s website shows it anticipates that it will be completed by next spring.
Dozens of other new signs are popping up across Louisville too. A few are grand archways like this, but most are simple metal poles with street names, neighborhoods, or landmarks welded to them. They are part of a collection of 52 signs Rueff Signs has installed around the city for Louisville Tourism.
Zack Davis, the tourism department’s vice president of destination services was in charge of the “wayfinding” project. He said they’re meant mainly for the city’s visitors.
“I want people to know that they’re in an important area in our city… and in that place you're going to find very interesting things, very local things, and so explore it more,” he said.
The signs are financed by a nearly million dollar grant from the American Rescue Plan Act, a federal stimulus package to hasten economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Davis says they used cell phone data to determine that tourists who left downtown were more likely to visit Louisville again.
“Return trips are directly linked to how many neighborhoods they get to see. So get out and explore,” he said. “We love downtown – [we’ll] always support downtown — but get out and see Schnitzelburg and Germantown and go down to Portland.”
Davis says each archway costs $102,000 while single pole “gateway” signs run nearly $9,250, and “trailblazer” signs cost $5,600. He says, while there are no firm plans in place yet, the markers will have a potential for creating digital experiences in the future with scannable barcodes for cell phones that tell you more about the place.
“Yeah, it's funny when you look at it, like, that was 100 grand, that archway there,” Davis said. “But also, I think the impact is going to be really worth it and it’s just gonna stand the test of time.”
Rueff, the contractor, said the signs would be cheaper if they were installed on private property. Being near or on sidewalks, each installation comes with lengthy permitting processes from the city and state and sometimes required engineering reviews from water and power companies.
Back on Logan Street, while workers put finishing touches on the sign, locals Billy and Melisa Keith take their dog Cooper on a morning stroll. Their first impression?
“It’s cool, it’s cool,” they echoed, while nodding their heads.
Melisa then quickly pointed to the next street over, where a new giant piece of artwork was just completed.
“Have you seen the mural over here though?” she asked.
They were kind of ambivalent about the archway, except they both reeled when they heard how much the archway would cost.
“I guess this is what we needed next. This will bring the neighborhood back,” Billy said sarcastically.
Then he paused for a moment and became a little more earnest.
“I don’t want it to be [sarcastic] — I really want the neighborhood [to improve],” he said. “I’ve been here for so long, I’ve watched it change so much over the years. You've got to embrace the change. You can’t always be like ‘This change is stupid! What’s the mayor doing with our money!’”
The Smoketown sign was officially unveiled in sweltering heat on Friday afternoon led by District 4 Council Member Ken Herndon and Mayor Craig Greenberg. They used the opportunity to honor two Smoketown locals.
At the small event, Lamont Collins, founder of the Roots 101 African American Museum offered another perspective — the signs may just symbolize to tourists something locals already know.
“The greatest thing about Smoketown is not an arch going across the top of the street, it’s the families and the roots and the history of the families of Smoketown,” Collins said.
If permits are approved, the final archway will be installed in Schnitzelburg where the dainty competition happens each year.
