Louisville resident Cheryl Fields has been going to Jazz in Central Park for a while now.
“This jazz festival has been a long standing tradition for over 15 years for myself as a family reunion,” Fields said.
She was excited to continue that tradition this year, until last month when she saw online that the event was postponed until 2026. A few days later, District 6 Metro Council Member JP Lyninger posted on Facebook that Jazz in Central Park would only be postponed until later this year, not 2026.
Fields said she was confused, unprepared and disappointed. The postponement impacts the community and local vendors, she said.
“Especially in the cherished support of meeting up with friends for smooth jazz."
The confusion followed a back and forth between Lyninger and Vessel Management, a local production and events company that organized Jazz in Central Park for the last 10 years. The issue came down to a lack of funding and communication.
In June, Vessel Management’s production manager, Tommy Jones, said District 6 offered him $9,000 to run this year’s festival, a stark contrast from the $30,000 he accumulated from Metro Council funding, sponsors and donations in previous years.
Lyninger said he didn’t have much funding to begin with. This is the council member's first term, and he said it’s typical for the outgoing council member to “spend down the district funds,” leaving Lyninger with less to work with.
“I told [Jones] I cannot spend the entirety of my budget on this,” Lyninger said.
By July, Jones stepped down from planning and posted the Facebook flyer pushing Jazz in Central Park to August 2026. He said it was too late in the year to plan an event as large as previous years, and he wanted to let attendees know.
“I know how impactful the event was to the community,” Jones said. “It made sense for us to put something out there to the community sharing that, ‘Hey, listen, due to the budget constraints, we're going to revamp this. We're going to make it bigger. We're going to make it better. We're going to come back next year.’ And that would help save face all across the board.”
Lyninger told LPM News that he didn’t know Jones was going to share the flyer announcing the postponement. In response, Lyninger sent a district-wide email Tuesday, saying that Jazz in Central Park would be rescheduled for later this year “to allow for additional planning following some unanticipated changes.”
“We didn't want to make an announcement beyond what had been put out by the production company until we had a little more information,” Lyninger said. “But it just got to be at a point in the community where people were concerned. And there had been the idea that we didn't care about the event that we were or that we didn't see it as that it was vital that it happened at all this year, which is not the case.”
Emails continued between Jones and Lyninger, and ultimately Lyninger said District 6 plans to host the Jazz in Central Park towards the end of September. He pledged to release an artist lineup early this week.
Jones said he would be interested in producing the festival again “if he’s invited to the table.” He said he has not heard from Lyninger since he sent the letter to his office. Lyninger confirmed with LPM News that he received Jones’ letter.
In the meantime, other Louisville neighborhoods have jazz events scheduled. A jazz festival, sponsored by Vessel Management, is set for Sept. 13 from 12 to 7 p.m. at Algonquin Park.
“[2024] was actually my first year doing it,” District 1 Council Member Tammy Hawkins said of her work to support the event in her district. “I had went to Jazz in Central Park and seen how it was such a nice turnout. People enjoyed themselves. And from there I said, ‘Hey, I'm gonna try this in Algonquin.’ And I did.”
Every Sunday in September, the Tyler Park Neighborhood Association also hosts a free jazz festival. The first performance will be on Sept. 7 from 5 to 7 p.m. in Tyler Park.
