NuLu business owners frustrated over slow LMPD response to homeless concerns

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) – NuLu business owners are frustrated and speaking out against slow LMPD response times after a group of intoxicated panhandlers drove away business this weekend.

“We’re not strangers to homelessness. We’re not strangers to panhandling. But this was like a new level of chaos,” said Katie Meinhart, president of the NuLu Business Association.

This is not the first time WAVE has aired these kind of complaints out of NuLu.

A Troubleshooters’ investigation two months ago documented the calls for help, responses and delays after incidents like assault in NuLu.

The NuLu District is no stranger to a lively nightlife, with several popular bars situated along East Market Street. However, there are some who take that party to the sidewalks, and it’s become a growing concern for some business owners, especially during the weekend before the Kentucky Derby.

“We heard people in the store who was like, ‘Is Louisville always like this? Do you guys deal with this everyday?’” said Meinhart.

Those were the kind of comments Meinhart, who owns two businesses in NuLu, said she and her employees heard all weekend at one of her stores, Paxton’s, a men’s clothing store on the corner of East Market and South Clay Street.

The reason why? There were several men laid out across the sidewalk in front of her business. Meinhart claims the men were drunk, making derogatory comments, mostly directed at women, indecently exposing themselves and harassing potential customers, many who ended up crossing the street to avoid the area. One of the men, Meinhart said cursed her out after she asked the group of men to move.

Meinhart decided to reach out to LMPD in hopes they could help move the group away from her shop.

She first made contact with an on-duty LMPD officer just after 12 p.m. asking him to help out.

“I asked are you on duty. He said yes,” explained Meinhart. “And I said, okay well when you get a chance, I have these gentlemen over here, they’re not necessarily breaking the law but they are causing some concern.”

Meinhart told us the officer told her he would approach the group after he grabbed lunch, since the group was not doing anything illegal at the time.

She is unsure if that ever happened because the group was still outside of her business around 2 p.m. So, she made her first call to LMPD’s non-emergency tip line.

Meinhart said she was put through to dispatch who told her they would send a unit as soon as one was available.

A few hours passed, and no one ever came.

She made her second call to LMPD at 5:30.

Soon after, Meinhart said EMS arrived and asked if the men needed medical attention. When they said no, EMS left, but the men remained.

She made contact with Deputy Mayor Nicole George just after 7 p.m., again asking for help.

It was not until 9:30 p.m., nine hours after the first complaint, that LMPD responded to East Market Street.

“When you have a large event, ups and downs come with it. But if the police don’t respond and somebody doesn’t feel comfortable and people can see laws being broken right their on the sidewalk, it’s not good,” said Meinhart. “I mean it’s really a stain on our city and it’s really heartbreaking to me.”

As for the impact on her business, Meinhart said she was down $3,500 less in sales at Paxton’s compared to a typical Saturday, much less the Saturday before Derby when thousands of more visitors are in the city. And Meinhart’s frustrations only continue.

The same group of men returned outside her shop Sunday and again on Monday.

One of those men had a very different account of what Meinhart said happened Saturday. He told us they “look out for people’s businesses.” When asked if he said anything derogatory over the weekend, he responded that he gives compliments, and any interpretation that the comments are derogatory is an opinion.

We have reached out to LMPD about this situation. We provided all relevant details and allegations about the situation from this past weekend. They asked us for more time to provide a response and to communicate the information to Downtown Area Patrol and First Division Command.

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