South Louisville - Louisville, KY

Portland was first settled in 1811 and grew throughout the nineteenth century because of its ideal location on the Ohio River. In the twentieth century, Louisville's expansion meant the once independent cities in West Louisville became neighborhoods in the larger city.

The Portland Museum chronicles the early history of Portland with dioramas, life-sized characters, documentaries and special exhibits. Each summer the Portland Museum hosts a two week reading camp for local children called iRead. Donations from local businesses keep the camp free, so West Louisville kids can learn about early Portland history as they practice reading.

Museum Row, a high concentration of museums on a single historic street in downtown Louisville, sits just a few miles from West Louisville. Locals visit this area as well as the galleries and concert halls at the University of Louisville to experience a wide variety of arts and cultural events.

Although a few unique eateries exist in West Louisville, the area benefits mostly from its proximity to dining districts such as downtown Louisville and downtown New Albany across the Ohio River.

For a meal close to home, residents enjoy Jamaican restaurant Roof Top Grill. Regulars recommend the jerk chicken with rice and beans. For a more exotic and authentic meal, the curried goat serves as a taste of the Caribbean. Less adventurous diners order burgers and fries.

Residents of Portland love Annie's Pizza, a locally owned and operated restaurant serving inexpensive pizzas, sub sandwiches, salads, pastas, bread sticks and chicken wings. Locals recommend the meatball sub, which combines a light crispy roll with moist meatballs topped with the perfect amount of cheese and sauce. Otherwise, pizza remains the specialty of the house.

For more dining and entertainment options, West Louisville residents head downtown to 4th Street Live, a large entertainment complex in the heart of the city. Sip some bourbon while enjoying Southern-inspired cuisine at Bourbon Raw, or dance the night away at the Marquee Bar for an exciting night out.

Interstate 264 bisects West Louisville and gives residents easy access to Interstate 64 as well as other areas of the tri-state. As a result, many West Louisville residents get around town via car, but bus routes 27, 12, 43 and 15 also service the area. Because of its proximity to downtown, West Louisville residents can easily connect to many other bus routes at the main terminals in the city center. While cabs do not generally idle in West Louisville neighborhoods, locals can call a local taxi company or contact Uber for a ride.

Because of its residential character, ample street parking exists in West Louisville. This also makes it safe for walking and biking in the area. Cyclists delight in the vast biking trails along the Ohio River that connect West Louisville to downtown. Fit residents who work downtown may even want to use the river walk trails to commute to work via bike.

West Louisville houses one of the oldest parks in Louisville. Shawnee Park, the namesake for the Shawnee neighborhood, was first proposed in 1890 and opened in 1896. Shawnee Park features an expansive Great Lawn on the Ohio riverfront, a wonderful space for events or for a family picnic. Louisville's Riverwalk Trail, a 6.9-mile biking and jogging trail along the Ohio River, passes through Shawnee Park. Exercise-centric locals visit Shawnee Park to connect to the Riverwalk Trail for running, biking or for giving their pet a nice walk.

Residents with children enjoy visiting the family-friendly McAlpine Locks and Dam, a public project on the waterfront which has a free viewing platform where you can watch the locks in action as barges travel through. For a more active day, after watching the locks, walk over the bridge to Shippingport Island for a great view of downtown.

While the local parks don't generally host large events, West Louisville residents enjoy annual events in other neighborhood parks, such as the Louder than Life music festival held at Champions Park each October or the many street festivals held downtown during the summer.

The cost of living in Louisville undercuts national averages by over 10 percent. It costs $1.75 to reach the city center via TARC, the Transit Authority of the River City. The median rent for a one-bedroom residence is $605. A beer at a local pub costs $3. Despite the lower cost of living in West Louisville, gas prices sit at 4 percent above the national average.

Residents and visitors both head to Highlands, a lively neighborhood in Southwest Louisville, for the many boutiques, specialty shops and antique stores on Bardstown Road and Baxter Avenue. Carmichael’s Bookstore, for instance, is the kind of unique shop typical of the area. In addition to bestsellers, Carmichael’s, the longest-running independent bookstore in Louisville, carries Kentucky authors, periodicals, magnets and a wide selection of stationary and greeting cards. The shop also acts as a neighborhood meeting place and venue for authors' readings. Other shops of interest in the Highlands area include Underground Sounds, an indie music store, and The Nitty Gritty, a popular vintage fashion boutique on Barrett Avenue.

While West Louisville residents leave the neighborhood for high-end shopping and independent boutiques, they do not have to travel far for groceries as a Kroger grocery store sits in the heart of the Portland neighborhood. New Albany hosts a wonderful weekly farmers' market right across the river from West Louisville that many local residents enjoy visiting.