Visually impaired and possibly moving to Louisville (Lexington, Frankfort: home, neighborhoods)

[flash2009]

Hi everyone,

My husband and I are looking to relocate to Louisville in the next couple of years to be closer to my family. I'm visually impaired and am not able to drive so I'm looking to find a few neighborhoods in Lville that are walkable (schools, grocery, etc) or have decent bus links and are reasonably safe as I'll be out and about on foot. Any help would be much appreciated!

[kytoaz]

there is a very large school for the blind in crescent hill and i see lots of blind folk walking that area on franfort ave. all the time. I think the fact that school for the blind has been there so long has helped the neighborhood be more accommodating to blind people than other areas.

[notthatgirl]

It would also be a good idea to contact Voc Rehab (Kentucky: Office of Vocational Rehabilitation - Home) and the Office of the Blind (Kentucky Office For The Blind Kentucky Office for the Blind).

[nimchimpsky]

I'm blind and have moved within the U.S. They have blind services, pretty much no matter where you move, so you can schedule an appointment with an eye doctor to get documentation and recommendations for a blind/low vision specialist. Or you can get a recommendation from whoever your blind/low vision specialist is currently. In my experience people in this field tend to communicate a lot across states. Good luck.

[nimchimpsky]

Here's the National Federation of the Blind Kentucky Chapter website: NFB Of Kentucky Home Page

If you are signed up with the NLS, you can change your address information. All it takes is a phone call and they'll start sending books to your new address. Here's the KY chapter:
https://oraserve.loc.gov:4446/nldp/addr_search_res

And the American Foundation for the Blind KY Chapter:
Find Services Results - American Foundation for the Blind

[flash2009]

Thanks for the advice everyone! I've worked with voc rehab and the office for the blind while living in Lexington and I never had much luck with getting transport aid. One of the reasons I'm looking at Louisville is that I've heard that public transport is better there and I figured they might have more assistance for people with low vision there because of the larger population. Fingers crossed!

[veggienut]

If you don't drive and need to rely on public transportation, I'd like to make a recommendation of a Taxi Company called "Taxi Man" or maybe it is "Taxi Taxi". He is my friend and is known for his services to the blind people. He's been given awards for his outstanding services. He even goes to the grocery for a couple weekly, that he told me about. Good Luck in your move.

[JaxRhapsody]

Originally Posted by kytoaz

there is a very large school for the blind in crescent hill and i see lots of blind folk walking that area on franfort ave. all the time. I think the fact that school for the blind has been there so long has helped the neighborhood be more accommodating to blind people than other areas.

This would probably be the safest spot. I'm not sure if you're blind or "blind" but anywhere else with the bad drivers, crazy cyclist and throngs of self important people walking around, it's just amazing. I'd say you'd hafta just get out and see what I'm talking about but trust me, you don't.

[Peter1948]

Originally Posted by JaxRhapsody

This would probably be the safest spot. I'm not sure if you're blind or "blind" but anywhere else with the bad drivers, crazy cyclist and throngs of self important people walking around, it's just amazing. I'd say you'd hafta just get out and see what I'm talking about but trust me, you don't.

Actually, it is one of the larger printing centers for Braille too. This area has crosswalks with loud beeping and people are used to seeing blind people. Louisville's TARC system, while still basically sucking, is infinitely better than Lexington's system, especially on Frankfort Avenue, 4th street, and Bardstown Rd.