In May 2001 Bill Juckett, the highly respected Chairman of the Louisville Olmsted Parks Conservancy, asked community leaders this ambitious question: “Would you help us think of something that our generation can do that will have a 100-year impact on Louisville like the Olmsted Parks? David Jones, founder of Humana, and his son Dan Jones, a park enthusiast, were convinced that Louisville could re-learn the Olmsted model to create a new and equally great 21st Century Park system.
Founded in 2005, 21st Century Parks is a Kentucky-based private, non-profit corporation, created to bring a fresh vision to the preservation and development of new public parklands. Their current project is The Fork; planned for eastern and southern Louisville, it will be one of the largest new urban park systems in the nation.
Building on the visionary effort of former Lt. Governor Steve Henry and The Future Fund, Inc. and joining in partnership with Louisville Metro Government and Louisville Metro Parks; The Fork encompasses over 3000 acres of preserved lands in southeast Louisville.
To date, over $24 milion in private funds has been raised by David Jones to be used for land acquisition, preservation and a park maintenance endowment. Another $38 million in federal funds has been procured by U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell to fund the building of roads and trails in Louisville’s newest parklands.
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