By Andrea Watts, Building Kentucky
Barton Malow, the construction team behind BlueOval SK Battery Park in Glendale, is pouring new sidewalks on Main Street as well as helping with other much-needed community projects in the area.
Perfect timing as 20,000 visitors recently descended on these pathways for the Glendale Crossing Festival, which got its start in 1976 as a celebration of the city’s history and charm. This annual festival takes place on the third Saturday in October and hosts approximately 500 arts, crafts, antique and food vendors along with a vintage car show.
Along with the sidewalk repairs, Barton Malow also upgraded the park shelter and added handicap-accessible ramps to the bathrooms, which totaled $50,000 worth of renovations for the community.
But the sidewalks hold more than just steps.
Some of the sidewalk repaired dates back to 1915. Mark Cooke, a Glendale neighbor, has some history in the concrete in front of his house being preserved. The initials of a worker from 1915 were inscribed in the concrete, and when his great-grandfather upgraded the front of the house and added on, his name was stamped into the concrete too.
Residents are grateful to companies who make big changes to small communities and prove that with their investments and actions.
“That shows that they don’t just say they want to help improve the community, they’re actually taking a step to do that,” said Lions Club and sidewalk committee member Bobby Thompson in an interview with the News-Enterprise. “And I think that goes a long way for the Glendale residents. You’re always going to have some people that aren’t going to be happy with change and progress, but when a company that’s going to be here for the next few years says, ‘Hey, what can we do to help make things better?’ and they do that, that’s a big deal.”
Ford Motor Company and SK Innovation, a partner to Barton Malow, served as the first-ever corporate sponsors of the Glendale Crossing Festival this year, continuing to invest in the community at large. To learn more about their work on the BlueOval SK Battery Park, visit corporate.ford.com/operations/blue-oval-city/kentucky.html.
