Dave Armstrong, last mayor of the old City of Louisville, dies at 75

Sheldon S. Shafer | Courier Journal

Show Caption Hide Caption Remembering former Mayor Dave Armstrong Armstrong was the last mayor of the city of Louisville, prior to the merged city and county governments. He strived to make Louisville a vibrant place “to live, work, and play.”

Dave Armstrong, who was the last elected mayor of the old City of Louisville and who served two earlier terms as Jefferson County judge-executive, died Thursday morning at the age of 75 after an illness.

In a public service career that spanned nearly five decades, Armstrong also served in several other elected capacities, including a stint as Kentucky's attorney general and another as the Jefferson County commonwealth's attorney.

Armstrong spent his latter years battling the physically debilitating disease myasthenia gravis and recently had moved back home under hospice care after a short residency in a nursing home. His wife, Carol, said he died peacefully during the night.

Funeral arrangements are being handled by Pearson’s Funeral Home, 149 Breckenridge Lane. A memorial service is planned July 7 at Second Presbyterian Church, 3701 Old Brownsboro Road. A private burial is planned in Cave Hill Cemetery.

More: Reaction to the death of former Mayor Dave Armstrong

Highlights: Look back at a career spanning more than four decades

Armstrong's tenure as mayor from 1998 to 2002 focused on his efforts to promote economic development, especially downtown projects. His mantra was to make Louisville a vibrant place "to live, work, and play." Perhaps his signature effort — and passion — was the creation of the Louisville Extreme Park near the riverfront.

Jerry Abramson, who served three terms as mayor of the old city of Louisville and more recently eight years as head of the merged Louisville Metro Government, worked side by side with Armstrong on numerous issues for many years. That partnership included the successful historic campaign to merge the old city and county governments that took effect in January 2003.

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Both lifelong Democrats, Abramson said that Armstrong's "work, along with being a loving and caring husband and father, was based on the delivery of outstanding public service to his hometown and the Commonwealth. He was a compassionate Family Court judge, an excellent commonwealth's attorney for Jefferson County and attorney general of Kentucky and a successful county judge and mayor."

Abramson recalled that Armstrong, in addition to leading the effort to develop the Extreme Park, pushed the expansion of Jefferson Riverport International and the development of the Louisville Downtown Marriott and 4th Street Live.

Abramson said that Armstrong "joined me in expanding UPS and attracting YUM Brands to Louisville. We were partners in the development of Waterfront Park, Slugger Field, the construction of the Schnellenberger Athletic facility at Papa John's Cardinal Stadium, the Cornerstone 2020 (comprehensive land-use plan) and unifying our community in merging the City of Louisville with Jefferson County.

"This community is a better place because of Dave Armstrong’s leadership. He will be greatly missed."

Current Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said Thursday that Armstrong's "dedication to public service ranks him among the greats in the history of our Commonwealth. He had a vision for a vibrant downtown and passion for Louisville being a great place to live, work and play. And his dreams were realized. Most importantly, he was a generous and loving husband, father and grandfather — and a mentor to me and many others. Our entire community celebrates his legacy."

Fischer on Thursday afternoon ordered flags outside Metro Hall to be lowered to half-staff in honor of Armstrong.

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Armstrong was elected mayor in November 1998 with more than 75 percent of the vote, but he first had to win a close Democratic primary election contest that previous May, narrowly defeating then-Alderman Tom Owen.

Owen said his view of Armstrong was that the longtime community leader was guided by daily principles that included believing that “government is usually a force for good, a half loaf is better than none, and bombast seldom gets you very far.”

As mayor of Kentucky's largest city, Armstrong oversaw 15 departments with more than 4,300 employees and a budget of more than $250 million.

He built on many of the initiatives started by his predecessor, Abramson. Armstrong at City Hall promoted market-rate housing and the upgrading of underutilized buildings. He pursued economic development initiatives, especially recruiting tech firms, and encouraged downtown retailing. He also strived to make Louisville a safer city and advocated for beautification efforts.

But his city administration was not without controversy. Foremost was perhaps his firing of Police Chief Gene Sherrard in 2002 after the chief approved awards honoring two officers for their role in an incident in which an unarmed young black man was fatally shot. The rank-and-file officers marched around City Hall protesting the chief's removal, with many of them urging Armstrong to resign.

Other problems on his watch included the arrest of two one-time Metro Parks employees who allegedly sold shoes that were donated for charitable purposes. And he had some rough dealings with the Board of Aldermen; at one point, for instance, he vetoed a minimum-wage ordinance the aldermen had passed.

Armstrong was named Kentucky’s Outstanding Mayor in 2002, and Louisville was twice named a Most Livable City in America during his tenure.

Rebecca Jackson succeeded Armstrong as Jefferson judge-executive and, although a Republican, she joined him and Abramson in a bipartisan campaign to merge the two governments.

She recalled that "Dave was always seeking the best ways to serve our people — from one-stop shopping at Family Places to police officers on horseback for crowd control, you could count on him to be innovative and concerned. I will miss my friend!"

After leaving city government and entering private law practice, then-Gov. Steve Beshear appointed Armstrong as chairman of the Kentucky Public Service Commission, the state agency that regulates utilities, in 2008 and reappointed him to a second term in 2011. He left the agency and retired in mid-2015, ending his long career in public service.

Andrew Melnykovych, spokesman for the PSC. said that “David Armstrong epitomized what it means to be a public servant. Perhaps the clearest example of this was when he, as the last mayor of the old city of Louisville, fully supported the creation of Louisville Metro Government."

Melnykovych said Armstrong never was able to follow through with a strong desire to write his memoirs.

David Love Armstrong was born in Hope, Arkansas, on Aug. 6, 1941. His family moved to Alabama and then to Madison, Indiana, where he spent most of his youth. He attended high school in Madison and then enrolled at Hanover College.

Armstrong, in addition to his tenure as mayor, was Jefferson County judge-executive from 1989 to 1999 and Kentucky attorney general from 1983 to 1988. Armstrong also served as a prosecutor and a Jefferson juvenile court judge and taught urban planning at the University of Louisville. He lost a race for Kentucky lieutenant governor in the 1980s.

As the chief executive of Jefferson County, Armstrong presided at Jefferson Fiscal Court, sitting aside three elected county commissioners.

Among Armstrong's achievements in the county were the creation of the Office for Women, the combining of two police narcotics investigative units, beginning the Victim Information Notification Everyday system, and starting the Neighborhood Place program that centralized the delivery of human services at sites throughout the community. Armstrong also was credited with keeping the county on sound financial footing and creating many new jobs.

Throughout his county tenure, he struggled with jail crowding but his administration implemented programs that gradually reduced the number of early jail releases mandated by a federal court order to keep the inmate population in check.

In 1997 he was elected president of the County Executives of America, a bipartisan organization representing more than 660 elected officials.

From 1983 to 1988 Armstrong served as Kentucky's attorney general. His office prosecuted Medicaid fraud, antitrust crimes and wrote opinions on a variety of issues related to state regulatory matters.

Armstrong was the Jefferson County commonwealth's attorney from 1975-83, administering the state's largest public prosecutor's office. While there, he established the first Career Criminal Bureau for the prosecution of habitual criminals, a victim assistance program, and a felony diversion program. He also digitized many of the office records.

In 1980, Armstrong was recognized by President Jimmy Carter as one of the Ten Outstanding Prosecutors in America.

Armstrong attended Hanover College and had a B.S. degree in history from Murray State University. He received his law degree in 1969 from the University of Louisville.

Armstrong was awarded an honorary doctorate of law from Murray State in recognition of his career in the public service and for his commitment to the expansion of educational opportunity for the youth of the commonwealth. He also received an honorary doctorate of law from Spalding University for his commitment to “peace, justice, and service to the greater community.”

Among other honors, Armstrong received the Silver Anchor Award from the Friends of the Waterfront for financial support and advocacy of waterfront revitalization.

Armstrong was a member of the Louisville and Kentucky Bar associations. He was president of the National Council of County Executives, chairman of the Southern Conference of Attorneys General, and president of the National District Attorneys of America.

The University of Louisville’s Brandeis School of Law named him an outstanding alumnus, and in 2008 he received an honorary doctorate of law from Hanover College.

He was a board member of the Filson Historical Society, the Kentucky Opera, the Muhammad Ali Center, the Frazier History Museum, and the Partners for Livable Communities.

Armstrong is survived by his wife, Carol, two children, and two granddaughters, and a brother, Thompson Armstrong. He was predeceased by a brother, Lyman Armstrong.

Reporter Sheldon S. Shafer can be reached at 502-582-7089, or via email at sshafer@courier-journal.com.