LOUISVILLE — A state-owned outdoor education area for the visually impaired and the disabled will be created on 300 forested acres in Henry County.

        The facility — the first of its type in the state — will be funded by a $530,000 grant to the Kentucky School for the Blind in Louisville.

        The newly named Crowe's Chase environmental area is about 35 miles from Louisville on land that was owned by disability advocates Jeanne and Mike Crowe. The state bought the land Sept. 28 with the grant, which was awarded by the Kentucky Heritage Land Conservation Fund Board in Frankfort.

        The plans call for raising more money to build a pavilion, trails and other features, such as audible exhibit aids to serve the blind.

        Mike Crowe has muscular dystrophy and can no longer maintain the land. He said he has had offers from developers but wanted to see the land used for educational purposes and to serve others who are disabled. The area includes a creek, lake, mill, 100-year-old trees and wildlife.

        “This was an opportunity for us to develop, from the ground up, an outdoor education area that would be accessible for our students,” said Ralph Bartley, superintendent of the School for the Blind.

        Academically, Crowe's Chase could offer students a more effective way to study certain subjects.

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