Demolition starts at old Urban Government Center property

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Demolition started Monday at the former Urban Government Center site, a watershed milestone in the yearslong effort to redevelop the blighted property in Paristown Pointe.

Crews began taking down parts of 850 Barret Ave., one of several buildings on the property slated to be razed for the estimated $249 million plan to build a hotel, apartments, condos and office space.

Metro government approved the wrecking permit Monday morning, giving the development team 30 days to start and finish the demolition, said Emily Martin, spokesperson for the Department of Codes & Regulations.

"After years of working with this property, we are pleased to see the project is moving forward," the city's economic development cabinet said in a statement. Jeff O'Brien, the cabinet's executive director, previously anticipated that demolition could start by the end of 2024.

But in early January, a group of neighbors and preservationists sued in an effort to halt demolition. They allege that changes made to the development plan run afoul of city rules, including removing members from an advisory group of surrounding neighborhood associations.

Last week, Jefferson Circuit Judge Tracy E. Davis declined to issue an order that would have temporarily stopped demolition while that lawsuit is heard.

The lawsuit also claims that early plans proposed keeping the former Kentucky Baptist Hospital building that dates to 1924. The latest plans call for tearing down all the structures except a former steam plant and smokestack.

Metro's chosen developer, Paristown Preservation Trust, did not immediately respond to questions about the project's timeline. In recent months, the group secured the last of its public approvals for demolition and construction.

Metro government has struggled to redevelop the land not far from downtown since seeking proposals in 2017. The trust is the third developer chosen by the city to lead the work transforming an area once home to government office buildings.

The city's first developer, Marian Group, walked away from the project in late 2019 amid frustrations with city efforts to get needed land-use and other approvals. Metro officials chose a new firm, Underhill Associates, in 2020 but ended that deal a year later and moved to a third developer, Paristown Preservation Trust.

The trust has proposed building up to 450 housing units that would include a mix of apartments and condominiums. An "affordable housing" piece requires at least 51 units for households making 80% of the Louisville area's median income — for example, $54,000 for one person and $69,400 for a family of three.

Also planned are 20 cottage homes on land the trust already owns on Vine Street; office and commercial space; a 100-room hotel and a parking garage with 850 spaces.