LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A judge won't halt demolition work planned at the Urban Government Center site that will include razing the historic Kentucky Baptist Hospital building.
Some neighbors and preservationists were seeking a temporary restraining order keeping the building intact while their lawsuit against Metro government and a developer moves forward.
But Jefferson Circuit Judge Tracy E. Davis on Monday denied that request Monday after hearing arguments in the case, saying she would detail her reasons in a forthcoming written court order.
At issue is a lawsuit filed in early January alleging that the Paristown Pointe project made key changes that violate city rules. including the removal of members from an advisory group of surrounding neighborhood associations. The suit says early plans called for keeping part of the old hospital building, which dates to 1924.
Five residents are among the plaintiffs in the case, including two who previously served on the neighborhood negotiating team. Also suing are the German-Paristown Neighborhood Association and two groups — the Louisville Historical League and Neighborhood Planning and Preservation — that have tried to get the property designated as a local landmark.
Their attorney, Steve Porter, argued Monday that allowing the former hospital building to be torn down would essentially make the lawsuit "moot."
"We just want to have the building preserved, not demolished, until this case is decided," he told Davis.
Speaking after the hearing, Porter said he and his clients "disagree" with the judge's ruling. Attorney Cliff Ashburner, who represents developer Paristown Preservation Trust, praised the decision as the "right ruling."
Ashburner argued in court Monday that the complaint filed in the lawsuit doesn't meet the standard for a court injunction, and he said those trying to save the building didn't follow the proper city processes.
In particular, he said, no one appealed after an initial demolition request occurred in early 2023.
"When that notice is given, parties have 30 days to compile and submit a petition asking that the building not be removed," Ashburner said. "That was not done in this case."
Paristown Preservation Trust, the city's chosen developer, is in charge of the proposed $249 million plan to build a hotel, apartments, condos and office space in Paristown Pointe. In recent months, the group secured the last of its public approvals for demolition and subsequent construction to start.
Project representatives filed an updated wrecking permit in early December. There is no publicly available timeline for the demolition; other environmental work, such as asbestos removal, first must occur.
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