Lawsuit seeks to halt demolition of Urban Government Center building

LOUISVILE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Neighbors of the Urban Government Center sued the city and a developer Friday, claiming the plan to transform the blighted property made key changes that violate city rules.

They are seeking to halt demolition of buildings on the site at Barret Avenue and East Breckinridge Street where a development group secured its last city approvals in the fall.

The lawsuit argues that several actions run afoul of Metro government’s guidelines for the site in Paristown Pointe, including the removal of members on an advisory group from surrounding neighborhood associations.

As WDRB News reported last year, some members of the panel accused Metro government of quiet and last-minute moves to oust them from talks on a community benefits agreement. That deal was meant to lessen the impact on nearby areas from the proposed $249 million plan to build a hotel, apartments, condos and office space.

The lawsuit filed in Jefferson Circuit Court alleges that the city has breached its own proposal "to such an extent that it must renew the entire process."

"It has allowed significant changes in the project plans and specifications without allowing other developers the chance to bid," the suit says. "It has violated all principles of Community Benefits Agreements by substituting conflicted and non-representative groups for the required neighborhood associations."

Added to the new agreement are entities that previously have been tied to the redevelopment deal.

After the city changed the makeup of the negotiating group, Bates Community Development Corp., and Highland Community Ministries were added.

Bates was described as "partners" in the project by developers in 2021. Highland Community Ministries announced in 2022 that it planned to build 70 senior affordable housing units there.

The lawsuit claims those two organizations might have a conflict of interest.

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.

Urban Government Center with demolition sign — A demolition notice on a building at the Urban Government Center property, January 3, 2025 *(WDRB photo)*
Marcus Green

Louisville’s Cabinet for Economic Development has overseen the city’s part of the redevelopment, which is being undertaken by the Paristown Preservation Trust group chosen in a public bidding process in 2021.

The lawsuit says the trust initially proposed a large green space at the site and suggested keeping part of the old Kentucky Baptist Hospital, but those plans changed and now show a parking garage where the "town green" was envisioned. They also call for razing almost all structures there.

"The new plan is not compatible with the neighborhood," the suit says. "The new plan also virtually eliminates the participation of the required neighborhood associations from the process."

Jeff O’Brien, executive director of the economic development agency, told the Metro Council in September that the plans are largely the same as those originally submitted. The cabinet echoed those remarks in a statement sent to WDRB Friday.

"We maintain that the plans are substantially similar to those originally submitted by Paristown Preservation Trust and what was approved by the Planning Commission and Metro Council in 2023," the cabinet said in a statement. "We are unable to comment further due to the pending litigation."

The development team did not immediately respond to a request for comment Friday afternoon.

The lawsuit comes months after the Metro Council voted to subsidize the project’s developers by creating a tax increment financing district, allowing the trust to get $20 million in local property taxes rebated to it if it meets certain goals.

That vote in October was one of the last major hurdles for the project. A group of preservationists unsuccessfully sought to have the site declared a local landmark — a designation that could prevent the planned demolition of buildings there..

City officials have struggled to redevelop the land once home to government office buildings. The trust is the third developer chosen by the city to lead the work transforming an area once home to government office buildings.

This story may be updated.