LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer’s administration wants the developer of the controversial One Park project near Cherokee Park in Irish Hill to reserve about 10% of the building’s 421 residential units for “affordable housing.”
The suggestion that Jefferson Development Group make a commitment to renting or selling the apartments at prices affordable to low-income residents comes ahead of a special Planning Commission meeting tonight to consider the One Park project.
Bill Bardenwerper, the attorney handling the One Park project for Jefferson Development Group, didn’t immediately return a call for comment.
Unlike other recent apartment projects in the city’s urban core, One Park isn’t seeking any sort of public subsidies, so the city’s ability to secure an affordable housing component is limited.
But the city planning staff recommends that the commission -- a mayor-appointed body – consider making the zoning change that Jefferson Development Group needs to build the project contingent on the affordable housing. The commission doesn’t have to do that, but it usually takes cues from the city’s professional planners.
The commission's recommendation on One Park then goes to the Metro Council, which will make the final decision.
Planned at the intersection of Grinstead Drive and Lexington Road, One Park is among the most controversial developments in recent memory. Critics say it’s too big for the area.
Supporters say it’s the type of ambitious project common in faster-growing cities like Nashville, and which Louisville has long lacked.
Jefferson Development Group, led by Kevin Cogan, scaled back the One Park plan earlier this year, making it 18 stories tall at the highest point instead of 30.
The proposal calls for 421 residential units, a hotel with 250 rooms, office space and ground-level retail and restaurants, including perhaps a small grocery store.
The planning staff’s recommendation that 42 of the One Park units be sold or rented according to affordable housing limits comes with a “staff report” produced for the commission.
The report does not contain dollar-figure limits on rents and sale prices, and the city’s case manager for the project did not immediately provide that information.
