LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – Neighborhood members who served on a panel negotiating a community benefits agreement for the Urban Government Center project said Thursday that Mayor Craig Greenberg’s administration is attempting to “misrepresent our years of volunteer work.”
The five people on the advisory panel, which was charged by Metro government with reaching a deal with the site’s chosen developer, were relieved of their positions in the latest version of the agreement presented to Metro Council this week.
They accuse the city’s economic development cabinet in an open letter of having “quietly and in the 11th hour amended the parties, which now include members of the development team instead of the surrounding communities.”
The cabinet declined to comment.
The letter comes two days after the council’s labor and economic development committee deadlocked on a $20 million tax subsidy for developer Paristown Preservation Trust, sending the plan to the full council with no recommendation for or against.
Signing the letter were Frank Ford of Paristown Pointe; Amy Luckett of the Original Highlands; Doug Magee of Phoenix Hill; Rebecca Minnick of Germantown-Paristown; and Randall Webber of Smoketown.
The agreement was meant to help lessen the impact on the surrounding neighborhoods from the proposed $249 million overhaul of the abandoned site in the Paristown Pointe neighborhood off Barret Avenue into a hotel, apartments, condos and office space.
Jeff O’Brien, executive director of Metro government's economic development cabinet, did not elaborate in testimony to a Metro Council committee Tuesday about why the membership changed, saying only that just one of the neighborhood members was willing to sign the deal. O’Brien told WDRB News the following day that the panel members “for whatever reason” didn’t sign the agreement.
But in Thursday’s statement, the neighborhood members explained their reasoning.
“Because of these public subsidies, the panel was tasked by Metro’s executive branch to represent the adjacent neighborhoods in these negotiations,” they said. “Because we were unsuccessful in negotiating adequate measures to mitigate these impacts, we were unable to sign the Community Benefits Agreement.”
In particular, they cite two areas that weren’t accepted by the city’s chosen developer, Paristown Preservation Trust: Affordable housing and green space. And they argue that a proposed tax increment financing district, which would divert some property tax revenues to the developer and away from city coffers, is “extractive and problematic.”
The 50-plus units of affordable housing for lower income residents is “a good start,” given that more than 460 units are planned overall, “but is insufficient to our community need in 2024,” the statement says.
“Another issue the panel had with the proposed development is the creation of new office space when our downtown is full of empty offices, and when we are actively using tax dollars to bring workers back into the Central Business District,” the neighbors say.
Metro government has been trying to redevelop the site for more than seven years and is on its third developer. Meanwhile, the city has spent more than $625,000 on security, maintenance and other costs over that time, according to expense data obtained by WDRB.
Related Stories:
- Developer, preservationist clash after hearing on $20M Urban Government Center tax subsidy
- Louisville taxpayer costs mount as Urban Government Center deal waits
- Neighbors negotiating Urban Government Center pact push ‘reasonable demands'
Copyright 2024 WDRB Media. All rights reserved.
