LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) – A new effort to buy and demolish the NIA Center was defeated at a contentious meeting of the West End Opportunity Partnership Wednesday night.
The partnership board voted 9-6 to sink a plan to spend $2.1 million to purchase the property at 2900 W. Broadway in the Parkland neighborhood, including giving existing business tenants there a one-time $5,000 moving stipend.
The vote came a week after the board deadlocked 9-9 on the proposal meant to clear the way for Goodwill Industries of Kentucky and a co-developer to build 76 units of affordable housing at the edge of Goodwill's Opportunity Campus and possibly let Norton Healthcare expand its new hospital nearby.
But the NIA Center sale had been opposed by some of the existing business tenants, even with the newly added relocation incentive. The partnership’s role raised questions about whether the investment was in line with the mission of the agency charged by state legislators with spending taxpayer money in nine western neighborhoods.
Wednesday’s virtual-only meeting also exposed clear divisions between some board members and partnership staff, while the vote showed differences in the priorities of corporate and institutional members and those representing the neighborhoods.
Laura Douglas, the partnership’s president and CEO, attempted to have Urban League board representative Lyndon Pryor excused from the meeting, saying he had a conflict of interest because his organization was trying to buy the NIA Center.
“The Urban League has made no interest in acquiring the NIA Center,” Pryor, the Urban League president and CEO, responded. “What are you talking about?”
“That is not the information that we have in talking to TARC,” Douglas said, referencing the city transit agency that owns the building.
“I don’t know what you’re referring to – so what information do you have?” Pryor asked.
“We would request at this time that Mr. Pryor be absent from the meeting,” Douglas said.
Pryor then shot back: “Not without any factual information. So, no.”
The West End Opportunity Partnership's finance committee meets on June 10, 2025 (WDRB photo)
Pryor remained in the meting but was not called on to vote.
Another potential conflict of interest concerned board member Kevin Fields Sr., president and CEO of Louisville Central Community Centers, who abstained from voting because he acknowledged his company’s leasing agent may have contacted NIA Center tenants. (Partnership staff did not mention that connection; it was raised by a board member.)
A separate rift also occurred over whether the special meeting was called properly. Mike Neagle, who represents the Portland neighborhood, asked board chair Mary Milliner if she had called the meeting in accordance with bylaws that require the chair to convene such meetings at the request of the board’s majority.
Milliner said she had not. That prompted Douglas to ask partnership attorney Amy Cubbage to explain how the meeting was called.
Cubbage cited a section of Kentucky law that lets Douglas, the appointed president of the nonprofit and nonstock public corporation, call the special meeting.
Backers of the Goodwill plan touted the partnership’s involvement as not only a way to support affordable housing but to acquire an asset. The plan called for the partnership to lease the site to Goodwill for $1 a year for 99 years.
Gabe Jones Jr., who represents the Russell neighborhood, said he still wasn’t sure the deal provided a good return on investment.
“There are good ways to spend millions of dollars, there are bad ways to spend millions of dollars,” he said. “But I'm concerned that we are pushing towards the bad ways by spending $2 million in a hurry.”
Another neighborhood representative, Khris Romaine of Park DuValle, raised concerns that the partnership’s role in displacing NIA Center tenants would run counter to its goal of supporting local businesses.
“We must ensure that our financial decisions genuinely reflect our dedication to comprehensive economic development that benefits all of the west end,” he said. “Prioritizing larger scale projects at the expense of establish smaller businesses risks undermining the very principles we aim to uphold.”
Those voting against the proposal were Sharon Allen, who represents the Parkland neighborhood and changed her vote from last week; Shawnee representative Aleshia Burns; Metro Council member Tammy Hawkins; Jones Jr.; Milliner, who represents the California neighborhood; Neagle; Romaine; Desmond Smith Jr., who represents Algonquin and Hallmark; and Rev. David Snardon.
Members who supported it were Jennifer Hancock, who represents Volunteers of America Mid-States; Keith Jackson, secretary of Kentucky’s Justice Cabinet and representative of Gov. Andy Beshear; Louisville Deputy Mayor David James, who represents Mayor Craig Greenberg’s office; Darlene Johnson-Jones of Park Hill; Kevin Smith of Community Ventures Corporation; and William Summers V of Republic Bank.
Amy Luttrell, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries of Kentucky, said in statement that her organization is "grateful to the WEOP board for their careful consideration, and we look forward to future opportunities to break down barriers for individuals facing significant challenges - including those surrounding access to affordable, permanent housing."
A Goodwill spokeswoman could not immediately say Wednesday night whether it plans to continue pursuing the housing plan at the NIA Center site.
TARC has not responded to a request for comment.
Earlier Wednesday, a group of NIA Center tenants held a press conference to urge Metro government to consider helping an undisclosed nonprofit organization buy the building and keep it in its current use.
Shaun Spencer, who rents space for her printing business at the NIA Center, said after Wednesday night's vote that "I hope this shows WEOP and Goodwill, that this is the project that we don't want."
But she said she believes the Goodwill proposal isn't dead.
"I especially don't feel confident that they're going to take this as a true loss and move on."
This story may be updated.
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