LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The city of Charlestown is planning improvements to its city square.
The Redevelopment Commission acquired a green-roofed building at the center of Short Street in the Jennings Plaza downtown, a space utilized for events and gatherings including pop-up markets, festivals and light shows. Charlestown Mayor Treva Hodges wants to revitalize the space, renovating the building she said has been mostly vacant for about 20 years.
"Over the decades the city square has evolved and changed appearance several times. Businesses have come and gone and some have been in place for many years," Hodges posted online. "As I looked out my office window every day, I realized it was time for us to take action and do something special with that space."
The building acquired by the city will be removed next month, and work will be done in phases. The first phase will be known as "The Commons," which will include the event lawn and stage. The additional phases will follow as funding allows. Hodges hopes to see construction begin later this year and have Phase 1 completed in time for Community Days in September 2026.
"Listening to what our community needs are and where we have our festivals ... we always have to roll in a temporary stage for that little corner for our big Community Days event and some of our other music in the parks event and things like that," she said Thursday. "... From a quality of life perspective and events perspective, we wanted to use a majority of the space for that. But we have a lot of people who are asking for downtown opportunities, for new restaurants and shops and things like that, so we want to reserve about one-third of the space for that."
Hodges said some downtown events may have to be temporarily moved during construction. Larger plans include incorporating the city's popular Christmas lights display into this new event lawn.
"We also intend to construct a two-story building in the style of a traditional downtown structure that will hopefully offer a home to commercial space and a restaurant," Hodges said.
An initial concept for the new design was created by Taylor Siefker Williams Design Group, and Hodges said it was informed by community feedback.
See the full plan below:
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