Long-vacant west Louisville property moves forward with community-led redevelopment plans

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- For years, a property in Louisville's west end has sat empty, but plans are moving forward to create new housing and other developments.

The property near the corner of 11th and Hill streets was once home to the Rhodia chemical plant. The land had been vacant since 1994, and the process to get to the point of development has taken years.

Metro Government, which bought the land in 2002, selected Re:land in 2020 to eventually buy and redevelop the property. Metro Council allocated $10 million in coronavirus stimulus funds for the cleanup.

The property is across the street from the Parkway Place Apartments. From the beginning of the project, Re:land has said it wants to work with the community to see what neighbors want to create.

"When you've got a developer coming in that's giving the community and the residents almost total control in what they want to see and how it's going to be put together. That is unheard of," said Bruce Sherrod, who lives at Parkway Place.

Sherrod has taken a leading role in becoming a voice for the neighborhood and transforming the old Rhodia site.

"We're all excited," Sherrod said. "It's been two-and-a-half years so far. We've been pretty much boots on the ground."

Renderings shown along the fencing of the site give people a glimpse of the possibilities to come. Environmental clean up has been a big part of the process to turn the long-vacant, 17-acre brownfield into a community-led mixed-use development.

"As you can imagine, neighborhoods like Park Hill and Algonquin need everything," said James Beckett with Re:land.

Beckett said Phase 1 of the project, which will include about six acres, will be affordable housing. He said construction could start by the end of the year. He said he wants the community to not just tell the developers what they want to see, but also how they want the project to feel.

"It should feel like the neighborhood, it should feel like culture," said Beckett. "The social aspects of it should feel like the neighborhood so nobody feels like they didn't have their fingerprints all over it."

A statement from the mayor's office last year said: "The former Rhodia site has long stood as a symbol of environmental injustice in our city, and we are pleased that environmental cleanup work is now underway to change that. This is a major step toward building something new by and for the Park Hill community. We are excited to hear more about the neighbors' vision for the redevelopment of this site."

Sherrod said neighbors have responded with great feedback. He said there are several possibilities for other phases of the project aside from the affordable housing in Phase 1.

"Whether that's health and wellness, or education, retail, we can go on and on about all the things that are missing in neighborhoods like Park Hill and Algonquin, and so those are going to be the cornerstones," Beckett said.

As development gets closer, Sherrod said what's also being built is a legacy.

"This is something that hadn't been done. So, to look out the window and see -- knowing that you're part of it -- it's got be uplifting for anybody to want to be part of change that's positive," Sherrod said.

Beckett said Re:land recently also got site control of another eight acres on 13th and Hill Streets nearby for future development.

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