LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Louisville wants ideas for redeveloping the Urban Government Center.
The city is asking developers to submit plans for the ten acre property on Barret Avenue.
A plan to turn the buildings on Barret Avenue into retail and commercial space, a hotel, and new housing and parking fell through in December, when the developer said the city was moving too slowly on certain processes. Now, the city is starting again.
Develop Louisville and Louisville Forward began talking to neighbors in the Paristown Pointe area in 2016 through meetings about what would best fit in the space. But there are concerns that re-purposing the aging buildings could be expensive because the structures contain lead, mold and asbestos. A big box store like Walmart or Home Depot could propose to build there, but there are concerns it wouldn't fit the neighborhood.
The 9.68-acre property consists of four buildings including 810 Barret Avenue, which is the seven-story former Kentucky Baptist Hospital built in 1924. The other buildings include a four-story building dating back to 1940 that served as housing for nursing students, a three-story building built in the mid- to late-1990s that housed offices for Louisville’s Air Pollution Control District, and a small steam plant and smokestack.
Proposals must be submitted by 3 p.m. on July 8th.
All submissions will be posted online for public review on July 13, and the public comment period will run through July 31. The city hopes to have a plan in place by the end of August.
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- Louisville leaders get feedback, spell out next steps for aging eyesore
- Metro Council to consider rezoning Urban Government Center
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