LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The long-planned One Park development near Louisville’s Cherokee Park is one step closer to securing all the taxpayer assistance that developer Kevin Cogan has said is necessary to build it.
The Kentucky Economic Development Finance Authority, the state board that oversees economic development incentives, preliminarily approved a proposed tax-increment financing deal for the $554 million One Park project during its Feb. 29 meeting.
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If finalized later this year or next, the deal would redirect state taxes collected from the activities at One Park — such as state income taxes of employees who work there — from Kentucky’s coffers back to that of Jefferson Development Group, Cogan’s business entity.
In December, Louisville Metro signed off on a similar arrangement whereby Cogan’s group is eligible to capture up to $114 million in Metro taxes over 30 years following development’s construction.
The state incentives would layer on top of Metro’s $114 million.
The amount Cogan’s group would be eligible to collect from Kentucky will not be known until the state board considers final approval, which could happen before the end of 2024 “if all information is provided as requested and responses are timely,” according to Brandon Mattingly, a spokesman for the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development.
State officials will negotiate the incentives after an independent consultant’s report is produced projecting the costs and benefits.
In a 2022 presentation circulated to Metro Council members, Jefferson Development Group projected it could receive up to $148 million over 30 years from the state.
A Jefferson Development Group official did not respond when asked about the timeline or financing of the project.
