LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- While growth near Louisville's blossoming NuLu neighborhood is pretty common, rarely is it of the size of what Rabbit Hole Distillery has planned along East Jefferson Street. In fact, the company is well on its way to expanding its Louisville operation onto an entire city block.

"It's going to be huge," said Katie Meinhart, president of the NuLu Business Association. "We already have cliental that comes to our businesses that are here for Rabbit Hole specifically and our other distilleries in the neighborhood."

Meinhart also owns a small business that backs up to what will become a massive Rabbit Hole footprint.

"They are going to make a block that maybe is a little bit of an eyesore right now as you come into downtown on Jefferson ... quite the statement," she said.

Rabbit Hole Spirits spent $10.6 million in June 2022 to purchase the rest of the block bounded by Jefferson, Clay and Shelby streets and Nanny Goat Strut, Jefferson County property records show.

Today, most of the buildings are vacant, and others are damaged. Rabbit Hole is looking for a slight zoning change that will allow for the expansion to create more offices, education experiences and jobs.

"You've got these new uses and people being able to transform these buildings into something that would have never been considered 100 years ago or 150 years ago when these buildings were built," said Rebecca Fleischaker, executive director of the Louisville Downtown Partnership. "I think it is great for NuLu. I think it is great for downtown."

The plans call for a new, modern design that would incorporate a 134-year-old building as part of the plan.

Among the other properties sold to Rabbit Hole is one formerly owned by Re:Center Ministries, which has operated a day center for homeless women and their children there. Re:Center sold the property for $2.95 million in November 2022.

Rabbit Hole Property on East Jefferson Street

Jan. 10, 2024. (WDRB Photo)

The building will be demolished and is moving to a new location near Brook Street.

"Expanding (Rabbit Hole) and bringing more jobs, more tourism and all of it just betters the neighborhood as a whole," Meinhart said. "And, aesthetically, that whole block is going to be absolutely beautiful."

The expansion will also change how deliveries are made, making it easier for trucks since — as the property is laid out now — someone has to stop traffic for products to be unloaded.

Rabbit Hole's investment in Louisville is just the latest in what is a bourbon boom for downtown with 10 bourbon or tasting experiences already and six on the way, including the recent opening of Bardstown Bourbon Company and Angel's Envy announcing its own large expansion.

"The uptick, to me, means there is actually capacity for more, so I don't think we have seen everything yet," Fleischaker said. "You get a urban experience that can't be offered anywhere in the world."

If everything goes as planned, construction could begin on the expansion in October. 

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