Proposed Jeffersontown apartment complex could be built on land listed as cemetery

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) — A proposed apartment complex in Jeffersontown, that could be built over land listed as a cemetery, took another step forward in the approval process.

Metro Planning approved revised plans for Bluebird Luxury Lofts this week.

Since it's last meeting, the company downsized its plans. Instead of taller buildings with 189 units, the project now calls for three four-story buildings with 161 units.

Some Jeffersontown residents said it's still too tall and they have been highly critical of the project since a public meeting last month. They're also worried about traffic and it being too close to a senior center and library. And some even question why this complex would be built on the Jefferson County Poor Farm Cemetery.

"These are human beings," Amanda Hightower said. "The idea that luxury apartments could potentially be built on or near land connected to unmarked burial grounds should outrage every single one of us."

A representative for the developer said the company has no plans to disturb graves.

"A lot of these unmarked cemeteries or other non church affiliated cemeteries show up on surveys," Cliff Ashburner said. "There's not an indication on the site itself of the cemetery's existence. Our client has no interest in disturbing any grave of anybody at any time. And while they are going through the construction process, if any of that occurs, there are state regulations in place about how you treat a cemetery."

Ed Green, a spokesperson for BlueBird Luxury Lofts, said the company is "very concerned with and disturbed by the false narrative" that the site was a cemetery, adding no one has shared any "credible evidence" it ever existed there.

"Our team has conducted numerous geological studies, reviewed historical title records and completed other searches and found no indication of burials," Green said in a written statement Saturday. "Multiple local historians have stated that the cemetery referenced by opponents and media is located at Skyview Park. We presented these facts to the Louisville Metro Planning Commission at a public hearing this week, during which the Planning Commission unanimously approved recommendation of our plan to the Jeffersontown City Council."

Several local business owners support the apartment complex. They said more residents could bring foot traffic and help Jeffersontown grow in a changing world.

"One of my concerns is — if we do not change and keep the status quo, we will be a restaurant, or liquor store, or hotel in the next 30 years," said a pastor from First Baptist Church in Jeffersontown.

The plan still requires approval from Jeffersontown City Council.