LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer today announced the historic, long vacant warehouse located at 1405 W. Broadway has been acquired by the Housing Partnership Inc. (HPI) to be redeveloped into a $34 million mixed-use development.
“This historic building has been a visible commercial marker of the Ninth Street divide and represented blight,” Fischer said. “I commend HPI’s investment, which will bring this property back to the commercial vibrancy it once was for west Louisville and will attract additional investments along West Broadway.”
Originally built in 1922 as the National Candy Co. Frank A. Menne factory, this property is on the National Register of Historic Places and has sat vacant for the last 30 years. Its redevelopment is a catalytic step in the transformation of the West Broadway corridor.
Partners in the project include Louisville Metro Government and OneWest, a nonprofit community development organization focused on driving commercial development growth in west Louisville.
“This is prime example of a partnership in which the public and private sectors work together to develop an innovative project that will benefit the community,” said Andrew Hawes, president of HPI. “The restoration of this property will activate a key space along one of the most trafficked corridors in the city, and will hopefully serve as a catalyst for future commercial and residential investment.”
“We are pleased to have been approached by HPI to partner with them on the commercial development of this historically significant property,” said Evon Smith, president and CEO of OneWest. “This project is directly aligned with our five-year strategic plan and is what we heard, through our year-long community conversations, that many residents want.”
The purchase joins the nearly $1 billion in investment taking place in west Louisville by companies such as Passport Health Plan and YMCA, both building new facilities at 18th Street and West Broadway.
The project partners will meet with west Louisville residents to gauge interest in types of reuse and to understand areas of concern. The dates for the community meetings have not yet been set.
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