It’s hard to imagine Louisville’s “Front Porch” as anything but the jewel it is today. But Waterfront Development Corp. Chair Matt Thornton told a funny story about how it used to be, back when driving down I-65 south afforded newcomers a view of a scrapyard.
Thornton and Waterfront Development President David Karem spoke at Greater Louisville Inc.’s Business Breakfast March 20.
Thornton told about his long-ago move to Louisville after a stint as a fishing guide in Montana. He saw the scrapyard on the drive across the Bridge, and told how the friend he brought along didn’t like the idea of staying because here because there was “nothing to do here.”
Nowadays, the view is excellent and Thornton is proud of the entire Waterfront Park project, including the recent addition of 1,472 LED lights that can be programmed to do or communicate almost anything. For $5,000, added Karem, you can buy the right to use the lights to spell out your own message.
Private money was used for the lights, Thornton said, and it’s going to take plenty more of that to get going on Phase 4 of the Park, which would extend west from 9th to 14th streets. The Master Plan is done, cool ideas in place, and it’s time to start the fund-raising, he said.
Karem explained the benefits to the new section, including a great opportunity to educate citizens on all the commerce that passes through the McAlpine Locks every day. Phase 4 would not be a “West End Park” he said, but more an extension that would help bring the community together. It’s a $36 million project.
Karem didn’t give an exact date for Phase 4’s construction, but expect to hear plenty more about it in the coming months.