What's working — and what's not — for Downtown Louisville

Access Louisville

Doug Owen, senior vice president, principal broker Kentucky, for JLL joins the Access Louisville podcast this week to talk about the state of Downtown.
It's a mix of both good news and bad news Owen says.
There have been some wins for Downtown Louisville including a move by accounting firm Forvis into the top floor of the PNC tower earlier this year. And news that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is seeking a lot of space in Downtown Louisville was also a positive.
But there are challenges as well — with many people citing safety as an issue considering homeless and panhandling at many intersections.
"It's not the image you want to portray, in terms of coming into downtown — having somebody greeted by a panhandler. And then we have some mentally ill people walking the street. And so that's where the city needs to focus."
Owen said he realizes it's not a popular opinion but it is having an impact on tenants leasing downtown because they hear about safety concerns from their employees.
After the interview with Owen, we talk about the one-year anniversary of the April 10 mass shooting at Old National Bank. Reporter Stephen Schmidt recently penned a story about how the leadership team there is moving forward.
Access Louisville is a weekly podcast from Louisville Business First. It's available on popular services including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more.