Prioritizing Equitable Economic Development in Louisville
Mayors across the country continue to invest in their communities and rebuild in the wake of the pandemic, including Louisville’s recently-elected mayor Craig Greenberg.
Earlier this year, younger residents ranked growth to be among the top issues facing the city, according to a 2024 city-wide survey. They cited job prospects as the number one factor determining their long-term commitments to Louisville.
That’s why Mayor Greenberg, who took office in January 2023, is making economic development a top priority.
“We want a city that’s on the front pages of the Wall Street Journal and The New York Times highlighting that Louisville is a place where young people are moving, businesses are growing and thriving and universities are recognized as best in class,” Greenberg said.
To get there, Mayor Greenberg has identified four areas of focus he’s calling Growing Louisville Together. The plan seeks to improve the city’s economy by investing in housing and infrastructure, education, city branding, and more equitable entrepreneurship.
As in other cities, Louisville has a housing shortage, especially for lower-income residents. For households earning up to $25,410 — the lowest income level studied — more than 36,000 additional units are needed.
In response, Mayor Greenberg is making investments across the city. For example, the city is remediating a polluted brownfield site, where a chemical plant operated from 1919 until 1994. A University of Chicago study found that brownfield remediation can increase property value by 5–11.5%, bringing economic benefits back to a once uninhabitable area.
Clean-up — through removing contaminated soil — started in 2023. Mayor Greenberg has already submitted plans to a developer, with community support, for building 233 affordable housing units.
Mayor Greenberg and the city are undertaking this remediation with help from federal funds, utilizing money from the American Rescue Plan Act. The pandemic-era lifeline continues to buoy cities that are still recovering from the crisis.
The city’s remediation effort is moving in lock-step with local residents. Developing the Park Hill/Algonquin Community of Opportunity Advisory Board, Mayor Greenberg has given community members a chance to take back the Rhodia brownfield and give it a purpose within their community. He’s intentionally seeking out feedback from the community, and gathering ideas from residents.
The model is succeeding. “In the past,” said Louisville resident Bruce Sherrod, “developers come, they tear down, they build up, without much input from the community, the city, or their neighbors.” But things are changing now.
It’s just one step Mayor Greenberg is taking as he utilizes community involvement and the city’s ample space to drive economic development. And, it’s a good indicator of the work that can be done through the Growing Louisville Together Plan.
Kentuckians are thrilled: “This is a breath of fresh air,” said Sherrod. “It’s something that should be a model for the city, if not the nation.”
