Alberts Continues Leading Downtown Growth

WHEN IT CAME TO DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT Louisville used to swing for the fences.

Though well-intentioned, this approach was off base, said Barry Alberts, executive director of Downtown Development Corporation.

“The expectations were too high,” said Alberts, who over the last 20 years, has noticed the city shift its mindset.

“We should really be focusing on singles and doubles to keep the runs coming in,” he said. “Our singles and doubles have gotten bigger over time. They’re doubles and triples now. At the end of the day, you need to have an economic health for downtown that is sustainable. That doesn’t work so well if you have put all of your (efforts) into one pot.”

Alberts has earned his opinion. From 1988 through 1998, he founded and was executive director of the Louisville Development Authority, the first entity to integrate Louisville’s planning, design and development activities.

Among his accomplishments: the creation of the West Main Street Cultural Arts District, the expansion of the Kentucky International Convention Center, the development of Slugger Field, the return of Hillerich & Bradsby’s Slugger Factory, and the redesign of downtown’s urban spaces, streets, parks and plazas.

He also administers the Downtown Housing Fund, is the principal author of the Louisville Downtown Development Plan and served as project director for the Muhammad Ali Center. He’s also integrally involved as a partner with developers of the downtown arena, Center City and Museum Plaza.

Alberts was there when the city put in streetscape improvements on West Main Street, which signalled the return of downtown to a robust state of affairs. “We began to bring downtown back to the people rather than the automobile,” he said.

He was also there when to see Louisville push to bring residents back downtown. The city’s original goal has doubled from 2,000 housing units in five years to 5,000 in five years. “We’re about halfway there now (thru November ’07) and by 2010, we’ll have about 4,000 units,” Alberts said.

He’s excited about the $2 billion being invested downtown over the next three years. “The word is starting to get out on the quality and breadth of what’s going on downtown,” Alberts said. “It’s arts, it’s entertainment and it’s athletic facilities. We’re trying to keep our hands in many different things and it seems to be working.”