LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Most people who live in downtown Louisville said they feel safe despite the perception of the area being violent.
"I walk to restaurants downtown and I'm a single woman by herself and I've never been afraid," Maureen Bacon said. She has enjoyed living in the hustle and bustle in downtown Louisville for the last 13 years.
Bacon said violent acts can happen anywhere.
"People think it's the downtown or the West End or South End; that's an issue everywhere," she said.
According to a recent survey of over 150 downtown residents, most of whom have lived in the area for more than five years, they want to make downtown Louisville more like a 24/7 neighborhood with more parking benefits and amenities.
"Such as more gyms, a movie theater, more convenience you know; we choose downtown because it has everything about Louisville that we love," Ameerah Palacios, the president of Louisville Downtown Residents Association, said.
Most people told WHAS11 they want to have access to fresh food downtown. It's a conversation that has been happening for the last several years.
"We want a grocery store we want to be able to do our shopping where we live," Bacon said.
Now that some major corporations have announced they are moving out of downtown, Metro Council District 4 candidate Ken Herndon and others are more concerned for its future.
Herndon said if he's elected he will do what he can to bring more foot traffic.
"I'd like to very aggressively, very creatively, turn those buildings as much as possible into residential which will get us the numbers that we need to then get a grocery store," he said.
A healthy arts community is also an economic driver for the entire community.
Christian Adelberg with the Kentucky Performing Arts said the center is trying to be a good neighbor downtown.
He said the center always wants "to make sure that we're doing everything we can to help feed into the businesses so that downtown is not a transactional relationship."
Overall, the association hopes this feedback will help downtown Louisville thrive.
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