LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Waterfront Park expansion into west Louisville is underway.
According to a press release, Louisville officials, community leaders and more were at the official groundbreaking of Waterfront Park’s Phase IV expansion into west Louisville Monday.
The expansion will add 22 acres to the park between 10th Street and 14th Street.
Gov. Andy Beshear said every Kentucky family deserves access to outdoor spaces like Louisville’s Waterfront Park and that’s why the state is investing $10 million into the expansion.
“West Louisville residents don’t just deserve good; they deserve the best. That’s why, with the Phase IV expansion, we’re not just extending the Waterfront Park we already have, we’re imagining what we can do to make it better than ever before,” he said.
Other aspects of Waterfront Park Phase IV include an outdoor experimental learning area for children and a traffic change. River Road will also be extended west to Rowan Street according to the release.
Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer said projects like this “are critical because they transform and strengthen the connection among our neighborhoods.”
“This park will have a positive impact on our children and families both physically and emotionally,” Kentucky State Senator Julie Raque Adams said. “When children have a safe, beautiful, and accessible outdoor space to enhance their health, well-being and quality of life it produces real, life-long results for our community.”
It's part of the city's plan to eliminate the 'ninth street divide' by unifying it to the downtown area.
"You're going to see concerts here. You're going to see kids running through water features here," Mayor Fischer said, looking to the future. "You're going to see the new ninth street unifier, not the ninth street divide."
The expected cost is $50 million with $26 million already raised.
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