LOUISVILLE, Ky. — There's a fight to save some historic buildings from demolition just south of downtown. They've been part of the Holy Name campus since 1902 and now, neighbors want them called landmarks to stop the tear down.
"That's all they want it for, is parking! That just doesn't make any sense to me," Ann Ramser said.
Ramser said she can't imagine traveling down Fourth Street and not seeing the old Holy Name campus buildings.
"Oh yes. I ride my bike by here, I drive by here, I take the bus, I mean these buildings are gorgeous," she said.
Built in the 1900's, the old gym, school, and convent are set for demolition.
Catholic Charities, the social services arm of the Archdiocese of Louisville, submitted plans in April for a new headquarters and a parking lot.
"It's just gorgeous and I do not understand why you want to fill landfills up," Ramser said.
Ramser started an effort to collect over 400 signatures in her petition to landmark the campus buildings.
"Every person was like 'oh no they can't tear those buildings down,'" she said.
Ramser said she isn't opposed to Catholic Charities building its new headquarters in place of the old gym but would like to keep the other two buildings in place.
"I am hoping for a win-win situation," she said. "Why not take it and renovate it?"
The buildings set for demolition are largely unused, but Ramser believes they should be re-purposed into affordable housing.
"There's so much here that renovating these buildings into housing would be so good for," she said.
The fight is stopped temporarily as Ramser and Catholic Charities will present their cases to the city's Landmarks and Preservation Districts Commission Thursday.
Catholic Charities can still choose to appeal the decision, even if the buildings are land marked.
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