LOUISVILLE, Ky. — After more than a year of legal battles, the Kentucky Court of Appeals unanimously upheld a Jefferson Circuit Court judge's ruling in favor of a Topgolf development in Oxmoor Center.
A group of Hurstbourne residents filed the appeal after Judge Ann Bailey Smith said Metro Council and Jefferson County Planning Commission acted properly in approving the project.
The three judges deferred to the 2019 decision throughout their opinion, saying the court correctly affirmed the actions of Louisville Metro Government when reviewing the case.
While the neighbors' appeal argued the companies developing Topgolf were not registered to do business in Kentucky and the application was therefore illegal, the court said not registered their names with the Secretary of State's office "resulted in no harm to the residents in fact or in procedure."
When the project was announced, the group said they worried about noise, traffic and lights coming from the spots and entertainment center would hurt their quality of life. The appeals court affirmed Judge Bailey Smith's rejection of their argument. They also echoed that the neighbors did in fact receive due process in their fight against the development.
Sarah Davasher-Wisdom with Greater Louisville Inc. called the decision "an important step forward" for the city.
"This project has faced numerous obstacles throughout the approval process which ultimately sends the wrong message about greater Louisville’s interest in growth and development," Davasher-Wisdom said. "As we recover from this pandemic, it is more important than ever that our community embraces new development projects to preserve and grow the economic vitality of our region."
Topgolf filed its plans for the Oxmoor Center site in 2018.
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