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February 2008
Welcome to eFYI, your exclusive monthly e-newsletter from Greater Louisville Inc. - The Metro Chamber of Commerce. As one of our valued partners, you can count on eFYI to cover the topics and issues of most interest and benefit to you. Share your comments and ideas with us any time at VFisher@greaterlouisville.com.
Barrister wants to build 25-story tower downtown
Two new downtown Marriott hotels set for April openings
Louisville dubbed a top city for youth
Ford to test its street smarts with Louisville-built truck
Bridges' finance plan OK'd
Forbes: UK, U of L among 'most valuable' college hoops teams
$25 million industrial complex under construction
Puck set to score: Famous chef's eatery opens in Kentucky International Convention Center
U of L school on the move
Year of planning, research behind U of L debut
Barrister wants to build 25-story tower downtown
Louisville-based real estate developer Barrister Commercial Group LLC wants to build a $130 million, 25-story office tower downtown and is in talks with Louisville-Jefferson County Metro Government to acquire the land where it could be built.
Barrister's proposed building would be called Capital Plaza and would top out at about 380 feet above street level. It would encompass more than 500,000 square feet of office space with 25,000 square feet of shops and restaurants on the first floor and a connected garage with 1,600 parking spaces. Read more.
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Two new downtown Marriott hotels set for April openings
The more than $30 million construction of two downtown hotels with a total of 333 rooms is on a fast track, and the work is scheduled to reach the finish line in April, just in time for the Kentucky Derby.
The six-story, 95-room former Inn at Jewish building is being expanded and converted into a 135-room Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott. And adjacent to the Fairfield Inn, an eight-story, 198-room SpringHill Suites by Marriott hotel is under construction. White Lodging will manage the two new hotels and will employ about 160. Read more.
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Louisville dubbed a top city for youth
 For the third year in a row, Louisville has been named one of the "100 Best Communities for Young People" by America's Promise, an organization started by former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell to promote mentoring, education and volunteerism to children and young adults.
Louisville was selected for its partnerships with Jefferson County Public Schools and local businesses, including Every 1 Reads, an initiative that aims to have all children reading at or above grade level; the Louisville Education and Employment Partnership program, which provides mentors to at-risk students; Kid Trax, a computer software system that gives after-school programs access to a database of students' school records; and a $25 million grant from General Electric Co. for math and science initiatives. Read more.
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Ford to test its street smarts with Louisville-built truck
 As fans of hip-hop culture skew increasingly toward luxury looks, Ford wants to tap the market with the new Sport Trac Adrenalin.
Workers at the Louisville Assembly Plant have just begun assembling the tricked-out, streetwise version of the Explorer Sport Trac.
The truck will hit dealer showrooms this month. Read more.
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Bridges' finance plan OK'd
The federal government has approved a plan to pay for the $4.1 billion Ohio River Bridges Project, clearing the way for Kentucky and Indiana to start construction this year.
The move by the Federal Highway Administration frees federal funds to build two new bridges and reconstruct the Spaghetti Junction interchange downtown. The first work will be rebuilding interchanges along Interstate 65 between Broadway and Liberty St.
Under the plan, a bridge between eastern Jefferson County and Utica, Ind., would be open by 2014; a downtown bridge by 2020; and a new interchange east of downtown by 2024. Read more.
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Forbes: UK, U of L among 'most valuable' college hoops teams
The men's basketball teams at the University of Louisville and the University of Kentucky have been named among the top three "most valuable" college hoops squads in the country by Forbes magazine.
Forbes said its valuations are based on the amount of money that basketball programs contribute to their universities' academic programs and athletic programs, their conferences and their local communities. Read more.
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$25 million industrial complex under construction
A new industrial complex will bring more logistics and bulk warehouse space to Louisville's South End.
Jennings Crossing will consist of four buildings totaling 455,000 square feet. The development is expected to cost $25 million. Construction is under way for the first of those buildings, a 207,000-square-foot facility and is expected to be complete in the third quarter of this year. Read more.
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Puck set to score: Famous chef's eatery opens in Kentucky International Convention Center
 Centerplate Inc. has brought a bit of culinary glitz to the Kentucky International Convention Center.
Wolfgang Puck Express, a franchise owned and operated by Centerplate Inc., opened in January. A Stamford, Conn.-based company, Centerplate has the food concession contracts at the convention center as well as several other local venues. Celebrity chef Wolfgang Puck, who has operated restaurants in Los Angeles for two decades, owns a number of privately held companies, including Puck Express, Wolfgang Puck Fine Dining Group, a group of fine-dining restaurants licensing the Puck name, and Wolfgang Puck Catering. Read more.
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U of L school on the move
 Graduate students at the University of Louisville business school will move closer to the business community in 2010, when the three programs move downtown to Museum Plaza.
The college's two-year MBA for working professionals, entrepreneurial MBA and master of accountancy will move to West Main Street and be the northernmost gateway into the planned skyscraper.
Museum Plaza is planned to be a $490 million, 62-story building with lofts, condos, a contemporary art center, office and retail space, along with a Westin hotel. Officials broke ground this past fall, with the hope of opening the skyscraper by 2011.
The business school building is to be opened one year earlier. Read more.
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Year of planning, research behind U of L debut
The University of Louisville has unveiled a new logo that includes the tagline, "It's Happening Here."
U of L officials unveiled the logo after more than a year of research, planning and development. It replaces the "Dare to be Great" line that U of L used in its marketing since 2000, school officials said.
"We dared to be great, and we are great," President James Ramsey said. "We have transformed this university into a premier metropolitan research university, and our new tagline -- 'It's happening here' -- truly says it all." Read more.
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2008 © Greater Louisville Inc. - The Metro Chamber of Commerce
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