Access Louisville

Have you ever talked up the taste of Louisville's water to someone visiting the area? If so you wouldn't be alone. On this week's Access Louisville podcast, Editor-in-Chief Shea Van Hoy speaks with Spencer Bruce about the reasons behind that — including the marketing effort that aims to make Louisvillians feel proud of the water. Bruce shares a story about a time that he overheard a...

Louisville's fall music festivals are bigger than ever — but is that a good thing or not? We discuss that question this week on the Access Louisville podcast.  Danny Wimmer Presents’ two annual festivals at the Kentucky Exposition Center — Bourbon & Beyond (Sept. 11-14) and Louder Than Life (Sept. 18-21) — look a lot different this year . The festivals now have 2.4 million square feet of...

Several Louisville companies are led by CEOs that have chosen not to live in Louisville. But how much that matters seems to be up for debate — and we chat about that on this week's Access Louisville podcast. LBF Senior Reporter Joel Stinnett is on this week's show to talk about an in-depth report that he just finished on CEOs leading Louisville companies from somewhere else . Humana Inc....

A plan to tear down Liberty Hall in Downtown Louisville, also known as the Oddfellows Building, in order to build a new pickleball facility is attracting the ire of preservationists. We talk about the plans and the response on this week's Access Louisville podcast. LBF Senior Reporter Joel Stinnett is on the show to share details of a press conference he attended on Tuesday, Sept. 2 .  Steve...

A building in the heart of Downtown Louisville could be up for a revamp, which we chat about on this week's Access Louisville podcast. LBF Senior Reporter Joel Stinnett is on the show to share his latest reporting on the  Kentucky Home Life Building at 239 S. 5th Street.  He notes that the Mississippi-based Thrash Group — plus an unnamed local partner — are planning to convert the building in...

A couple of major projects that the Louisville area has been watching for years appear to be inching forward — and we chat about them on the latest episode of the Access Louisville podcast. The two projects are the One Park development effort in Louisville and the redevelopment effort around the former Colgate-Palmolive Co. plant in Clarksville, Indiana.  One Park is a massive mixed-use high-rise...

We chat about Louisville's peer cities on the Access Louisville podcast this week. Louisville Business First Reporter Stephen P. Schmidt recently wrapped up a story on the topic. While the list of Louisville's peers definitely varies depending on who's being asked a few things were clear.  First, Cincinnati, Indianapolis or Nashville, Tennessee — who we often like to compare ourselv...

The merger of Jefferson County and Louisville — yes, the one that happened 20+ years ago — is being threatened with a recent lawsuit. We chat about that on this week's Access Louisville podcast. LBF Reporter Michael L. Jones explains that Real estate developer David Nicklies is challenging the constitutionality of merged local governments in Louisville Metro and Lexington-Fayette Urban County...

Louisville Business First and Access Louisville did a poll asking: What is the most important project in Louisville? We talked about the results of the poll all these projects this week's Access Louisville podcast. Here's a look at the top five priorities that Louisville must take action on.  Finding a new use for the Humana building: In early 2024, Humana Inc. announced plans to vacate...

Derby weekend won't be the same next year, following the news that Churchill Downs is pushing the running of the Kentucky Oaks back to 8 p.m. or later. We chat about the impact of that on this week's Access Louisville podcast.  Churchill Downs announced the change on Thursday, July 24 .  Typically post time for the race, which runs the day before the Kentucky Derby, is scheduled shortly...

The hard stuff keeps flowing, in spite of potential hard times ahead .   We chat about the latest with the Kentucky Bourbon industry on this week's Access Louisville podcast.  LBF Bourbon Reporter Stephen P. Schmidt is on the show to give us the latest on Chicken Cock Whiskey (yes, they realize they have a funny name.) The bourbon brand built a tasting room in Bardstown a year ago and is now...

Our next live podcast is July 28: Join us as we take look at Louisville's most important development projects. Registration here . Affordable housing is an issue affecting many communities in the country, including Louisville. We get into some of the factors behind it on this week's Access Louisville podcast. Elizabeth Strojan, executive director of the Louisville Metro Housing Authority...

We take a trip to the Hoosier State on this week's Access Louisville podcast. Our discussion revolves around some of the economic goings on in Clark and Floyd counties. LBF recently took a deep dive into trends in the area for a section we called Southern Indiana spotlight. To start, we chat about new home development, which has taken off despite higher interest rates affecting housing afford...

GE Appliances President and CEO Kevin Nolan says a move to bring expanded laundry machine production to Louisville, from China is part of the company's ‘zero-distance’ business strategy. We talk about the move and the strategy with LBF Senior Reporter Joel Stinnett on this week's Access Louisville podcast. As Stinnett reported on Thursday , GE Appliances is spending $490 million to expan...

Louisville's bar scene is a lot to keep up with but we give it our best shot on this week's Access Louisville podcast.  This week Louisville Business First Reporter Michael L. Jones is on the show the share some local bar and restaurant news. We start with a new location for High Horse Bar — which is now in Nulu after leaving space in Butchertown. We recently had Brian Goodwin, a partner...

Jim Allen, vice chairman of Robert W. Baird & Co., is on this week's Access Louisville podcast. Baird is the sponsor of the podcast, but Allen was on the show with LBF Editor-in-Chief Shea Van Hoy to talk about local business as well as other topics.  At the top of the program, Allen tells us about progress since the merger between Hilliard Lyons and Baird. The merger of the two legacy fi...

A handful of significant commercial real estate deals top this week's Access Louisville podcast.  LBF Senior Reporter Joel Stinnett is on this week's show and tells us about the sale of the Brown-Forman Cooperage . As he reported recently. Lebanon, Missouri-based Independent Stave Co. purchased the 16-acre property at 402 MacLean Ave. from Brown-Forman for $13.66 million on May 1, accord...

What's behind the Kroger Co.'s recent push to invest in Louisville? Jake Cannon, Louisville division president for Kroger, is on this week's Access Louisville podcast to explain that and much more. LBF has been reporting on major investments from Kroger in the market during the last few years. In March we had a story about a $1.8 million remodel of the West Broadway location . Befor...

The temporary closure of The Dirty Bird restaurant — which has struggled to obtain a liquor license — tops this week's Access Louisville podcast. The Audubon neighborhood restaurant has garnered attention in part because of the suggestive names on its menu — the appetizers are referred to as "foreplay" and the fish sandwich is called "the hooker," for instance. Fred Pizzon...

Access Louisville is a weekly podcast from Louisville Business First. Follow us on popular podcast services to never miss an episode. A look at the latest happenings in NuLu, a little pickleball, a little golf and even a small restaurant recap. All of the above are topics in a loaded edition of the Access Louisville podcast. LBF Reporter Michael L. Jones is on the show to discuss how Gravely Brewi...

Sarah Worrell, general manager of Kentucky Kingdom Theme and Waterpark joins us on the Access Louisville podcast this week.  On the show, Worrell tells us a bit about what's new at the park, including the newest addition — Discovery Meadow . Discovery Meadow is an $11 million investment (part of $25 million in upgrades overall) and will open May 10. "It's gonna be unlike anything an...

Ford Motor Co. recently showed off the latest iteration of its large Expedition SUV in Louisville. Was the reveal a sign of confidence for the automaker? After all, it gave the company a chance to boast about its high level of domestic production — something important in the wake of a trade war.  We chat about that as well as the auto industry overall on this week's episode of the Access Loui...

What are Louisville's biggest assets and how can we best leverage those? That was recently a topic of discussion on the Access Louisville podcast. We took the weekly LBF show live for a special episode — recorded in front of an audience and with three guests:  Jennifer Barber, office member in charge, Louisville, Frost Brown Todd Scott Catlett, chair, Impetus for a Better Louisville and forme...

UPCOMING EVENT: Access Louisville Live presented by Baird. Be on hand for a live recording of the Access Louisville podcast April 22. Details and registration here. A new pizza joint, a French Bistro and the latest on the brewing scene. All of the above are topics on this week's Access Louisville podcast. LBF Restaurant reporter Michael L. Jones is on the show to tell us about a new St. Matth...

UPCOMING EVENT: Access Louisville Live presented by Baird. Be on hand for a live recording of the Access Louisville podcast April 22. Details and registration here. Sometimes Mother Nature just has our number — and that's certainly been true so far in 2025.  On this week's Access Louisville podcast we discuss the loss of Thunder Over Louisville — which is being canceled this year because...