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Category Archives: Nabes: East Village – NuLu
Creation Gardens Moving Forward On East Market Street
Planned East Market Street Facility (Courtesy Creation Gardens)
Creation Gardens is ready to move forward with a planned facility on the corner of East Market and Shelby Streets in Nulu. We first learned of the project last September, but Creation Gardens owner Ron Turnier now says the company will close on the East Market Street property next week and the new store could be open early next year.
Currently located on Main and Hancock Streets, Creation Gardens has struggled with a deteriorating facility but couldn’t put money into the building because it is slated for demolition for an expanded Spaghetti Junction. Now, a settlement has been reached with the Ohio River Bridges Project that allows the new East Market warehouse to be built.
Turnier says the new Creation Gardens will be state-of-the-art and offer services to chefs and retail customers. New products including meat, seafood, wines, and breads will be offered in addition to Creation Gardens’ traditional focus on local and regional food.
Plans still call for a 27,000 square foot facility that could attract 200 chefs a week and 10,000 square feet of that space will be dedicated to the retail market. Design of the new facility was done by K. Norman Berry Architects of Louisville.
Other amenities planned for the East Market site include (from today’s announcement):
- Demo Kitchen that will allow you to promote your restaurant, educate customers and perform menu research.
- Library and Resource area for menu planning and research – complete with cook books, the latest trade publications, and internet access. Located in balcony section.
- Public Conference Room where you can host meetings or educational sessions.
- Chefs Special Entrance that gives you quick access to our purchasers, customer service reps and pick-up dock.
- We Will Host Regular Meetings to allow chefs from all of our regions to exchange ideas and become more successful restaurateurs.
Planned East Market Street Facility (Courtesy Creation Gardens)
PrintSnapshot: Liberty Green Community Center
Liberty Green Community Center (Photo courtesy Steve Wiser)
Here’s a photo-update of the under-construction Liberty Green Community Center on the corner of Jefferson and Jackson Streets. The building is Louisville Metro Housing Authority’s first LEED registered building. The first three photos are just under a month old, so there’s likely more brick showing today, but I wanted to get these online before it was hopelessly too late. Three more photos after the click show progress in mid-December.
Stalled Legacy Lofts Project To See New Life
Legacy Lofts on East Main Street
It’s hard to miss the bright orange Legacy Lofts building half built on the corner of East Main Street and Campbell Street. Originally the idea of developer and architect Mark Isaacs, Legacy Lofts has become the poster child of the recession for Louisville’s condo market. Now that the economy is beginning to stabilize, however, the mixed-use residential project is about to see new life.
Legacy Lofts went to foreclosure auction on February 16 after work ceased over a year ago and Will Realty, headed by David Will and his daughter Kelly Will, placed the sole bid of $1.87 million for the five-story, 38-unit structure. David Will says he believes the project is still viable and hopes to get started finishing the building as soon as possible.
David Will and his team have been conducting brainstorming sessions this week about how to proceed with the project. He plans to incorporate as many of the sustainable features as possible from the 2008 Green Multifamily Building of the Year but admits that the orange color is out. Instead, he plans a few facade modifications to add interest and will use a neutral color scheme of taupe. The overall aesthetic will remain modern.
The condition of the interior still hasn’t fully been determined but, as expected, there has been some decay. Will says he made an emergency walk through during the auction and has sealed up what he can, but a more thorough inspection will be required to determine the extent of work. Anything that is deteriorated or broken will be taken apart and rebuilt – no easy task considering some units were nearly complete when construction halted.
On the inside, Will intends to keep the general layout but is considering combining some of the smaller units. The structure is comprised of two masses containing residential units with an outdoor courtyard in the middle. Will also plans to keep 3,200 square feet of retail space fronting Main Street. He says the vibrancy of the East Market corridor including several planned projects within surrounding blocks convinced him the project is still feasible.
LEED Certification could still be in play. Isaacs designed the building to be a model of sustainability and Will hopes to keep the building green. There’s already a geothermal system comprising 16,800 linear feet of geothermal coils installed under the building that Will plans on salvaging. Legacy Lofts also contains massive amounts of insulation and some walls were double framed for an effective R50 value. Much of the gypsum wall board and insulation has probably fallen victim to the elements, though.
Another green element that could remain is a white roof containing “thermospheres,” microscopic glass and ceramic beads, that increase reflectivity to keep the building cool in the summer and reduce the urban heat island effect. The original design also called for rainwater harvesting to irrigate plants on the interior courtyard.
Will is currently reaching out to those who had expressed interest in the original project. In 2008, 12 units were reserved ranging in price from $125,000 to $525,000. Will must submit his proposed changes to the city, but wants to get construction started quickly. He hopes to have the first units available in as soon as six months. As always, that timeline depends on the condition of the building.
Preparing The Next Piece Of The Wayside Block Redevelopment Puzzle
Proposed changes to former Wayside building (Courtesy Gill Holland)
Even though work won’t begin until Fall 2010, Gill Holland and team have begun planning their move on East Market Street. The first buildings on the 800 block to be refurbished have been brought back to their 19th century grandeur and are now occupied, but farther east an unassuming two-story 20th century structure is in need of some serious work.
Jennifer Charles Architects has prepared schematic drawings to guide the renovation of the building by working with the building’s inherent proportions currently covered over and largely hidden. Charles recognizes the buildings pivotal role as a transition from 19th century buildings to the west to modern structures to the east. By harnessing the simplicity of the building’s design, the renovation will “underscore the authenticity” of surrounding historic structures.
The schematic plan calls for peeling away the current brick facade and emphasizing structural elements to create three levels on the facade: the outer masonry shell, internal structure, and glass infill panels. The new facade will draw attention to its horizontal nature rather than the current tripartite verticality. It also creates modular bays that can accommodate balconies or porches.
Gill Holland says his group will take over the building on August 21 and work could begin shortly thereafter.
New Italian Restaurant Planned At East Market Vineyard
New restaurant headed for Felice Vineyards
A new restaurant is under construction at the Felice Vineyards complex on East Market Street. Tilia, a Northern Italian concept, plans to open in April or early May of 2010 in time for Derby and should compliment the Italian charm of the Felice Vinyards complex which includes the Felice winery and the Bodega Deli and Grocery. Tilia is taking the space vacated by Melillo’s restaurant in December 2008.
Jeff Tatman, owner of Felice Vineyards, says the plan from the outset was to create a walkable destination with many options and says the concept is just as viable now as it’s ever been. He opens his winery once a month on the First Friday Trolley Hop but private tours and events can also be booked as well. If you haven’t been to the winery and seen everything that goes on in the process including row upon row of wine stored in the basement cellar, you’re missing one of Louisville’s best attractions.
Felice Vineyards also offers four large apartments on the second and third floors. Tatman says all four units have been leased for some time, but one apartment just opened up and is available for rent. For more information about the apartment or for booking a winery tour or event, contact Jeff Tatman at 819.5898.
Click through for a few photos of the Felice Vineyards winery.
Little Green Building On Jefferson Street Shines
Little Green Building on Jefferson Street
There’s another “green building” in Nulu. Situated behind Gill Holland’s showcase East Market Street Green Building is a small brick and limestone commercial structure on Jefferson Street. The three story building may be noticeably smaller than its counterpart, but the community spirit inside is just as strong.
Once threatened with demolition, the newly dubbed Little Green Building is now fully occupied. Shine, a multifaceted company who has been restoring buildings and teaching yoga, has officially opened its headquarters in the renovated structure. I recently had a chance to sit down with Gregg and Maria Rochman, partners in the Shine venture, to find out how they came to choose Nulu for the headquarters.
Click through to read more and for renovation and interior photos.
Can East Market Get Any Better? Joe Ley Thinks So
Joe Ley Block Concept Plan (Courtesy Village Solutions)
Joe Ley, owner of Joe Ley Antiques on East Market Street, has already announced his intentions to improve his property and add to the vibrancy of Nulu. In November, he teamed up with Village Solutions to study the potential of his properties on the 600 block on East Market. Today, Joe Ley and Village Solutions revealed their concept, and like the Service Welding block concept plan released earlier this year, it’s stunning.
Proposed changes include replacing two buildings with a “three-tiered” glass structure called the “Light Cube” and adding a new fourth level to the historic school building that served at Joe Ley’s headquarters. The proposal was outlined in a 180-page strategic plan released by Village Solutions today.
Rick Hill, president of Village Solutions, said, “Our challenge was to preserve and protect those portions of the block which were special, yet create an economically viable development with slightly more density. Consequently, it was important to make sure that historic and architecturally significant aspects remained relatively untouched or returned back to its original grandeur. Likewise, we did not want to marginalize the historic structures with new additions made to look old.”
To achieve this, the Light Cube will transition between the old school building and the adjacent Parish Hall of St. John’s Church. It will contain 26,800 square feet and is broken into three masses designed to step up or down to mediate the scale of neighboring historic structures. The new building will glow like a lantern and feature sustainable elements such as a green roof. A street level restaurant could anchor the structure.
The former Hiram Roberts School will largely be untouched except for the addition of a “glass top hat” designed as a modern interpretation of a Beaux-Arts roof, a style fashionable when the structure was built. Joe Ley’s properties would be connected to the larger East Market area including the Creation Gardens site via an “Art Walk.”
Joe Ley must now consider the proposal and determine how to move forward. He says he likes the recommendations but “it will take me some time to get my arms around all the issues.” While Ley mulls the future of his properties, we can all imagine East Market Street becoming as beautiful as Village Solutions’ rendering.
Urban Chickens On The Loose In Nulu
Chickens in Nulu (Courtesy Louisville Beer Store)
With Nulu gaining reputation as a top neighborhood for all things food, it seems a couple of chickens wanted to get in on the action. Last week, a rooster and a hen were found roaming the streets of Nulu, presumably looking for directions to CakeFlour.
Lori Beck and Tyler Trotter, owners of the Louisville Beer Store on East Market, found the hen wandering on Shelby Street and her rooster companion perched atop a bicycle behind the store. With one fell swoop, Lori and Tyler rescued the chickens and took one more bike thief off the streets.
We were alerted to the impending crisis via Twitter with a message that read, “Anyone know someone in NuLu that keeps chickens? They’ve lost their flock!” It seems in these dire times, even livestock isn’t immune to coop foreclosure.
Tyler Trotter says the chickens’ home still hasn’t been found, but neighbors are being notified. The birds are taking temporary shelter in the backyard of the Louisville Beer Store until further notice.
The so-called “urban chicken movement” has been gaining momentum across the country with the rising popularity of “locavores” raising their own food close to home. It is legal to have chickens in the city of Louisville, but it remains somewhat of an oddity around town. Having heard the familiar cluck from backyards on my own walks, it always is an unexpected surprise.
Do you raise chickens in the city? Are these your chickens? Want to know more about getting into the game? For more information on urban chickens, check out this On Point radio show or these resources here and here and here.
Chickens in Nulu (Courtesy Louisville Beer Store)
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