Louisville Arena Halted

The Louisville Arena Authority, a nonprofit corporation overseeing the design and construction of a proposed 22,000-seat city arena, has ceased operations pending approval of $75 million in Kentucky state funding for the project.

Growing controversy over where the arena should be located led to LAA Chairman Jim Host’s decision. The authority had chosen a parcel of land on the banks of the Ohio River, but a recent study claimed the city would save $114 million in building costs if it moved the site inland on land owned by the Louisville Water Co.

The arena, originally a $299 million project, is currently expected to cost $381 million. A hotel and retail development, which would be privately funded, are also planned for the site, pushing the total value of the project to $450 million, the city’s Courier-Journal said.

“We won’t do anything now until we know that the legislature is going to appropriate the $75 million for the arena and … that there’s a consensus that the arena should go on the riverfront,” Host told the city’s Courier-Journal.

Along with claiming a move would reduce costs, the study commissioned by two businessmen disputed claims that the site recommended by the task force was much larger than the Louisville Water Co. property, the paper said. The study also claimed that a move would minimize concerns that historic properties at the old water company plot would be an obstacle.

If another site is selected, the authority and Host personally could be held responsible for about $100,000 in expenses for consultants, attorneys and others, Host reportedly said.

The Louisville Arena Authority was created by city Mayor Jerry Abramson and Gov. Ernie Fletcher as a nonprofit organization in charge of building the arena on the riverfront site.

The University of Louisville’s basketball programs would be the arena’s chief tenants, according to The Courier Journal.

School officials backed the riverfront site in a news conference February 27th, saying it would stay at the school’s Freedom Hall or look for an on-campus alternative rather than plan on the Water Company site.