Catholic Charities of Louisville begins razing old buildings near Churchill Downs

The demolition of several older buildings in South Louisville to make way for the new Catholic Charities of Louisville headquarters began this week, but those around the organization say it was a long time coming.

It was a two-year effort to approve plans to tear down the old Holy Name gym and school at Fourth Street and Haywood Avenue and the nearby convent building, by Cardinal Stadium and two blocks north of Churchill Downs, according to Catholic Charities spokeswoman Susan Smith. Court challenges to keep the aging buildings standing advanced all the way from Louisville Metro Council to the Kentucky Supreme Court.

Demolition began Monday, she said, and if all goes according to plan, in about two years Catholic Charities employees working at several locations around town should be relocated into the new headquarters.

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Catholic Charities describes itself on its website as the "social-service arm of the Archdiocese of Louisville." It offers services for the poor and vulnerable in two-dozen counties across the state, including Jefferson County, including support groups and educational programs.

The move will keep the organization in South Louisville once construction is complete. Catholic Charities CEO Lisa DeJaco Crutcher said in a statement that the group "very much wanted to remain in the Holy Name neighborhood, where we are needed and where we can contribute to its revitalization." Smith said getting the whole staff in one building, on a notable Louisville block with access to bus lines and public transportation, will benefit the whole community.

"Everybody will be under one roof, which will be great," Smith said Monday morning. "We have a number of clients who come physically to us. We teach English as a Second Language classes, we do classes for expecting mothers and we do legal services for immigrants and refugees, and most of those people come to us. Now they'll be able to come to one place for that instead of going to a few different places, and that's part of the reason why we wanted to stay here."

There were efforts to save the aging buildings that were torn down this week. Louisville's Metro Council removed their landmarks designation in December 2019, but some neighbors and preservationists had argued the older buildings could be renovated and repurposed instead of demolished. Catholic Charities was finally given the green light by the Kentucky Supreme Court last December, Smith said, which allowed demolition to begin two months later.

The buildings to be torn down were "beautiful," Smith acknowledged. But they were built 88 years ago, with a usable lifespan of 50 years. The heat in the buildings was poorly regulated, she said, and issues persisted with power usage and access to hot water. In her statement Monday, DeJaco Crutcher joked that Catholic Charities is excited to “bring most of our services under one roof (that does not leak!)"

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The project came with an estimated price tag of $7.5 million, but Smith said that number has risen by about 9% because of an increase in the cost of building materials during the coronavirus pandemic. About $5 million had been raised for the project before the pandemic stalled fundraising, she said.

Once complete, she said, the new facility will be able to accommodate employees currently working at the old St. Anthony campus at 23rd and Market streets. That facility will be converted into a Catholic Charities visitor center once construction in South Louisville is finished.

Officials with the organization hope construction of the new headquarters — which will include a food pantry, meeting rooms and other amenities — will be complete by 2024.

Lucas Aulbach can be reached at laulbach@courier-journal.com, 502-582-4649 or on Twitter @LucasAulbach.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Catholic Charities of Louisville demolishes old campus to build new HQ