Notable events during Greg Fischer's tenure as Louisville mayor: A timeline

As Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer wraps up his third and final term, here is a timeline of some of the more notable moments in his tenure.

Nov. 2, 2010 — Fischer wins first election

Fischer defeats Republican Hal Heiner to become the second-ever mayor of the merged city-county government. "We celebrate a future in which we create the best city government in the nation," said Fischer, an entrepreneur and investor who promised to create more jobs.

Jan. 3, 2011 — Inauguration

Speaking on the steps of the old county courthouse, now known as Metro Hall, Fischer describes the city's core values as health, compassion and lifelong learning.

March 20, 2012 — LMPD Chief Steve Conrad takes charge

After Louisville Metro Police Chief Robert C. White leaves for Denver, Colorado, Fischer picks ex-Glendale, Arizona, police Chief Steve Conrad for the top LMPD job.

March 2013 — Sustain Louisville begins

Fischer creates Sustain Louisville, the city's first-ever sustainability plan. He would later update Louisville's sustainability-related goals, including signing a 2022 executive order to designate 2040 as the community-wide goal for net zero emissions.

Aug. 21, 2014 — 'Bourbonism' boom in Louisville

A Courier Journal story notes the increasing number of distilleries in Louisville, particularly along Main Street. "I think we're just in the very, very early stages of seeing what it's going to be," Fischer said, describing the growth of distilleries and resulting gains in employment, taxes and tourism as "bourbonism," a term he and others would use throughout his term as the bourbon-fueled renaissance continued.

Jan. 5, 2015 — Fischer sworn in after winning second term

After coasting to victory over Republican candidate Bob DeVore, Fischer pledges during his second inaugural address to invest more in the city to make it "even more inclusive, entrepreneurial, economically competitive and globally oriented."

June 3, 2016 — Muhammad Ali dies

Legendary boxer Muhammad Ali, a Louisville native, dies in Scottsdale, Arizona, after a decadeslong fight with Parkinson's disease. Fischer and a host of government, public and private organizations work together in the hours and days following Ali's death to prepare for a funeral, a procession and numerous events in honor of The Champ, with the city in the national spotlight.

Aug. 17, 2016 — West Louisville FoodPort project canceled

The developer of the West Louisville FoodPort, a celebrated local food project that was a cornerstone of Fischer's West End redevelopment strategy, abruptly canceled the plan at 30th Street and Muhammad Ali Boulevard. The FoodPort project primarily fell apart after a key proposal, calling for a $23 million indoor vertical farm, is withdrawn.

Oct. 28, 2016 — Walmart drops plans for West End store

More than two years after announcing it would spend over $25 million to bring a superstore to the old Phillip Morris site by West Broadway and 18th Street in the retail-starved West End, Walmart stuns city leaders by canceling the plans. Fischer said a preservation-minded lawsuit from a "very small group of citizens" doomed the deal.

Dec. 31, 2016 — Louisville ends year with record homicide count

The year 2016 sees a record 123 homicides in Jefferson County, with 117 investigated by Louisville Metro Police. The following year, 2017, would see 102 homicides, continuing a trend for a city that saw 48 criminal homicides in 2011, the year Fischer took office.

March 13, 2017 — Fischer shuts down LMPD Explorer program

Fischer shuts down the Louisville Metro Police Explorer Scout program, which was intended to introduce youths to law enforcement careers, because of a sexual abuse scandal involving officers. Days later, Fischer would hire former U.S. Attorney Kerry Harvey to investigate LMPD's handling of the sex abuse allegations, which Fischer said he did not learn about until October 2016.

In 2017, Chief Conrad says in a deposition that he briefed Deputy Mayor Ellen Hesen in 2013 and 2014 about allegations of sexual misconduct in the Explorer program. In 2021, the city agrees to pay $3.65 million to seven former scouts who said they were sexually abused.

Oct. 19, 2017 — YMCA groundbreaking

Fischer joins officials and residents at a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Republic Bank Foundation YMCA by West Broadway and 18th Street. The facility, which opened in December 2019, provides a vital fitness, health, education and community resource in a part of the city that has suffered from disinvestment and vacant properties.

Nov. 6, 2018 — Fischer wins third term

Fischer defeats Republican Angela Leet to win a third and final term in office. “I promise the people of Louisville: We are just getting started," Fischer says at his election night party. "Our city today has momentum and opportunity like none of us has ever seen in our lifetime. And now, we have to do more to make sure everybody is along for the ride."

December 2019 — Fischer chosen to lead U.S. Conference of Mayors

Fischer is picked to serve as president of the nonpartisan U.S. Conference of Mayors. He takes over in June 2020, serving for one year during a critical time for Louisville and other cities amid the COVID-19 pandemic and protests over the police killings of Breonna Taylor in Louisville and George Floyd in Minneapolis.

March 2020 — COVID-19 Pandemic hits

The COVID-19 pandemic emerges, closing schools, businesses, restaurants and countless other things in Louisville to close or shift to virtual operations. Fischer would begin giving regular updates to the city in an effort to control the spread of the virus, and more than 2,500 people in Jefferson County would suffer COVID-related deaths in the worldwide pandemic.

March 13, 2020 — Breonna Taylor dies

Breonna Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman, dies after LMPD officers shoot her during a botched drug raid at her South End apartment. Officers opened fire after Taylor's boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, fired a shot at what he said he thought were intruders busting down the apartment's front door. No drugs or money were found in Taylor's home.

May 28, 2020 — Mass protests begin over Breonna Taylor's death

The first mass protest over Taylor's killing begins near Sixth and Jefferson streets in downtown Louisville. The timing is related to the police killing a few days earlier of George Floyd in Minneapolis and earlier that day of The Courier Journal obtaining audio from Walker's frantic, emotional 911 call following the shooting at Taylor's apartment.

Fischer implements a 9 p.m. curfew for the first few nights of demonstrations, but the protests in Louisville would continue each day and night for over 100 days. A Jefferson County grand jury in September 2020 indicted one of the officers who fired during the raid at Taylor's home but for bullets that flew into an occupied, neighboring apartment, rather than at Taylor. That officer, Brett Hankison, would be found not guilty in March 2022 at the conclusion of a trial. But in August 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice announces federal indictments of Hankison and three other former LMPD personnel on charges mainly related to lying on the search warrant obtained for Taylor's apartment.

Breonna Taylor shooting:A 2-year timeline shows how her death resulted in change

June 1, 2020 — Police kill David McAtee, Fischer fires Conrad

With the city on edge, David "YaYa" McAtee, a beloved BBQ chef in the West End, is killed after Kentucky National Guard and LMPD personnel shoot at him, with an investigation later determining the fatal shot came from a National Guard member. The National Guard was in Louisville to assist with the response to the nightly protests.

Fischer fires Conrad after learned the LMPD officers at the scene of McAtee's shooting did not have their body cameras turned on.

June 2, 2020 — Fischer goes to protesters on streets to defend himself

Fischer goes to Jefferson Square Park, the hub of protests, to speak with demonstrators for the first time about racial inequality, police brutality and his handling of Taylor's death. When protesters ask why the three officers who fired their weapons in the Taylor incident can't immediately be arrested and prosecuted, Fischer says state law limits what he can do because officers "have rights" to an investigation.

July 12, 2020 — LouCity plays first match at new soccer stadium

Lynn Family Stadium, the $65 million soccer-specific stadium, hosts its first Louisville City FC game before a pandemic-limited crowd of nearly 5,000. Fischer said in 2017 that the city would use $25 million to buy the land for the soccer stadium that can seat over 11,500 and expand to 15,000-plus spectators and would contribute another $5 million for infrastructure improvements. The stadium is also home to Racing Louisville FC,

Sept. 15, 2020 — City settles with Taylor's family for $12 million

Attorneys for Taylor's family and city officials announce a record-breaking $12 million settlement for her family that includes a host of police reforms. "Breonna was loved," Fischer said. "I cannot begin to imagine Ms. Palmer's (Taylor's mother, Tamika Palmer) pain, and I am deeply, deeply sorry for Breonna's death."

Jan. 19, 2021 — Erika Shields sworn in as new LMPD chief

After a tumultuous period of two interim chiefs following Conrad's firing and the 2020 protests, Erika Shields is sworn in as LMPD's leader, becoming the city's second female and first openly gay chief. She is described by Fischer as “a special kind of leader."

February 2021 — Track and field complex opens in the West End

The Norton Healthcare Sports & Learning Center, a $53 million facility, opens at 30th Street and Muhammad Ali Boulevard, the corner where the FoodPort project fell through. Complete with two tracks, a rock-climbing wall, a mini bowling alley, a classroom with a dozen tables and a Thornton's store, the new center hosts various track and field events featuring youth, collegiate and professional runners. The city chipped in $10 million to help open the center.

Dec. 31, 2021 — Louisville homicide record broken in back-to-back years

Louisville sees 211 total homicides in 2021 after seeing a record 187 killings in 2020.

June 18, 2022 — Fischer punched at Fourth Street Live

Fischer is punched near the neck and shoulder by a man during an event at Fourth Street Live downtown. Though knocked over by the blow, Fischer suffers no serious injuries, and police later charge the man with fourth-degree assault.

July 21, 2022 — Residents begin returning to Beecher Terrace

Residents begin moving back into Beecher Terrace, the public housing complex west of Ninth Street that was built in 1939 and demolished in 2017 to make way for new, mixed-income apartments. Once complete, the revitalized development will feature 448 affordable apartments, 172 market-rate apartments and 20 single-family houses. The project is part of the Fischer administration's over $200 million neighborhood-wide redevelopment process, which includes investments throughout the Russell neighborhood.

Oct. 25, 2022 — Fischer's father, George, dies

George Fischer, the mayor's Father and an entrepreneur who left his mark on Louisville in several ways, dies at the age of 90. Before earning a place in the Kentucky Entrepreneur Hall of Fame in 2013, he started Metridata Computer Inc., which the organization said became "one of the largest remote computer processing companies in the Midwest" before he sold it in 1979, and later with his sons founded Servend International, which the University of Louisville noted went "from the brink of bankruptcy to being the largest maker of ice- and beverage-dispensing systems in the world."

"He and my Mom taught and showed me and my siblings that caring for others and leaving the world a better place are the best things anyone can accomplish," Mayor Fischer said.

Nov. 8, 2022 — Greenberg wins election to succeed Fischer as mayor

A businessman and lawyer with experience as a developer, Democratic candidate Craig Greenberg defeated Republican candidate and Jeffersontown Mayor Bill Dieruf in the November 2022 election to succeed Fischer as mayor of Louisville. Fischer congratulated Greenberg and tweeted that he looked "forward to working with him to ensure a smooth transition."

Reach Billy Kobin at bkobin@courierjournal.com

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Greg Fischer: Notable events during his time as Louisville mayor