South Street Underpass Update

This week, Louisville City Council confirmed South Street will remain open and unanimously directed City staff to move forward with a revised proposal based on Option B. Option A was set aside following strong feedback from residents and DELO businesses.

The Chamber worked directly with DELO businesses to gather comments and concerns and advocated on their behalf, ensuring these perspectives were heard. We sincerely thank City staff for their engagement and City Council for listening to the voices of our members and the business community.

As planning for Option B continues, the Chamber looks forward to having a seat at the table to help shape next steps. We also recognize that significant concerns remain about the long-term economic viability for businesses in the DELO complex, and we will continue to bring those forward.

Finally, thank you to our Advocacy Committee for leading communication on this important issue and helping secure this progress for local businesses.

Letter Presented at City Council Meeting Sept 16th.

Good evening Mayor and Council,

Following recent engagement staff asked the chamber to gather feedback in advance of this evenings meeting from the businesses in the DELO Complex. Therefore, on behalf of the Louisville Chamber of Commerce and the DELO businesses, thank you for the opportunity to speak tonight. We want to acknowledge the City staff for the significant work that has gone into the South Street Underpass and for the time they’ve taken to meet with the Chamber. 

What we’d like to share this evening are the perspectives of the DELO business community. While the staff packet refers to “some businesses” raising concerns, our outreach shows that all of the businesses in DELO have shared worries about their ability to make it through extended construction. These concerns go beyond traffic access—they are about day-to-day survival.

Businesses have consistently raised:

Economic Vitality: Closures would mean lost storefronts, reduced sales-tax revenue, lost jobs, and the weakening of a vibrant district.

Construction Duration: Multi-month work limits access, creates noise and dust, and interrupts customer flow—especially for coffee shops, dining, and wellness providers that depend on daily traffic. These are mostly fast serve businesses whose customers will find an alternative if it’s not fast and convenient. 

Cumulative Impact: The underpass is Phase 1, with Highway 42 widening to follow. Businesses fear back-to-back disruption over multiple years.

Parking & Access: The loss of stalls, changes to vehicle flow affect businesses built on quick in-and-out access. Drive-through safety, such as at Ziggi’s Coffee, also requires review.

Noise & Customer Experience: Restaurants and wellness providers cannot thrive amid heavy construction activity.

Question of Need: Businesses ask how this specific underpass balances long-term benefits with near-term survival.

We acknowledge that Option B better preserves South Street access than Option A, and we thank staff for working to minimize harm. Still, Option B does not fully resolve the question of business survival through extended construction.

For that reason, we respectfully suggest:

Commissioning a business impact and need study to measure sales-tax risk, job exposure, and survival probability, and to weigh these outcomes against the broader community benefit.

Continuing to explore design options or phasing strategies that reduce adverse impacts while still meeting long-term goals.

We know how much effort the City has invested to advance this program, and we value the broader Highway 42 vision. Our request is simple: that those businesses most directly affected, be included in shaping the solution.

We welcome the chance to collaborate on a path that delivers the connectivity benefits of the project while safeguarding the vitality of the local economy.

Thank you for your leadership and for your commitment to balancing infrastructure improvements with economic sustainability for our community.

South Street Underpass Planning Document: REVIEW DOC