Smoketown business owners look forward to street change

Louisville, KY — If you drive anywhere near downtown Louisville, you know that there are a lot of one-way streets.

However, two of the streets will change in 2023.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) will improve traffic safety by converting Logan and Shelby streets into two-way streets.

Business owners in the Smoketown community are delighted that this change is happening.

Emil David, owner of Square Cut and Sugar Room, said he has seen numerous U-turns since he opened the two stores in 2021.

“It’s hard to, like, walk around and find these places, and then you have to, like, go around again to find where you want to go,” he said.

There have been about 40 collisions on Shelby and Logan streets this year, according to the Kentucky State Police.

So David and other business owners are happy about the change.

Kristin Zoeller owns The Bluegrass Witch on popular Logan Market Street. She said a two-way street would make the space more welcoming.

“I think it’s a great idea, and we love seeing anything that makes the community safer,” she said.

Kinder Artist store owner Sarah Kinder said many tourists come to the area but are often confused.

“They come downtown and they say, ‘Oh my god, there’s so many weird one-way and two-way things,’ but they don’t really know,” she said.

However, while Kinder did say she liked the plan, she worried it would create confusion for those who live in the area.

“It can be a little scary at first, you know, it’s been a one-way street for a while,” she said. “Now we’ve changed it to a two-way street, and people who are used to it is one-way, and that might cause some problems.”

Construction of the project will start in 2023 and should be completed by the end of this year, KYTC said.

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