♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> Kelsey: HI AND WELCOME TO "INSIDE LOUISVILLE" WHERE WE INTRODUCE YOU TO THE PEOPLE, PLACES AND THINGS THAT MAKE UP KENTUCKY'S LARGEST CITY.

THIS WEEK WE TAKE YOU "INSIDE LOUISVILLE'S" WHISKEY ROW, TECHNICALLY A ONE-BLOCK LONG ENTERTAINMENT DISTRICT IN THE 100 BLOCK OF EAST MAIN STREET, WHISKEY ROW HAS EXPANDED TO INCLUDE DISTILLERIES POPPING UP ALL ALONG MAIN STREET.

THE COLLECTION OF CAST IRON STORE FRONTS HOLD A HISTORY IN LOUISVILLE'S BOURBON INDUSTRY.

AT ITS PRE-PROHIBITION PEAK IN THE EARLY 1900S, THE AREA HOUSED 46 DISTILLERS AND RELATED BUSINESSES ALONG THE MAIN STREET CORRIDOR UNTIL PROHIBITION BROUGHT THE AREA TO A SCREECHING HALT IN 1920.

TODAY WHISKEY ROW IS GOING BACK TO ITS ROOTS.

ONE EXAMPLE IS AT THE OLD FORESTER DISTILLERY WHICH IS TRULY OLD.

CHRISTIE DUTTON TAKES US THERE.

♪ ♪ >> OLD FORESTER DISTILLERY IS CONSIDERED BY MANY TO BE A NEW ANCHOR OF HISTORIC WHISKEY ROW HERE ON MAIN STREET IN LOUISVILLE.

IN 2018, THEY MOVED BACK INTO THE EXACT BUILDING THEY OPERATED IN IN THE LATE 1800s.

>> WE'VE BEEN ON WHISKEY ROW, FOUNDED ON WHISKEY ROW AND WE ARE BACK.

AND IN THE VERY PLACE THAT THE BRAND STARTED.

>> AND IT ALL STARTED WITH THIS MAN, GEORGE GARVIN BROWN.

>> IN 1870, FOUNDED OLD FORESTER, A PHARMACEUTICAL SALESMAN.

HE HAD JUST MOVED TO LOUISVILLE FROM A VERY SMALL TOWN IN KENTUCKY WHERE HE WAS BORN AND RAISED.

>> HE MAINLY SOLD OPIUM AND WHISKEY BUT IT WAS THE WAY THAT HE SOLD WHISKEY THAT SET HIM APART FROM THE COMPETITION.

>> BACK IN THOSE TIMES.

YOU COULD ONLY BUY WHISKEY STRAIGHT FROM THE BARREL.

SO YOU WOULD GO TO THE PUB OR TO YOUR PHARMACIST AND GET, WITH YOUR JUG, FILL IT UP WITH WHISKEY AND OFF YOU WOULD GO.

SO GEORGE GARVIN BROWN HAD THE REVOLUTIONARY IDEA OF SEALING IT IN A GLASS BOTTLE.

>> AND THE GLASS BOTTLE NEEDS A LABEL WITH A NAME SO WHERE DID THE NAME OLD FORESTER COME FROM?

>> THIS IS Dr.

WILLIAM FORESTER.

>> A GOOD FRIEND AND NEIGHBOR OF GEORGE GARVIN BROWN.

>> A RENOWNED UNION SURGEON.

WELL KNOWN IN THE LOUISVILLE KENTUCKY AREA AND SO HE ENDORSED GEORGE GARVIN BROWN'S BOURBON.

AND BACK IN THE CONNOTATION OF OLD, WHAT WE THINK OF TODAY, BACK THEN, IT SIMPLY MEANT IT WAS AGED SO NOT A NEW SPIRIT.

OLD FORESTER CAME FROM THAT.

>> NAME RECOGNITION HELPED TO POPULARIZE THE BOURBON BRAND AND THEY SET UP SHOP ON MAIN STREET'S WHISKEY ROW.

>> THIS IS A PHOTOGRAPH FROM THIS BUILDING.

THIS IS GEORGE GARVIN BROWN AND THIS IS LIKE, YOU KNOW, THE BUSINESS, THE GOINGS ON.

>> AND THE BOURBON BUSINESS WAS BOOMING UNTIL... >> SCREECHING HALT.

THE DARK DAYS OF PROHIBITION KIND OF STARTED.

>> WHEN BANNED THE PRODUCTION AND SALE OF ALCOHOL IN THE U.S.

STARTING IN 1920 AND THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN THE END OF OLD FORESTER'S STORY IF IT WASN'T FOR A VERY LUCKY BREAK.

>> LUCKILY FOR US, BROWN FOREMAN WAS ISSUED ONE OF SIX MEDICINAL PERMITS IN KENTUCKY.

>> SO THEY COULD KEEP SELLING OLD FORESTER BUT ONLY TO BE CONSUMED AS MEDICINE.

>> AND SO ALL OF A SUDDEN, AMERICA HAD HEADACHES AND HANG NAILS AND EVERYBODY RAN TO THEIR PHARMACIST TO GET THEIR WHISKEY.

>> AS BUSINESS SCALED BACK TO STRICTLY PHARMACEUTICAL SALES, THEY ABANDONED THEIR HOME ON OLD WHISKEY ROW SETTING UP HEADQUARTERS ON DIXIE HIGHWAY.

>> THE ONLY BOURBON BRAND SOLD BEFORE, DURING AND AFTER PROHIBITION.

>> WHEN PROHIBITION ENDED IN 1933, BOURBON PRODUCTION HIT A FAST PACE.

>> THE LID IS OFF IN MANY PLACES WITH THE DOWNFALL OF PROHIBITION BEING CELEBRATED IN REAL OLD TIME HILARITY.

>> OLD FORESTER MINT JULEP, WE ARE THE OFFICIAL DRINK OF THE KENTUCKY DERBY.

>> OFFERING NEW VARIATIONS.

>> WE HAVE A BARREL STRENGTH OPTION, 100-PROOF OPTION, AND THEN WE HAVE OUR LOVELY RYE SINGLE BARREL OPTION.

>> AND FANCY BOTTLES.

>> BACK IN THE 50s AND 60S, WE RELEASED A HOLIDAY DECANTER.

>> OLD FORESTER HAS EVOLVED THROUGH ITS 155-YEAR HISTORY.

BUT THEIR CRAFT OF BOURBON MAKING FOLLOWS THE SAME PATH IT ALWAYS HAS.

>> THIS FERMENTER LOOKS LIKE IT WAS JUST SET THIS MORNING.

IT IS GETTING READY TO START CRANKING.

>> BUT TODAY, IT'S ENHANCED BY STATE-OF-THE-ART EQUIPMENT AND INNOVATIVE TECHNOLOGY.

BUT THE BRAND NEVER FORGOT ITS ROOTS.

>> IN 2017-18 WHEN WE WERE MOVING BACK HERE, IT WAS A CRAZY MOVE IN SOME WAYS BECAUSE THE BRAND WAS VERY, VERY SMALL.

>> IT WAS RISKY BUSINESS FOR THE WHISKEY BUSINESS BUT THE MOVE BACK TO HISTORIC WHISKEY ROW DISTILLED NEW LIFE INTO AN AGE OLD LEGACY.

>> AND WE ARE THE ONLY BOURBON DISTILLERY STILL OPERATING IN THE PLACE THAT IT WAS ACTUALLY BORN, WHICH IS RIGHT HERE ON MAIN STREET DOWNTOWN LOUISVILLE.

>> I'M CHRISTIE DUTTON FOR "INSIDE LOUISVILLE."

>> DREW SHYROCK IS KNOWN AS LOUISVILLE'S BOURBON BARON AND THE CREATOR OF WHISKEY ROW WALKING TOURS.

HE KNOWS EVERYTHING THERE IS TO KNOW ABOUT WHISKEY ROW AND THE HISTORY.

BUT I WANT TO START WITH THIS TITLE.

EVERYONE KNOWS YOU AS LOUISVILLE'S BOURBON BARON AND HOW DID YOU GET THAT NAME?

>> A GOOD FRIEND OF MINE, MELISSA, WHEN I WAS PUTTING THE TOUR TOGETHER, SHE SAID WE NEED TO COME UP WITH A NAME AND WE TOSSED AROUND A COUPLE OF NAMES AND I THOUGHT, YOU KNOW, I LIKE THIS BOURBON BARON.

SHE SAID THAT'S GREAT.

LET'S GO WITH THAT.

THAT'S WHAT WE ARE GOING TO STICK WITH.

THAT'S HOW I GOT IT.

>> THAT'S WHO YOU ARE NOW.

>> YEAH.

>> THIS IS A SECOND CAREER FOR YOU.

>> THAT'S CORRECT.

>> YOU HAD A LONG CAREER IN CITY GOVERNMENT.

>> YES, I HAVE.

>> BEFORE THIS.

SO TELL US ABOUT THAT AND HOW IT KIND OF TRANSLATED INTO THIS SECOND CAREER FOR YOU, A PASSION REALLY.

>> AND IT IS A PASSION.

I STARTED OUT MY CAREER IN CITY GOVERNMENT AT THE OFFICE FOR ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT.

AND I STARTED WITH OUR SMALL BUSINESS LENDING PROGRAMS, BASICALLY SMALL BUSINESS LOANS THAT IF SOMEONE WANTS TO OPEN UP A BUSINESS, THEY CAN COME TO OUR OFFICE AND SEEK FINANCING AND IF THEIR PROJECT WAS APPROVED, OBVIOUSLY THEY WOULD GET IN THEY WOULD GET A LOAN FOR US.

I WORKED IN THAT POSITION AND IN ANOTHER AREA CALLED NEIGHBORHOOD COMMERCIAL REDEVELOPMENT WHERE WE WOULD TARGET THE OLDER COMMERCIAL CORRIDORS IN LOUISVILLE AND JEFFERSON COUNTY AND WE WOULD GO IN THERE WITH A SMALL LENDING PROGRAM, A FACADE LENDING PROGRAM.

BUT WE WOULD REPLACE THE SIDEWALKS AND ADD STREET FURNITURE AND STREET LIGHTING TO THE COMMERCIAL CORRIDORS.

AND EVENTUALLY, BEFORE I WAS ABLE TO RETIRE FROM CITY GOVERNMENT, I WAS AN ASSISTANT DIRECTOR WITH THE DEPARTMENT.

BUT I ENJOYED WHAT I DID.

IT WAS A LOT OF FUN BECAUSE I COULD HELP BRING A LOT OF CHANGE INTO THE COMMERCIAL CORRIDORS.

BUT ALSO BRING CHANGE TO LOUISVILLE OVERALL.

>> YEAH.

SO HOW DID THAT TRANSLATE INTO THIS PASSION FOR WHISKEY ROW?

WAS THAT SOMETHING THAT DEVELOPED DURING THAT CAREER OR WAS THAT SOMETHING THAT YOU JUST ALWAYS WERE INTERESTED IN?

>> ALWAYS INTERESTED IN, YOU KNOW, IF YOU ARE A NATIVE KENTUCKIAN LIKE I AM, BOURBON IS PART OF YOUR HERITAGE.

AND I ALWAYS TELL PEOPLE, MY GRANDMOTHER WOULD COME OVER TO OUR HOUSE EVERY SUNDAY TO HELP FIX SUNDAY DINNER AND HER AND MY MOTHER ALWAYS HAD A HIGH BALL.

I WILL NEVER FORGET WHEN I WAS YOUNG, I HAD A TASTE OF IT AND I THOUGHT THIS TASTES REALLY GOOD.

THAT'S ALL YOU GET IS A LITTLE TASTE.

BUT IT'S JUST, I GUESS BECAUSE I LOVE HISTORY, AND I LOVE THE HISTORY OF BOURBON, SO WHEN I RETIRED FROM CITY GOVERNMENT, I HAD A FRIEND OF MINE WAS STARTING UP A BOURBON TOUR COMPANY AND THEY SAID WOULD YOU LIKE TO COME WORK FOR US BECAUSE I KNOW YOU LIKE HISTORY.

AND THAT'S HOW I GOT STARTED.

I STARTED TAKING PEOPLE OUT ON TOURS OF THE BOURBON DISTILLERIES AND JUST STARTED LEARNING ABOUT THE HISTORY OF BOURBON.

I KNEW THE BASICS OF IT BUT I STARTED GOING TO ALL THESE DISTILLERIES, STARTED MEETING THE MASTER DISTILLERS AND THE OWNERS AND SOME OF THE FOLKS THAT RUN THE DISTILLERY.

AND IT JUST BUILT UP MORE OF A PASSION FOR ME.

AND THEN I THOUGHT AS THIS BOURBON BOOM IS CONTINUING, I THOUGHT, YOU KNOW, I CAN TRY THIS ON MY OWN.

BECAUSE A LOT OF PEOPLE, THEY WOULD COME AND TAKE THE BOURBON TOURS AND THEY WOULD SAY, YOU KNOW, WE TRY TO GET IT INTO SUCH AND SUCH DISTILLERY BUT IT WAS FULL.

AND SO WE DECIDED TO GO OUT ON THE BOURBON TRAIL.

AND I THOUGHT THERE HAS GOT TO BE A WAY THAT I CAN GET PEOPLE INTO THE DISTILLERY, NOT FOR A TOUR, BUT JUST FOR A TASTING.

AND THAT'S WHAT HAPPENED IS THAT I RESEARCHED THE HISTORY OF WHISKEY ROW.

I ALREADY KNEW THE HISTORY OF BOURBON.

BUT I WENT AND MET WITH THESE INDIVIDUAL DISTILLERS AND WENT THROUGH MY CONCEPT WITH THEM AND THEY REALLY ENJOYED IT AND IT HAS WORKED OUT WELL EVER SINCE.

>> YOUR TOUR WILL COVER ALL OF WHISKEY ROW AND THEN YOU GET TO GO INSIDE SOME OF THE DISTILLERIES.

>> CORRECT.

THE TOUR STARTS AT THE FRASIER HISTORY MUSEUM, YOU KNOW, TECHNICALLY WHISKEY ROW, THE HEART OF IT WAS BETWEEN BROOK, FIRST AND SECOND STREET ON MAIN.

THAT'S WHERE THE MAJORITY OF THE DISTILLERIES WERE.

BUT THERE WERE A SPRINKLING OF DISTILLERIES UP ALONG WHISKEY ROW, BASICALLY FROM BROOK ALL THE WAY UP TO NINTH STREET IS WHERE A FEW OF THEM WERE LOCATED AS WELL.

BUT THAT'S WHERE I STARTED, AT THE FRASIER HISTORY MUSEUM AND THEN WE WORK OUR WAY DOWN MAIN STREET AND WE END AT SECOND AND MAIN.

>> AND THIS ONE AREA, LIKE YOU MENTIONED, IT WAS JUST THIS ONE BLOCK THAT IS TECHNICALLY HISTORIC WHISKEY ROW.

>> CORRECT.

>> LET'S GO BACK TO THE 1800s.

TELL US WHAT-- DESCRIBE THIS AREA BACK THEN AND WHY DID IT BEGIN TO BE A PLACE WHERE BOURBON WAS CREATED?

>> WELL, 1850 LOUISVILLE IS THE TENTH LARGEST CITY IN THE COUNTRY.

AND A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE AMAZED WHEN I SAY THAT, BECAUSE OF OUR SIGNIFICANCE AND LOCATION ON THE RIVER, AND ALSO THE REASON WHY WE ARE ALL HERE TODAY, THE FALLS OF THE OHIO.

SO AS THESE RIVER BOATS CAME UP AND DOWN THE RIVER, THEY HAD TO STOP HERE IN LOUISVILLE TO OFF LOAD AND ON LOAD THEIR PACKAGES, GOODS, PRODUCTS, PASSENGERS THAT THEY HAD.

AND THAT'S HOW PORTLAND WAS FOUNDED, TOO.

BECAUSE THEY WOULD OFF LOAD A LOT OF IT IN PORTLAND, BRING IT UP BY CART OR SMALL RAIL UP INTO LOUISVILLE AND VICE VERSA.

UNTIL THEY ESTABLISHED THE LOCK SYSTEM IN LOUISVILLE.

BUT BY 1850, THERE WOULD BE AT LEAST 50 STEAM BOATS PARKED OUT ON OUR BANKS, HALF OF THEM WERE COMING FROM NEW ORLEANS ALONE, SO WHERE GOODS WERE BEING IMPORTED FROM EUROPE VIA NEW ORLEANS, LOUISVILLE WAS THEIR FIRST MAJOR STOP.

RARE ITEMS LIKE SILK, THINGS BROUGHT IN FROM EUROPE, FURNITURE.

PEOPLE CAME HERE TO LOUISVILLE TO PURCHASE THOSE RARE AND UNIQUE ITEMS.

AND THAT'S WHAT MADE THE CITY GROW.

EVENTUALLY, WHISKEY TAKES HOLD HERE.

THE LATE 1700s, EARLY 1800S AND MORE PEOPLE DRANK ALCOHOL IN THE 1800S THAN THEY DRANK WATER ON A DAILY BASIS.

>> WOW!

>> YES, AND THAT'S BECAUSE PEOPLE DIDN'T TRUST WATER SOURCES.

PEOPLE DIED OF A LOT OF WATER-BORN ILLNESSES BACK THEN.

CHOLERA, TYPHOID, AND THEY FELT MORE COMFORTABLE DRINKING ALCOHOL THAN THEY DID DRINKING WATER.

SO OBVIOUS OBVIOUSLY THERE WAS A DEMAND FOR IT.

>> SURE, WHAT A TIME TO BE ALIVE.

[LAUGHTER] >> GOLLY.

BUT I KNOW THAT BOURBON IS SPECIAL TO KENTUCKY.

TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT AND WHY BOURBON IS REALLY ORIGINAL TO HERE.

>> THE REASON IS THAT A LOT OF THE IMMIGRANTS SPECIFICALLY FROM SCOTLAND, IRELAND, WHO CAME HERE IN THIS AREA, THEY BROUGHT WHAT WE CALL A FAMILY RECIPE.

SOME OF THEM BROUGHT STILLS.

SO WHEN THEY START SETTLING THIS AREA, THEY BROUGHT THEIR RECIPES WITH THEM.

THEY FOUND OUT THAT WHEN THEY DISTILLED WHISKEY IN OTHER AREAS OF THE COUNTRY, THEIR WATER SOURCES HAD A LOT OF IRON IN IT.

THAT IRON AFFECTS THE TASTE OF ALCOHOL.

IT WOULD GIVE IT A METALLIC TASTE.

WHEN THEY CAME HERE TO KENTUCKY, AS WE ALL KNOW, WE SIT ON A HUGE LIMESTONE SHELF.

KENTUCKY, TENNESSEE, NORTHERN ALABAMA, THAT WATER FILTERS UP FROM THE LIMESTONE.

IT TAKES THE IRON OUT AND PUTS CALCIUM INSIDE IT.

AND PEOPLE FOUND OUT THAT IT GAVE THEIR WHISKEY A BETTER FLAVOR, BUT ALSO A LONGER SHELF LIFE.

SO THAT'S WHAT DROVE A LOT OF PEOPLE TO COME INTO THIS AREA BECAUSE WORD GOT OUT THAT KENTUCKY WAS A WONDERFUL PLACE FOR MAKING WHISKEY.

EVENTUALLY WAS WOULD BE CALLED BOURBON.

1870 WE HAD SIX DISTILLERIES, 1880S, THE BOOM TAKES OFF AND WE HAVE 36 DISTILLERIES IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA.

BY 1910, WE HAVE 46 DISTILLERIES AND 80 WHOLESALE WHISKEY MERCHANTS, JUST TO SHOW HOW WHISKEY BLEW UP, EXPLODED HERE IN LOUISVILLE.

>> SO YOU ARE ON THIS UPWARD TRAJECTORY WHERE LOUISVILLE IS, LIKE YOU SAID, THE TENDS LARGEST THE TENTH LARGESSEST CITY IN THE COUNTRY, THIS BIG BOURBON BOOM.

THEY FOUND THEIR BUSINESS THAT IS BRINGING PEOPLE AND BRINGING MONEY AND THEN WHAT HAPPENED?

THEN IT COMES TO A HALT.

AND PRIOR TO PROHIBITION, ALMOST 20% OF THE U.S.

WHISKEY PRODUCTION IS EITHER PRODUCED HERE IN LOUISVILLE OR BEING SHIPPED THROUGH LOUISVILLE THROUGH SUPPORTING DISTILLERIES ON THE OUTER PERIMETERS LIKE JEFFERSON COUNTY.

AND THAT'S BEEN SHIPPED BECAUSE OF RAIL, THE LOUISVILLE AND NATIONAL RAILROAD, WHICH WE CALL THE O & N AND SHIPPING VIA THE RIVER.

THAT HAD A MAJOR IMPACT.

A MAJOR IMPACT ON THE SHIPPING BUSINESS AND MAJOR IMPACT ON TAVERNS AND SALOONS BECAUSE FAMILIES LOST THEIR LIVELIHOOD.

THEY LOST THEIR JOBS.

THEIR EMPLOYEES LOST THEIR JOBS.

HAD A MAJOR IMPACT ON GRAIN PRICES HERE IN THE UNITED STATES.

BUT IT ALSO HAD A MAJOR IMPACT IN SHIPPING AS FAR AS RIVER BOAT SHIPPING AND SHIPPING VIA RAIL.

AND ALSO THE SPINOFF EFFECT.

PEOPLE WHO MADE COOPERS BARRELS, BOURBON BARRELS, THEY LOST THEIR JOBS AS WELL.

SO IT HAD A MAJOR IMPACT HERE ON THE CITY OF LOUISVILLE.

WE LOST A TOTAL OF NEARLY 10,000 JOBS THROUGH PROHIBITION ALONE.

SO LOUISVILLE WAS MOST AFFECTED BY THE EFFECTS OF PROHIBITION THAN ANY OTHER CITY IN THE COUNTRY.

IN 1920 WHEN IT WENT INTO EFFECT.

>> AND THEN THOSE BUILDINGS NEVER REALLY GOT THEIR FOOTING AGAIN, RIGHT?

>> CORRECT.

>> LET'S TALK ABOUT THE BUILDINGS ON WHISKEY ROW.

WHEN WERE THOSE CREATED AND WHAT MAKES THEM SO UNIQUE?

>> THE BUILDINGS STARTED 1850S IS WHEN YOU SEE A LOT OF THE CURRENT BUILDINGS THAT WE STILL HAVE IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA.

BUT IT WAS REALLY POST-CIVIL WAR 1865, THAT IN 1870s, A LOT OF THOSE BUILDINGS TOOK OFF SO TO SPEAK IN WHAT IS NOW CALLED WHISKEY ROW.

YOU HAD BUILDINGS DOWN THERE BUT MOST LIKELY WOOD FRAMED BUILDING WITH SOME BRICK.

BUT THEY START, WITH THE INFLUX OF EUROPEAN IMMIGRANTS IN THIS COUNTRY, SPECIFICALLY LOUISVILLE WAS SETTLED BY A LOT OF IRISH AND GERMAN IMMIGRANTS WHO CAME HERE.

THEY BRING THOSE SKILLS AND CRAFTSMAN SHIP OVER HERE WITH THEM WHEN THEY LAND IN LOUISVILLE.

AND THAT'S WHEN YOU START SEEING IN THE 1870s, A CHANGE AND KIND OF A BUILDING BOOM GOING ON IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA.

FROM SWITCHING OVER FROM WOOD-FRAMED BUILDINGS TO BRICK OR CAST IRON STORE FRONT BUILDINGS.

>> YEAH, AND SO THE CAST IRON IS SO UNIQUE TO LOUISVILLE.

>> YES.

>> LARGEST CAST IRON AREA NEXT TO SOHO IN NEW YORK, IS THAT RIGHT?

>> CORRECT.

WE SUPPOSEDLY HAVE THE SECOND LARGEST CAST IRON DISTRICT OR QUARTER IN THE COUNTRY NEXT TO THE SOHO DISTRICT IN NEW YORK CITY.

THE REASON WHY THEY SWITCHED TO CAST IRON IS THAT CAST IRON IS A STRONGER LOAD BEARING MATERIAL MEANING THEY COULD GO UP HIGHER WITH THE BUILDING.

WITH WOOD FRAMED BUILDINGS OR BRICK BUILDINGS, YOU CAN COULD ONLY GO UP SO HIGH.

THE IMPORTANT THING ABOUT CAST IRON, IT ALLOWED FOR THE LARGE WINDOW OPENINGS, IF YOU WALK UP AND DOWN MAIN STREET OR MARKET STREET AND YOU HAVE TO KEEP IN MIND PEOPLE WOULD USE KEROSENE LANTERNS OR CANDLES TO ILLUMINATE THE INTERIOR OF THEIR BUILDINGS.

>> SO YOU NEED THE BIG WINDOWS.

>> FOR ALL THAT LIGHT TO COME IN THERE, ALL THE NATURAL LIGHT TO COME IN.

IT WAS LIKE A SHOPPING MALL SO TO SPEAK BACK THEN.

LOUISVILLE STARTED TO GROW IN THE 1950s, POST WORLD WAR II, 1950s AND 1960s PEOPLE MOVE INTO WHAT WE CALL THE SUBURBS TODAY.

BUT SHOPPING MALLS START OPENING UP IN DIFFERENT AREAS OF THE CITY.

THAT'S WHAT STARTS DRAINING THE RETAIL BUSINESS FROM THE DOWNTOWN CORE TO THE SUBURBS.

AND THEN IN THE 1960s, EARLY 70s,THE CITY GETS VERY AGGRESSIVE WITH URBAN RENEWAL AND THEY START TEARING DOWN ALL THESE BEAUTIFUL BUILDINGS.

I THINK THEIR INTENT WAS TRUE, BUT IN REFLECTION, IT WAS PROBABLY NOT THE BEST DECISION TO MAKE.

THEY WERE TRYING TO TEAR DOWN SOME OF THESE OLD NEGLECTED BUILDINGS AND A LOT OF THEM WERE OLD AND NEGLECTED AND NEED I A LOT OF WHAT I CALL, FINANCIAL LOVE, TO REHABILITATE THEM BUT IT WAS THEIR WAY OF TRYING TO BRING PEOPLE BACK INTO THE DOWNTOWN AREA.

IF YOU ARE DOWN BETWEEN FOURTH, GOING DOWN TO SIXTH STREET ON MAIN, ALL THAT WAS URBAN RENEWAL PROPERTY THAT THE CITY TORE DOWN AND THERE WERE SOME BEAUTIFUL BUILDINGS THAT WERE TORN DOWN IN THAT PROCESS OF THESE URBAN RENEWAL DOLLARS IN THE 60s AND 70s IN LOUISVILLE.

>> WHAT WAS THE STATE OF THAT AREA, LIKE THE 80s, 70s, 80s?

>> I KNOW BECAUSE I WAS WORKING IN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT BACK THEN.

AND DOWNTOWN WAS REALLY TOUGH.

WE HAD QUITE A FEW MAYORS THAT TRIED DIFFERENT THINGS TO REVITALIZE FOURTH STREET AND CERTAIN AREAS OF THE CITY.

BUT IT WAS JUST TOUGH BECAUSE IT WAS ALWAYS, YOU KNOW, WHAT COMES FIRST, THE CHICKEN OR THE EGG?

WE NEED CERTAIN RETAIL SERVICES TO COME BACK TO DOWNTOWN IN ORDER TO BRING PEOPLE DOWN HERE.

SO IT WAS TOUGH.

AND YOU KNOW, AFTER PROHIBITION ENDS, A LOT OF THOSE BUSINESSES ON MAIN STREET GO FROM ONE BUSINESS OWNER TO THE NEXT BUSINESS OWNER AND THE REAL ESTATE PRICES ARE FLAT IF NOT DECLINING.

WHAT REALLY, IN MY OPINION, WHAT ANCHORS AND HELPS WITH THE REVITALIZATION OF MAIN STREET WHEN IS LOUISVILLE SLUGGER DECIDED TO MOVE BACK INTO THE DOWNTOWN AREA.

BECAUSE THAT BROUGHT FOOT TRAFFIC BACK.

AND THEY STARTED INVESTING IN THE KENTUCKY SCIENCE CENTER.

AND BRINGING MORE EXHIBITS IN THAT START ATTRACTING FAMILIES WITH KIDS, WHICH THEY STARTED GOING DOWN THERE.

PEOPLE STARTED WANTING TO GO TO SEE THE LOUISVILLE SLUGGER HOW THE BATS WERE MADE.

AND THAT'S WHAT STARTS ONE OF THE FIRST DOMINOES TO THE REVITALIZATION OF MAIN STREET.

>> AND NOW THERE ARE 10 ALONG THIS AREA THAT IS SORT OF EXPANDING.

YOU HAVE THEM ON EITHER SIDE OF MAIN STREET, THE ACTUAL WHISKEY ROW.

>> CORRECT.

>> AND YOU GO IT TO SEE ALL THE TOURISTS THAT COME AND I'M SURE SOME HOMETOWN TOUR DE FRANCES, HOMETOWN TOURISTS, TOO.

WHERE DO PEOPLE COME FROM AND WHAT IS THE EXPERIENCE OR WHAT THEY THINK OF THIS AREA?

>> TWO THINGS I ALWAYS HEAR ABOUT WHEN PEOPLE COME TO LOUISVILLE.

THEY SAY EVERYONE IS SO FRIENDLY HERE AND THEY SAY, THEY ALWAYS SAY THIS IS ONE OF THE CLEANEST CITIES I'VE EVER VISITED.

>> GOOD ACCOLADES.

>> WE DO A VERY GOOD JOB IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA.

THE CITY AS A WHOLE.

THEY'RE AMAZED HOW CLEAN THE CITY IS.

THEY LOVE SOME OF THE MURALS THAT ARE ALONG MAIN STREET AS WELL.

THEY ENJOY LOOKING AT THOSE.

BUT I HAVE HAD PEOPLE FROM AUSTRALIA, I'VE HAD THEM FROM FRANCE.

I'VE HAD THEM FROM ENGLAND, SPAIN, THROUGHOUT EUROPE, GERMANY, NEW ZEALAND, CHINA, JAPAN, I'VE HAD PEOPLE FROM EVERYWHERE COME HERE.

>> WOW.

>> BECAUSE THEY WANT TO EXPERIENCE BOURBON.

>> AND SO WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE-- WHAT IS YOUR VISION FOR THE FUTURE OF WHISKEY ROW?

>> MY VISION IS TO KEEP BUILDING ON WAS WE HAVE.

THE BOURBON AND-- WHEN YOU DO PRIVATE INVESTMENT WITH PUBLIC DOLLARS, THAT'S A GOOD COMBINATION.

I'M PUTTING ON MY OLD ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT HAT, BUT THAT'S REALLY WHAT STILL NEEDS TO BE PURSUED IS PRIVATE INVESTMENT, PUBLIC DOLLARS.

BUT ALSO INVESTING IN TO THE STREETSCAPES OF BUSINESSES ALONG MAIN STREET AS WELL.

MAKING THEM MORE PLEASANT TO WALK DOWN THE STREET.

THE STREETS ARE FINE BUT I THINK IF THEY DID A COMMERCIAL IMPROVEMENT PLAN ALONG MAIN STREET, THAT WOULD HELP SIGNIFICANTLY.

KIND OF TIE ALL THE BLOCKS IN TOGETHER SO TO SPEAK WHERE IT'S CONTINUOUS, NOT JUST PIECE MEAL SO TO SPEAK.

>> SURE.

AND DOWNTOWN, LET'S FACE IT, GETS A BAD RAP.

>> IT ALWAYS HAS.

>> ALWAYS HAS.

BUT NOW BESIDE THE TOURISM PART SEEMS TO BE GOING REALLY WELL, IT'S THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE HERE THAT ARE SORT OF THE PROBLEM GETTING THEM DOWNTOWN.

AND ALL THESE RETAIL PLACES SEEM TO BE CLOSING NOW.

SO DO YOU FEEL LIKE WE ARE STILL ON A GOOD TRAJECTORY OR WHAT STILL NEEDS TO HAPPEN TO KEEP IT ON THE UPSWING?

>> I WOULD TELL YOU ONE OF THE PROGRAMS THAT WHEN I WORKED FOR THE CITY OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, WE TARGETED CERTAIN AREAS FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.

AND WHAT I MEAN BY THAT, LIKE IF PEOPLE WANT TO IMPROVE THEIR BUILDINGS, WE CALLED IT A MODEL BLOCK.

THIS IS OUR MODEL BLOCK.

AND IF SOMEONE, AN INVESTOR WANTS TO COME IN THERE AND, YOU KNOW, RENOVATE THE BUILDING AND PUT A BUSINESS IN THERE, WE WOULD LEND THEM MONEY IN THERE TO HELP REDO THE FACADE OF THE BUILDING AND IF THEY NEEDED WORKING CAPITAL TO PURCHASE EQUIPMENT, WE WOULD ALSO LEND MONEY FROM THAT FROM A DIFFERENT TYPE OF LOAN PROGRAM.

BUT A MORE FOCUSED CONCENTRATION, FINANCIAL CONCENTRATION, AS FAR AS LOANS, STREETSCAPE IMPROVEMENTS WOULD HELP SIGNIFICANTLY.

IT ALWAYS AMAZED ME HOW WHEN WE WOULD GO INTO THESE OLDER COMMERCIAL CORRIDORS, THEY ALWAYS WANTED TO SEE WHAT WE WERE GOING TO DO FIRST BEFORE THEY PUT THEIR MONEY IN.

BUT ONCE WE STARTED INVESTING, EVERYBODY JUMPED ON BOARD.

>> WHAT DO YOU THINK OTHER CITIES CAN LEARN FROM LOUISVILLE'S HISTORY OF WHISKEY ROW AND ALL OF THE MAIN STREET AREA?

>> WELL, I WOULD TELL YOU ONE OF THE OTHER COMMENTS I GET WHEN WE ARE WALKING MAIN STREET, THEY ALWAYS SAY THESE-- YOU HAVE SOME VERY BEAUTIFUL COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS, STORE FRONTS HERE AND YOU ARE VERY LUCKY TO HAVE HELD ON TO THEM.

AND I ALWAYS SAY THANK YOU VERY MUCH.

I SAY IT'S A HARD EFFORT TO HAVE PEOPLE, PRIVATE INVESTOR COME IN AND BE WILLING TO PUT THEIR MONEY INTO SOME OF THESE BUILDINGS AND REDEVELOP THEM.

SO THAT'S WHAT YOU HAVE TO FOCUS ON.

YOU HAVE TO FOCUS ON YOUR ROOTS, WHO YOU ARE AS A PEOPLE AND ALSO THAT YOU ARE WILLING TO INVEST IN THAT AS WELL, TO HELP MAINTAIN THAT.

>> BUILDING ON THE PAST.

>> THAT'S RIGHT.

EXACTLY.

♪ ♪ >> WHISKEY ROW WALKING TOURS ARE COMING BACK FOR 2026.

THEY BEGIN AT THE OFFICIAL STARTING POINT OF THE KENTUCKY BOURBON TRAIL, THE FRASIER HISTORY MUSEUM IN LOUISVILLE.

IN THE MEANTIME THERE ARE OTHER WHISKEY ROW TOURS AND DISTILLERY TOURS ALL AVAILABLE THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.

YOU CAN ALSO TAKE A TOUR WITHOUT EVER LEAVING HOME WHEN YOU FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM.

GIVE US A FOLLOW AT KET IN LOU.

THANKS FOR SPENDING A LITTLE TIME GETTING TO KNOW LOUISVILLE.

I HOPE WE WILL SEE YOU HERE NEXT TIME.

UNTIL THEN, MAKE IT A GREAT WEEK.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪