What's working — and what's not — for Downtown Louisville

Doug Owen, senior vice president, principal broker Kentucky, for JLL joins the Access Louisville podcast this week to talk about the state of Downtown.It's a mix of both good news and bad news Owen says.There have been some wins for Downtown Louisville including a move by accounting firm Forvis into the top floor of the PNC tower earlier this year. And news that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is seeking a lot of space in Downtown Louisville was also a positive.But there are challenges as well — with many people citing safety as an issue considering homeless and panhandling at many intersections. "It's not the image you want to portray, in terms of coming into downtown — having somebody greeted by a panhandler. And then we have some mentally ill people walking the street. And so that's where the city needs to focus." Owen said he realizes it's not a popular opinion but it is having an impact on tenants leasing downtown because they hear about safety concerns from their employees.After the interview with Owen, we talk about the one-year anniversary of the April 10 mass shooting at Old National Bank. Reporter Stephen Schmidt recently penned a story about how the leadership team there is moving forward. Access Louisville is a weekly podcast from Louisville Business First. It's available on popular services including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and more.