BBBS of Kentuckiana opens space in West Louisville’s new Goodwill Opportunity Center
Hundreds gathered in the Norton Healthcare Goodwill Opportunity Center on Wednesday, March 20, for the grand opening ceremony.
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A community center that will provide life-changing resources for people in Louisville's west end officially opened Wednesday.
The West Louisville Opportunity Center on the Norton Healthcare Goodwill Opportunity campus was unveiled to the public during a ceremony attended by hundreds of people, community leaders and elected officials.
The Goodwill Opportunity Center is located at the corner of 28th Street and Broadway in the Parkland neighborhood. The 125,000-square-foot facility will house Goodwill's Kentucky headquarters and life-changing resources for thousands of neighbors.
"This is a place ladies and gentlemen where lives will be changed, where communities will be improved," DeVone Holt, Goodwill chief external affairs officer, said to the crowd. "And so if this is a place where hope will live, this is also a place where poverty will die."
In its 100-year history, the $50 million resource center is the largest mission-related investment ever for Goodwill Industries of Kentucky. The center was built in an effort to eliminate poverty in west Louisville, which is made up of nine neighborhoods with a population of 65,000 people and a median household income of $21,000.
"It's great to see so many people excited about the look and feel of our new building, but we're even more excited about what is going to happen inside the building," Amy Luttrell, president and CEO of Goodwill Industries of Kentucky, said in a news release.
There will be a variety of partners at the facility, including KentuckianaWorks, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kentuckiana, YMCA, Volunteers of America and Legal Aid Society. The Park Community Credit Union will help people who may not have a bank account. The Kentucky College of Barbering will be on-site, and the UofL College of Dentistry will provide services.
"We were so grateful when DeVone Holt came to us and asked us to be part of the Goodwill Opportunity Center because what they found through surveying west Louisville residents, was that 69% of the residents said that they wanted youth mentoring," said Gary Friedman, CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kentuckiana.
ESPN Louisville broadcasted from Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kentuckiana’s space at the Goodwill Opportunity Center. Here’s a look at some of the special guests who stopped by!
Officials expect the opportunity center to serve more than 50,000 people each year, whether they're needing help with addictions, justice-involved backgrounds, education deficiencies, limited workforce histories, child care challenges, transportation, homelessness, mental or physical disabilities and more.
Kye Carr, a Louisville native, shared his story to the crowd about sobriety, change and Goodwill.
"It's going to do great work right here in the west end of Louisville," Carr said. "They gave me a place to go when that jail cell opened and I walked out the door and I was looking around which direction I was going to go. Crime that way, Goodwill that way. I went to the Goodwill, simple as that."
According to a news release Wednesday, Goodwill expects to place 600 job-seekers into jobs that pay nearly $15 per hour and will produce an annual economic impact of around $19 million in the west end.
"The $50 million Goodwill West Louisville Opportunity Center is going to serve 50,000 Kentuckians each year, helping them find jobs, transportation, child care and more as they reach for their goals and support their families," Gov. Andy Beshear said in a news release.
People will have access to a café, child-care services, computer labs, dental services, second-chance banking, a business center, restorative justice services, workforce training, behavioral health therapy, meeting rooms and more. There will also be career coaching, job training, youth mentoring, soft skills training and expungement services.
The space not only makes resources available, but also accessible to the area.
"Do you feel hopeful today?" Stachelle Bussey, member of Goodwill West Louisville Advisory Council, said. "I'm talking about a hopeful people, right? A community that has been ignored for years after years after years."
Stachelle Bussey had the entire crowd on their feet, and her speech ended with a song.
The center will also support local businesses. Blak Koffee, which already has a location in the Russell neighborhood, will open inside the center later this spring. Owners Kevin and Ronyale Smith built their business with an emphasis on diversity, community, quality and economic empowerment.
"We made a commitment to bring in a restaurant, offering not only delicious food but also healthy choices to the community," Rena Sharpe, chief operating officer for Goodwill, said in a news release. "When I met Ronyale last year, it became clear that Blak Koffee was the perfect fit to fulfill that promise."
Blak Koffee will offer all of its current menu items.
The campus will also welcome the West end's first hospital in more than 150 years. Norton West Louisville Hospital will include an emergency room, operating rooms and a community space. The hospital will provide primary care offices, an emergency department, inpatient care and outpatient services, imaging services and specialty care. It will also feature a retail pharmacy and a community room.
"The west end has just been a place in need for years, and as far as something like this, it's going to be packed. It's packed now because it's the grand opening but, I wouldn't be surprised if it looked like this on a regular day of business," said Carr. "Because there's such a need and it's so accessible."
Watch coverage of the Goodwill Opportunity Center and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Kentuckiana from WHAS11 below ⤵️
