After learning about all the ways revitalization could go wrong, we wanted to learn about the city's plan for avoiding the pitfalls that have happened elsewhere.

Here's a section of Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer's third inaugural speech, given in January of this year:

"[L]ook at what’s happening in west Louisville. Nearly a billion dollars of investment funding catalytic projects:

For that work, we’re collaborating with the people of Russell, along with businesses, faith groups and other community partners to make sure we restore the great legacy of this neighborhood – once celebrated as the Harlem of the South – without displacing anyone who wants to remain there."

That last bit of emphasis is ours. This week on the show, we sit down with the mayor to ask what plans are in place to prevent displacement in the West End, and we hear from some experts about whether the city is on the right track.

Here Today is a listener-supported project. YOU make it possible for us to hold the people in power accountable for the promises they make. Click here to chip in: wfpl.org/supportheretoday +

Homeownership has been touted as “the American dream” for decades -- and some advocates say it’s also the way to prevent gentrification in west Louisville.

On this episode of Here Today, we take a look at homeownership in the West End, and whether owning your own home really leads to inter-generational wealth.

Support this work, by clicking here: wfpl.org/supportheretoday

When you rent a place to live, you’re subject to the whims of your landlord. Whether you’ve lived in your place for a year or 10 years, if your landlord decides to sell, you could be forced out. 

The changes happening in west Louisville are affecting the people who live there, and most of them are renters. As property values rise in the West End and property owners consider selling, what does that mean for the renters there?

Did you learn something new from this episode? Click here to make a donation that helps us keep learning stuff together: wfpl.org/supportheretoday

The site where Beecher Terrace was built has a story that's much older than the housing complex itself. Louisville's first black doctor had a home there with his family. The city's first cemetery occupied what's now Baxter Square Park.

Before we move on from Beecher Terrace, we spend some time this week learning more of that story.

Click here to support Here Today: wfpl.org/supportheretoday

Construction of the new Beecher Terrace continues, and fewer than a hundred families are living in what’s left of the old complex. Several hundred others are settling into their new homes throughout the city.

While some displaced residents await the new and improved Beecher, others are content to leave it behind and start anew.

Those who do come back will find themselves living with lots of new neighbors -- not all of whom are low income folks, like before. Will it still feel like home?

Last week we talked about the “big four” West End investments. Today on Here Today, we focus in on the biggest: the over $200 million dollar redevelopment of Beecher Terrace.

Today's additional music:

When someone makes a promise to you and then doesn’t follow through, would you believe them the next time? And if you trust them a second time and they don’t come through, what about a third time?

In recent years, plans for new developments in the West End -- like the FoodPort and a Super Walmart -- have come and gone. Now, west Louisville residents are again being asked to put their faith in planned developments aimed at revitalizing the neighborhoods, particularly Russell.

Will things be different this time? For some projects, the answer seems to be yes -- things are going along as planned. For others, the future seems less certain. _

Here Today is listener supported, and every little bit helps. Click here to support the work we do: wfpl.org/supportheretoday

What comes to mind when you hear “west Louisville?”

Do you picture the families who live there? People coming together for barbecues and neighborhood block parties. Kids playing in the park. Neighborhood churches. Or when you think of the West End, are you reminded of the last thing you heard about it on the news? A recent shooting. People living in poverty. Neighborhoods filled with abandoned houses.

The story of west Louisville is not a simple one. It’s not one that can be easily encapsulated in a sound bite. And it's a story that could be drastically changing soon.

But to understand the future, we have to look to the past. On episode one of Here Today, we explore the people and policies that created today's West End.

Here Today is produced and reported by Amina Elahi, Laura Ellis, Jonese Franklin, and Kyeland Jackson. Website and data reporting are by Alexandra Kanik.

You can support Here Today by making a donation here. 

This is a pivotal moment for west Louisville. There's a track & field complex planned, a new YMCA in the works, and the renovation of Beecher Terrace.

But as property values rise, so do property taxes, and that can be a hardship for the people already living there.

Is this revitalization? Or gentrification?

If you're seeing this trailer because you were subscribed to our news podcast, Recut, you know these are issues we've been keeping an eye on all along. Now we're going to take a closer look.

Here Today will track the changes in Louisville's West End, and tell the stories of the people who call it home. Coming this summer, from Louisville Public Media.