Latest / Kentucky Business News / 8.19.26
Transcript
- 0:00Speaker 1: Hello. Today, I'll be reading from business sources in Lexington
- 0:03Speaker 1: and Louisville, including The Lane Report and others from around
- 0:07Speaker 1: the Commonwealth. Your reader today is Julia Shane. As a reminder,
- 0:11Speaker 1: RADIOI is a reading service intended for people who are
- 0:14Speaker 1: blind or who have other disabilities that make it difficult
- 0:18Speaker 1: to read printed material. Our first article comes from the
- 0:21Speaker 1: August seventeenth, twenty twenty sixth edition of The Lane Report
- 0:25Speaker 1: and is titled Allegiant adds a new NonStop route from
- 0:29Speaker 1: Cincinnati Northern Kentucky International Airport CVG to Orlando International Airport MCO.
- 0:36Speaker 1: For a limited time, travelers can receive one way fares
- 0:39Speaker 1: for low as forty nine dollars. Allegiant Travel Company added
- 0:45Speaker 1: new NonStop routes from Cincinnati Northern Kentucky International Airport to
- 0:50Speaker 1: Orlando International Airport, expanding its network with additional affordable travel
- 0:55Speaker 1: options to popular leisure destinations across Florida. Known for connecting
- 1:01Speaker 1: small to mid sized cities to popular leisure destinations, Allegiance
- 1:06Speaker 1: continues to expand its network to provide more options for flyers.
- 1:11Speaker 1: We're excited to announce this new route into our growing
- 1:14Speaker 1: network and will continue to look for opportunities to connect
- 1:18Speaker 1: travelers with the destinations they want to visit most, said
- 1:22Speaker 1: Drew Wells' Allegiance chief commercial Officer. This new route reflects
- 1:28Speaker 1: the flexibility of our unique business model, allowing us to
- 1:32Speaker 1: respond to demand and provide more options during peak leisure periods.
- 1:37Speaker 1: Founded with a mission to make air travel more accessible
- 1:40Speaker 1: and convenient, allegiance unique business strategy continues to reshape the
- 1:45Speaker 1: US leisure travel industry. Allegiance network of NonStop flights serving
- 1:51Speaker 1: communities often overlooked by other carriers has been a key
- 1:54Speaker 1: differentiator for the airline. The new year round route between Cincinnati,
- 2:00Speaker 1: Ohio via CVG Airport and Orlando, Florida via MCO Airport
- 2:07Speaker 1: begins February twelfth, twenty twenty seven, with introductory one way
- 2:12Speaker 1: fares as low as forty nine dollars. Orlando is consistently
- 2:16Speaker 1: one of the most popular travel destinations from our region,
- 2:20Speaker 1: and we're pleased that Allegiant continues to expand its service
- 2:23Speaker 1: at CVG with this new flight option sat Chad Sumi
- 2:28Speaker 1: board Chair CVG Airport. This summer marked Allegiance ten millionth
- 2:34Speaker 1: customers served at CVG since it launched more than a
- 2:37Speaker 1: decade ago, and the airline now serves twenty three NonStop
- 2:41Speaker 1: airport destinations. Earlier this year, Allegiance was recognized as one
- 2:47Speaker 1: of the top performing airlines in the industry, earning the
- 2:50Speaker 1: number two spot in the Wall Street Journal's annual airline rankings.
- 2:55Speaker 1: The recognition reflects the airline's strong operational performance and commit
- 3:00Speaker 1: meant to delivering reliable, high quality service for its customers.
- 3:05Speaker 1: Tickets for all newly announced routes are now available. Flight days, times,
- 3:10Speaker 1: and the lowest fares can be found at Allegiant dot com.
- 3:14Speaker 1: About the introductory one way fares. Seats and dates are limited,
- 3:18Speaker 1: and fares are not available on all flights. For CVG
- 3:23Speaker 1: to MCO, introductory fares are available as low as forty
- 3:27Speaker 1: nine dollars one way when purchased by August fifteenth, twenty
- 3:31Speaker 1: twenty six. Prices displayed include taxes, carrier charges, and government fees.
- 3:37Speaker 1: Fare rules, routes and schedules are subject to change without notice.
- 3:42Speaker 1: Optional baggage charges and additional restrictions may apply. About Allegiant
- 3:47Speaker 1: Together we fly, Las Vegas based Allegiant is an integrated
- 3:53Speaker 1: travel company with an airline at its heart, focused on
- 3:56Speaker 1: connecting customers with the people, places, and experiences that matter most.
- 4:02Speaker 1: Through Allegiant Air and Sun Country Airlines, the company serves
- 4:06Speaker 1: approximately twenty two million annual customers across scheduled, passenger, charter,
- 4:12Speaker 1: and cargo operations. Together, the airlines operate more than six
- 4:17Speaker 1: hundred and fifty routes serving nearly one hundred seventy five
- 4:20Speaker 1: cities throughout the United States and select international destinations. Allegiant
- 4:26Speaker 1: is committed to providing affordable travel options, operational excellence, and
- 4:30Speaker 1: long term value for customers, employees, communities, and shareholders. The
- 4:36Speaker 1: next article from the Lane Report is titled Boss Innovations
- 4:40Speaker 1: opens first US headquarters in Lexington with five point four
- 4:44Speaker 1: million dollar investment. Boss Innovations has officially opened its first
- 4:50Speaker 1: US headquarters in Lexington, marking the Canadian manufacturing automation company's
- 4:55Speaker 1: expansion into the United States with a five point four
- 4:59Speaker 1: million dollar inves The company celebrated the opening Wednesday with
- 5:03Speaker 1: a grand opening and ribbon cutting ceremony at its new facility,
- 5:07Speaker 1: located in Anderson Community's Providence Business Center at one zero
- 5:12Speaker 1: four to one Providence Place Parkway. The Lexington operation is
- 5:17Speaker 1: designed to support Boss Innovation's growth in the United States
- 5:21Speaker 1: and provide advanced automation and engineering services to manufactures across
- 5:26Speaker 1: a range of industries. For thirty years, Boss Innovations has
- 5:31Speaker 1: worked with manufacturers across North America to develop turnkey automation
- 5:36Speaker 1: solutions designed to improve productivity, strengthen operations, and help companies
- 5:42Speaker 1: prepare for future manufacturing demands. The company describes itself as
- 5:47Speaker 1: one of Canada's premier manufacturing automation integrators. Its expansion into
- 5:53Speaker 1: Lexington represents a significant step in establishing a US presence
- 5:58Speaker 1: and positioning the company closer to customers in key advanced
- 6:02Speaker 1: manufacturing sectors. Boss Innovations US operation will focus on industries
- 6:08Speaker 1: including automotive, nuclear, defense, life sciences, and general manufacturing. The
- 6:15Speaker 1: company's investment comes as Kentucky continues to position itself as
- 6:19Speaker 1: a hub for advanced manufacturing and industries requiring increasingly sophisticated automation, engineering,
- 6:27Speaker 1: and production technologies. The Lexington headquarters is expected to give
- 6:32Speaker 1: Boss Innovations a base from which to expand its work
- 6:36Speaker 1: with US manufacturers, while bringing additional advance manufacturing expertise and
- 6:41Speaker 1: investment to the region. The five point four million dollar
- 6:45Speaker 1: project adds another advanced manufacturing related investment to Lexington and
- 6:51Speaker 1: reinforces the city's role as the location for companies serving
- 6:55Speaker 1: Kentucky's growing automotive, life, science, defense, and other technology driven industries.
- 7:02Speaker 1: The next article from the Lane report is titled Kentucky
- 7:05Speaker 1: Agricultural Finance Corporation KAFC approves eleven agricultural loans over one
- 7:13Speaker 1: point eight million dollars. The Kentucky Agricultural Finance Corporation KAFC
- 7:20Speaker 1: approved eleven agricultural loans totaling one million, eight hundred thirty
- 7:25Speaker 1: five thousand, one hundred thirty one dollars eighty cents for
- 7:29Speaker 1: projects across the Commonwealth at its monthly Board meeting Agricultural
- 7:34Speaker 1: Infrastructure Loan Program, two agricultural infrastructure loans totaling up to
- 7:40Speaker 1: three hundred forty four thousand, seven hundred fifty dollars were approved.
- 7:45Speaker 1: Loan recipients were in Hopkins County at two hundred fifty
- 7:49Speaker 1: thousand dollars in Mercer County at ninety four thousand, seven
- 7:52Speaker 1: hundred fifty dollars. KAFC participates with lenders to provide financing
- 7:59Speaker 1: to producers making capital expenditures for agricultural projects through the AILP.
- 8:07Speaker 1: Eligible projects include permanent farm structures with attached equipment that
- 8:12Speaker 1: improves the profitability of farming operations. Producers may be eligible
- 8:17Speaker 1: for up to two hundred fifty thousand dollars, not to
- 8:21Speaker 1: exceed fifty percent of the project. Beginning Farmer Loan Program
- 8:26Speaker 1: BFLP seven. Beginning farmer loans totaling up to one million,
- 8:32Speaker 1: seventy two thousand, eight hundred eighty one dollars and eighty
- 8:35Speaker 1: cents were approved. Loan recipients were in Bourbon County at
- 8:40Speaker 1: two hundred nine thousand, nine hundred forty six dollars and
- 8:43Speaker 1: eighty cents, Grayson County at one hundred eighty thousand dollars,
- 8:48Speaker 1: Harden County at two hundred thousand dollars, Mason County at
- 8:52Speaker 1: one hundred forty five thousand, five hundred dollars, Todd County
- 8:57Speaker 1: at fifty thousand dollars and one hundred sixty two thousand,
- 9:01Speaker 1: four hundred thirty five dollars in Trigg County at one
- 9:05Speaker 1: hundred twenty five thousand dollars. The BFLP is designed to
- 9:09Speaker 1: assist individuals with some farming experience who desire to develop, expand,
- 9:15Speaker 1: or buy into a farming operation. Beginning, farmers may qualify
- 9:20Speaker 1: for financing to purchase livestock equipment or agricultural facilities, to
- 9:26Speaker 1: secure a permanent working capital for the purchase of farm
- 9:30Speaker 1: real estate, or to invest in a partnership or LLC.
- 9:36Speaker 1: Diversification through Entrepreneurship and Agribusiness Program deal P to Diversification
- 9:44Speaker 1: through Entrepreneurship and Agribusiness loans totaling up to four hundred
- 9:49Speaker 1: seventeen thousand, five hundred dollars were approved. Loan recipients were
- 9:54Speaker 1: in Fayette County for two hundred thirty seven thousand, five
- 9:57Speaker 1: hundred dollars and Jessamine County for one hundred eighty thousand dollars.
- 10:02Speaker 1: DLP is designed to assist agra entrepreneurs with the purchase, establishment,
- 10:08Speaker 1: or expansion of a business that sells agricultural products or
- 10:13Speaker 1: services to farmers or consumers. The next article from the
- 10:17Speaker 1: Lane Report is titled eBay and TCG Player celebrate a
- 10:21Speaker 1: major investment in their Louisville Authentication Center. eBay and TCG Player,
- 10:27Speaker 1: an eBay company, today celebrated a major investment in their
- 10:31Speaker 1: Louisville center with company leaders, Louisville Metro Mayor Craig Greenberg,
- 10:36Speaker 1: Kentucky State representative Emily Callaway, local officials and community partners
- 10:42Speaker 1: hosting a press conference and facility tour. The one hundred
- 10:46Speaker 1: forty five thousand square foot facility combines authentication expertise, advanced technology,
- 10:54Speaker 1: and expanded operations to support eBay's authenticity guarantee s and
- 11:00Speaker 1: TCG players, trading card verification and fulfillment services, helping both
- 11:05Speaker 1: fashion and trading card enthusiasts shop with confidence while strengthening
- 11:10Speaker 1: the trusted marketplace experiences that power both communities. Trust is
- 11:16Speaker 1: earned in the details, the standards we uphold, the investments
- 11:20Speaker 1: we make, in the expertise our teams bring to every
- 11:23Speaker 1: customer experience, said Samantha Wellington, chief Legal Officer at eBay.
- 11:29Speaker 1: Our investment in Louisville helps collectors buy and sell with
- 11:32Speaker 1: confidence across eBay and TCG Player, creates meaningful jobs in
- 11:38Speaker 1: Louisville and gives our teams the scale and tools to
- 11:42Speaker 1: keep raising the bar. I'm incredibly proud of our eBay
- 11:45Speaker 1: and TCG Player colleagues here and grateful to everyone who
- 11:49Speaker 1: has helped make Louisville such an important part of how
- 11:53Speaker 1: we build trust in eBay. As eBay's third authentication center
- 11:58Speaker 1: in the United States and AID globally. The Louisville facility
- 12:02Speaker 1: represents a continued investment in the people, technology, infrastructure, and
- 12:08Speaker 1: authentication capabilities that strength and trust across eBay and TCG
- 12:13Speaker 1: player's marketplaces for fashion and trading cards, respectively. As interest
- 12:19Speaker 1: in preloved fashion and trading cards continues to grow, The
- 12:23Speaker 1: facility provides the scale, speed, and expertise needed to meet
- 12:28Speaker 1: demand while supporting accurate, efficient and reliable transactions between buyers
- 12:33Speaker 1: and sellers. Every investment we make is ultimately about serving
- 12:37Speaker 1: the trading card community, said Rob Bigler, CEO of TCG Player.
- 12:43Speaker 1: Our strategic investments in the Louisville Center demonstrate our long
- 12:47Speaker 1: term commitment to supporting our community of buyers and sellers
- 12:51Speaker 1: and the growth of the trading card hobby. Supporting local workforce,
- 12:57Speaker 1: eBay and TCG player expect the rule site to employ
- 13:01Speaker 1: more than one hundred forty people by the end of
- 13:03Speaker 1: August twenty twenty six, and to grow to approximately one
- 13:07Speaker 1: hundred eighty employees within one year, with the goal of
- 13:10Speaker 1: supporting more than two hundred twenty jobs over the next
- 13:13Speaker 1: five years. Louisville's central location and advanced logistics infrastructure make
- 13:19Speaker 1: it an ideal home for the operation, providing the scale
- 13:23Speaker 1: and connectivity needed to support the continued growth of fashion
- 13:27Speaker 1: and the training card marketplace. eBay's investment in Louisville sends
- 13:32Speaker 1: a strong message about our talented workforce, premier logistics network,
- 13:37Speaker 1: and our ability to attract world class employers that create
- 13:41Speaker 1: good paying job opportunities for Louisville families, said Louisville Metro
- 13:46Speaker 1: Mayor Craig Greenberg. Investments like this have a meaningful impact
- 13:50Speaker 1: on our community, creating good jobs, supporting local families, and
- 13:55Speaker 1: strengthening the economic opportunities available to people across Louisville and
- 14:00Speaker 1: the surrounding region, said Kentucky State Representative Emily Callaway. eBay's
- 14:06Speaker 1: decision to expand its presence here is a reflection of
- 14:10Speaker 1: the strength of our workforce, our logistics infrastructure, and the
- 14:14Speaker 1: people who make this community a great place to do business.
- 14:18Speaker 1: For years, eBay has connected families, collectors, and small businesses
- 14:23Speaker 1: with opportunity, and this expanded operation will help continue that
- 14:27Speaker 1: work while bringing new economic activity and jobs to Louisville.
- 14:32Speaker 1: About eBay Authenticity Guarantee and TCG Player Direct eBay's authenticity
- 14:39Speaker 1: Guarantee is designed to give buyers and sellers added confidence
- 14:43Speaker 1: in eligible transactions. Trained experts complete a multipoint inspection to
- 14:49Speaker 1: verify each eligible item matches the listing before shipping items
- 14:53Speaker 1: out to buyers. At the Louisville facility, Sneaker authenticity specialists
- 14:59Speaker 1: combined fine industry expertise with hands on experience to help
- 15:03Speaker 1: deliver a trusted marketplace experience. The facility also supports TCG
- 15:09Speaker 1: Player Direct, which allows buyers to shop from thousands of
- 15:13Speaker 1: local game stores and receive select cards in one convenient package.
- 15:18Speaker 1: Before every order is fulfilled. TCG Player Verification specialists review
- 15:24Speaker 1: cards for accuracy and condition to ensure buyers receive exactly
- 15:28Speaker 1: what they ordered. Combined with TCG Player Safeguard TCG Players,
- 15:34Speaker 1: buyer and seller protections for Direct, these programs support trusted
- 15:39Speaker 1: shopping experiences. Tour attendees saw firsthand how trading cards and
- 15:44Speaker 1: sneakers move through inbound processing, inventory management, authentication, automated sorting, fulfillment,
- 15:54Speaker 1: and shipping, demonstrating how operational investments, human expertise, and innovation
- 16:00Speaker 1: work together to deliver trusted marketplace experiences that support buyers, sellers,
- 16:06Speaker 1: and collectors. Visitors also saw ROCA sorders. TCG players advanced
- 16:13Speaker 1: tool that uses image recognition and automation to quickly sort
- 16:17Speaker 1: and digitize trading card inventory in action. About eBay. eBay
- 16:24Speaker 1: is a global commerce leader that connects people and builds
- 16:27Speaker 1: communities to create economic opportunity for all. Our technology empowers
- 16:33Speaker 1: millions of buyers and sellers in more than one hundred
- 16:36Speaker 1: and ninety markets around the world, providing everyone the opportunity
- 16:40Speaker 1: to grow and thrive. Founded in nineteen ninety five in
- 16:43Speaker 1: San Jose, California, eBay is one of the world's largest
- 16:47Speaker 1: and most vibrant marketplaces for discovering great value and unique selection.
- 16:53Speaker 1: In twenty twenty five, eBay enabled nearly eighty billion dollars
- 16:57Speaker 1: of gross merchandise volume. About TCG player, an eBay company.
- 17:04Speaker 1: TCG player is on a quest to be the most
- 17:07Speaker 1: trusted trading card game TCG platform that connects and empowers
- 17:13Speaker 1: the hobby community. Founded by and for TCG enthusiasts, TCG
- 17:19Speaker 1: player operates a global marketplace and creates tools, technologies, and
- 17:24Speaker 1: solutions that help small businesses simply and profitably sell TCGs
- 17:29Speaker 1: at scale. The next article comes from the August fourteenth,
- 17:34Speaker 1: twenty twenty sixth edition of Louisville Business First and is
- 17:38Speaker 1: titled Texas Roadhouse Buys Right Tower. This purchase comes about
- 17:42Speaker 1: a year after it bought its nearby headquarters building. Written
- 17:46Speaker 1: by Joel Stennant, Texas Roadhouse Incorporated is making another big
- 17:52Speaker 1: investment in Louisville sixteen stories big. The Louisville based company
- 17:57Speaker 1: purchased Right Tower formerly Caden Tower at sixty one hundred
- 18:01Speaker 1: Dutchman's Lane on August seventh for twelve million dollars, according
- 18:05Speaker 1: to a deed filed with the Jefferson County Clerk's office.
- 18:09Speaker 1: The seller was Florida based real estate firm in Reil Properties,
- 18:13Speaker 1: which bought the building in twenty eighteen for ten point
- 18:17Speaker 1: five million dollars. Texas Roadhouse's corporate headquarters is located at
- 18:22Speaker 1: six zero four zero Dutchman's Lane, which is adjacent to
- 18:25Speaker 1: the Right Tower. In the email statement to Business First,
- 18:29Speaker 1: the company said the addition of Right Tower to its
- 18:32Speaker 1: corporate campus will provide room for extra growth. The company
- 18:37Speaker 1: did not provide further details about its plans for the property.
- 18:42Speaker 1: We are excited to bring together two local icons, Texas
- 18:45Speaker 1: Roadhouse and Right Tower, adding Wright Tower to our support
- 18:50Speaker 1: Center campus supports our long term commitment to our hometown
- 18:54Speaker 1: and creates space for future growth. The statement read. Trio
- 18:59Speaker 1: Commercial Property Group represented Texas Roadhouse in the transaction and
- 19:03Speaker 1: will be the property manager for Wright Tower moving forward.
- 19:07Speaker 1: A Texas Roadhouse spokesperson told Business First. Wright Tower is
- 19:12Speaker 1: one of Louisville's most iconic office buildings not located downtown.
- 19:17Speaker 1: It was designed in nineteen sixty six by Frank Lloyd
- 19:20Speaker 1: Wright's architectural firm Tealisian Associated Architects, and protege William Wesley Peters.
- 19:28Speaker 1: Wright Towers is the forty third largest office building in
- 19:31Speaker 1: Louisville based on square footage according to LBF Research at
- 19:36Speaker 1: one hundred fifteen thousand, five hundred thirty square feet. The
- 19:40Speaker 1: sixteen story tower is home to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse on
- 19:43Speaker 1: the top floor and also includes tenants such as Blessings
- 19:47Speaker 1: in a Backpack, Emery Law Office, and SRS Real Estate Partners.
- 19:53Speaker 1: Texas Roadhouse is Louisville's fourth largest publicly traded company, according
- 19:58Speaker 1: to Louisville Business First Research, with five point nine billion
- 20:02Speaker 1: dollars of revenue in twenty twenty five. The company operates
- 20:06Speaker 1: eight hundred twenty two restaurants system wide, including seven hundred
- 20:10Speaker 1: forty nine Texas Roadhouse locations across forty nine US states
- 20:15Speaker 1: and ten countries. The company also operates the Bubbas, thirty
- 20:19Speaker 1: three and Jaggers restaurant concepts. The purchase comes one year
- 20:23Speaker 1: after Texas Roadhouse purchased its six zero four zero Dutchman
- 20:28Speaker 1: Lane headquarters for twenty five million dollars from Paragon Centre
- 20:32Speaker 1: Holdings LLC. CEO Jerry Morgan said buying the headquarters was
- 20:37Speaker 1: Texas Roadhouse's way of committing to Louisville. The headquarter property
- 20:43Speaker 1: consists of two office buildings and an on site cafe
- 20:47Speaker 1: Willie's Joint, totaling one hundred thirty three thousand, twenty three
- 20:51Speaker 1: square feet. Texas Roadhouse employees nearly eight hundred people at
- 20:55Speaker 1: its headquarters, two thousand workers in the Greater Louisville area
- 21:00Speaker 1: and one hundred thousand worldwide. The next article from Louisville
- 21:04Speaker 1: Business First is titled Racing Louisville owner warns over attendance,
- 21:09Speaker 1: the franchise has some of the lowest attended games in
- 21:12Speaker 1: the NWSL. Written by Steven Schmidt. For years, a man
- 21:19Speaker 1: who has sold insurance to most of Louisville has been
- 21:22Speaker 1: trying to sell the city on showing up to Louisville
- 21:24Speaker 1: CITYFC and Racing Louisville FC matches on August fifth, there
- 21:30Speaker 1: was a sign that John Nice might be starting to
- 21:33Speaker 1: see some market friction. During his keynote speech at the
- 21:37Speaker 1: monthly Venture Connector's luncheon in downtown Louisville, Nice surveyed the
- 21:42Speaker 1: room to see how many attendees had been to a
- 21:45Speaker 1: loose city or racing game in their lifetime. Only a
- 21:48Speaker 1: few hands went up. That's great, This is like our
- 21:52Speaker 1: lowest number ever, Nis said, Usually it's more than half
- 21:56Speaker 1: the room. The speech that the chairman of the Soccer
- 21:59Speaker 1: Holdings ALLC gave was a continuation of the presentation that
- 22:04Speaker 1: he gave in May when he and his team accepted
- 22:07Speaker 1: the Association for Corporate Growth ACG Kentucky's annual Deal of
- 22:12Speaker 1: the Year. Niice told the crowd gathered about his journey
- 22:16Speaker 1: from growing up in Newport, Kentucky, to turning niece Luken's
- 22:20Speaker 1: insurance agency into a nine hundred employee firm before exiting
- 22:25Speaker 1: in twenty eleven to assured partners. He then talked about
- 22:29Speaker 1: his disappointment in general, with the lack of attendance at
- 22:33Speaker 1: home games for racing, which plays at the highest level
- 22:37Speaker 1: of US soccer in the National Women's Soccer League. If
- 22:40Speaker 1: you don't want to go to all the games, I
- 22:43Speaker 1: promise you your employees do, Nie said. Some of them don't
- 22:47Speaker 1: have the means to go. Otherwise, the guy down the
- 22:50Speaker 1: street that your neighbor that you're trying to build a
- 22:53Speaker 1: relationship with, give him the tickets one week. But it
- 22:56Speaker 1: takes all of us. It is so true. It takes
- 22:59Speaker 1: a village. But the biggest thing it takes is showing
- 23:01Speaker 1: up right attendance. Still in the basement of the NWSL.
- 23:08Speaker 1: At the end of his presentation, Nice fielded questions, one
- 23:12Speaker 1: of which was asked by Ben Reno Weber, a man
- 23:15Speaker 1: with many titles including District eight Louisville Metro Council member
- 23:20Speaker 1: and founder of Essential Innovations. Reno Weber said that he
- 23:25Speaker 1: had recently attended a racing game at Lynn Family Stadium.
- 23:30Speaker 1: Given how hot a commodity NWSL franchises have become in
- 23:34Speaker 1: recent years, he asked Nice what it would take to
- 23:37Speaker 1: keep the team in Louisville. That's a very good question,
- 23:40Speaker 1: because I can tell you, if we can't get those
- 23:43Speaker 1: attendance numbers, we will be forced to do something, Nis said,
- 23:47Speaker 1: give us a number. Reno Weber replied, what do we
- 23:51Speaker 1: get to get to? Well, the stadium holds fifteen thousand,
- 23:55Speaker 1: so fourteen nine hundred and forty, said Nice, as the
- 23:58Speaker 1: laughter from the crowd ease the tension of the moment
- 24:01Speaker 1: a bit. In May, at nearly the same time he
- 24:04Speaker 1: spoke at the ACG luncheon, a report came out from
- 24:09Speaker 1: ESPN that said that Racing was looking for an equity
- 24:12Speaker 1: partner to infuse an undisclosed amount of capital into the team.
- 24:17Speaker 1: Nice confirmed to Business First on August fifth that Soccer
- 24:21Speaker 1: Holdings is still looking for a partner to help the club,
- 24:24Speaker 1: which sat in second to last place in the league
- 24:27Speaker 1: with a record of four two and eleven fourteen points
- 24:32Speaker 1: as of that date. It since has added a win
- 24:36Speaker 1: in its only match. Through eight home games, Racing averaged
- 24:41Speaker 1: five three hundred and ninety eight fans according to Worldfootball
- 24:45Speaker 1: dot Net, second lowest in the league. The club averaged
- 24:49Speaker 1: a league low of five five hundred twenty one per
- 24:52Speaker 1: home match last season, when it made it to the
- 24:55Speaker 1: NWSL playoffs for the first time in club history. Twenty
- 25:00Speaker 1: twenty four, it averaged six five hundred twenty one, crown
- 25:04Speaker 1: jewel of the USL. What about lou City? That club
- 25:09Speaker 1: is averaging nine two hundred twenty one fans in eleven games,
- 25:13Speaker 1: which is third best average in the United Soccer League USL.
- 25:18Speaker 1: According to American soccer website backheel dot com, the team
- 25:23Speaker 1: is fourth in the Eastern Conference with a record of
- 25:25Speaker 1: eight four and seven twenty eight points. We are the
- 25:30Speaker 1: crown jewel of the USL, Nis said of the two
- 25:33Speaker 1: time league champions. There's not anybody else in the conversation,
- 25:37Speaker 1: every new team that's been founded, every stadium that's currently
- 25:41Speaker 1: being built, but one. We help them with all of
- 25:44Speaker 1: their stuff for free. He reiterated that he expects lou
- 25:49Speaker 1: City to be part of the initial USL Premier League
- 25:53Speaker 1: when it starts play in twenty twenty eight. As we
- 25:56Speaker 1: have previously reported, one of his greatest sources of pride,
- 26:00Speaker 1: he said, was the youth program that has sprouted from
- 26:04Speaker 1: the two clubs, which now has approximately three thousand local players.
- 26:09Speaker 1: I think the best place to put that money is
- 26:11Speaker 1: on those youth fields. Right let that fourteen or sixteen
- 26:15Speaker 1: year old know what your company is and what it does,
- 26:19Speaker 1: he said, and when he's eighteen or she's eighteen, there
- 26:23Speaker 1: will probably be a better chance of them buying from you.
- 26:27Speaker 1: The next article from Louisville Business First is titled Larrey's
- 26:31Speaker 1: planned in Butchertown Space. An Ohio restaurant group is behind
- 26:35Speaker 1: the incoming Mexican concept written by Michael Jones, A new
- 26:41Speaker 1: Mexican restaurant is replacing Name's modern Korean steakhouse in Butchertown.
- 26:46Speaker 1: Lores will be located at eight three five Y's Main
- 26:50Speaker 1: Street in the Martin On Main development. The restaurant is
- 26:54Speaker 1: being launched by Ohio based l Rancho Grand Incorporated, which
- 26:59Speaker 1: operates eighteen restaurants in Cincinnati and Dayton. Gary Rodriguez, l
- 27:04Speaker 1: Rancho president of Operations, confirmed La Rey's would be the
- 27:09Speaker 1: company's first restaurant in Greater Louisville, but declined to provide
- 27:13Speaker 1: more details. Family owned l Rancho Grand Mexican Grille and
- 27:18Speaker 1: Cantina opened its first location in the late nineties in Sharonville, Ohio.
- 27:24Speaker 1: In twenty twenty four, the company opened a new four
- 27:27Speaker 1: million dollar, ten thousand square foot restaurant there. Namy Co
- 27:32Speaker 1: created by chef Edward Lee closed abruptly in November of
- 27:36Speaker 1: twenty twenty five. Co owners Earl and Holly Weinberner cited
- 27:40Speaker 1: operating costs, labor challenges, and shifting market conditions as the
- 27:44Speaker 1: reason they decided not to continue the concept. The restaurant
- 27:48Speaker 1: opened in April of twenty twenty three and quickly became
- 27:51Speaker 1: one of Louisville's most recognized dining destinations, earning a spot
- 27:56Speaker 1: on Esquire's fifty Best New Restaurants of twenty twenty three.
- 28:00Speaker 1: This concludes the reading of the most recent business news
- 28:03Speaker 1: in Lexington, Louisville, and around the state. Your reader to
- 28:06Speaker 1: day has been Julius Shine. If you have any questions
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