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This month, Lexington's long-shuttered historic courthouse will begin its transformation into a self-sustaining commercial center, aimed at attracting tourists and Lexingtonians alike to the city's newly developing old town square.
Plans for the revitalized building include a first-floor tasting room for Kentucky bourbon and a second Lexington location for local chef Ouita Michel's farm-to-table Windy Corner restaurant. The projects developers are finalizing agreements with Breeders Cup to
relocate its Lexington-based corporate offices to the building. The city's convention and visitors bureau, VisitLex, will be moving into the renovated facility as well, with a bus lane along Upper Street planned as an embarkation point for local horse farm and Bourbon Trail tours.
The buildings third floor will be transformed into event space with seating capacity of about 300, to be operated by a private event management company. Function rooms on the east and west side will connect by way of an expansive central hallway, featuring a soaring, 56-foot ceiling that will rise to the top of the buildings signature central dome.
The goal of the project is to bring life back to this building that the city owns, said Jenifer Wuorenmaa, senior administrative officer for Lexington, who is managing the historic courthouse renovation for the city. We want this
to be a building that our citizens can go to, but that also draws tourists downtown and then back out to the suburbs and the horse farms. We think it will do just that.