August 23, 2025
10:45 am (meet up at Coffee Crossing on Main Street)
11:00 am (walking tour will begin)
The next Society of Urban Perambulators (SoUP) event will take us to New Albany’s Downtown. New Albany has been going through significant changes over the past years, becoming a model on the success of two-way conversions and historic preservation. During this tour we will walk through multiple redesigned streetscapes and historic structures joined by some of the folks who made them possible.
Coffee Crossing seems to have perfect locations for these Southern Indiana SoUP events, so we will once again be meeting at one of their locations. This time it will be the location on Main Street in New Albany (140 E Main St, New Albany, IN 47150).
Our first stop will be just a few steps away, as City Hall and the local planning office is located on the same block as our starting point. There we will meet with Planning Director Scott Wood to talk about the recent work on Main Street and the new development taking place across the street.
Another block down Main, we will get an in-depth look at Town Clock Church, a historic black church that was once a stop on the underground railroad. The 173 year old church has been going through extensive restoration in recent years and is now adjoined by an infill residential development. We will be joined by Jerry Finn, a board member from Friends of Town Clock Church.
From here, we will head back towards Pearl Street and Market Street, where we will get a look at a street of adjoining historic structures that have been renovated for new uses. One is the former home of Pints and Union, where businessman Dan Borsch (owner of Burger Boy/Girl, Old Louisville Tavern, Hillcrest Tavern) is opening a new restaurant.
These stops on Market Street will also allow us to take a look at Market Street, which went through a redesign a few years ago in order to increase safety and walkability.
Across the street from the Tavern is another historic structure renovated by local firm Resch Property Group, who also worked on the former Pints and Union. Jacob Resch will guide us through the historic space and their work on it.
One block down on Pearl Street lies The Elsby, New Albany’s largest development project right now. The 100+ year old former bank office is currently in the midst of a $30 million conversion to a hotel by Resch Property Group.
Things will wrap up at RecBar across the street, only a couple blocks from where we started.
The Society of Urban Perambulators is a program by the Urban Design Studio at the University of Louisville. There is a SoUP Facebook Group if you are interested in joining. The events are free and open to the public, but we ask that you RSVP with our Director, Patrick Piuma (patrick.piuma@louisville.edu), so we know how many people to expect and who to contact if event details change.
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