Bourbon attraction opens on Louisville’s Fourth Street Live!
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – October 2, 2015 – (RealEstateRama) — Governor Steve Beshear today joined Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer and other local leaders for a ceremony to help open the Jim Beam Urban Stillhouse in downtown Louisville – the latest bourbon-themed attraction in the state’s largest city.
“Bourbon is one of Kentucky’s most historic and treasured industries – a thriving $3 billion economic engine that generates more than 15,400 jobs with an annual payroll topping $700 million, and $166 million in tax revenue every year,” Gov. Beshear said. “With the opening of the Jim Beam Urban Stillhouse in downtown Louisville, the company is once again raising the profile of our bourbon industry and giving visitors another great reason to come to Louisville.”
Jim Beam Brands Co. received a $1 million incentive, in the form of a tax rebate spread over 10 years, from the Kentucky Tourism Development Finance Authority in April for this project. The authority considers applications under the Kentucky Tourism Development Act, which allows eligible tourism attractions a rebate of sales tax up to 25 percent of project capital costs.
The new facility is located on Louisville’s Fourth Street Live! The stillhouse will feature a bar for bourbon tastings, a retail store, a bottling line where guests can select, label, fill and cork their own bottle of bourbon, and displays about bourbon making.
“For more than 220 years, Jim Beam Bourbon has made history and continues to do so by opening its first visitors’ destination outside of our flagship distillery,” said Kevin Smith, vice president, Kentucky Beam Bourbon Affairs. “We’ve taken the brand’s rich heritage and put an urban spin on it, offering guests an interactive Bourbon experience coupled with a retail location, right here in downtown Louisville. The Jim Beam Urban Stillhouse is another place Jim Beam fans can call home as an extension of our Jim Beam American Stillhouse experience in Clermont, Ky.”
“We are happy to see Jim Beam expand its footprint in downtown Louisville,” Mayor Fischer said. “Fourth Street is a booming destination for tourists from near and far, and places like the Jim Beam Urban Stillhouse offer a great opportunity to spotlight Kentucky’s heritage while driving increased visitors to Kentucky bourbon distilleries.”
“This is a very exciting and prosperous time for our bourbon industry in Kentucky,” said Sen. Jimmy Higdon, of Lebanon. “We are happy to welcome the new Jim Beam Stillhouse along with the new jobs and opportunities it will bring to our community.”
The bourbon industry is a $3 billion industry that generates more than 15,400 jobs with an annual payroll of $700 million. A record number of visitors from around the world visited Kentucky last year to visit Kentucky bourbon distilleries.
Over the last five years, the economic impact from tourism in Kentucky has increased by more than $2.2 billion to $13.1 billion. The impact in Jefferson County for 2014 from tourism was $3.2 billion. The tourism industry has added 13,000 jobs and now supports 180,000 jobs statewide. These jobs generated more than $2.9 billion in wages for Kentucky workers, an increase of nearly $123 million from the previous year.
Tourism generated $1.37 billion in tax revenues for local and state governments in 2014, an increase from $1.31 billion in 2013
Contact Information: Terry Sebastian
Jennifer Brislin
502-564-2611
