LOCUST ST. GARAGE

Powered by local businesses and industries, new civic spaces, and a dedicated municipal government, vast sections of Owensboro’s historic downtown are being renovated, rebuilt, and rethought. Facilities such as the recently completed Convention Center, the Bluegrass Museum, and Smothers Park, and dozens of other mixed-use developments have been inspiring a boom in construction over the past several years.

So where are all of these downtown shoppers, residents, and employees supposed to park? Well – thankfully, that’s where we come in.

On the corner of West Second Street and Locust Street, adjacent to the Convention Center, is an all-new, five-story parking garage. Designed to relate closely in aesthetics to a next door existing garage, the rather simple structure boasts one key design feature – “The Billboard”. While not a billboard in the literal sense, the illuminated metal mesh screen that covers the Second Street facade certainly commands the attention of a revolving advertisement.

Emblazoned with its own name, the screen acts as a living, evolving demarcation of the surrounding revitalized districts. At night, cool hues of colored light flow across the facade in the same manner the Ohio River moves past downtown just a few hundred feet away.

With a 500-car capacity, the garage itself may not be the destination, but it is certainly be the launching point for pedestrians to begin interacting with the historic downtown and riverfront. The billboard’s intent is to act as a representation of that excitement and activity.