BOWLING GREEN, Kentucky (WBKO) – A 150-year-old building in downtown Bowling Green is set to be renovated.
The Bowling Green Bank building, formerly the Potter Opera House, is slated for renovation by the Downtown Redevelopment Authority.
The building has survived two fires and several changes of ownership and is now a landmark of the city center.
“This building has significance in Bowling Green, it has a place and a purpose, and it’s right in the middle of our downtown hilltop plaza. I have a certain affinity for this building. I worked there as a vice president of the bank,” said Ron Murphy, executive director of the DRA. “Now that I’m in my position, I talked to the board and we decided that’s our next project.”
Murphy said the building will be gutted and given a new facade reminiscent of the look of the old opera house. Inside, there will be new office space, a rooftop atrium, public restrooms and an attached parking garage for the downtown area.
“If you think back, the people who built this community and our downtown expect us to carry on their dream. It’s not just a dream for today, it’s a dream that needs to be realized for the future to honor what they did for downtown. They didn’t have the amenities and opportunities that we have today. We should take advantage of them and take responsibility.”
For Murphy, it was a passion project and he urged the community to share his enthusiasm, saying we must do everything we can to protect Bowling Green’s history.
“Just recently we had a fire on State Street, Motor Row. These historic buildings went up in smoke and are gone forever. They’re part of the heart of Bowling Green, it’s downtown. They’re gone because somebody didn’t care. Well, I don’t care, and there are other people who do care. Those are the ones I need behind us, the ones who do care.”
Murphy estimates the renovations will cost about $12 million, but said the DRA will not ask the community to contribute to the cost.
“This is a public project, we are a public organization. We have the opportunity to use our influence as a nonprofit to get this project done, to apply for grants, to apply for private investment, to find developers that we can partner with to make this happen.”
Murphy told WBKO these renovations would serve as a catalyst for future projects the DRA has planned for downtown.
There is currently no specific start or end date for the renovations, but Murphy has asked anyone interested in the project to email him at [email protected] or call him at 270-796-7450.
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