Kentucky Cabinet of Economic Development Gets a Taste of How Water Grows KY

With $11.2 billion in recent economic development announcements, water is key to growing Kentucky’s economy.

Louisville Water Company shared this message and its “Water Grows KY” campaign with the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development on Monday, continuing its “roadshow” of speaking engagements throughout the Commonwealth.

Water Grows KY is a statewide educational initiative, highlighting water’s vital and often unexpected role in Kentucky’s top industry sectors – agriculture, distilling and brewing, education, health care and manufacturing.

Louisville Water Company’s Kelley Dearing Smith and Vince Guenthner opened the community presentation with a “taste test” of Louisville Water’s Pure Tap™, the company’s trademarked drinking water.

Dearing Smith and Guenthner explained the tasting notes as well as the history associated with Louisville Water.

Following the taste test, the presentation focused on water’s link to Kentucky’s signature industries and how regional collaboration ensures reliable infrastructure to support Kentucky’s business boom.

A key ingredient in that economic success is Louisville Water – with 1 in 5 Kentuckians and 24,000 businesses depending on its water supply. As a trusted partner to nine water suppliers throughout the region, Louisville Water is encouraging collaboration, connection and growth.

The bourbon industry, in particular, requires a reliable, redundant and high-quality water source to thrive. The partnership between Louisville Water and Bardstown’s Water Department has helped enable new distilleries like Heaven Hill to locate in the area.

Louisville Water’s relationship with the Hardin County Water District is another important partnership that will ensure both water suppliers can meet the expected demand of Ford’s newest electric vehicle plant and support the influx of people, jobs and infrastructure along the I-65 corridor.

“I knew water was important to growing a community, but Louisville Water reinforced how important this resource is for economic development,” said Kristina Slattery, KCED’s deputy commissioner for business development. “From supporting manufacturing plants to growing our signature bourbon industry, water is going to be vital to our planned growth in 2023 and beyond.”

This presentation builds on several recent milestones at Louisville Water. During the 2022 legislative session, Louisville Water worked with several water partners to pass significant investments supporting regional growth and improved infrastructure in areas surrounding Jefferson County. The investment echoes the Water Grows KY message and its importance.

The Water Grows KY campaign will continue its tour with presentations planned to other stakeholders, partners and businesses across the Commonwealth through 2022.

Learn how water can grow your business at WaterGrowsKY.com.