Murray State University sought to create a dynamic new hub that reimagines student life by integrating residential, dining, academic, and support spaces under one roof. The Learning Commons, located at the former site of Springer Hall, was designed to enhance student engagement, support academic success, and strengthen campus connectivity.
A beverage maker company is redefining the way clients experience their brand. The company sought to transform its existing facility into a hospitality-driven experience center, a space that would reflect its commitment to quality, innovation, and people.
The Saga Spirits Distillery Master Plan was developed to honor tradition while embracing innovation, ensuring the campus reflects generations of craftsmanship while setting the stage for future growth. Rooted in Kentucky’s bourbon heritage, the Henderson family sought to create a brand that celebrates this legacy and its deep ties to place. Luckett & Farley’s multidisciplinary team created a strategic roadmap that integrates sustainable design, thoughtful site planning, and immersive storytelling, resulting in a seamless convergence of nature, architecture, and the art of distillation.
The Master Plan is structured into five key sections, each addressing critical aspects of the project:
Distilleries are highly complex facilities requiring multidisciplinary expertise to integrate operations, visitor experience, and branding. This was especially true for Saga Spirits, where complex programmatic requirements and phased development demanded a strategic, flexible approach. Luckett & Farley’s, in-house team, with deep industry knowledge in the distilled spirits sector, played a critical role in shaping a cohesive and strategic vision. While different disciplines contributed at various phases, our process is most effective because we can organically collaborate at any stage, allowing for open-ended solutions that lead to better outcomes.
We are proud to partner with Saga Spirits Group to redefine the distillery experience with a groundbreaking development that blends tradition with innovation. This world-class whiskey campus embodies the company’s history, values and brand strategy, while reflecting evolving consumer expectations for a bourbon experience.
Conecuh Brands contracted with Luckett & Farley to create a distillery and destination experience similar to the ones along Kentucky’s Bourbon Trail for Clyde May’s Alabama Style Whiskey. The expertise of our Corporate Commercial & Hospitality and Distilled Spirits studio are collaborating from site master planning through construction administration to design an attraction that will draw visitors from Alabama and beyond even though a distillery tour might be a foreign concept to them.
Inspired by the legacy of Clyde May, Luckett & Farley has created a vision for an immersive distillery experience by capturing the local tradition and Clyde’s trailblazing ingenuity. The tenets of experience design guided the design process to craft an authentic, one-of-a-kind day for guests, building upon the distillery essentials of a mill, still house, rickhouses, and bottling factory with a restaurant, museum, gift shop, apple orchard, and amphitheater.
To support their company culture of collaboration and discovery, Luckett & Farley’s architects, interior designers, and engineers transformed an abandoned auto repair facility into their modern headquarters.
The City of Louisville sought to enhance Jefferson Memorial Forest’s accessibility and ecological resilience, ensuring it remains a cherished natural resource for generations. Focused on the Tom Wallace Lake Recreation Area, the city aimed to improve access, expand recreational amenities, and preserve the surrounding environment.
To address the modern needs of students, alumni, and staff while honoring the legacy of the original 1902 Edwards Building and Berea College’s historic campus, Luckett & Farley created a design that thoughtfully balances tradition and innovation. This new building serves as a gateway to the campus, bridging the past and future, celebrating the college’s enduring identity while providing spaces that support contemporary needs.
The Luckett & Farley team partnered with Woodford Reserve Bourbon Distillery for a multi-phase transformation of a historic, century-and-a-half-old distillery located in the heart of Kentucky's bourbon-producing region. This distillery, which has played a pivotal role in the rich history of bourbon making, underwent a meticulous design process, aimed at preserving its historic buildings while enhancing and modernizing its functionality. The original structures, which date back to the 1800s, were carefully preserved, maintaining the authenticity and charm of the site. The interiors of these buildings were completely revamped to accommodate modern distillation processes, including copper kettles sourced from Scotland, reflecting the global influence and craftsmanship of the distillery.
As part of a partnership spanning over thirty years, our multi-disciplinary team was tasked with designing and executing a multi-phase project for the expansion of the Brown-Forman Distillery. The project required thoughtful integration of new operational elements with the existing infrastructure, ensuring the distillery's operations continued uninterrupted while significantly expanding its capacity. The phased approach spanned multiple years, with each stage meticulously planned to align with the distillery’s long-term operational needs and the complexities of its production process.
To bring the architect’s vision of a glass-structured distillery to life, Luckett & Farley provided comprehensive structural, electrical, mechanical, plumbing, and civil engineering services for Rabbit Hole Distillery.
After years of doing evaluations and repairs on wooden rickhouses, the team at Luckett & Farley began to reconsider how rickhouses were being built and if there was a way to make them stronger from the start with steel. Rabbit Hole Distillery has a reputation for pushing the boundaries of traditions and was eager to benefit from the reduced maintenance costs a steel rickhouse would deliver.
As the Rabbit Hole brand grew, its operations expanded beyond the original urban campus in downtown Louisville. Luckett & Farley helped bring this vision to life with a thoughtfully designed concept for an event center in Henry County, Kentucky.
This unique, urban infill project presented our architects and engineers the opportunity to design a space for research and development, quality management and brand innovation for Rabbit Hole Distillery.
We have been a key partner in Jack Daniel’s Distillery’s growth, contributing to a multi-year collaboration that supports the brand’s increasing global demand. This partnership has included the design and expansion of some of the most critical facilities at the distillery, providing a tailored architectural, engineering, and interior design approach to meet both the operational and experiential needs of the world-renowned whiskey producer.
Brown-Forman Corporation needed a state-of-the-art cooperage facility to support its growing whiskey production while optimizing efficiency, sustainability, and worker safety.
The University of Louisville Athletic Association sought to update the former Brown & Williamson Club, originally designed by Luckett & Farley in 1997 as a part of the original Cardinal Stadium.
To enhance and invigorate the California neighborhood in Louisville, KY, Luckett & Farley designed a mixed-use development that breathes new life into an existing warehouse.
In partnership with Shepherdsville’s local leaders, Luckett & Farley designed a holistic wellness center to enhance community amenities, creating a vibrant hub for recreation and connection in this growing Louisville suburb.
To help Bardstown meet the needs of its growing community, Luckett & Farley collaborated with local leaders to create a holistic wellness center that serves as a central hub for recreation and community engagement.
As a growing suburb of Louisville, Bardstown sought to enhance resources for its citizens and strengthen its charming historic downtown. The vision centers on developing a premier downtown recreational complex and park adjacent to city government facilities and local amenities.
Architectural Planning and Conceptual Services
The Trinity High School STEM Career Center lays the foundation for an expanded academic offering, providing a dedicated STEM facility. The design will support program’s growth and reflect the institution’s long-term academic goals.
The design creates a prominent campus presence in Saint Matthews, establishing a landmark northern gateway. It features a mix of indoor and outdoor collaborative spaces that support project-based learning and foster adaptable environments for various educational needs. Additionally, sustainable elements, such as passive shading strategies and geothermal heating, are integrated to ensure long-term environmental benefits for Trinity High School's northern campus.
This 60,000 SF two-story, tilt-up concrete building is used to house biological manufacturing processes including offices, shipping/receiving, laboratories, chemical warehousing, etc. Four unique laboratories were programmed and designed to facilitate & optimize operations. A separate hazardous materials storage building was also designed and permitted separately so as to not delay construction. This project was executed using the design-build delivery method.
As the new face of the university’s engineering programming, this building will capture the excitement and energy of the college, promote superior learning and research, and champion student success. This project builds on the work that Luckett & Farley provided for the master plan identifying this 115,000 SF student success building as the critical first project.
Luckett and Farley collaborated closely with the City of New Albany to revitalize its downtown corridor. The relocation of the city hall to a beautifully restored historical building on Main Street was a catalyst for improving pedestrian safety and the overall visual appeal of this prominent area.
This Hotel concept stitches together the urban fabric and re-establishes the corner condition to the Northwest while filling a void in an area known for its collection of 4-to-5-story buildings dating to the 1800’s and early 1900’s.
Louisville Metro Parks sought to revitalize the historic Frederick Law Olmsted-designed Chickasaw Park in Louisville’s West End to address longstanding community concerns, environmental challenges, and the need for safe, accessible recreational spaces. The city envisioned a transformation that would foster community trust, improve public amenities, and restore the natural beauty and functionality of Chickasaw Pond, creating a vibrant hub for recreation, education, and environmental stewardship.
Luckett & Farley works often for the Louisville Zoo. Recently the design team re-imagined the old train depot station to create a multi-functional event space.
On a path to create a vibrant urban campus for students, Jefferson Community and Technical College continues to invest in forward-thinking projects like a new campus bookstore in a pivotal location in the heart of downtown.
The City of Newport reimagined Festival Park to enhance its role as a vibrant community hub, supporting recreation, festivals, and events while addressing ecological concerns tied to increased river flooding. The new master plan streamlines the park’s layout from three tiers to a single elevated platform above the frequent floodplain, ensuring long-term usability, maintenance ease, and aesthetic appeal in response to climate change.
The project involved improvements to the Memorial Hall Gateway along Limestone Street as a part of the development of the new law building on the main campus. New paths create a signature walkway aligned with the tower of Memorial Hall and a unified landscape between the Historic Memorial Hall and the new Law Building Plaza.
The landscape combines forms and materials which are common throughout campus and creates intersection seating areas while maintaining the classic open lawn as the foreground for Memorial Hall.
The project installed a new campus bus stop with ample room for student gathering, alleviating safety concerns while waiting for bus service along Limestone Street.
Francis Parker High School needed to add athletic spaces to their downtown campus with limited opportunities to expand their building’s footprint. This basement wellness center renovation will incorporate more athletic amenities to better serve the students on campus. With a phased approach to align with fundraising, the wellness center is now complete, and the neighboring gymnasium construction will begin soon.
Luckett & Farley provided campus master planning for the University of Louisville Foundation. The site is approximately 44 acres on the University of Louisville’s Belknap Campus (formally the site of Kentucky Trailer Manufacturing Company). The property will now house a research park, including both academic and private programs and activities. The research park will focus on technology, science and engineering for green technologies. In addition to research facilities, incubator space is available for start-up companies associated with the College of Business and the Speed School of Engineering.
Jefferson County Public Schools sought to combine two west end elementary schools, creating a community hub sharing amenities and its campus with the new Republic Bank Foundation YMCA to make it happen. The new elementary school will be 79,000 SF over two stories with a capacity to serve 650 students.
The ACC ESPN Network Studio was in response to launch the comprehensive linear and digital ACC Network in 2019. Luckett & Farley designed the television production facility to house all the equipment and personnel required to originate live programming.
The Premier Residences at Tellico Village is a new independent living facility located in the deed-restricted community of Tellico Village, Tennessee. This community is comprised of very active retirees who are taking advantage of the location’s natural beauty and country-like setting, as well as amenities that cater to an aging population.
Luckett & Farley designed a collaborative, wellness-centered, and flexible office renovation for Texas Roadhouse’s corporate headquarters in a style representative of their brand and work culture.
Luckett & Farley provided architectural and engineering design services for the iHeart Digital relocation, located in the historic 32 Avenue of the America’s building, former home of the AT&T headquarters. It is now the home of iHeart Media’s New York FM operations, a complex consisting of over 30 studios.
Located in the former NBC Tonight Show Studios in Burbank, California. This venue will be the new West Coast home to Clear Channel’s intimate, invitation-only live music performances and movie premieres. The capacity is limited to 450 persons to ensure a once-in-a-lifetime experience for fans.
Local Chef John Varanese had already turned an old, prefabricated metal boat storage into the popular, high-end River House Restaurant and Levee at the River House. When he was ready to expand, he contracted with Luckett & Farley to help him renovate the upstairs space into an elegant event venue.
This renovated warehouse will become the first permanent home for staff and artists of Louisville Visual Art, which “has been improving lives through visual art education, community outreach, and artist engagement since 1909.” In addition to giving this organization the space it needs to thrive, it establishes a creative hub as part of the revitalization of the historic Portland neighborhood.
Luckett & Farley provided full design services for this new two-story nature center in Shawnee Park in Louisville, KY. The building extends over the floodplain on piers and is designed to handle flooding as the Ohio River rises. This elevation provides access to the tree canopies and a great view down the Ohio River. The site design includes adjoining gardens, nature play, and outdoor classrooms intended to serve the students and visitors.
The new Republic Bank Foundation YMCA in West Louisville offers a variety of community services for health, wellness, and education through both standard YMCA programming and partnerships with local organizations sharing the space. This project transformed a former cigarette factory brownfield site to create an all-ages wellness hub that reclaims a neglected lot for the community and reestablishes the urban fabric and pedestrian scale.
The Commons at Helm Library is the complete renovation and transformation of the three-story Margie Helm Library at Western Kentucky University. The unique program considers the evolution of the library in current academia and rethinks the relationship between social and intellectual spaces in a larger campus ecosystem.
Luckett & Farley provided full design services for the renovation and reconstruction of the 266-bed facility that suffered an explosion in 2017 resulting in the demolition of approximately 40% of the building.
Luckett and Farley’s interior design team was tasked with creating a new lobby and rooftop bar for the Hilton Inn in downtown Louisville.
Luckett and Farley worked with Meyer, Scherer, & Rockcastle to provide architectural and engineering services for the renovation of and addition to the Shawnee Branch of the Louisville Free Public Library. The project called for the creation of “an inspiring Community Gathering Place, a building welcoming to all age groups, a flexible and sustainable building,” and “a building that fosters creativity.”
Luckett & Farley provided services for this project located in a historic building that was formerly an AT&T headquarters. It is now the new home of iHeartRadio New York FM operations, a complex consisting of 29 studios.
Luckett & Farley designed this 36,000 SF new office building to support the operations of a national forensic engineering firm. Since the building is on a 2.7-acre site, we also designed parking lots, sidewalk connections, and a multi-story patio and deck area overlooking the adjacent lake. Our civil engineering work included water and sanitary sewer utilities, as well as grading and storm drainage.
To allow Jefferson College to continue to attract students, promote a lively academic environment, and provide a higher level of sustainability, Luckett & Farley developed a master plan for their main campus in downtown Louisville to improve safety and define a greater sense of place.