Butchertown takes its name from its 19th century roots as a meat packing center. Just east of downtown Louisville, Butchertown is bounded by I-65, Main Street, I-71, Beargrass Creek and Mellwood Ave. Its proximity to a major turnpike (now Frankfort and Story avenues) and the creek was what made it an ideal location for meat packing in its early days, as butchering was banned from the central city. JBS/Swift, the last remaining meat processing plant, remains in Butchertown and is both a major employer and a source of dissension to the many upscale residents who now live there.
Crescent Hill has historically been known for its ability to come back after disaster. In 1937, residents from downtown Louisville sought refuge here as flood waters rose. The neighborhood was dealt a blow by the great suburban exodus in the 1950’s. In April,1974, Crescent Hill was nearly destroyed as a tornado ravaged the area. But time and again, a strong community spirit pushed them forward. The residents are still very active in their community. They came together to save their local library, improve the park and refurbished the Frankfort Avenue Corridor. In 2009, the suburb celebrated its 125th Anniversary. 
Downtown Louisville was once a residential center, with streets lined with large mansions of the owners of businesses located on Main and Market streets. Many large homes were converted to multi-family dwelling or businesses, but the population of downtown residents dwindled in the early decades of the 20th century.
In Louisville, the mantra is “refurbish, not destroy” when it comes to historic buildings, so after the late 1980s,many old warehouses and factory spaces were converted to loft apartments. Features such as cast iron facades became focal points in renovated buildings. The popularity of these dwellings sparked new construction in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Buildings such as Waterfront Park Place, Fleur de Lis on Main, and Kentucky Towers attracted urban dwelling and made downtown Jefferson County's tenth 
Multiple Listing Service zone in 2007.
The demand for downtown housing was expected to double between 2005 and 2010 to 4,000 units. The recession stifled growth a bit. but new projects abound with developments such as the mixed-use renovation of the Henry Clay building at Third and Chestnut, the Wright-Taylor building that faces Fourth Street and is located behind the Henry Clay, and the mixed use ZirMed Gateway Towers.
Other developments underway in downtown should increase housing demand in the next few years. The development of the Louisville Museum Plaza, construction along the Riverwalk Trail, the conversion of the former Big Four railroad bridge into the longest 
pedestrian only bridge in the U.S., the KFC Yum! Center waterfront arena, and the reconstruction of Spaghetti Junction (the intersection of I-65, I-64 and I-71) along with the addition of a new bridge for northbound I-65 traffic all are expected to entice residents to live downtown.
Plan are underway for the $442 million Center City project, which will add 23 acres of housing, restaurants, a cinema, and a boutique hotel to the area bounded by Second, Third and Liberty streets and Muhammad Ali Boulevard. The Cordish Company, which developed 4th Street Live! Is trying to obtain financing and negotiate state and local tax rebate.
The boundaries of downtown Louisville are the Ohio River to the north, Hancock to the east, York Street to the south, and 9th Street to the west.
Germantown
Germantown is the an area of Louisville three miles south of downtown bounded by Barrett Ave, Eastern Parkway, and the South Fork of Beargrass Creek. Named for its German immigrant setters, it was originally nicknamed “Frogtown” as the nearby creek overflowed frequently,
causing malaria. Once the creek was rerouted into a deeper concrete canal, the area prospered and the area was heavily developed.
During the 1890s, the largest collection of shotgun houses in the city of Louisville was built to accommodate hoards of newcomers. These narrow rectangular domestic homes, often no more than 12 feet wide, had doors at each end and little space between them. Shotgun houses, along with a variation called the camelback, which has a partial second floor, still dominate the streets of Germantown today.
Originally a blue-collar neighborhood, Germantown is today sought out for its proximity to the entertainment in the pricier Highlands and Old Louisville neighborhoods, but many young families and college students live there, as well as descendants of the original settlers. Like many other historic Louisville neighborhoods, the area is a prime target for urban pioneers who started buying and refurbishing whole blocks and vacant lots in the 1970s when the prices were dirt cheap. Some current "urban homesteaders" maintain gardens, keep beehives, and raise chickens in their backyards.
Germantown also refers to the area of Louisville from the Original Highlands to St. Joseph and Bradley neighborhoods that were predominantntly settled by German immigrants in the 19th century.
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St. Matthews
Just eight miles east of downtown Louisville, St. Matthews is a city of nearly 20,000 people. Conveniently located near Louisville's East End and easily accessible from the both Watterson Expressway and I-264, St. Matthews is bounded at the north by several subdivisions off Brownsboro Road (Bellewood, Brownsboro Village, Maryhill Estates and Windy Hills). The cities of Richlawn and Norbourne Estates are enclaves within St. Matthews.The Highlands
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