Waterfront Park,
Phase IV.
The board did not come to JP Davis Partners for a fundraiser. They came for a trusted read on whether a $50 million, 22-acre idea along the Ohio River was real, and on what it would take to get there.
- Engagement
- 36+ months
- Campaign goal
- $50M
- Scope
- 22 acres
- Annual visitors
- ~2.2M
- Feasibility study
- 64 interviews
- Quiet phase
- 18+ months
Campaign goal, scope, and annual visitation as stated by Waterfront Park. Engagement figures reflect the advisory relationship, shared with client confirmation.
Waterfront Park is one of the most visited destinations in the Kentuckiana region, drawing close to 2.2 million people a year to the Louisville riverfront. When its board began weighing a $50 million Phase IV, an expansion of 22 acres west along the Ohio River to knit downtown and West Louisville together, they did not begin by looking for a fundraiser. They began by looking for someone they could trust to tell them whether the idea was real.
What the moment required
A goal of that size asks something different of a board, a community, and the case that carries them. Before a dollar is raised, the questions are quieter and harder. Is the number reachable. What would it actually take. Where do you begin. The board needed a clear, unsentimental read, and a plan they could stand behind in public.
The work
The engagement started with evidence, not enthusiasm.
- A feasibility study grounded in 64 interviews across the donor pipeline.
- A structured assessment of capacity, leadership readiness, and the case for support.
- A recommended quiet phase of 18 or more months, with board lead-gift commitments secured before any public launch.
- A donor cultivation plan built on named prospect strategies.
- Hands-on coaching for campaign leadership through the first 12 closes.
A goal is only reachable once the people carrying it believe it is.
Where it stands now
The campaign entered its public phase in spring 2024. PlayPort, a 1.5-acre space celebrating the industrial history of the riverfront, is the first component to open, completed in 2024. Phase IV has broken ground. The board is operating at lead-gift level, and the case for support rests on community input rather than a vision handed down from the top. More than three years in, the work continues.