(WHAS11) - The only remaining slaughterhouse in Louisville's Butchertown area has been given permission to expand.
That's despite protests from nearby residents and failing to get a permit before construction began.
The former Swift packing plant on Story Avenue, now called JBS, is where thousands of hogs are slaughtered nearly every day of the week.
The Butchertown Neighborhood Association complained that the plant violated zoning laws when JBS began construction on a $2 million expansion last year, without getting permission from the city.
The association wanted the plant shut down for the violation.
Monday, one man opposed to allowing JPS to continue its expansion project told the board of zoning adjustments that this case is about more than just one business.
"His isn't just a case about Swift...this is about every developer and landowner who says we can get away with it."
But after an 11 hour meeting the board voted to allow Swift to continue its expansion.
However, JBS must now do nearly $140,000 worth of landscaping around the expansion.
The board also put a cap on the number of hogs that can be slaughtered at 10,500 per day.
