Riverfront Infrastructure Improvement Project (BUILD Grant) Construction Update
Engineering Project Manager Melanie Townsend provided an update on the Paducah Riverfront Infrastructure Improvement Project also known as the BUILD Grant project. Construction began in November 2024 with completion and a grand opening planned for this September.
The project includes a riverboat excursion pier, transportation enhancements that include bus shelters near the National Quilt Museum and Walker Hall and a reconfigured entrance to the Paducah-McCracken County Convention & Expo Center. It also features improvements along the river side of the floodwall between the Convention Center and Broadway. Earlier this year to enhance the riverfront views, crews removed the two concrete foundations, remnants of a former conveyor system to offload materials from barges.
Townsend shared images highlighting the project’s progress, particularly since April. Recent work includes the installation of the large “Port of Paducah” letters, which mark the entrance to downtown from the new pier. The commons area, a park between the floodwall and the transient dock, is nearly complete. It features a decorative compass rose near the Harrison Street floodwall opening, green space, terraced seating, irrigation and landscaping, picnic tables, concrete pavers, and the historic chain feature, presented by the Dismukes family to the City of Paducah, along with an adjacent informational marker. The commons area will be completed this month, with the excursion pier and plaza scheduled for completion in August, ahead of a September grand opening.
Background - In 2019, the City received notification that it would be receiving a $10.4 million Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development (BUILD) Grant administered through the Maritime Administration (MARAD) to improve the riverfront. In June 2024, the City accepted a $3.5 million appropriation for the project outlined in House Bill 1 as approved during Kentucky’s legislative session. The City has an approximately $20.6 million construction contract with Jim Smith Contracting.
Zoning Text Agreements for Qualified Manufactured Homes
The Paducah Board of Commissioners approved three ordinances related to qualified manufactured homes. On July 1, a new Kentucky Revised Statute (KRS 100.348) took effect which states that qualified manufactured homes, that follow performance standards, must be allowed in all residential zones. To maintain neighborhood character, the code amendments for a qualified manufactured home and a traditionally-built single-family home both include a standard 5:12 roof pitch and permanent foundation. Additional amendments include that the qualified manufactured home must be manufactured within five years prior to the date it is installed. Furthermore, the main entrance to the home must face the street. No manufactured homes will be allowed in an existing or pending historic district.
The ordinance amendments are in the following sections of the Paducah Zoning Ordinance:
- Section 126-69, Mobile Home Parks (which is now to be referred to as land-lease communities), and Section 126-79, Qualified Manufactured Homes.
- Section 126-102, Low Density Residential Zone, R-1.
- Section 126-103, Low and Medium Density Residential Zone, R-2.
Agreement with Professional Fire Fighters of Paducah
The Paducah Board of Commissioners approved an ordinance for the three-year agreement between the City of Paducah and the Professional Fire Fighters of Paducah, Local 168, International Association of Firefighters. This agreement is from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2029. At the meeting, Mayor Bray and Matthew Meiser with the Professional Fire Fighters of Paducah signed the contract.
Additional Meeting Information
- Appointment of Carolyn Roof to the Tree Advisory Board.
- Municipal Order approved for the new lease agreement for the Probation & Parole Office Facility. The facility at 400 South 6th Street is owned by the City of Paducah and leased to the Kentucky Department of Corrections.
- Municipal Order approved authorizing the payment to Clean Earth, Inc. for the household hazardous and electronic waste collected during the Spring Clean Up Day event held on April 18.
- Municipal Order approved for a Memorandum of Agreement between the City of Paducah and the KY Transportation Cabinet for the Levin Avenue Resurfacing Project. In June, the City authorized applying for Local Assistance Road Program (LARP) funds through the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Paducah has been awarded a $101,000 grant for the project.
- Municipal Order approved authorizing the renewal application for Local Expanded Jurisdiction. This agreement between the City of Paducah and the Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction provides for additional plan review and inspection responsibilities within the City of Paducah.
- Ordinance approved for the consensual annexation of 435 and 485 Berger Road and associated rights-of-way.
- Ordinance approved amending Paducah Code of Ordinances, Chapter 2, Article VIII related to procurement to align the City’s code with recent changes enacted by the Kentucky General Assembly. The amendment clarifies the distinction between small purchase procedures, administrative award authority, and contract execution authority. The ordinance authorizes the City Manager to approve and award contracts up to $75,000 with contracts exceeding that amount requiring approval by the Board of Commissioners.
- Ordinance introduced for a non-exclusive, ten-year telecommunications franchise agreement with Uniti.
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