Proclamations
Mayor George Bray presented proclamations
- To Lotus Executive Director Lori Wells Brown and Lotus employees proclaiming April as National Child Abuse Prevention Month and Sexual Assault Awareness & Prevention Month; and
- To 911 Division Manager Kim Clark and telecommunicators proclaiming April 9 through 15 as National Telecommunications Week.
Convention Center Roof Discussion
Mayor Bray stated that the Convention Center is an important community asset and replacing the deteriorating roof is a priority. In response to comments made at last night’s McCracken County Fiscal Court meeting regarding the County’s interpretation of how the transient room tax should be used to fund a capital improvement project such as the roof replacement, Mayor Bray said the City disagrees with the County’s interpretation.
Mayor Bray stated authority to levy the 2% transient room tax is outlined in KRS 91A.392 which allows fiscal courts in counties that have an authorized city, such as Paducah, the ability to levy a 2% room tax. Those funds can be used for the retirement of bonds related to the construction, expansion, or operation of government-owned convention centers or fine arts centers. This practice of using the room tax to pay the principal and interest for bonds for Convention Center improvements has happened in the past with the 2017 project that improved the kitchen facilities as the most recent example. Mayor Bray stated the most equitable solution is for the City to issue bonds to cover the roof repairs with the principal and interest payments to be paid from the 2% transient room tax.
Contract for the Construction of Pickleball Courts at Noble Park
The Paducah Board of Commissioners introduced an ordinance for an agreement with PCC Sports for the construction of pickleball courts. The project includes the construction of an eight-court pickleball facility with amenities including fencing around the courts, lighting, shade structures, benches, and sidewalks. The courts will be constructed in Noble Park across from the tennis courts. Parks & Recreation Department Director Amie Clark said the courts will take approximately two and a half months to construct the goal to begin construction in mid-May.
Paducah Water Cleaner Water Program Grant Projects
Paducah Water General Manager Jason Petersen outlined three projects that will use funding from the Cleaner Water Program Grant with the Kentucky Infrastructure Authority. Paducah Water received three grant awards totaling more than $1.6 million. The City Commission approved Municipal Orders for each project.
- Painting and rehabilitation of water tanks on U.S. 60 and Interstate-24 (interior only).
- Construction of an air stripping unit at the Paducah Water treatment plant.
- The addition of the West McCracken County water infrastructure, which total 85 miles of water mains, to Paducah Water’s hydraulic model.
Grants Update
City of Paducah Grants Administrator Hope Reasons provided an update of grants activity. Currently, the City is managing $19.4 million in grant funding. In Fiscal Year 2021-2022 the City submitted 15 grant applications and was awarded 12. To date in Fiscal Year 2022-2023, the City has submitted 16 grant applications. So far, six of those grants have been awarded. Plus, the City has received a preliminary award letter for the Land and Water Conservation Fund grant which will be used for upgrades to Keiler Park’s playground. Reasons added the City received 20 applications for Grant-in-Aid funding which had a deadline of March 31.
The Board also approved the following municipal orders related to grants:
- Kentucky League of Cities Worker’s Compensation Safety Grant requesting $3000 which will be used for the purchase of safety equipment and personal protective equipment.
- EPA Environmental Justice Government to Government Grant requesting $1 million which would be used to improve community health by renovating or remediating at least 20 homes to improve indoor air quality, disaster resilience, and energy efficiency on Paducah’s Southside.
- Department of Local Government pass-through $100,000 grant for the P&L Railroad Rockport Bridge Project.
Additional Meeting Information
- Mayor Bray presented a Duke of Paducah to Artist Jaime Romero from Manises, Spain. Paducah Arts Alliance is hosting Romero as part of the Artist in Residency Program. Manises, Spain is a mutual UNESCO Creative City. This year, Paducah is celebrating its 10th Anniversary as a member of the UNESCO Creative Cities Network.
- Appointment of Tim Story to the Paducah Civic Beautification Board.
- Appointment of Gayle Kaler to the Paducah Planning Commission.
- Municipal order approved authorizing a memorandum of agreement for incentives following the consensual annexation of 2631 Holt Road.
- Municipal order approved for Contract Modification #1 decreasing the Dredge America, Inc. contract by $1,647.00. The recent project removed nearly 60,000 cubic yards of sediment.
- Municipal order approved for a Fleet Maintenance Service Agreement between Paducah’s Fleet Division and the Salem, Kentucky Fire Department. Fleet will provide maintenance services to each agency’s vehicles at hourly rates.
- Municipal orders approved for the purchase of one SUV for the Paducah Fire Department and for the purchase of two pickup trucks for the Facility Division and Parks Department.
- Municipal order approved for the selection of ATA CPA’s and Advisors, PLLC to conduct professional audit services for Paducah Power System.
- Ordinance approved for the three-year agreement between the City of Paducah and the Professional Fire Fighters of Paducah, Local 168, International Association of Fire Fighters.
- Ordinance approved for the three-year agreement between the City of Paducah and the Paducah Police Department Bargaining Unit.
- Ordinance approved amending Paducah Code of Ordinances Chapter 106 Taxation. The amendment requires payroll companies that file more than six returns per quarter to submit them electronically rather than on individual paper returns. This will save time since revenue technicians would not need to manually process approximately 2700 accounts that submit using a paper return.
- Ordinance introduced for the consensual annexation of a portion of the property at 252 Locust Avenue totaling 1.47 acres.
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