Over the past few weeks, development of the former Katterjohn site located at 1501 Broadway, has slowed. In March, the City of Paducah approved the transfer of the property, through a development agreement with Westwood Development, LLC, for the construction of 12 single-family homes. With the former Katterjohn site having a long history of commercial activity, the State of Kentucky has been working with the City of Paducah and the developer to ensure that the site is ready for residential development. As construction activity progressed, in early June, an environmental contractor was on site installing monitoring wells. In the very near future, with the State of Kentucky leading the effort, an additional assessment of the site’s soil will be conducted.
“We were fully expecting the State of Kentucky to issue a notice that this project was closed, and no further action would be necessary,” said Mayor George Bray. “However, the State is now requesting further review. We certainly appreciate the thoroughness of the State especially since this is a site where homes are going to be built, and we will comply with each and every request and accept this as part of the development process. Furthermore, I value our partnership with Westwood Development, LLC and the patience they have shown as we work through this process. The City is committed to doing everything possible to address our community’s ongoing housing shortage.”
June 2026 Environmental Work | For background, two years ago, during the environmental assessment process, a 6,000-gallon underground storage tank (UST) and its contents were removed. More than 276 tons of soil from the area around the tank and water from the excavation pit also were removed with proper disposal. The Closure Assessment Report for the project was submitted to the State in March 2025 with a recommendation of no further environmental action. In May 2026, fifteen (15) months later, the City of Paducah received notification from the Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection, Division of Waste Management, Underground Storage Tank (UST) Branch that four monitoring wells were required in the vicinity of the former UST. In early June, an environmental contractor installed those four monitoring wells as required. The City’s on-site environmental contractor indicated that the laboratory results of the groundwater samples are below applicable UST clean-up levels.
Upcoming Environmental Work | With the continued goal of ensuring the property is cleared from an environmental perspective, the Kentucky Department for Environmental Protection, Division of Waste Management, Superfund Branch has offered to assist with the assessment of the top layer of soil at the site. The testing involves the deployment of 18 to 24 passive soil gas samplers. These are small thumb-size vials that are placed in the ground for two weeks to collect any soil vapors. Once the samplers are ordered, the community may notice crews installing them. We anticipate this process to take 30-60 days, and then development of the site will resume.
The Katterjohn site, a 3.21-acre property purchased by the City in 2023, previously contained a deteriorated building that had not been properly maintained by former owners. In 2024, the city demolished the structure and invited developers to submit proposals for the site in 2025.
In 2024, the Kentucky Housing Corporation identified a significant housing shortage of more than 3800 housing units in McCracken County, highlighting the need for projects that expand local housing options.
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