Note: Mayor Pro Tem Sandra Wilson and Commissioner Dujuan Thomas were unable to attend this meeting.
Retirement of Finance Director Jonathan Perkins
Mayor George Bray invited the community to a retirement celebration in honor of Finance Director Jonathan Perkins. Perkins is retiring at the end of this month after serving as Paducah’s Finance Director for more than 34 years. The public retirement reception will be Wednesday, July 30 from 2 until 4 in the atrium of Paducah’s City Hall. Perkins, a certified public accountant, began his tenure in Paducah in March 1991 after serving in various roles in Missouri and Georgia including the Assistant Finance Director for Savannah, Georgia.
Mayor George Bray said, “Jonathan brought a wealth of experience with him to Paducah and continued to grow in the more than three decades serving our community. We thank you, Jonathan, for helping Paducah achieve the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for 34 consecutive years in addition to our strong bond rating. Your commitment to financial soundness and transparency has made our community and city government stronger. Jonathan’s commitment to excellence, integrity, and public service has left an indelible mark on our city. Throughout your tenure you have always gone above and beyond to serve the residents of Paducah with professionalism. Your work on behalf of our organization is inspirational to other team members, and our citizens, and has served to enhance our community.”
Southside Revitalization Plan
The Paducah Board of Commissioners introduced an ordinance to adopt the Southside Revitalization Plan which establishes the Southside program area and designates the Urban Renewal and Community Development Agency of Paducah with the authority to implement and oversee the administration of the plan. This plan was developed in accordance with Chapters 99 and 424 of the Kentucky Revised Statutes. The draft plan was presented publicly at the Planning Commission and URCDA meetings on June 9 and July 7 with a favorable recommendation by resolution from those boards. To view the draft plan, visit https://paducahky.gov/southside.
Planning Director Carol Gault announced that in a meeting today with CFSB, the bank is agreeing to provide up to 100 percent financing for single-family residential loans and construction loans.
The Southside of Paducah is one of Paducah’s earliest neighborhoods, and the revitalization of this neighborhood is a priority of the Board of Commissioners to address a shortage of housing and commercial units. The Southside Program Area consists of eight main neighborhoods: Walter Jetton, Uppertown, River Park, Kolb Park, Farley Place, Littleville, Dolly McNutt, and Ella Munal and covers 3.3 square miles and contains 3,678 parcels of land. Due to this large-scale area, the Plan will be implemented in phases. The phase one area includes the area between the southern right-of-way line of Kentucky Avenue to the northern right-of-way line of Caldwell Street and from the western right- of-way line of South 3rd Street to the eastern boundary of the Illinois Central Railroad track between Kentucky Avenue and Caldwell Street.
In addition to the development of the plan, the Planning Department is working to compile a structure inventory database of the phase one area. After the plan is adopted, an incentive program will be brought before the City Commission for adoption. Over the next few months expect to see an increase in communications including neighborhood signs for the program, neighborhood walks, increased social media presence, a newsletter, and educational workshops. There will be an “I am Southside” initiative to showcase the Southside.
Discussion of Strengthening Civic Engagement through Compensation of Boards and Commissions
City Clerk & Director of Customer Experience Lindsay Parish provided an overview of current compensation practices for the City’s various boards and commissions. Currently, the City of Paducah provides appointments to 32 boards with more than 200 appointed members. Most of the board members do not receive compensation for their time. Parish explained that there are benefits if board members are compensated including a recognition of their time and expertise, improvement in member recruitment and retention, increased accountability and engagement, and promotion of equity and inclusion.
In reviewing other cities, Parish found that most cities use a per-meeting stipend for board service ranging from $25 to $75 per meeting with utility and regulatory boards receiving higher stipends. For Paducah, there are a few boards that provide compensation to the members including Electric Plant Board, Board of Assessment Appeals, Planning Commission and URCDA, Joint Sewer Agency, 911 Administrative Board, and 911 Parcel Fee Appeals Board. Parish also reviewed which City boards were eligible for compensation and which ones were not eligible due to restrictions by KRS or the board’s bylaws.
The City Commission decided to move forward with this compensation initiative. The next steps will be to make policy decisions such as payment and tracking structure, approve an ordinance with the changes, notify the boards, implement attendance and financial tracking mechanisms, and train staff.
KPDI Grant for Speculative Building
The Paducah Board of Commissioners approved a Municipal Order authorizing the City to provide local match funds and serve as the grantee for the Kentucky Product Development Initiative Grant (KPDI). In June, Greater Paducah Economic Development President/CEO Bruce Wilcox announced that the local community has been successful in receiving a competitive $2 million grant, the maximum eligible award, through KPDI toward the construction of a 100,000-square-foot speculative building to be located in Paducah at 5700 Commerce Drive in Industrial Park West. In July, the City Commission authorized providing grant match funding up to $6 million. This investment aims to enhance economic development opportunities in Paducah by attracting new businesses and job growth.
Boards and Commissions
- Reappointment of Jill Durham, Storm Wilson, and Wayne Armbruster to the Paducah Civic Beautification Board.
- Appointment of Jennifer Swanson to the Code Enforcement Board.
- Appointment of Rachel Robinson to the Paducah Human Rights Commission.
Additional Meeting Information
- Police Chief Brian Laird recognized Officer Brooke Adams with a Meritorious Service Award for her bravery and decisiveness during the June 29 active shooter incident at the Greyhound bus station.
- Mayor George Bray presented a Duchess of Paducah to Pam Russell for her 33 years in the music industry. After retiring from a successful career in Nashville, Russell is returning to her hometown of Paducah. Earlier this year, Russell was named to the SOURCE Nashville Hall of Fame.
- Assistant Director of Parks Greg Shelton and Public Works Director Chris Yarber introduced the Summer Youth Program participants.
- Municipal Order approved for a Contract for Services between the City of Paducah and Paducah Transit Authority for FY2026 with the City providing $215,000 in operational support.
- Municipal Order approved (with a vote of 2 to 1 with Commissioner Smith voting no) for a Contract for Services between the City of Paducah and Paducah Junior College, Inc. with the City of Paducah providing $100,000 in operational support for the Community Scholarship Program.
- Municipal Order approved for the declaration and sale of the following surplus property parcels: 816 South 12th Street and 1201 Oscar Cross Avenue. The Paducah Alliance of Neighborhoods is requesting both parcels for the construction of single-family homes.
- Municipal Orders approved for the purchase of the following pieces or equipment and vehicles:
- One front loader for use by the Public Works Refuse Division.
- One brush loader for use by the Public Works Street Division.
- One side arm refuse truck for use by the Public Works Refuse Division.
- One cab tractor and loader for use by the Floodwall Division and one John Deere Z920M ZTrak for the use by the Parks and Recreation Department.
- One crew cab dump truck for use by the Public Works Street Division.
- Ten police pursuit-rated SUVs for the use by the Police Department
- Municipal Order approved authorizing the Certificate of Approval to support the issuance of bonds by the Kentucky Bond Development Corporation for the benefit of Baptist Healthcare Systems, Inc.
- Municipal Order approved for the Declaration of Trust and Trust Partnership Agreement for the Kentucky League of Cities Worker’s Compensation Trust.
- Municipal Order approved adopting the state-wide mutual aid agreement allowing communities to either send or receive mutual aid without having to develop an agreement with each community.
- Municipal Order approved for a one-year contract with Make My Move, an economic development platform that helps communities grow by recruiting talented people and their families to relocate. This will be the third year for the contract. In fiscal year 2024, Paducah had 6 people relocate with 7 people relocating in fiscal year 2025. So far this year, there have been 16 offers.
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