Owensboro’s recent string of real estate purchases has set off a spirited discussion among local leaders about how aggressively the City should buy property to guide its own growth.
City Manager Nate Pagan and a majority of City Commissioners say the acquisitions are deliberate investments meant to attract jobs, clean up blight, and maintain control over prime development areas. Mayor Tom Watson and Commissioner Jeff Sanford said they share those goals but question the timing and price of some deals, particularly the latest purchase along Pleasant Valley Road.
“In our industry, we call it taking down land,” Pagan said. “You have to have some measure of control in order to market it for economic development … it’s very common.”
He added that state law gives cities broad flexibility when disposing of land to recruit investment.
“It’s very, very flexible when it comes to economic development,” he said.
The latest flashpoint was the 3-2 vote to purchase nearly 35 acres between Fairview Drive and Pleasant Valley Road for about $3.5 million, or $100,000 per acre. Commissioners Sharon NeSmith, Bob Glenn, and Curtis Maglinger voted in favor; Watson and Sanford opposed, citing price and timing. Pagan called it a long-term play in one of the city’s fastest-growing commercial corridors, noting the family who owned the land preferred to sell to the City.
Sanford said his “no” vote wasn’t about motive but about pacing.
“I think we’ve bought a lot lately,” he said. “I want to concentrate on what we have … I was ready to stop.”
He added that as the City grows, services like police, fire, and streets expand, too.
“You’re walking a tightrope,” Sanford said.
Maglinger backed the Fairview purchase but said every acquisition has to serve a purpose.
“I don’t want to be buying property just to be buying property,” he said. “If we have an opportunity that will allow it to help our community grow … that’s what I look at.”
NeSmith said the Commission’s review process is deliberate: members meet in pairs with the city manager to discuss costs and plats before public votes.
“We don’t want to buy a piece of property just to buy it and say we own it,” she said. “The purpose is, what’s the value and what is the long-term impact of it?”
For her, the Fairview corridor is growing, and the tract “would sell faster than some of the others we have available.”
Glenn said the City’s goal isn’t to profit off land but to prepare sites and return them to private use.
“We’re not here to invest in land in and of itself,” he said. “We do it for purposes of economic development. In the case of the Colonel House, we do it for purposes of improving the quality of the neighborhood and maybe providing access to affordable housing.”
Watson had previously expressed reservations about certain property purchases, including the former day treatment campus on KY 54, but later said he was satisfied with how the deal ultimately unfolded.
In an interview on Tuesday with Owensboro Times, Watson said he has “calmed down” and now agrees the City is “land poor” and sometimes must buy when opportunities arise.
“We don’t have much land in the city … if we can buy it, it can increase our land,” he said.
He also said he has no concerns about the city manager’s ethics.
“He’s maybe the most pragmatic person I’ve ever met,” Watson said. “I don’t have any problem with that.”
Pagan said all purchases are made in partnership with the Greater Owensboro Economic Development Corporation, which identifies and vets sites but doesn’t have funding to acquire them.
“The EDC is our marketing arm … they don’t have the resources to actually control the land,” Pagan said. “Any property we buy must go to the floor and is approved by the Board of Commissioners … with a vote in open session.”
Former day treatment campus on KY 54
The City acquired the long-vacant state property for $3.3 million and immediately resold it to 54 Grand LLC for the same amount, requiring demolition and redevelopment. Pagan said the maneuver had “no net cost to the City” while fixing a safety issue.
“Our focus … was to get that property into somebody’s hands, to get that facility torn down because of all the safety issues,” Glenn said.
Watson added, “That one could have been put out for bid,” but said, “as it turned out, I think it’s all good.”
Massie Property industrial site
The City and GOEDC finalized the purchase of 121 acres on the west side to replace a near-full AirPark, buying at $38,500 per acre — below appraisal — to recruit manufacturers and higher-wage jobs. Pagan said the move came after years of planning and coordination.
Colonel House Motel
The City bought the long-troubled Triplett Street property to issue an RFP for renovation or rebuild into affordable rentals.
Pagan said, “This could involve renovation of the existing structure or a complete rebuild, but the ultimate goal is affordable housing.”
Downtown Veterans Boulevard site
The City agreed to buy parcels across from Smothers Park from Jagoe Homes for $4.2 million, reimbursing acquisition and demolition costs to ready the riverfront for a signature project. Officials expect to solicit proposals soon.
Looking ahead
Watson said his focus now is ensuring fiscal discipline while still investing in growth.
“I’d like to leave this place better than I found it,” he said of the City’s finances.
Sanford agreed the goal is sound but said he’s wary of overextension: “If I knew that XYZ was coming there for sure … I would have probably been for that.”
Maglinger said owning key parcels lets the City “control our economic development.”
NeSmith said purchases should ultimately yield taxable projects and, when possible, broader public benefits like affordable housing.
Pagan said the Commission itself set the tone.
“They have asked us to be aggressive when it comes to economic development,” he said. “We talk and work on that constantly.”
Glenn believes the latest deal will validate that approach.
“I would be shocked if that property doesn’t turn over within the next 24 months,” he said of the Fairview/Pleasant Valley tract.
Sanford remains cautious but said he respects the decision.
“I think everybody has good intentions,” he said.
What’s not in dispute, leaders said, is the end goal: using targeted property purchases to clear eyesores, attract private investment, and grow Owensboro’s tax base. The question that remains is how fast the City should buy, and how much risk taxpayers should shoulder, as it positions itself for the next chapter of growth.
