Clymer claims Paducah officials holding up sports complex progress

McCracken County officials say they are ready to move forward with the Sport Complex, but are waiting on the City to finally enter into their agreement.

Jim Dudley, Chairman of the McCracken County Sports Tourism Commission, told commissioners at Monday night's Fiscal Court meeting that his group is ready to sign the contract so things can proceed. He said if the contract were signed today, the complex would be ready to open in 2024. 

The holdup seems to lie in the fact the City of Paducah has yet to sign the interlocal agreement, costing the commission thousands of dollars each month. Dudley said they are paying Sports Facilities Companies $50,000 in consulting fees each month as part of its contract. This money is already figured into the contract and paid whether any work or the project is moving forward.

Judge-Executive Craig Clymer said the city refuses to sign the interlocal agreement on the sports complex until the county signs the interlocal agreement on E-911 upgrades.

“There seems to be some hunch, some guess, some suspicion in the city that we will not honor what we said we would support on the 911 project,” Clymer said. 

Clymer said he assured Mayor Bray that the county would hold up its end of the agreement and asked him to essentially not hold the sports complex hostage until they signed unrelated documents.