The Owensboro City Commission voted 3–2 on Oct. 21 to authorize the mayor to execute a real estate purchase agreement for about 34.798 acres on Pleasant Valley Road.

City Manager Nate Pagan told commissioners the tract lies behind and to the south and east of the new Kroger under construction on Fairview Drive and was formerly part of a 60-acre family holding. Pagan said the city previously bought 25 acres from the same family in 2020 for right-of-way and that the family preferred to sell the remaining acreage to the city rather than see it remain in agricultural use.

Claude Bacon, president and CEO of the Owensboro Economic Development Corporation, told the commission the parcel provides “flexibility” for nonindustrial economic uses and said it complements other development already underway in the area.

Commissioner Jeff Sanford said he struggled with the purchase because of competing needs and the price, calling the roughly $100,000-per-acre price “a lot of money.” Sanford said the city has other long-term investments and cautioned against spending now even with a healthy fund balance. Those concerns contributed to Sanford’s “no” vote.

Commissioner New Smyth, Commissioner Curtis Maglinger and Mayor Pro Tem Bob Glenn voted to approve the purchase; Mayor Tom Watson and Commissioner Sanford voted no. The motion passed 3–2.

City staff and Bacon described the purchase as a strategic, long-term investment that the city could annex and return to the tax roll if and when it is developed. Pagan and Bacon said they do not have a short-term development plan for the site but characterized it as an asset that will support future commercial development in the corridor.

Discussion versus decision: commissioners debated the prudence of spending city funds now versus saving the parcel for longer-term development, with Sanford explicitly citing fiscal caution. The commission’s formal action authorized the mayor to execute the purchase agreement; no development approvals or incentives were adopted at the meeting.

The ordinance or contract specifying purchase price per acre and the final closing date were discussed in general terms during the meeting; staff reported the purchase price equals the per-acre amount the city paid for the adjacent parcel in 2020 and that the seller preferred a sale to the city.

The municipal order authorizing the purchase was read into the record as Municipal Order 24-2025 and then approved by roll call.