With New Contracts Awarded, Owensboro Convention Center Price Tag Maxes Out

The price tag for a new downtown convention center in Owensboro now stands at nearly $40 million. The city-county organization overseeing the construction effort has approved the use of $3.5 million in contingency funds for the project.

The management company behind the new convention center says the contingency funds are necessary to complete the facility as envisioned.

The 169,000 square-foot convention center is a major part of Owensboro’s downtown revitalization effort, which is years in the making and also includes a new hotel, marina, and revamped parks.

Contracts awarded this week by the Owensboro-Daviess County Industrial Development Authority put the price tag of the new convention center to $39.5 million—the maximum cost Denark Construction is expected to command for the project.

Daviess County Judge-Executive Al Mattingly told the Messenger-Inquirer the current cost estimate doesn’t come as a surprise, as city and county leaders were prepared to move the $3.5 million in contingency dollars to the construction funds category.