Award Winning Paducah!

 
 
 
Awards & Recognition/National Trust for Historic Preservation
On February 15, 2011, an announcement was made by the National Trust for Historic Preservation naming Paducah, Kentucky as one of the United State’s Dozen Distinctive Destinations for 2011. Since 2000, the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Dozen Distinctive Destination program has recognized cities and towns that offer an authentic visitor experience by combining dynamic downtowns, cultural diversity, attractive architecture, cultural landscapes and a strong commitment to historic preservation, sustainability and revitalization. After a 30-day online voting process by the public, Paducah was named the FAN FAVORITE of the 2011 Dozen Distinctive Destinations.
 
In February 2011, prior to the 2011 Distinctive Destination announcement. Paducah was named one of five Most Romantic Main Streets by the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
 
On May 4, 2010, the National Trust for Historic Preservation announced that Paducah Renaissance Alliance in Paducah, Kentucky, was one of five winners of the 2010 Great American Main Street Awards® (GAMSA). Distinguishing itself by focusing on incentives and the arts as a revitalization strategy, Paducah Renaissance Alliance was honored at the Main Street Awards Ceremony during the National Main Streets Conference in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
 
 
Kentucky Tourism Industry Association’s Top 10 Festivals & Events
·      AQS Quilt Show & Contest (Also, awarded American Bus Association’s Top 100 Events of North America)
·      Barbecue on the River
·      River’s Edge Film Festival (Judge’s Recognition Award)
·      8th of August Emancipation Celebration
 
 
City of Paducah Awards

•   On August 2011, Paducah was selected by "Where to Retire" magazine as one of eight top retirement towns.  The article "8 Enticing Money-Saver Towns" is in the September/October issue of the magazine.
• On March 18, 2011, Paducah was noted as one of nine "Time Warp Towns" in America on Yahoo! Travel and provided by CNBC. Time Warp Towns are those out-of-time discoveries that make for road trip gold such as downtowns with antiques booth malls, town squares, monuments, cobblestones, and/or apple pie! The focus is to pick spots where the buildings where the local history was made are still standing and the town has enough points of interest to merit a visit.
• On September 17, 2010, the Kentucky League of Cities honored Paducah with an Enterprise Cities Award for its Tree Voucher Program.
• On September 17, 2010, the Kentucky League of Cities Insurance Services division presented Paducah with the Golden Eagle award for receiving a perfect loss control law enforcement scorecard of 100%.
• On September 17, 2010, the Kentucky League of Cities Insurance Services division presented Paducah with an award for receiving a 100% score on its risk management scorecard.
• On September 14, 2010, Commissioner Gayle Kaler accepted the Kentucky Health Hero award for the City of Paducah.  The Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky recognizes Paducah for its efforts to help people stay fit and active through programs and projects such as the sidewalk and bike plan, Bikes on Broadway, employee wellness plan, and the Farmers' Market.

 
 
Chamber of Commerce Awards

•   On August 4, 2011, the Paducah Area Chamber of Commerce received the prestigious Chamber of the Year award by the American Chamber of Commerce Executives Association (ACCE). The Chamber of the Year award is the highest achievement in the chamber profession, recognizing excellence in financial performance, member programs and internal operations.

• 4-Star Accreditation from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce - November 2007

 
 
Awards & Recognition for the Artists Relocation Program

• American Planning Association – National Planning Award/Special Community Initiative
• Kentucky Chapter of the American Planning Association – Special Merit Award for Outstanding Planning
• 2002 Governor’s Government Award in the Arts
• 2001 James C. Howland Awards for Urban Enrichment – Recognition Award
•  Kentucky Arts Council Grant
• City of Paducah Beautification Award
• Kentucky Bankers Association – BKD Award for Excellence and Innovation
• Kentucky Bankers Association – Pegasus Award for Community Project
• 2004 Kentucky League of Cities – Enterprise Cities Award
• Dorothy Mullins Arts and Humanities Award – National Recreation and Parks Association
• 2005 Rudy Bruner Award for Urban Excellence

 
Additional Awards

•   In April 2011, West Kentucky Community and Technical College was selected by the Aspen Institute College Excellence Program as one of the nation’s 120 best community colleges, the top 10 percent in the country. But it gets better. In September 2011, WKCTC was named one of the ten finalist community colleges by the Aspen Institute. The college is now in the last stage of the competition for a $1 million prize to be awarded in December 2011.On September 17, 201