Welcome to the Paducah Area Community Sports Initiative (PACSI). We are a grassroots organization dedicated to expanding opportunities for sports and recreation throughout Paducah and McCracken County.

Our goal is simple: connect local players to places to play while advocating for policies and partnerships that make sports more affordable, more accessible, and more sustainable for future generations.

We support the growth of sports tourism, but we also believe our community deserves year-round access to quality recreational facilities every day of the week. These goals are not in conflict. By making better use of existing public resources, preserving valuable community spaces, and encouraging collaboration between organizations, we believe Paducah can become a regional leader in both sports tourism and community recreation.

To help accomplish that vision, PACSI is focused on the following initiatives:

Save or Replace the Free Community Sports Space We Have Lost or May Lose

Significant free outdoor sports space has already been lost with the closure of Stuart Nelson Park to make way for the Paducah Sports Park. Now, the McCracken County Soccer Complex is at risk of being partially closed, and Sheppard’s Field faces an uncertain future. These centrally located facilities have served generations of residents by providing free access for youth sports, adult leagues, pickup games, practices, camps, and informal recreation.

We support the growth of sports tourism, but it should not come at the expense of community recreation. Our goal is to preserve existing community space whenever possible and ensure that any recreation space lost is replaced with equivalent or better opportunities before it disappears. Growing our community’s recreational opportunities should mean adding to what we have, not replacing one resource with another.

Affordable Community Access Guarantee at the Paducah Sports Park by CFSB

The Paducah Sports Park is a tremendous investment that will benefit our region for years to come. While it was designed to attract tournaments and visitors, it was also presented as a resource for local families and community recreation.

To that end, we are asking for a dedicated portion of the Sports Park to be reserved for affordable community use. This could include a reservation system that allows residents, youth organizations, adult leagues, and community groups to reserve field space a few days in advance at reasonable rates. When reserved space is not in use, it should be available on a first-come, first-served basis.

This approach allows the Sports Park to fulfill its sports tourism mission while ensuring that local residents continue to have meaningful and affordable access to the facilities their tax dollars helped make possible.

Pursue and Expand Reciprocal Use Agreements

The Paducah Parks & Recreation Department already maintains a reciprocal use agreement with the Paducah Independent School District that allows each entity to utilize the other’s athletic facilities when they are not otherwise scheduled.

We believe this model should be expanded and promoted throughout McCracken County. By partnering with additional school systems, parks departments, churches, colleges, and other organizations, existing fields, gyms, and recreational facilities could become more accessible to the community without requiring significant new construction.

One of the biggest barriers community sports organizations face is obtaining insurance coverage required to use public facilities. Reciprocal use agreements help solve this problem by allowing local governments and participating organizations to provide appropriate insurance coverage while maximizing the use of facilities that often sit empty for large portions of the week.

Indoor Sports at the Expo Center and beyond

Initiate a community indoor sports access program at the Paducah-McCracken County Convention Center.

Since 2019, the Convention Center has successfully hosted sports tourism events, but much of its indoor court space sits unused during the week outside of scheduled tournaments and special events. At the same time, local officials have acknowledged that our community has a significant shortage of indoor recreation space.

Local officials are also consistently seeking increased government efficiency.  Our initiatives align with that goal, as they seek the maximum benefit from our existing public facilities.

We are asking for a community access program that would make these courts available at affordable rates during periods when they are not being used for tourism-related activities. This would provide immediate opportunities for youth leagues, adult sports, practices, clinics, camps, and community events without interfering with the Convention Center’s existing schedule.

While a dedicated community indoor sports facility remains a long-term goal, this initiative offers an immediate, practical solution that makes better use of an existing public asset while expanding recreational opportunities for residents.