Paducah's New Riverfront Meets Its First Holiday Season
October 29, 2026
October 29, 2026
The large floodwall opening on Water Street between Broadway and Jefferson is where downtown Paducah's holiday season will gather this year. Since Friday, September 18, it has been the official front door to a rebuilt riverfront.
Between now and early December, the riverboat season's last stops, the City's tree lighting and the Christmas parade's finish all come through that one opening. For years a downtown holiday outing meant Broadway's lights and the storefronts. This year it ends at the river, on a pier that didn't exist last November.
The City calls the project the Riverfront Infrastructure Improvement Project. Many people know it as the BUILD grant project, after the $10.4 million federal Better Utilizing Investments to Leverage Development grant awarded through the U.S. Maritime Administration. The state added $3.5 million. Construction began in November 2024. According to the City of Paducah's ribbon-cutting release, the finished work includes:
The City's construction plans put the pier downstream of the Broadway floodwall entrance. A grand staircase climbs to the Water Street opening between Broadway and Jefferson, and an ADA walkway connects to the Broadway opening. For the September celebration, the City used the terraced mound as what it called "amphitheater-type seating." That slope is the closest thing to grandstand seating at the river this season.
The project took a long time. WPSD Local 6 reported that it began in 2019 under former Mayor Brandi Harless, and that Mayor George Bray inherited it when he took office. At the ceremony, Bray described the delay:
"At the time I was elected, COVID really had put everything on hold, and it was 2022 before we were able to really pick the project back up."
According to the same WPSD report, construction costs climbed during that pause, and state legislators later secured the additional $3.5 million that helped finish the work.
The pier was built for riverboats, and its first season is almost over. The schedule gave the American Symphony a full day in port on Sunday, November 1. Three Viking calls remain on the Paducah Convention & Visitors Bureau's 2026 riverboat schedule:
| Date | Boat | In port |
|---|---|---|
| Friday, November 6 | Viking | 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. |
| Saturday, November 14 | Viking | 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. |
| Friday, November 20 | Viking | 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. |
No calls are listed after November 20. The schedule warns that river deviations and last-minute changes can move these dates. The PDF is labeled as updated in April 2026, so treat each date as provisional until the morning of.
That Saturday, November 14 call is the most convenient for anyone with a weekday job. A docked boat at the new pier on a weekend morning is the clearest look at what the excursion plaza was designed for.
Three days after that Saturday boat, and three days before the last Viking call, the holiday season starts a few steps from the pier. The City's tree lighting is Tuesday, November 17, 2026, beginning at 5:30 p.m. on Water Street in front of the large floodwall opening between Broadway and Jefferson. That's the same opening where the ribbon was cut in September.
According to the City's tree lighting page, the evening includes:
Water Street between Broadway and Jefferson will be closed to vehicles for the event. The lighting also starts the season's displays elsewhere downtown: Locomotive 1518 near the Carson Center, the trees and shrubs along Broadway, and Paducah City Hall. Holiday pole decorations also line Jefferson Street and Walter Jetton Boulevard. A walk from the tree up Broadway to City Hall covers most of the season's lights in one loop.
For the week of November 14 to 20, the pier and the tree share the same block. A Viking may still be tied up downstream on a day when the tree is already lit at the floodwall. After November 20, the river side goes quiet for the year and the lights take over downtown.
The City has themed this year's Christmas parade "Christmas on the River." It steps off Saturday, December 5, at 5 p.m. at 14th and Broadway. The route runs down Broadway to Water Street, turns left at Jefferson Street and disbands at Jefferson and 2nd Street.
That puts the parade's final stretch along Water Street, past the floodwall opening, the lit tree and the new riverfront entrance. Broadway has the longest stretch of curb. The Water Street turn has the river and the tree, but it's a shorter piece of the route.
For groups still deciding whether to enter, the City's parade page lists the logistics. The $50-plus-tax early bird window closed October 30. Entries are still accepted until noon on November 24, with an added $30 fee. Forms and payment go to the Paducah Parks & Recreation Office at 2701 Park Avenue. Every entry must attend one of two informational meetings on Tuesday, December 1, at the Robert Cherry Civic Center, 2701 Park Avenue. The 5:30 p.m. meeting is the evening option. The 2026 entry form and rules are posted as a PDF.
The hotel planned near the riverfront won't open in time for this season's events. The Aloft by Marriott Paducah at 520 North 3rd Street is planned as a 121-room hotel. When the project broke ground, the City expected it to open in December 2026. WPSD Local 6 now reports that completion has moved to spring 2027 and that developer Joseph Gega expects an April 2027 opening. In that report, City Manager Daron Jordan pointed to complications with groundwork at the site, and the developer cited financing difficulties. For this holiday season, the riverfront's new features are the pier, the plaza and the park.
One more City event takes place away from the river. The City's Holiday Market is Saturday, December 12, from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., at Paducah Middle School, 342 Lone Oak Road. That's a separate trip from the downtown events.
Here's the riverfront's first holiday calendar:
If you'd like to hear how Paducah's downtown and riverfront have changed over the years, or what the new pier might mean for the blocks around it, I'm always happy to talk about it. Reach out to Tammy Cothran and let's connect.
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