Who Wants the Owensboro Executive Inn?

The owners of the Owensboro Executive Inn say the sprawling hotel complex will go to the highest bidder at auction March 17th. Its the latest chapter in the volatile history of the Executive, which was sold at auction back in 1999, sold again in 2005, and endured a damaging fire as well. The Executive is both a tourism main stay, and a redevelopment hurdle to the city and to Daviess County. It sits on 17 prime acres along the Ohio River, where real estate commands prices around $800,000 an acre. It also blocks downtown from English Park, two areas that developers want to link using $45 million in federal grant money secured by Kentucky Senator Mitch Mcconnell. The location alone makes the city and county likely candidates to purchase the property. At the very least, both entities are paying very close attention to the possible sale. "Were going to be acutely interested in who is interested in the Executive Inn," said Daviess County Judge Executive Reid Haire. Haire sees the sale as an opportunity to finally redevelop the property, even if that means leveling the 5 building complex and starting over. The estimated starting bid for the property is $10 million, which is considerably below market price, but does not take in to account the cost of demolishing the structure, if that is what the new owner chose to do. Former owner John Bays, who bought the property in 1999 for around $5 million and sold his interests in 2005, said he would be interested in purchasing it again if the price were right. But Bays says the property has lost value in the last several years, in part due to the fire. "5, 6, 7 million dollars, thatd be a good bargain. 10 million, its not a bargain unless the city buys it itself," Bays said. Bays hinted that renovations to the property could cost upwards of $200 million, if the new owners wanted to keep it open and renovate it to world class standards. The city and county are also concerned about the potential impact on local tourism if the Executive were torn down. Its rooms are in high demand when the city hosts large sporting events, concerts and conventions.