Hey fellow Owensboroans! Our playfulness has finally been recognized! Not kidding!

For the first time, Owensboro is being honored with a 2016 Playful City USA designation.

According to a press release from the 2016 Playful City USA Program--which honors cities and towns across America for making their cities more playable--Owensboro's commitment to quality of life initiatives and access to green space and play through maintaining a solid infrastructure of play opportunities that include multi-purpose fields; sports courts and sports fields; walking, biking, hiking and running trails; recreational facilities and playgrounds has earned our community this recognition and honor.

In the release, Mayor Ron Payne was quoted as saying, "As Mayor, I have seen how creating a sense of place and making opportunities for recreation and play readily available to all of our residents can change an attitude within a community, and how that change benefits the economy and overall community health.

In Owensboro, our citizens understand the value and embrace the benefits of our focused efforts on our community’s health, well-being and economic vitality.  Our commitment to reducing inequity in accessibility to recreational spaces and opportunities for all citizens and our focus on commitment to the well-being of our youngest citizens is shown through our consistent efforts to improve our community’s recreational spaces and grow those spaces and opportunities.  As a father and grandfather, I understand that a healthy balance of play for our youth produces the most well-rounded, capable, and successful citizen as an adult."

Beaver Dam and Henderson have been selected for this honor a combined five times.

 

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