How the Cave City Boys & Girls Club project fell apart
The project was bid twice, but the lowest bids remained nearly $2 million. No CDBG money was spent.
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CAVE CITY, Ky. — The planned Boys & Girls Club in Cave City faced a funding gap of nearly $900,000 before the organization’s board ultimately ended the project, according to the Barren River Area Development District.
The project was originally budgeted at $1.085 million, including $750,000 in Community Development Block Grant funding and $335,000 in matching funds from the Boys & Girls Club of Glasgow-Barren County.
But construction costs rose significantly during the project.
BRADD said the original 2022 engineer’s estimate was $1.055 million. By August 2023, a second estimate had increased to $1.501 million, leading the project team to scale back the plans.
The project was eventually put out for bids twice.
The first bid opening, held Nov. 4, 2025, produced four bids. The lowest was $1.979 million.
Because the bid was significantly above budget, the project was bid again.
The second round, held Feb. 3, 2026, also produced four bids. The lowest was $1.968 million, still about $900,000 above the available budget, according to BRADD.
No CDBG money was spent
The project received $750,000 through the Community Development Block Grant program, which uses federal funds to help pay for community development projects across Kentucky.
The money is administered through the Kentucky Department for Local Government and, in this case, the Barren River Area Development District helped oversee the grant.
Although the project received the award in 2024, none of that money was spent.
Brennan Crain
BRADD said CDBG funds remain with the Kentucky Department for Local Government after an award and are released as construction work progresses.
Because the project never reached that stage, no CDBG dollars were drawn down.
The city and Boys & Girls Club also sought additional funding after the bids came in, BRADD said.
Those efforts included discussions with DLG and the governor’s office, as well as research into private foundation funding.
The efforts did not produce enough additional funding to close the gap.
What happens now?
The City of Cave City owns the former Houchens building at 110 N. 1st St. The city will determine what happens to the building after the Boys & Girls Club lease is terminated.
The $750,000 CDBG award will also return to the state because the project is no longer moving forward.
The Boys & Girls Club has not announced another location or timeline for a Cave City facility.
In an earlier interview with Barrenside, CEO Mallie Boston said the organization remains open to finding a way to serve Cave City youth, including potentially working with existing spaces in the community.
She said the organization would not pursue a limited version of its programming simply to have a presence in Cave City.
The bottom line
The Cave City project did not fail because the grant money disappeared. The project became too expensive to complete with the available funding.
The project had $1.085 million in its original budget, but the lowest construction bids came in at nearly $2 million. No CDBG money was spent, and efforts to find additional funding did not close the gap.
