City Improvements in Madisonville, Kentucky: Preparing a Small City for a Changing Future
Academic Level at Time of Presentation
Senior
Major
Earth & Environmental Sciences
List all Project Mentors & Advisor(s)
Jane Benson; Bassil El Masri; Emily Johnson; Michael Busby
Presentation Format
Oral Presentation
Abstract/Description
Madisonville, Kentucky is a small city located in the western part of the state. It was founded over 150 years ago as a commercial hub for the mines of the Western Kentucky coalfield and with the closure of the mines has mostly been in stagnation in development since. In the mid 2020s, Madisonville has begun to see development spring up again, especially in the Whittington Drive / KY 281 area near exit 116 of Interstate 69. While it is an economic good for the city to undergo development, the type of development is the same kind plaguing America today: sprawl. This project dives into how the city of Madisonville could develop itself in a more sustainable way using green strategies, including walkability, local businesses, green spaces, and moving away from a car-centric community. As the city is smaller in scale and located in a less expensive area, implementing these strategies would be placed under intense financial scrutinization to conserve as much funding as possible. This project aims to examine strategies that have been successful in other cities to create and secure a better equipped Madisonville for the future.
Spring Scholars Week 2026
Honors College Senior Thesis Presentations
City Improvements in Madisonville, Kentucky: Preparing a Small City for a Changing Future
Madisonville, Kentucky is a small city located in the western part of the state. It was founded over 150 years ago as a commercial hub for the mines of the Western Kentucky coalfield and with the closure of the mines has mostly been in stagnation in development since. In the mid 2020s, Madisonville has begun to see development spring up again, especially in the Whittington Drive / KY 281 area near exit 116 of Interstate 69. While it is an economic good for the city to undergo development, the type of development is the same kind plaguing America today: sprawl. This project dives into how the city of Madisonville could develop itself in a more sustainable way using green strategies, including walkability, local businesses, green spaces, and moving away from a car-centric community. As the city is smaller in scale and located in a less expensive area, implementing these strategies would be placed under intense financial scrutinization to conserve as much funding as possible. This project aims to examine strategies that have been successful in other cities to create and secure a better equipped Madisonville for the future.