He begins pushing for downtown improvements. The RiverPark Walk, a fountain and a flower garden are the first of many changes downtown. Owensboro's Habitat for Humanity is organized in January 1988. Drought forces Owensboro Municipal Utilities to expand its water treatment capacity. J.R. Miller Boulevard opens to take some of the traffic off Frederica Street.
Kentucky voters approve a lottery.
Transco Energy Corp. For the first time since Dwight Eisenhower's 1952 whistle-stop, a major candidate for president campaigns in Owensboro. Vice President George Bush lands at Owensboro-Daviess County Regional Airport, travels to the Executive Inn by motorcade and then to a rally at English Park by boat. He will be sentenced to more than 13 years in prison on that and other charges. Vice presidential candidates Dan Quayle and Lloyd Bentsen also campaign in Owensboro. Quayle spends the night at the Executive Inn, plays basketball at Kentucky Wesleyan College and shops at Towne Square Mall.