[16] RoadsideAmerica.com rated the displays depicting the sinful state of the world before the flood, including a priest sacrificing an infant to an unnamed snake god and people fighting a giant and a dinosaur in a gladiatorial arena, as among the most memorable exhibits in the attraction.

[26] Under a program enacted by the Kentucky General Assembly in 2010, Ark Encounter investors applied for Economic Development Incentives that would allow them to recoup 25 percent of the project's construction costs by keeping a portion of the park's sales taxes during its first ten years of operation.

[28] A press release from Kentucky Governor Steve Beshear's office cited a feasibility study commissioned by Ark Encounter, LLC and conducted by consumer research corporation America's Research Group Limited, Inc.[28] The company had also conducted the feasibility study for AiG's Ark Encounter and an attitudinal survey included in Ken Ham's book Already Gone; ARC founder C. Britt Beemer was credited as a co-author of the book.

[31] Citing the proffered incentives, Ark Encounter, LLC made the Grant County site their final selection and scheduled groundbreaking for August 2011.

[32] Plans for additional phases of the park include a model of the Tower of Babel, along with replicas of an ancient walled city and a first-century Middle Eastern village.

[38] Plans for five subsequent phases included replicas of an ancient walled city, a first-century Middle Eastern village, and the Tower of Babel; an aviary; and a 500-seat special effects theater.

[40] A group of atheist objectors to the Ark Encounter attempted to disrupt the offering by registering for the sale themselves and conducting a public relations campaign against the bonds.

[39] The 2014 Kentucky General Assembly allocated $1.15 million to Grant County for road improvements to accommodate the heavier traffic expected to be generated by the Ark Encounter.

[55] The Washington Post wrote that the decision to use such techniques was exemplary of "a fundamental shift in how religiously conservative Christians think of two basic biblical ideas: dominion and stewardship".

[55] Hydroponic gardens produce lettuce to feed the animals housed at the attraction's petting zoo, as well as the landscape plants for the Ark Encounter and Creation Museum.

[56] Construction crews began clearing timber from the site late in 2012 in order to remove the shagbark hickory trees before the endangered Indiana bats migrated to the area to nest in them.

"[72] Contending that FFRF was incorrect in their assertion, Ham posted on his blog that he would encourage public school groups to visit the ark by offering admission of $1 per child and no charge for accompanying teachers for the remainder of 2016.

[73] The Tri-State Freethinkers has protested annually at the Ark Encounter on the anniversary of its opening, citing its hiring practices, anti-evolution teachings, and acceptance of state tax incentives as causes for protestors' concerns.

[74] In December 2016, for the holiday season, AiG lit the Ark with rainbow colors, the purpose being to "reclaim the symbol from the gay rights movement" and remind viewers of the Noahic covenant.

[87] Upon reopening on June 8, AiG limited the number of visitors allowed in the park to one-third of its capacity to facilitate social distancing and observed other sanitation guidelines recommended by the Commonwealth of Kentucky.

The filmmakers stated that their intention was to produce "a non-judgmental look at the Ark Encounter and its history", but upon release, Ken Ham called the film "an agenda-driven propaganda piece that does not rise to the level of a real documentary".

[101] Filmmakers Monica Long Ross and Clayton Brown followed the storyline of a "religious organization creating their own alternative science in a legitimate looking museum.

[111] Bureau President Eric Summe reported a $23 million increase in visitor spending in nearby Boone, Kenton, and Campbell counties in 2016 over 2015, the year that the region hosted the Major League Baseball All-Star Game; Summe attributed a large part of the increase in spending and hotel occupancy to the opening of the Ark Encounter and an expansion of its sister attraction, AiG's Creation Museum.

[112] In June 2017, Mayor Jim Wells of Dry Ridge, Kentucky stated that the Ark Encounter had a positive effect on the town, with hotel occupancy rates increasing from 60 to 98 percent since the opening of the attraction.

[113] In July 2018, Nashville-based Athena Hospitality Group broke ground on a hotel and restaurant development in Dry Ridge, citing the need for more accommodations for Ark Encounter visitors as the motivation.

[117] In 2020, Williamstown Mayor Rick Skinner noted that Ark attendance had been averaging about ten percent higher than the city had forecast until its temporary closure due to COVID-19.

"[49] The editorial board of the Lexington Herald-Leader wrote that "Ark Encounters [sic] is a private company seeking to make a profit off of a biblical theme.

[32][120] In an editorial in late December 2010, The Courier-Journal questioned the potential cost to the state government of the project, including highway upgrades and the likelihood that increases to hospitality industry infrastructure would seek further subsidies.

[32][120] In June 2017, Grant County Judge Executive Stephen P. Wood told the Lexington Herald-Leader that the tax incentives offered to the Ark Encounter were "a really bad deal for taxpayers".

[124] In 2020, the Grant County News and Express reported that the Williamstown Family Fun Park had closed, and Main Street Gardens had become non-profit, exempting it from paying the safety assessment and leaving the Ark Encounter as the only business impacted.

[126] The News and Express noted that this figure excluded children under 5 years old and lifetime members of the Ark Encounter, since neither group requires a paid ticket to enter.

[126] On July 18, 2017, the state of Kentucky notified Ark Encounter that the sale of the property to Crosswater Canyon put them in breach of their agreement for $18 million in tax incentives.

[124][127] The Grant County News and Express reported in December 2017 that the safety assessment had generated approximately $213,000 for the city in four months, with less than $500 of that amount being paid by attractions other than Ark Encounter.

[128] In its first year of operation, Ark Encounter generated over $2.28 million in sales taxes for the state of Kentucky, a figure which excluded the period during which the attraction was owned by Crosswater Canyon.

[132] In October, Kentucky Tourism Arts and Heritage Cabinet Secretary Bob Stewart wrote to AiG requesting "express written assurance from Ark Encounter that it will not discriminate in any way on the basis of religion in hiring for the project".