Covington Mayor Joe Meyer struck a mostly optimistic tone during his final state of the city address before the Covington Business Council Thursday. But he also pushed for changes to the way the city's government works.
Meyer touted big projects like the effort to remake the city's former IRS site into a brand-new neighborhood with a historic feel, a Brent Spence Bridge Corridor project that doesn't involve tolls and takes far fewer homes and businesses in Covington, and other signs of progress.
But he reached back decades to when he was first beginning his career in public service to fully illustrate the changes the city has seen.
"In 1983, USA Today wrote a big headline," he told the crowd. "The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development had declared Covington as the most blighted city in the United States of America. We were worse than East St. Louis. In 2024, Money Magazine has declared Covington as one of the best 50 places to live in America."
Meyer said it was both a change in macroeconomic trends — the reemerging popularity of urban living and strong housing market, for example — and a push to professionalize Covington's government that helped the city turn a corner.
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Meyer took some credit for efforts to make the city's administration more efficient and transparent since he took office in 2016. He pointed to a state audit in 2013 that found a number of issues with the city's finances.
"It took years, until 2024, for the city to have a clean audit," he said. "I'm not supposed to talk about the city's dirty laundry, but I think it helps if you understand the condition of the administrative capacity of Covington's city government when I took office."
Meyer said the city still has plenty of challenges ahead. Housing affordability will continue to be a contentious issue, he said.
Some advocates have pushed for more affordable housing, especially in the wake of the elimination of the City Heights subsidized housing development.
Meyer says Covington's housing authority is looking for developers to revamp that site. But Meyer says Covington already has an overconcentration of subsidized housing, and that neighboring communities near places with big employers need to think about how to accommodate lower-income residents.
"We love that people are paying $500,000 for houses on Ninth Street," he said. "But that means there are not as many housing opportunities for poor people. But that's not just a Covington problem... We've got to be balanced and provide affordable housing opportunities throughout Northern Kentucky."
Other challenges involve the city's budget, Meyer said. He zeroed in on two that could put the city in danger of deficits in the future.
"It is crucial that our fire department stay within their allocated budget by effectively managing and controlling their overtime expenditures," he said. "Simultaneously, the city has to work to contain its employee health care costs."
One big change he'd like to see
In addition to large projects like the Brent Spence Bridge and the IRS site, Meyer pointed to a new master plan, neighborhood zoning code, and efforts to play up public art and small businesses as drivers of Covington's vibrancy. And he had one big suggestion for a future change.
Meyer is a vocal proponent of a proposal by business and civic leaders called "Covington Forward" that would shift the city's governmental structure from its current city manager form to a so-called "strong mayor" model.
Currently, Covington's four city commissioners and mayor basically serve as the city manager's boss. The mayor has a vote on the commission but no veto power and no day-to-day oversight of most of the city's operations.
Under the new proposal, the mayor would have direct authority over the city's staff and veto power over an expanded city council of between six and 12 representatives. But that council could override that veto and even vote to remove the mayor.
Covington Forward is currently collecting signatures to put the idea on the November ballot.
Meyer argued the move would increase accountability and transparency while also speeding up many government decisions.
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"With a change to the mayor-council form of government, there will be one boss for the executive function, not five," he said. "The system will be clear and simple, just like all the other governments in this county."
Whatever structure Covington's future governments take, they'll be meeting in a new building. Meyer discussed briefly the progress on a long-in-the-works new City Hall. He told the crowd the city is set to break ground Oct. 29 on that $26 million facility near Scott and Seventh streets.
Meyer's 45 years of public service included a 15-year stint in the Kentucky House and Senate, time as the state's Secretary of Education, and other roles.
His mayoral term is over at the end of this year; current Covington City Commissioner Ron Washington is running unopposed to fill the role. Meyer told the crowd he isn't sure what's next and has indicated he's retiring to spend more time with his family.