Covington's Economic Development Director Tom West says the public will begin to see the construction of the first single-family homes, townhomes, and apartments at the city's Central Riverfront development site before the end of the year.
"You're going to start seeing vertical construction on 4th Street here in blocks A and B within the next few months," West told WVXU. "You're going to see them excavating, and putting in foundations, and you're going to start seeing vertical work going in."
The development site at the former location of an IRS processing center has been in the making for years. The city is planning to turn the 23-acre plot into a mixed-use business district and community with homes, apartments, offices, restaurants, storefronts, and a hotel directly across the river from Cincinnati's downtown. The plan also includes a future expansion of the Northern Kentucky Convention Center.
So far, the development's street grid and first sidewalks are coming together. Now, the first four developers who have secured plots are preparing to build. West says it was important for Covington to avoid selling all or most of the available plots to a single developer so each building in the district can have a distinct look, like the rest of the neighborhoods throughout the city.
"They're going to bring that element of authenticity and uniqueness," he said. "Covington's known to be a little quirky, so they'll bring a little quirkiness to this as well."
The city is currently reviewing several proposals for four- to six-story mixed-use buildings between 3rd Street and 4th Street, along with a proposal for a more than 250-room hotel next to the convention center. The riverfront site may also be the new home of Northern Kentucky University's Chase College of Law and the University of Kentucky's College of Medicine Northern Kentucky campus.
Read more
