Triggered by a deal to relocate two Northern Kentucky higher education programs, new legislation by a Campbell County lawmaker would reconfigure how the state's riverport authorities work.
The bill submitted Thursday by State Rep. Matt Lehman, a Democrat from Newport, would broaden the statutory authority for riverport authorities to do general development work while requiring that work line up with local planning efforts and conflict of interest limitations. The legislation also seeks representation from municipal governments and written codes of ethics for multi-county port authorities like the Northern Kentucky Port Authority.
Lehman says the bill is modeled on how port authorities operate in Ohio.
Kentucky has 10 riverport authorities overseen by the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. Seven of those are active, while three — including the NKY Port — are listed as under development.
Kentucky law says riverport authorities should focus on "river-oriented industry." But Lehman introduced the bill because he said he's concerned over the NKY Port's role in a plan to relocate Northern Kentucky University's Chase College of Law and the University of Kentucky College of Medicine NKY Campus from Campbell to Kenton County. The new facility in Covington is expected to be called the Commonwealth Center for Biomedical Excellence.
"I think there's a real question about how the Northern Kentucky Port is being used for the biomedical center project in Covington and some other projects," Lehman said. "I don't think it's clear that they're operating within the current guidelines of Kentucky statute."
Lehman and other critics say the relocation of both programs from NKU's Highland Heights campus would cost Campbell County payroll tax receipts and potential future economic development. He also calls the $125 million price tag wasteful.
"It doesn't propose to add any new jobs or tax revenue or economic development," he said. "We're talking about moving two buildings... this is not a cheap project. We're negotiating our budget right now in Frankfort and I'm looking at NKU getting their regular base operating budget cut."
Lehman also criticized the leadership structure of the NKY Port, pointing out the nonprofit BE NKY Growth Partnership currently manages the entity. Lehman says the port should be independent and helmed by city and county leaders.
"That's not really the way these things are supposed to work," he said.
In response, the bill specifically states that no port authority can delegate power to any other entity but can enter contracts with vendors so long they do not cede policy-making authority.
Under Lehman's proposal, board members running multi-county riverport authorities would be appointed by the mayors of each county's largest city as well as each county's judge executive.
The project
But even if Lehman's bill ultimately passes, it would not affect the academic programs' planned move out of Campbell County.
The Kentucky General Assembly passed funding for the Commonwealth Center for Biomedical Excellence in 2024. Critics have said the package moved through the state legislature too quickly and without proper input from Kenton or Campbell County elected officials and figure heads.
The facility was originally proposed as part of Covington's massive redevelopment of its former IRS site. But timing and cost complications ruled out locating the project at Block G of Covington's former IRS site development, according to reporting by The Cincinnati Business Courier.
After a site selection process that reportedly considered nine locations in the city of Covington, the center is now slated for 11 East Riverside Blvd., currently a parking lot in downtown owned by the Butler Foundation.
The NKY Port is expected to pay $3.8 million for the site. That's much more, Lehman points out, than the $2.3 million it would have paid for the former IRS parcel.
In a news release last month, NKU President Cady Short-Thompson said the decision to move the center to Covington was about meeting students' needs.
“The proximity to courts, firms, Convention Center and government offices gives them unmatched access to internships, clerkships and networking opportunities," she said. "This site immerses Chase Law School students in the environments where critical decisions are made, preparing them to lead and to serve in a rapidly changing legal landscape.”
The money for the project came in two installments: $10 million during the 2024 fiscal year for planning and $115 million for construction in the 2025 fiscal year. The project is expected to break ground this year.
WVXU has reached out to NKU and the NKY Port as well as State Sen. Chris McDaniel, who was instrumental in crafting the center's funding package, but none responded with an official statement by publication time on Thursday afternoon. The City of Covington did respond, but said it would be premature to provide an official statement.
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