COVINGTON, Ky. — A project that’s going to transform a 23-acre site along Covington’s riverfront just received a big vote of confidence and financial contribution from the federal government.

What You Need To Know

  • The city of Covington was informed it would be receiving a $16,282,700 federal RAISE grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation

  • It’s going to help facilitate the transformation of the former IRS site into the Covington Central Riverfront

  • The RAISE grant is part of the federal infrastructure deal

  • It will will go toward wide sidewalks, a land bridge that reaches to the top of the Ohio River levee, and a public parking garage topped by a podium structure that will support festival and park space

A new grant is going to help the Covington Central Riverfront rise from the former IRS site.

The city of Covington was informed it would be receiving a $16,282,700 federal RAISE grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. It’s going to help facilitate the transformation of the former IRS site into the Covington Central Riverfront, which Mayor Joe Meyer said will be a mixed-use, multi-modal center of regional activity.

“The IRS site was a good faith effort by our city fathers back in the 1960s to develop a new employment base in the city, so they acquired a 23-acre site and leveled a complete neighborhood,” Meyer said. “The effect of that was to create a suburban island right in the heart of the city. And since the IRS site was closed, we’ve acquired it, demolished the building. We’re in the process of developing a plan that effectively reintegrates that site into the balance of the city by restoring the urban grid.”

The RAISE grant, which is part of the federal infrastructure deal, will go toward wide sidewalks, a land bridge that reaches to the top of the Ohio River levee, and a public parking garage topped by a podium structure that will support festival and park space.

That initial process should be complete by next spring. The city has already announced two major housing projects for the site: a 16-unit townhome development, and a 257-unit apartment complex.

The announcement comes a year after a $1.635 billion investment in the nearby Brent Spence Bridge Corridor project that was delivered by President Joe Biden. Meyer said he lobbied Biden and his staff on the city’s behalf during that visit and a follow-up visit to Washington.

Economic Development Director Tom West said it’s a major step forward.

“As I tell many of the groups I speak to, ‘we live in a region which is designed for cars and accommodates pedestrians. This new neighborhood is designed for pedestrians and accommodates cars,’” West said.

One of the main goals for the site is connectivity. The site will include an estimated 6,228 linear feet of sidewalks, 1,552 feet of off-road trails, 260 trees, and two acres of public green space. It will also connect to the Riverfront Commons hiking and biking trail and a reconfigured Fourth Street that will include a dedicated bike lane and better pedestrian uses.

Covington is also exploring improved bus, streetcar and water taxi services. The RAISE announcement follows a $10 million investment in that infrastructure by the Kentucky General Assembly.

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