Public can weigh in on Covington development plans

The city of Covington has created a new opportunity for people to make their voices heard on the future of the 23-acre IRS site.

 


A new online survey shows the three conceptual designs proposed during a public meeting in July and gives the public a chance to weigh in. The concepts were presented by Cooper Carry, an architecture and design firm working with the city to plan and gain development control of the site.

 


“If you missed the meeting, this is your chance to voice your opinion,” Covington City Manager David Johnston said. “Public engagement is a critical part of the process, and it will continue to be.”

 


The 11-question survey can be found here.

 


It asks survey takers to indicate their level of support for each of the three concepts and to describe specific elements of each concept that they like or dislike. It also asks survey takers to pick their preferred plan and for general feedback.

 


The survey includes sketches of the three conceptual plans, called “Green on the Levee,” “Love the Covline,” and “Central Green.” All three propose a mixture of uses for the site, but they vary in how the buildings are arranged, how the street grid would look, and how the site would be connected to the levee of the Ohio River.

 


Cooper Carry’s complete July 12 “Reconnecting Covington” presentation can be found here, and a City news release about the unveiling can be found here.

 


The IRS is scheduled to close its longtime paper processing facility at the end of September, mothball the site, and then prep it for eventual demolition. The City hopes to gain development control of the 23 acres, finalize a conceptual plan for the land, and then divide the project into pieces to be developed by separate companies, a process that could take years.

 

Enjoy this story? Sign up for free solutions-based reporting in your inbox each week.