Building is Booming in Northern Kentucky
Major developments provide new ways to work, live and play across the Northern Kentucky region.
New shopping and dining? Check. New homes of all shapes and sizes? Tick that box, too. New places to work? Absolutely.
Anywhere you turn across Northern Kentucky, the sound of construction heralds exciting changes to the skyline. Several notable large, mixed-use developments are reshaping the local landscape and will only add to what is already an outstanding quality of life.
In This Article
Standing Ovation
One highly visible project is Ovation, which is taking center stage in Campbell County. This 25-acre development sits where the Ohio and Licking rivers meet and, over time, will include 1,000 residential units, 500,000 square feet of Class A office space, 524 hotel rooms, a membership-based club and 125,000 square feet of retail and entertainment venues.
With river views, including those featuring the Cincinnati skyline, Ovation is sure to be a community hub and a sought-after business and residential address. Homes in the first phase are currently in the presale stage and will feature club membership, including a full-service spa, exercise facilities and a heated roof-deck pool.
Newport Steel Site
Another riverfront site will likely look different soon as an affiliate of Hilltop Basic Resources has purchased a 17.2-acre parcel in Newport for $2.75 million. Located along the Licking River, the property — once the Newport Steel Corp. — is about a mile from the Ovation project.
Hilltop is working with Northern Kentucky’s Catalytic Fund, which provides capital to support real estate development in the area, while also working with the City of Newport to forge relationships with developers and other interested parties to ascertain the best use for the property. Early ideas have included an innovation district, including high-tech office space, as well as entertainment venues and multifamily housing.
Union Promenade
Boone County isn’t sitting idle, either, as the Union Promenade development begins to take shape. This $150 million, 62-acre property off Route 42 in Union will offer restaurants, retail and office space alongside a residential component.
Developers T.J. Ackermann and Ralph Meierjohan, in announcing the project, told local media that this is a “signature development” and one which will benefit Union, Boone County, Northern Kentucky and even the entire Greater Cincinnati region.
Union Promenade will have 300 class AA apartments, 50 for-sale patio homes, around 70,000 square feet of restaurant, retail and venue space, not to mention 60,000 square feet of office or medical space.
The entire project is being developed in collaboration with the City of Union, which hopes that it will be a community center, benefitting both residents and the community at large, according to Mayor Larry Solomon.
“Forever we’ve heard that if you want anything, you’ll have to go to Florence to get it. It is our expectation that the Promenade project will help Union fill that need with high-quality food and retail options. In addition, the proposed jobs of this development will help support all local Union businesses while also providing a potential for community gathering spaces,” Solomon told the Cincinnati Business Courier.
Covington Central Riverfront Development
And if all that wasn’t enough, look for changes soon at the former IRS data-processing facility in Covington. The city now owns the site, which sits on 23 acres a block south of the Ohio River, adjacent to the Northern Kentucky Convention Center. Site-clearing work has begun, and the city is in talks with several interested parties to create a development that will serve area businesses and residents well into the future.
Want to learn more about living and working in the Northern Kentucky region? Check out the latest edition of Livability Northern Kentucky.
