The city of Covington will get $750,000 in Kentucky funds over the next five years to help businesses that will be impacted by two major bridge projects.
Covington will use the funds to promote businesses, especially those operating north of 12th Street, through the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor Project and Fourth Street Bridge replacement.
“We’ll do a marketing campaign to make sure that everyone knows that Covington is open for business,” Covington Mayor Ron Washington told The Enquirer from Frankfort. He traveled to Kentucky’s capital to join Gov. Andy Beshear’s announcement of the award.
Economic development in Covington is booming, Beshear said in his weekly livestreamed Team Kentucky update, while acknowledging the bridge projects will “cause some difficulty.”
Businesses can’t apply for the money
Individual businesses impacted by bridge work will not be able to apply for any of the state dollars, Washington said. “There’s just not enough money to do that,” he said.
Instead, the funds will support the city’s Bridging the Gap website and other social media efforts aimed at promoting businesses and their special events during bridge work, he said. The city will also erect signs to direct drivers around construction, he said.
“The reality is we are going to see some disruptions,” he said, making frequent communication necessary.
Fourth Street Bridges comes down as Brent Spence ramps up
The Fourth Street Bridge, which connects Covington to Newport, will close in January and be demolished in the spring. Construction of a new bridge will follow, with completion expected by summer of 2028.
Pre-construction work on the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor project is underway. Part of Downtown Cincinnati’s Longworth Hall is scheduled to be removed this month with the installation of pylons for a new Ohio River bridge to begin next year.
The existing Brent Spence will remain open as a new one is built to its immediate west. When complete, the existing bridge will handle local traffic and the new one will be used for travel on Interstate 71/75.
