NKAPC develops plan to preserve and transform Linden Gateway District

When the City of Covington updated its Comprehensive Plan in 2006 it became clear that a specific vision was needed for the 12th Street corridor. Poised for a widening project that is now underway and facing the addition of the new St. Elizabeth medical facility, the importance of updating such a plan became even more evident.

"In 2007 we started to study the larger area and developed some recommendations along the 12th Street corridor," explained Andy Videkovich, Project Manager and Principal Planner with the Northern Kentucky Area Planning Commission (NKAPC).

Covington's City Commission appointed a Steering Committee in the summer of 2009 to work with NKAPC to explore and implement the new land use recommendations developed in the Linden Gateway Small Area Study.  The result was the creation of a new zoning district called the Linden Gateway District (LGD).

The hope is to maintain a pedestrian friendly, mixed-use corridor that is compatible with adjacent residential neighborhoods - one that compliments the area's design guidelines and is consistent with the land use and transportation goals and objectives set out for the Linden Gateway District.

"The 12th Street project has been in the works for some time and people have been excited about the possibilities for the area as a result of the project," Videkovich said.  "But people were also concerned how new development and investment would work with the surrounding historic neighborhood."

To address this, the NKAPC and Steering Committee worked with neighborhood stakeholders to  develop the LGD regulations that, when complete, will function similarly to form-based codes being developed elsewhere throughout the region.

The regulating plan will be the first of its kind in Kenton County and will include the overall LGD zoning district made up of 5 sub-districts.  According to Videkovich, this approach will ensure that any new development or investment maintains compatibility with the surrounding neighborhood.

Officials say that the new guidelines are currently working their way through the approval process.  After going to the City Commission, then to the Kenton County Planning Commission, the guidelines will return to the Covington City Commission for formal adoption sometime this fall.  Those interested in giving feedback on the proposed regulations can do so by contacting Andy Videkovich at [email protected] or by calling (859) 331-8980.

Writer: Randy A. Simes
Photography by Tiffani Fisher
Rendering Provided
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