Make Goebel Great, a grassroots organization in
Covington, is working to create a safe, healthy and creative environment in the community. The organization was recently granted HUD funds in the form of a
Community Development Block Grant to help redevelop Goebel Park.
Make Goebel Great plans to do general infrastructure improvements in the park, including adding a pump track—a continuous circuit of dirt rollers, berms and jumps that loops back on itself—behind the park’s shelters and gazebo, as well as adding multifunctional play structures that will serve as interactive art.
Emily Wolff, chair of Make Goebel Great, says the $50,000 grant will also be used to get matching grants for future park improvement projects.
Goebel Park, which is located in
Mainstrasse Village between Fifth and Ninth streets, has a European feel, but it’s missing a green, public gathering space. There are future plans for a trail that will connect the park to the new riverfront trails and bicycle trails in Latonia.
“We want the park to be a touchstone for connectivity throughout Covington,” Wolff says. “That sense of community is lost in modern day society, and public gathering spaces help build that.”
The group also plans to enlist artists create two large-scale fracture pieces that will tell the story of Goebel Park. The German folk art pieces are planned for late fall. They also recently installed a chandelier in the gazebo, and will be painting a large checkerboard on the floor to engage the public.
“The whole point is to have the community be involved, and take ownership of the project,” Wolff says. “We want the community to feel like they’re making a difference with the projects.”
On August 17, Make Goebel Great is hosting a free concert in the park. Wolff’s 11-year-old twin boys’ rock band will be opening for a Covington band.
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