Curb'd now taking applications for Covington parklet designs

The application process is now open for artists and designers interested in Curb’d, a program to create parklets next year in Covington’s MainStrasse and Central business districts. The collaboration between Renaissance Covington and MainStrasse Village Association is funded by the Haile/U.S. Bank Foundation.
 
Curb’d is working closely with businesses in those areas to select parking spaces to house parklets and is preparing to bring designers, artists and engineers into that collaboration.
 
Businesses already have applied to host a parklet in a parking space in front of their location, and 13 parking spaces have been selected as finalists. They’ll go forward in the design competition, with five businesses submitting their own designs and the other eight working with art and design teams who enter the application process.
 
The 13 final designs will be judged by a jury panel that will choose which five parklets are actually constructed.
 
Katie Meyer, Executive Director of Renaissance Covington, is excited to see a wide variety of creative ideas.
 
“I think that we are going to have a really diverse group of artists and designers and people of different design backgrounds,” she says. “Parklets are being done in many cities right now, and a lot of times they become an extension of outdoor seating. We want to go further than a table and chairs.”
 
Meyer emphasizes that Curb’d is looking for unique, site-specific designs for interactive installations that activate space. The intensive application process reflects the high standards the project is looking for — those interested in submitting a design must attend a mandatory informational workshop on either Nov. 16 or Nov. 18 in order to qualify to submit proposals by Dec. 2.
 
The design teams whose installations are chosen to be fabricated will be rewarded with a $1,000 honorarium. Even the teams who go through the design process but whose parklets are not chosen will be compensated with gift cards donated by participating Covington businesses.
 
The businesses will also benefit, since the parklets, which will be installed from May through October of 2016, are predicted to attract foot traffic to and between the two business districts. They’re intended to help activate the space, make the areas more pedestrian-friendly and bring people into businesses.
 
Meyer says she’s already seeing excitement from the business community in the few months the project has been percolating.
 
“There are a couple of businesses that aren’t always engaged that are participating, and that’s exciting,” she says.
 
Anyone interested in designing a Curb’d parklet should review the application process and attend one of the mandatory informational workshops at Braxton Brewing Company on Monday, Nov. 16 at 6-8 p.m. or Wednesday, Nov. 18 at 7:30-9:30 a.m.