June 2008 E-News

City of Covington

E-News

June 2008

JUNE MEETINGS

Jun. 5th- Kenton County Planning Commission- 6:15 pm- Commission Chambers, NKAPC Building 2332 Royal Drive Fort Mitchell, KY

Jun. 11th- Code Enforcement Hearing Board- 5:00 pm- Commission Chambers, Covington City Hall, 638 Madison Avenue

Jun. 11th- NKY Area Planning Commission- 5:15 pm- Commission Chambers, NKAPC Building 2332 Royal Drive Fort Mitchell, KY

Jun. 16th- Urban Design Review Board- 4:00 pm- Commission Chambers, Covington City Hall, 638 Madison Avenue

Jun. 17th- City of Covington Commission Meeting- 7:00 pm- Commission Chambers, Covington City Hall 638 Madison Avenue

Jun. 18th- Devou Park Meeting- 6:30 pm- at Drees Pavilion

Jun. 25th- Code Enforcement Hearing Board- 5:00 pm- Commission Chambers, Covington City Hall, 638 Madison Avenue

Jun. 25th- NKY Area Planning Commission- 5:15 pm- Commission Chambers, NKAPC Building 2332 Royal Drive Fort Mitchell, KY

Jun. 25th- Urban Forestry Board Meeting- 7:00 pm- Baker Hunt, 620 Greenup Street, Covington - 2nd Floor Board Room, Main Building.

Jun. 26th - Board of Adjustment Meeting- 5:00 pm- Commission Chambers, Covington City Hall, 638 Madison Avenue

Legacy Murals Now Illuminated

The Legacy flood wall murals can now be enjoyed day and night. Take an evening stroll and check them out!

Market is open
May 24 - October 4

Saturdays
8:30 AM - 2:00 PM

For additional information, or to become a vendor, please call:

Mary Lyons/859-486-0058 or Leah Dodson / 859-292-2163

Click here for additional information.

Miss an Issue?

Past issues of Covington E-News are available for viewing here. Just click on the issue to access it in full.

January 2008 Edition

February 2008 Edition

WELCOME!

Mayor & City Commissioners

Mayor Irvin T. "Butch" Callery, Center

From left to right:

Commissioner Sherry Carran

Commissioner Jerry Bamberger

Commissioner Jerry Stricker

Commissioner Steve Megerle

New Businesses in Covington!

DesignGroup provides expertise in planning, architecture, interior design, graphics, and sustainable design. As designers of the built environment, DesignGroup has deep-seated beliefs in civic responsibility, healthy communities, life-long learning, sustainable architecture, and design that elevates.

DesignGroup Covington
27 West 7th St.
Covington, KY 41011
Phone: 859-431-7333
Fax: 859-495-0859

Europa

616 Main Street

Covington, KY

859-291-EURO

Europa Foods is coming soon to MainStrasse Village to introduce an innovative concept: An authentic taste of Europe that includes real Italian Gelato, sophisticated individual desserts, chocolate fondue, French crepes, European panini, cheeses, deli meats, fresh pasta, and olive bar, which is complimented by great coffee and a full Tea Room experience.

Two New Covington Locations!

This month HealthPoint Family Care will open new medical and dental offices in the Latonia Plaza shopping center.

4307 Winston Avenue, next to Kroger: Family medicine, pediatrics, dentistry; and
4341 Winston Avenue, next to Dollar Tree: OB/GYN, internal medicine.

HealthPoint Family Care is a private, nonprofit primary care medical and dental practice.

We welcome all major insurance plans, Medicaid, KCHIP, and Medicare. For uninsured patients who qualify, we offer a sliding fee scale based on income.

For more information or to make an appointment, call 859-655-6100.

Coco's Coco's of Covington's new owners are proud to show you the new, "old" Coco's after over $200,000 in renovations. From the legendary Coco Salad or Lobster & Artichoke Dip to Short Ribs, the Filet or pastas.... there's something for everyone. Only the best Funk and Blues bands from across the region.

Hours: 3:00 pm to 2:30 am M-F and 4:00 pm to 2:30 am

322 Greenup Street

859-431-2400

Covington After Hours

"The Grand"

Fifth & Madison Avenue

859-292-8955

http://www.thegrandcovington.com/

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

5:00 - 7:30 PM

Complimentary Hors d'oeuvres

Cash Bar

Guests:

Dick Murgatroyd & Pat Timm, Vision 2015

Licking River Greenway Project

Presented by:

Friends of Covington

Covington Business Council

Mainstrasse Village Association

Latonia Business Association

New Edition Coming Soon!

COVINGTON RESIDENT HANDBOOK

New to Covington or know someone who is? Contact Suzann Gettys, Ombudsman and Neighborhood Services Coordinator, at 292-2141 to receive a copy of this very useful publication. It contains all the information you need to get acclimated in Covington! Click on the picture for the fully downloadable booklet. (This is a large PDF file and may take serveral minutes to download.)

Want to be a part of this publication? Advertising opportunites are now available for the 2009-2010 Edition of the Covington Resident Handbook! Please call 292-2163 for rates and additional information. Deadline for ad submissions is July 3, 2008.

And from our Departments..........

Administration

Special Event Permits Issued

Please click on the link below for the listing of Special Event Permits issued to date, so that you may be aware of events that may take place in your neighborhood, and/or if they may have any street closures/restrictions associated with them.

Special Event Permits 2008

Library Racing to Read Route Map

Click here for Special Event Permit Applications

Code Enforcement Department

GRAFFITI

The City of Covington is beginning to make great strides in addressing graffiti. Code Enforcement works closely with other departments and property owners to eradicate this unsightliness in a timely manner. Code Enforcement staff carry graffiti removal products and spray paint in their vehicles to cover up markings on public property, and are proactive in contacting owners of defaced private property. The Public Works Department pressure washes graffiti, and recently removed writing on the Suspension Bridge, as well as from many other locations within the City. Parks and Recreation employees continue to paint over graffiti on railroad underpasses. The Police Department also documents graffiti which may be crime related. Another factor in this assault on blight is the effectiveness of new products the Departments are using, which were discovered by Commissioners Bamberger and Megerle at a Kentucky League of Cities presentation.

For additional information, contact the Code Enforcement Department at (859) 292-2323 or click here.

Economic Development & Community Relations Department

Renaissance Covington

Downtown Living Tour

On Sunday, June 22, from 2:00 to 6:00 p.m., the Kentucky Heritage Council, Southbank Partners and Northern Kentucky Main Street will be sponsoring a Downtown Tour of Urban Living. Guests are invited to The Grand at historic Odd Fellows Hall located at Fifth Street and Madison Avenue in Covington, Kentucky to participate in a panel discussion from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. The panel will address historic preservation tax credits, restoration, adaptive reuse of downtown space for living and creating plans for property redevelopment/renovation. Panel participants are: Patrick Snadon, Associate Professor of Architecture and Interior Design at University of Cincinnati, Glenn Kukla of Middle Earth Developers, and Alex Weldon, a local preservation consultant.

Guests will be able to tour up to 20+ downtown living opportunities in Northern Kentucky located in the communities of Bellevue, Covington, Dayton, Ft. Thomas, Ludlow, Newport, and Falmouth. Also, development opportunities in the Elsmere/Erlanger Main Street District will be displayed at the Grand at Odd Fellows Hall. All tour sites will be open from 2:00 to 6:00 p.m. and tour information, maps of the complete tour, and brochures will be available at all sites.

Click here for a partial listing of tour sites.

Additional information will be available at www.southbankdowntownliving.com

Kathie Hickey

Renaissance Manager

859-292-2166

khickey@covingtonky.gov

Ombudsman/Neighborhood Services Office

News from the Neighborhoods

Neighborhood-Wide Yard Sales Saturday, June 7

Beginning as early as 8:00 am till approximately 2-3:00 pm this Saturday, several Covington neighborhoods will be participating in neighborhood-wide yard sales. Stop by any of the following neighborhoods:

Austinburg

Botany Hills (behind Epworth United Methodist Church, Highway Avenue)

Licking Riverside (Governor's Point parking lot and various individual homes)

Wallace Woods

SUZANN GETTYS

Ombudsman/Neighborhood Services Coordinator

859-292-2141

sgettys@covingtonky.gov

Click on the logo to go directly to the Arts District website.

MARY LYONS

Arts District Manager
Artisans Enterprise Center

25 West Seventh Street

Covington, KY 41011

859-292-2322

mlyons@covingtonky.gov

First Friday Gallery Hop June 6, 2008 6:00 - 10:00 PM

Click here to view the Gallery Hop map and list of participants.

4th Annual Art Off-Pike Festival

Who: Artists of all ages who work in any medium

What: 4th Annual Art Off-Pike Festival

When: Saturday, October 11, 11:00 am - 5:00 pm

Where: Covington Arts District, Pike and Seventh Streets between Madison and Russell Street.

Call to Artists: Deadline for applications is

August 15, 2008.

Click here for the brochure with additional information.

*NEW* this year: Poster Competition! $500.00 Award!

~Deadline for entries is June 30!

Call Jean at 859-491-2220 ext. 17 or 859-866-7524 for more information.

Engineering Department

CSX Railroad Crossing Closure

In 2005 the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) revised the federal regulations regarding the use of locomotive horns at highway-rail grade crossings. These regulations provide specific details for establishing and maintaining Quiet Zones.

A Quiet Zone is defined by the FRA as a segment of rail line, within which is situated one or a number of consecutive public highway-rail crossings at which locomotive horns are not routinely sounded. To qualify for Quiet Zone status, communities must take measures to assure the risk is not increased or within the national standards for Quiet Zone Risk.

In order for Covington to maintain the Quiet Zone, the highway-rail grade crossing at 43rd Street between Huntington Avenue and Glenn Avenue must be permanently closed. The highway-rail grade crossing at 44th Street will remain open as will the underpass at 40th Street. This closure will take place within the next week.

For additional information, please contact the Engineering Department at (859) 292-2112.

2008 Street Resurfacing Program

Spring resurfacing projects will begin mid-May along with sidewalk curb ramp replacements along the streets that will be resurfaced. Click on the link below for a listing of streets included in this program.

Click here for

2008 Street Resurfacing Listing

Questions? Call: 859.292.2112

Fire Department

Fire Dept logo

Do you have, or do you know someone that has, what it takes to be firefighter? The number one quality it takes to be a good firefighter is a genuine desire to serve the public, and in our situation, the residents and visitors to the city of Covington. Firefighters are known for their courage, technical abilities, physical strength and much more, but many of those attributes are the natural outcome of wanting to serve the community in a special way.

Testing to become a Covington Firefighter will be July 12. To become a member of the department, a candidate must first complete this Civil Service test. Please click on this link to the City of Covington web page for further information, including minimum qualifications.

Housing Development Department

Greater Cincinnati-Northern Kentucky
Foreclosure Prevention Phone-a-Thon
June 4, 2008

The Home Ownership Center (HOC) in Cincinnati is coordinating a Foreclosure Prevention Phone-a-Thon that will take place on June 4, 2008. The City of Covington, Center for Great Neighborhoods, Vision 2015, Catholic Charities, and Welcome House are actively working with the Home Ownership Center to ensure that every household impacted by foreclosure participates in this event.

The phone-a-thon is scheduled for Wednesday, June 4, 2008 and will be promoted at a regional kick-off event for National Home Ownership Month (June). The regional kick-off event will occur on Tuesday, June 3, 2008, 10 AM, at CET Channel 48 to kick-off National Home Ownership Month, and to announce the Wednesday June 4, 2008 phone-a-thon.

Click here for Foreclosure Prevention Phone-a-Thon additional details.

Human Resources Department

Interested in becoming a firefighter?

The City of Covington is currently accepting applications and will be testing to establish an eligibility list in July. Application packets are available in the Human Resources Office, or by clicking on the link below.

Click here to view all available positions.

For additional information, call 292-2161.

Recreation Department

Pools Open June 7 - Passes Required

The City's three public pools and the water park located at the Bill Cappel Sports Complex will open on Saturday, June 7. Beginning this year, passes will be required for admittance to the pools and water park. Passes can be obtained at the Covington Neighborhoods, Parks and Recreation Dept. at City Hall, 638 Madison Avenue, First Floor during regular business hours - Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. Once open, passes can be obtained at the pools and water park.

Requirements for passes:

Completed registration form

Proof of residency

Signed agreement acknowledging receipt of rules

Signed liability waiver

Parents must complete registration form for minor children

Lost passes can be reissued after payment of a $5.00 processing fee. Replacement passes can only be obtained through the Neighborhoods, Parks and Recreation Dept. at their offices in City Hall.