News

City funds 7 neighborhood projects

The mosaic sign in MainStrasse Village will be repaired. (photo by Jake Ryle, WCPO)

Beautification ideas include banners, benches, trees, and flowers

COVINGTON, Ky. – Seven more neighborhood groups will receive funding from the City of Covington for small improvement projects ranging from park benches to solar lampposts to a trash can shaped for pizza boxes.
 
The funding – totaling just under $27,000 – was approved by the Covington Board of Commissioners on Tuesday night as the latest round of the City’s Neighborhood Grant Program.
 
The grants ranged from $2,500 to $5,000 and can be awarded to neighborhood associations and groups of residents for projects that improve their surroundings. (Businesses, individuals, schools, and religious organizations are not eligible.)
 
“This year we received applications from neighborhoods that had never applied before, so we were happy about that,” Neighborhood Services Director Ken Smith told the Commission.
 
The recipients and their projects: 
  • Austinburg -- $5,000 – Banners, a trash can, and streetside tree plantings.
  • Peaselburg -- $3,500 – Planters, signage, wreaths, and perennial flowers.
  • Latonia -- $3,100 – Plants, painting planters, and two benches at Ritte’s Corner.
  • Monte Casino -- $3,525 – Banners, trees, pedestrian signs, pet waste stations, flag poles, and a lending library.
  • Old Seminary Square -- $4,174.32 – Mature trees, park benches, banners.
  • MainStrasse Village -- $5,000 – Trash can for pizza boxes, street banners, and repair of neighborhood sign.
  • Wallace Woods -- $2,500 – Repair (or replace) park bench, groundcover plants, and solar lamp posts. 
Two other applications were not recommended because they didn’t meet eligibility requirements, Smith said.
 
He praised the work of The Center for Great Neighborhoods, which worked with many of the neighborhood groups to fine-tune their applications and figure out implementation plans.
 
Shannon Ratterman, Program Director of Community Development at The Center, said she was energized by the number of applications and the enthusiasm of the groups.
 
“In a time when many neighborhood groups have taken a bit of a hiatus from their normal volunteer efforts and event plans, we were really happy to help collaborate on this many great projects,” Ratterman said. “While working with groups to shape their application, you could really tell that there is a desire from residents to get back out into their community and return to the level of engagement and activism that makes Covington such a special place to live.” 
 
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