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Where NKY home prices increased the most over the past decade Julia Fair Cincinnati Enquirer USA TODAY NETWORK
Newport's project started in 2006. City leaders and Covington-based Corporex agreed to work together on the Ovation riverside project. A piece of it, the indoor/outdoor PromoWest Pavilion at Ovation music venue, will host its fi rst concert in September. The project will also include up to 1,000 residential units, retail space, a hotel, offi ce space, a 550 car parking garage, and a park along the river. The offi ce building and hotel will cost $53 million are estimated to be completed by the end of 2022. Residential buildings are estimated to be done by fall 2022, Corporex senior vice president of sales and marketing Heather Harris said in an emailed statement to The Enquirer.
Home prices have soared in Northern Kentucky. In the past year, the average median price for a home in Northern Kentucky increased about 17% and about 23% nationally, according to data from the Northern Kentucky Association of Realtors and the National Association of Realtors. But what about over the longer term? The Enquirer analyzed 10 years of 31 Northern Kentucky cities’ real estate data to see how the market shifted. The cities included in the data are from the counties of Campbell, Kenton, Boone, Grant, Owen, and Gallatin. “We are witnessing two of the greatest extremes in probably the history of real estate,” said Northern Kentucky Association of Realtors President Ron Brossart. Simultaneously, it’s a great market for sellers but also the “most diffi cult” time for a buyer, he said. The Enquirer analysis revealed: h Where home prices increased the most. h Where the most expensive homes are. Brossart told The Enquirer the market shifted because of an expanded highway, walkability becoming popular, and low inventory pushing people to other areas. Florence-based realtor Stephanie Frost with Re/Max Victory + Affi liates said the increase in Sparta could be because of new jobs. For example, 20 minutes away from Sparta in Ghent, Nucor Steel Gallatin has been expanding. In 2014, Nucor Corp bought Gallatin County steel mill from ArcelorMittal and Gerdau SA for about $770 million. In 2017, it added 70 full-time jobs with a $176 million investment. In 2018, the company announced a $650 million expansion that created 70 jobs, according to the Northern Kentucky Area Development District website. According to population estimates, about 295 people lived in Sparta in 2019, a 27% increase from 2010. When Brossart reviewed The Enquirer’s data analysis, the fi rst city that popped out was his hometown, Newport. Between 2010 and 2020, the median sale price increased 127%. “A lot of people are investing in the west end of Newport,” Brossart said. “A lot of these properties that were rental properties for many years and decades, some people are rehabbing those now they’re making them attractive and they’re selling them because the market is so hot.” Brossart attributed the increase to the 1.4-mile extension of Ky. 9/AA Highway which opened in 2018. It created a multi-line highway alternate from the I-275 Wilder exit to an Ohio River bridge crossing to Cincinnati for drivers who want to avoid I-471. “You got a new highway right there and it just seemed like there was a lot of people willing and wanting to invest in the west end of Newport,” Brossart said. Brossart said Covington’s price increase could be because people wanted to live in a community where they
See RIVERFRONT, Page 6A
See HOUSING, Page 6A
With the close of the 450,000-square-foot IRS processing center, lower right, n September 2019, the center of Covington's riverfront became available for development. THE ENQUIRER/FILE
NKY transforms its riverfront as it reconnects to the Ohio River Julia Fair Cincinnati Enquirer USA TODAY NETWORK
COVINGTON– Bobbye and Ed Winterberg peered across the glistening Ohio River as they enjoyed Northern Kentucky’s newest riverfront attraction, the $6.54 million Covington Plaza. Just steps away from the John A. Roebling Suspension Bridge, dozens of people celebrated the space's grand opening, which features a 1,350-seat amphitheater and event area. Live music, conversations, and yips from excited dogs signaled that summer had truly begun. For Ed Winterberg, this was more than a party. It meant regional leaders’ long-term visions for the riverfront are coming to fruition. “This meets and exceeds the dreams we had 50 years ago,” Ed Winterberg said. Covington took advantage of its riverfront, which he said has transformed it into a community hub. In a few years, more of Northern Kentucky’s riverfront will transform, too. Offi cials throughout the region say the riverfront will have parks with views of Cincinnati neighborhoods, expanses where people shop and live, Northern Kentucky neighborhoods lifted out of fl ood plains, and water vehicles to transport people along and across the river. Their visions vary, but everyone has the same goal: connect to the Ohio River.
Riverside jobs, entertainment People had “turned their back on the river for a long time,” because of recurring fl oods, said Covington’s Economic Development Director Tom West. Now, 10 fl ood gates protect Northern Kentucky’s riverfront cities. In March, gates closed as forecasters estimated the river would rise to a crest of 56 feet or a moderate fl ood stage. Newport City Manager Tom Fromme said the fl oodwalls “shut off ” the community from the river where people used to fi sh and swim. “We’re been working to fi x the river-
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Covington Plaza hosted the FedEx Ground Rockin' Taco Festival on the weekend of June 25. JOE SIMON FOR THE CINCINNATI ENQUIRER
front, but also to reengage the river,” Fromme said. West said cities have revamped their visions on how to use the fl ood-prone areas many times. In the 80s and 90s, Covington hosted fl oating restaurants on the river. At Covington Plaza, people can still see the metal structures embedded in the river the restaurants used as an anchor to rise and fall with the river levels. City leaders in Newport and Covington have been working on large developments to bring retail, residential, offi ce space, hotels, and parks to the riverfront. Southwest of the new plaza in Covington, there are 23 acres that West sees as a “once in a generation” opportunity to connect the city to the river. Within those acres, thousands of workers used to process tax forms for the Internal Revenue Service. The center closed in 2019, ceasing operations after 52 years. In March 2020, the city bought the property from the federal government for $20.5 million. The city plans to use the space for retail,
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offi ce space, places for people to live, and a park at the top of the levee. West predicted workers will demolish the IRS site by the end of 2021.
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