COVINGTON, Ky. -- The city of Covington will soon put $300,000 toward a civic improvement project proposed not by architects, engineers or politicians, but by ordinary Covingtonians.
Any neighborhood group or business district can pitch an idea to the RIPPLE Effect, an initiative created with the goal of engendering a large-scale positive change in one area of the city. With luck, that change will beget smaller ones.
"We hope by plunking down the investment in the middle of the neighborhood business district, we see the ripple effect with additional private investment around that," city economic development director Tom West said.
What kinds of projects can groups propose? Community development manager Jeremy Wallace said they might include streetscaping, parking improvements and addressing other infrastructure needs -- especially in smaller neighborhoods in need of a renaissance.
The first deadline for submitting a proposal is Nov. 14. The city anticipates putting the winning project into action by early spring 2019.
