COVINGTON, Ky. — Sitting next to the Ohio River, just feet from the Roebling Bridge, is what BE NKY President and CEO Lee Crume calls the region's future.
"You've got the resources of the entire community right at your footsteps," he said. "We like to think it will be the future front door of the Northern Kentucky community."
The OneNKY Center on Greenup Street in Covington first broke ground in August 2023. The four-story, 47,000-square-foot building will house close to a dozen Northern Kentucky growth organizations:
- BE NKY Growth Partnership
- oneNKY Alliance
- The Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce
- EducateNKY
- meetNKY
- Covington Life Sciences Partners Inc.
- The Bar Association of Northern Kentucky
- Thomas More University
- The Catalytic Fund
- Horizon Community Funds of Northern Kentucky
"I think the biggest feature of the building is bringing together the growth companies all in one space," Crume said. "There's going to be conference rooms. There's going to be wellness rooms. There's going to be break rooms. There's this tremendous plaza."
FIRST LOOK @WCPO: The OneNKY Center in Covington is past the 60% development marker.
— Connor Steffen | WCPO 9 News (@ConnorSteffenTV) October 31, 2024
We toured the building with @BE_NKY this morning. It’ll house several Northern Kentucky growth organizations. pic.twitter.com/9NTYs6W1Gz
Fast forward to October 2024, Crume said the project is past the halfway mark, with construction crews anticipating finishing the exterior of the building by winter.
"This center is about growth. It's about bringing together the growth organizations, giving us a place to really kind of plant the Northern Kentucky flag," he said. "We are a place where, if you're a company looking to build, expand, grow your business, you can do it in Northern Kentucky."
The project is funded by a $15 million state grant to Covington Life Science Partners and up to $10 million in construction bonds, backed by rent revenue from tenants.
Crume said, that as of now, the development has stayed within the $27 million budget.
"Today we're about 60% finished, with the bulk of the remaining work being inside, finishing out the office spaces and the finish-work," he said.
With development passing the halfway point, Crume gave WCPO a tour of the inside of the OneNKY Center.
The first floor will house conference rooms and meetNKY's offices.
One floor up, the entire space is reserved for what will soon be the Covington Life Science Lab. Crume said it's the only wet-life science laboratory between Lexington and Columbus.
"So as people are looking to innovate in the life science space, create new technologies, new molecules, new science, this is a place where they can land and have the resources they need to create their business," he said.
By working with researchers and startup companies, Crume said the center will look to generate job growth in a region where the life sciences industry is already growing.
On the third floor, you'll find more office space to be used by some of the center's tenants while the fourth floor boasts great views and even more space for groups including BE NKY.
Crume said the OneNKY Center is expected to open sometime in the summer of 2025.
