COVINGTON, Ky. — A beloved mural in Covington has been decommissioned, and will be removed to make room for new mixed-use development.
The mural, called "An Epic of Time and Town", celebrates the people and community of Covington, and it's been on the wall on West 6th Street for a decade.
However, a major project in the heart of the Mainstrasse neighborhood is gearing up to begin construction that requires the mural to come down.
On Sunday, community members and neighbors gathered at the mural to say goodbye.
"This mural is very special to me," said Nina Parr, a teacher and artist who worked on the mural. "It was my first job out of college. I spent a lot of time in Covington that summer. I actually met my husband in Covington that summer."
Parr was one of the artists who spent the summer of 2009 painting the massive mural in Mainstrasse. A small personal touch, Parr and her students can be seen in a small self portrait in the mural.
"This was our very furst mural [in Kentucky]," said Colleen Houston, chief programming officer at ArtWorks Cincinnati. The organization is largely responsible for many murals throughout the Greater Cincinnati region. "We've painted so many more murals in Kentucky, but this one holds a very fold place in our heart."
Commercial real estate developer Realty Link is turning the property on which the mural is painted into a mixed-use building with 177 apartments, retail and restaurant space. A neighborhood market is in the works for the building as well.
"We unfortunately have to demolish the piece that is west of the historic building where the mural is painted on," said John Whitson, principal with Realty Link. "We'll demolish that and replace it with a four-story warehouse building that will have retail, office and multi-family in it."
Residents and artists in Covington gathered to give the mural a sendoff, say their goodbyes, and reminisce about its creation and what it's meant to the community.
"It's saddening because I know a lot of people probably worked a lot on this," said Jun Colter, a local artist. "They probably worked for months on end to make it."
