ERLANGER, Ky. — U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell stopped in Erlanger on Tuesday to talk about his securing of approximately $18.5 million in federal funding for Northern Kentucky projects.
First announced in February, the money will support transportation, infrastructure, defense and education projects in the region. The funding for the projects was included in the congressionally approved federal appropriations bill.
“I’m finishing up 42 years, and my attitude about this has remained the same no matter who was in the White House,” McConnell said on Tuesday. “My job was to help our medium-sized state punch above its weight to be able to compete against California, New York and other big states, and to designate where that funding should go.”
CVG will receive $7.5 million to reconstruct a portion of Taxiway M critical to cargo flight operations, followed by another $2 million to reconstruct an apron serving all 21 gates at Concourse A.
“These are really critical infrastructure projects,” said CVG Airport CEO Larry Krauter on Tuesday. “The pavement at the concourse, an apron, as an example, is over 40 years old, well beyond its useful life, and it’s obviously time to take all that pavement out and replace it with new pavement that will have a very good extension of life all around our gate areas.”
Furthermore, Krauter said Taxiway M is still asphalt, and the funding will help pave it with concrete. That Taxiway, he said, is used by heavy, wide-body aircraft, from the airport’s air cargo carriers like DHL and Amazon.
“Even more importantly, I think, is that these projects, and leader McConnell knows, are more than just about concrete,” Krauter said. “They’re about people, and they’re about long-term growth and economic prosperity.”
The city of Covington will receive $4.5 million for the Covington Central Riverfront Podium and Land Bridge Infrastructure project, which includes a parking garage with more than 600 spaces, a riverfront podium and a land bridge at the former IRS site.
Covington Mayor Ron Washington was in attendance on Tuesday to talk about the project. Washington said the Covington Central Riverfront Project is a cornerstone of the city’s long-term redevelopment strategy. The project includes turning 23 acres of former vacant commercial land into a mixed-use neighborhood.
“That park will be more than just a green space,” Washington said. “It will be a place where families from across Covington can gather and connect, and more residents and visitors alike can take in some of the most beautiful views of the Ohio River and the Cincinnati skyline.”
Covington’s Life Learning Center will receive $2.7 million. The funds will support life skills training, career readiness programs, job placement and recovery services for individuals impacted by substance abuse and the opioid epidemic.
The Life Learning Center is a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping at-risk individuals overcome barriers like poverty, addiction or incarceration to achieve stable employment and a better quality of life.
Life Learning Center’s VP of Operations, Tony Josselyn, spoke about the funding at the press conference.
Josselyn said the funding will help replicate its Covington model at other sites at Moorhead, Ky., Somerset, Ky. and Bowling Green, Ky.
In 2025, Josselyn said the Life Learning Center had 389 graduates, an increase of more than 100 from 2024. To successfully graduate from the program, individuals have to be “meaningfully employed” or pursuing post-secondary education.
“The Life Learning Center, we’re not enablers,” Josselyn said. “We provide resources, but we make sure that people work for those resources.”
Burlington’s Kentucky National Guard facility will also receive $1.875 million. The funds will be used to furnish the Kentucky National Guard’s vehicle maintenance shop in Burlington.
McConnell said that in his 42 years, he has secured $65 billion in funding for Kentucky.
“Why does this community stand out?” McConnell said. “Great airport, major metropolitan area, one of the biggest growth centers in the commonwealth."
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