COVINGTON, Ky. — Making development easier while protecting the city's charm - that’s the goal of Covington’s new neighborhood development code.
The city has been working on this for about 18 months and is asking for feedback at a public meeting tonight.
“If you take a moment just to take a look at the architecture around, there are just so many inspiring buildings around us,” said Christopher Myers, Covington historic preservation officer. “Places with so many layers of history that we get to experience in 2019 and add to."
Covington has been changing dramatically in recent years, and with this new code, officials say they want to ensure that future changes preserve its “look” and “feel."
“What we’re trying to do with our new code is make it more flexible, make it more reasonable for lack of a better term,” said Dalton Belcher, city zoning specialist.
Belcher said the new code will take out rigid standards and allow for more flexibility, basing decisions on what fits in a particular neighborhood.
“It looks more at what the already established neighborhood is and says: this is what the neighborhood is and we want to fit that, not some rigid mathematical number,” Belcher said.
Belcher said this will make it not only easier for potential developers, but for homeowners too.
“At the base level, if you’re putting a fence up, you’ve got to follow the code. It affects everybody,” Belcher said.
It’s all about welcoming change without losing charm.
“And if we didn’t have this, we wouldn’t be Covington,” Myers said. “And so our zoning ordinance is looking to celebrate these qualities and getting development that really adds positively to what makes Covington to special.”
The city is asking for residents to give feedback Tuesday night from 7 to 8 at the Hellmann Creative Center, 321 West MLK Boulevard.
For residents who can't make the meeting, there's a website to leave comments. Hit the "Provide Input" tab at the top of the page.
The goal is to have this code finished by next summer.
