Covington honored for ‘transformational’ work
amid worldwide crisis
COVINGTON, Ky. – The national narrative for local governments last year was defined by retreat and retraction, but the City of Covington forged forward with a $3 million public Wi-Fi project … a dramatic transformation of its riverfront … purchase of 23 acres near the heart of downtown … and economic development announcements touting the creation of 2,100 new jobs and almost $90 million in private capital investment.
Those and other successes – and the resilience, creativity, perseverance, and strategic thinking of the City’s leaders amid a worldwide health crisis – earned Covington a coveted award today: “City Government of the Year.”
The Kentucky League of Cities – a 370-city membership organization founded in 1927 – announced Covington’s selection today by an independent board of judges from around the state.
“The City of Covington is a great example of a community and local leaders who constantly reinvent and re-image,” said KLC Executive Director/CEO J.D. Chaney. “Part of KLC’s mission is to support innovation and quality governance, and the City of Covington exemplifies both qualities.”
In accepting the award, Mayor Meyer praised the City’s ability to balance in-the-moment outreach and long-term vision.
“Covington was – and remains – determined to emerge from the pandemic not shell-shocked and shattered but able and ambitious, so even while we took drastic steps in 2020 to help our people and our businesses survive, we also moved forward on projects that are changing the trajectory of The Cov’s future,” Meyer said. “This award will inspire us to keep moving forward.”
To be nominated for the award, KLC said, a City must have “elevated its community through quality governance or done something transformational for the community.”
More about the award can be found
HERE.
Collins & Company, Inc. – which sponsors the “City Government of the Year” award – will donate $1,000 to support a City of Covington program or project.
KLC officials will visit Covington in the coming weeks to present the award and make a video about the City.
Mayor Meyer said Covington hoped to time the presentation with a reception honoring the volunteers who serve on the dozens of boards and commissions that help Covington operate.
“This truly is a team effort,” he said. “We wouldn’t be transforming the City the way we are without the help of literally hundreds of volunteers and partners who generously donate their time, talent, and energy.”
The City’s nomination described how officials laid the groundwork for a stunning array of recent economic announcements and progress on history-changing projects like the IRS site, the riverfront, and the Wi-Fi project.
“…those successes are direct results of strategic decisions, perseverance, partnerships, and outside-the-box thinking that created a narrative of energy and momentum that continued to accelerate throughout the pandemic,” the nomination read. “Rather than hunker down and cower, (Covington) moved ahead.”
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