The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet gave a presentation this week on the progress of the 4th Street bridge replacement project at a meeting of the Covington Board of Commissioners.
The meeting and presentation drew large numbers of agitators from the Coalition for Transit and Sustainable Development and the Devou Good Foundation, who spent the weeks leading up to the meeting pushing for their own vision of the bridge replacement.
About 50 people, some of whom held signs with slogans and graphics, filled the commission chambers to hear the presentation and express their concerns Tuesday night. As people took their seats, Mike Bezold and Cory Wilson, project managers with the cabinet, approached the podium to present on potential designs for the new bridge.
“We’re here today to show you four concepts that Rosales + Partners have developed for the 4th Street Bridge,” Bezold said. “So we can just get you informed, keep you informed [and] get your opinions as to how you think the community needs to look and function before any kind of decision is made on these concepts.”
The current bridge is old, built in the 1930s, and connects the cities of Covington and Newport across the Licking River along KY Route 8. The cabinet has classified the bridge as functionally obsolete, although heavy vehicle, pedestrian and bicycle traffic continue to travel over the bridge daily.
Functionally obsolete bridges are still operational but do not conform to modern standards.
“A functionally obsolete bridge is likely not wide enough or tall enough to accommodate current vehicle sizes, weights and traffic volumes,” according to the transportation cabinet.
Sidewalks on the bridge are small and not up to standard with the Americans with Disabilities Act, making crossing difficult for people who use wheelchairs or have other mobility limitations. In addition, the narrow drive lanes and concrete barriers separating the road from the walkways make the bridge dangerous for cyclists.
The cabinet formed an aesthetics committee comprised of state and local public officials, historic preservation experts and representatives from the contracted businesses involved in the project earlier this year. The committee met for the first time at the end of May, but their meetings are not open to the public.
Bridge architect Miguel Rosales. Photo provided | Susan R. Symonds
The cabinet released concept designs for the new bridge earlier this month. Bezold had also given a similar presentation to the Newport City Commission in June, where he informed commissioners that the cabinet had contracted with architecture firm Rosales + Partners, whose principal, Miguel Rosales, has designed bridges all around the world. Representatives from Rosales + Partners did not attend Tuesday’s meeting.
Bezold gave a brief review of each of the four concept designs, which varied in aesthetics and the mechanisms by which they’re held up–arches, cable stays, inclined arches and suspension cables, respectively. All of the concepts have four traffic lanes and 12-foot mixed-used paths on either side of the lanes where people can walk and ride bikes over the river.
Bezold said they hoped to have a final concept design chosen by the end of October.
“One of the key things that we’re looking at in all of these alternates is the safety of the bikes and the [pedestrians] and the traffic that’s on these,” Bezold said after reviewing each of the designs. “We’re doing traffic calming on all these just to slow traffic down on 4th Street, which will allow traffic to flow at a reasonable rate from 5th street.”
KY 8 in Covington is currently five lanes wide, and Bezold said the cabinet had tried to consider different ways of mitigating traffic while also respecting the architecture and atmosphere of the city’s historic neighborhoods.
After Bezold had completed his presentation, the commissioners had questions.
Commissioner Ron Washington asked about the project’s budget and if there was a possibility of the state increasing it or changing it in the future.
Bezold said that the cabinet had projected a cost of $68 million, but “we’re still in the estimating stage for this on the exact costs.
“We feel with all of the concepts that are presented–due to inflation and the construction climate in the area–will probably exceed that budget. We don’t know by how much yet…” Bezold added.
Washington also asked about the methods the cabinet used to measure traffic across the bridge and make a determination on the number of traffic lanes.
Bezold referenced a 2016 traffic study the cabinet had conducted, which measured traffic counts and predicted traffic would increase in the subsequent years, especially with continued development projects on either side of the river. The analysis suggested that four lanes was the right number.
At the Newport presentation in May, Bezold also said that four lanes would be capable of supporting the weight of public bus traffic, which the current bridge isn’t strong enough to handle.
Commissioner Shannon Smith asked Bezold to give more details on the traffic calming measures the cabinet was considering.
“On the Covington said, we’re not going to line up the route [in a] perfect straight shot down 4th Street,” Bezold said.
Instead, he said, they’ll expand the sidewalks to match the walkways on the bridge, which will have the effect of curving the road and making traffic less congested. He also said that additional lighting would serve as a traffic calming measure.
Smith also asked about what the pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure would look like, especially at the intersections.
Bezold said there would be well-marked crosswalks for pedestrians and cyclists, unlike the current bridge.
“We will make sure that all of the sidewalks and multi-use paths and the roadway itself meet the Americans with Disabilities Act and is safe for all users,” Bezold said.
Lastly, Smith asked about the cabinet’s public engagement efforts, to which Bezold responded that the cabinet had had an open meeting in the spring of last year, where the cabinet collected attendee’s comments. He also said that the cabinet had been corresponding with city governments in the region and collecting comments online, all of which they used to inform their design process.
Commissioner Tim Downing asked about the sort of feedback the cabinet had received about the new designs so far, and Bezold said that much of the feedback had been people stating which designs they preferred.
Finally, Mayor Joe Meyer asked about why the cabinet had chosen to roll out the bridge replacement in stages, rather than complete the construction all at once.
In short, Bezold said, staging the construction was necessary as it would allow people who rely on the current bridge, especially people who did not own cars, to have a continued method for traversing the river.
“There’s a large community on both sides of the river that do not have vehicles,” Bezold said. “… this is their main access to work or school or other facilities.”
Plus, the current bridge is also the site for utility infrastructure, including a water line and power cabling, and staging the construction would grant more time for rerouting such utilities without disrupting service.
Tuesday’s meeting was a caucus meeting, so there was no scheduled time for public comments.
In spite of this, the mayor invited Matt Butler, the president of the Devou Good Foundation, to come to the podium to speak with the commissioners.
“We have collected a lot of data on this and talked to a lot of people, and I think we still have some outstanding concerns,” Butler said upon taking the podium.
The foundation, in partnership with the architectural firm Hub + Weber, who recently relocated to Cincinnati, crafted their own vision for the replacement bridge, which they showcased at meetings and events earlier this year.
Devou Good’s bridge design has fewer traffic lanes than the state transportation cabinet concepts and space for an electric street car.
Emails and marketing materials from the foundation suggest that the group was displeased with both KYTC’s and the city’s outreach efforts. The foundation had also cast doubt on the 2016 study, claiming that their own analysis suggested traffic would actually decrease in the future, hence their desire for fewer lanes. Environmental concerns also prompted their ask for electric transit.
Washington took issue issue with the tenor of the foundation’s criticisms and marketing efforts.
“I pride myself in the city I grew up in,” Washington said. “I walked across that bridge to go to work before I owned the car, and I see that there’s a strong suggestion that we’ve abdicated our responsibilities by not gathering public input,” saying that he had heard comments via email and public statements at government meetings from concerned citizens.
“Can you tell us how the board of commissioners has not listened?” Washington asked.
“I think up until tonight, we haven’t really heard from the commissioners,” Butler said.
Butler expressed frustration that, even though the state said they were collecting feedback from city representatives, anytime he approached the city with concerns, they would tell him the project was the state’s responsibility.
Washington accused Butler of mischaracterizing some statements that Washington had made in the past, saying Butler had left out important information about who people should contact with concerns.
“I would appreciate if you don’t do that,” Washington said. “Please don’t do that…. It wasn’t like I was shucking my duties. I was trying to direct the people that are concerned about this to the right authority.
“We don’t own the 4th Street bridge,” Washington continued. “We don’t have $68 million–the City of Covington–to pay on the bridge. The state of Kentucky owns the bridge. The state of Kentucky has representatives. They’re your state senators. They’re your state reps. The transportation cabinet belongs to the governor, and that’s the point I was getting across, to try to direct our citizens… where [their] comments should go.”
Butler replied that no one elects the KYTC.
“There are no elected officials there, and KYTC takes marching orders from elected officials,” Butler said.
Downing asked Butler if he had met with KYTC officials directly to share people’s concerns, specifically about the number of lanes on the bridge.
“We have a working relationship with the KYTC,” Butler said. “We’re actually doing a number of projects with them, and we’ve had conversations over the last couple years about this project.”
But, Butler said, when he asked Bezold why the bridge had to be four lanes wide, he had “not received a response, which we thought was kind of odd,” Butler said.
Downing also challenged Butler’s assertion that officials had been inaccessible, saying he wanted to “make sure that we’re not creating a narrative that they’re being tight with their information when, at least from all accounts, it appears that they’re trying to, at least, make sure that they’re addressing some of these same concerns that you’ve expressed here tonight.”
Butler brought up the issue of the data from the 2016 study, saying that the state ought to do another study to get more recent and more accurate numbers, even though he wasn’t sure whom he should contact to get that done.
“That’s not us,” Downing said, although the commission could make requests and recommendations.
“Asking for the data is something that we can certainly do,” Downing said. “And then if the data is not adequate, we can certainly ask for it to be updated. But I think the first step is to say, OK, what did you base your data on? And then we can evaluate that.”
Meyer reaffirmed these points after Butler stepped away from the podium.
“I’ll make this point very directly,” Meyer said. “The city of Covington does not have the ability to tell the transportation cabinet what to do on this project or on any of our projects.
“I can tell you that Mr. Bezold and I have not had the friendliest of relationships over the years because he often tells me, ‘no, can’t be done.’ ” Meyer continued. “What we do have is a relationship where we can be effective advocates, and I can tell you since at least March of 2022… we have advocated for an iconic bridge design. We have advocated for 12-foot pedestrian/bicycle lanes on either side of the bridge. We have advocated for separation of vehicular lanes from the other lanes.”
In addition, Meyer said, “We have to recognize that there’s a billion and a half dollars worth of redevelopment and early processes within a mile of that bridge on both the Newport and the Covington side. Those will, in fact, generate a lot more traffic than what we’re accustomed to. That’s part of our reality.”
The mayor then encouraged the attendees to come to next week’s meeting where they could give public comments and to contact the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet directly to give feedback on the concept designs.
Meyer then called for a recess, and the crowds filed out of the commission chambers.
You can watch the full meeting, including KYTC’s presentation and the question and answer portions of the meeting, at the Telecommunications Board of Northern Kentucky’s website.
For more information on 4th Street Bridge project, visit ky8bridge.org or email the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet at info@ky8bridge.org.
Leave public comments related to the bridge for KYTC officials by using their online contact form.
The next meeting of the Covington Board of Commissioners will take place on Tuesday, Aug. 22 at 6 p.m. at Covington City Hall on Pike Street. It will include a dedicated session for public comments.