Construction on OneNKY Center in Covington’s Roebling Point district is already underway.
The surface parking lot at 209 Greenup St. is no longer there after crews used heavy machinery to break up the asphalt, setting the stage for foundation work.
Now, Hemmer Construction- the Paul Hemmer Company’s construction arm- has teamed up with Covington-based real estate development firm Corporex on the $26 million project. Hemmer will serve as the project’s general contractor, while Corporex is the development manager.
“We are thrilled to have been selected as the general contractor for the OneNKY Center project,” CEO Paul Hemmer said in a press release. “This opportunity reaffirms our dedication to delivering outstanding results and our commitment to transforming architectural visions into reality.”
Located at the foot of the historic Roebling Bridge, the OneNKY Center is a 45,000-square-foot office building that will house several of Northern Kentucky’s growing organizations, including the OneNKY Alliance, Northern Kentucky Bar Association, Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce, meetNKY, BE NKY Growth Partnership, Catalytic Fund of Northern Kentucky, and Horizon Community Fund. In addition, the second floor of the building is set to house the Covington Life Sciences Lab. Community leaders hope the lab will be a breeding ground for life sciences and biotechnology startups.
In May, the Kenton County Fiscal Court unanimously voted to provide credit enhancement for up to $10 million in construction bonds to build the OneNKY Center. The Northern Kentucky Port Authority will own the building — a statutory governmental body jointly formed by Boone, Campbell, and Kenton counties in 1968.
A groundbreaking ceremony was held in late August. Notable attendees included Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Kenton County Judge/Executive Kris Knochelmann, State Sen. Chris McDaniel, Covington Mayor Joe Meyer, and Corporex Chairman Bill Butler among others.
“Corporex is eager to partner with Hemmer Construction Company on this landmark development that has been years in the making,” Butler said in the release. “They have a long track record of successfully completing complex and large-scale projects. The organization also has a strong reputation for delivering projects on time and within budget.”