Organizations across Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky will receive $60,000 in grants for community-focused projects through a partnership between ArtsWave and MeetNKY.
ArtsWave, a Cincinnati-based arts nonprofit, and MeetNKY, Northern Kentucky’s tourism bureau, announced Tuesday that they have awarded the funding to local organizations. The grants will support placemaking initiatives intended to strengthen neighborhoods, celebrate cultural identity and boost economic vitality throughout the region, according to a joint news release.
Nine projects, listed below, in Boone, Kenton and Campbell counties, will be funded. The projects will all take place between June 1, 2026, and May 31, 2027. Projects include several traveling arts and theater productions, a local queer-focused news organization, a live music series at Ludlow’s Railfan Tower and arts programming at the new Covington Farmers Market location.
“These nine projects reflect what creative placemaking does at its best, it roots the arts in the neighborhoods where people already live, work and gather,” said Alecia Kintner, president and CEO of ArtsWave. “From free concerts at a historic rail site in Ludlow to arts programming woven into a Covington farmers market, these initiatives are building vibrant, connected communities and making culture within reach for everyone. We’re grateful for MeetNKY’s partnership in making this work possible.”
Consult the table below, provided by the organizations, for a list of funded projects.
Organization Project Award African Women Alliance Creative Roots: A Heritage Skills Workshop $5,000 Bi-Okoto Drum & Dance Theatre Afrika On The Move: Expanding Cultural Connections & Community Wellbeing $7,500 Infinite Hills Productions, Inc. The Rail Sessions $8,500 Pones Ride with an Artist Day $7,000 Queer Kentucky, Inc. NKY Anthology Print Magazine $3,500 ReNewport The Orchard Project $5,000 Southbank Shakespeare Southbank Shakespeare Summer Season $7,500 The Center for Great Neighborhoods Arts at the Market $6,000 Urban Appalachian Community Coalition UACC Place Keepers – Woven Branches Project $10,000
