Candidates' priorities in Covington's commission primary election

There are 10 candidates in the running for four open seats on the Covington Board of Commissioners. The board is the only race for which there’s a primary election in Kenton County (read our commission explainer to learn how primaries and Covington’s city government work). Voters can cast ballots in the Covington primary on May 21. Two of the 10 candidates will be eliminated as a result, and the remaining eight will move on to the general election in November.

LINK nky reached out to the candidates to ask them about the issues. Their responses are below. Note: Due to space constraints, we had to edit many of their responses.

Tim Acri

Please describe your background and life experience and how it will inform your service if elected.

One week after graduating from high school, I enlisted in the United States Navy. Serving three tours overseas and a total of 14 years in the military (first enlisted, and then as an officer in the Navy Seabees) taught me the importance of chain of command, leadership and attention to detail. I transferred the skills and knowledge I acquired while in service to my country into my civilian career and helped build a very successful environmental business, which was sold in 2018. Working for more than 30 years in the environmental construction industry has prepared me perfectly for a position in public service in Covington. We have incredible opportunities to transform the overall long-term viability of Covington through urban development of the former IRS site, expanding and attracting new businesses to the City to boost our economic vitality and promoting affordable housing development, parks and recreation opportunities for our residents. I watched my father serve as a commissioner and mayor of the town where I grew up and always admired what he did for my hometown – and I aspire to do exactly the same thing for the city of Covington.

What specific issues will your campaign focus on, and what issues would you like the city to give more attention to?

Small businesses are the backbone of Covington, and we are truly fortunate to have such an amazing and eclectic variety of local business owners and entrepreneurs right here. I am keenly interested in supporting, promoting and keeping our small businesses in Covington by looking for creative ways to help incentivize and retain them to continue to do business in our community while promoting their growth and expansion.

Our parks, green spaces and open spaces are the real gems of our city, and we need to restore, protect and preserve these important areas while also creating more opportunities for recreation and public enjoyment of these public spaces.

I believe each and every child should be given the opportunity to play any sport they desire, no matter where they come from or who they are. I want to work with our community to create more youth leagues and sporting programs for our youngest residents.

We have an incredible opportunity to reshape the former IRS property into something that truly benefits all our residents and our business community. A carefully planned new development with input from a broad reach of stakeholders in our community will return a large vacant property to a prosperous one with elements that will benefit everyone.

Community safety goes a lot deeper than crime, violence and public health issues. Street lighting, stop signs, sidewalks, basic traffic control on side streets and other items are all key to public safety. Vacant buildings that present health and safety hazards need to be addressed quickly, as well as older infrastructure. There are a number of state and federal funding sources that could benefit our city, and I would like to work to bring a much larger share of these resources, incentives and programs to Covington.

Many developments in Covington have entailed work with state, county and even federal leaders. How will you advocate for Covington across jurisdictions? Do you foresee any challenges in this regard?

I’ve spent the majority of my professional career working closely with private businesses, local communities, labor unions, and local, state and federal officials on both small and large-scale environmental remediation, demolition and redevelopment projects around the country. From permitting, financing and grant funding to zoning, contract negotiations and procedural approvals, I’ve formed strong relationships with and brought interested parties together to solve the toughest development challenges and move the needle forward to a successful outcome.

I’ll bring these same skills, experience and abilities to the table in representing the city of Covington, our residents and our local businesses. While there are always challenges faced in bringing a final development project to fruition, I don’t foresee any reason we can’t overcome them with honest and open communication, trust and integrity – all of which have been cornerstones of my professional career.

What’s your assessment of Covington’s general fund shortfall, and how would you mitigate the problem if elected?

The shortfalls the City is facing currently come from many different angles. I would first look at our spending. Looking at renegotiating or rebidding contracts, auditing routine purchases or eliminating non-essential contracts would be the first step. We could also look at freezing vacant positions, better managing overtime and addressing health care costs for all city employees. The city also owns a substantial volume of property, and we should review which properties could be sold quickly to generate revenue. The city has made a number of smart, long-term investments over the years; I’d like to review those investments in closer detail and take advantage of any opportunities we might have to cash those in, so to speak. We should also look closely at sharing labor and equipment between departments instead of purchasing or hiring by department. We could look at partnering with other local governments or non-profits on specific tasks, which will benefit not only the City of Covington but other cities within the county or the region. We should also more aggressively seek to collect income tax from work from home employees. If their company is paying them to work from their home in Covington, they should be paying Covington payroll tax.

Is there anything else you’d like to speak about that isn’t addressed in the above questions?

Continuing what I discussed before, I currently serve on the Devou Parks Advisory Council and the plan for Devou Park is amazing. I want to ensure this park and all of its amenities carry over to other parks within the city. Additionally, every child should be given the opportunity to play any sport they desire, no matter where they live within our community, what their annual household income may be or what ethnic background they come from. I want to work with our Parks and Rec Department and other community business owners and community members to create more programs and make Covington a place where everyone wants to live, work, dine, shop, play and enjoy.

Bradie Bowen

Please describe your background and life experience and how it will inform your service if elected.

I have served as an employee of the Covington Independent School District as a teacher and administrator for 22 years. After becoming an administrator in the district, I felt it was important to be a part of the community so I made the move to Latonia 14 years ago. Through my time spent with the families of Covington I became invested in working towards providing safe, quality housing for our residents. This led me to become part of the Housing Authority of Covington Board of Commissioners and later a part of Neighborhood Investment Partners. My time in Covington has had a profound impact on my views of youth violence, as well as interventions and prevention strategies. These experiences are what motivated me to want to do more for my community at the local government level. Although I am not a Covington native, I made the choice to become a resident to be near my place of work and those who I serve and support. I’ve been fortunate to develop lasting relationships with many families and former students who I still try to support to the best of my abilities. Students who graduated many years ago still reach out to ask for guidance about how to enroll in career classes, find housing or to share their accomplishments. These families and former students are the reason I want to serve my community in a capacity beyond that of the school system. They are the reason I want to see our city thrive and be a place where all feel welcome and are comfortable engaging with local government.

What specific issues will your campaign focus on, and what issues would you like the city to give more attention to?

We have made significant strides in development of the city; however, we still have a large portion of our citizens who are not being serviced to the best of our abilities. We must prioritize engagement of youth with a focus on violence prevention, safe and quality housing as well as opportunities for career and educational advancements for all of our residents.

Continuing the momentum of our current economic development, strengthening relationships between the city and school district, and city leadership uniting the various community groups who are already tackling the issues of youth engagement, housing and career development would be my priorities as a Covington commissioner. Last year the city created a youth liaison position to work with the school district and parks and recreation to promote programs led by the city but housed on school properties. This was a great start to working on providing opportunities for our children, but, due to the recent budget issues, the position and program were cut. This was unfortunate as it was a positive step towards providing opportunities for our youth.

I would like to see a greater focus on programs and initiatives that have research-based evidence to support their effectiveness on community improvement with ongoing data analysis of the impact of these programs to determine if they are meeting community needs.

While advocating for the best interests of the city of Covington is important, the primary role of the city commission is to oversee the city government and to manage development of ordinances and policies that serve the best interest of our residents. Beyond these duties, I would engage stakeholders at all levels of government – county, state and national – whenever possible to advocate for funding and laws that would improve the quality of life for all citizens within our city.

That requires being able to work with individuals from a variety of backgrounds with differing viewpoints, something I do on a daily basis when working with students and adults. The skills I have learned through my time as a school leader have prepared me for being an advocate for what I believe to be right while facing the challenges of working with others who have differing opinions.

What’s your assessment of Covington’s general fund shortfall, and how would you mitigate the problem if elected?

The state of the general fund was not the result of mismanagement of funds, rather an unforeseen shortfall created due to the change in payroll tax regarding employees working from home. That said, it is vital that city leadership takes a critical look at current spending practices and adjust those based upon the needs of the community. Reviewing program funding and prioritizing those that have the greatest impact on residents, evaluating staffing to determine effectiveness and needs of departments, and budgeting for improvements to infrastructure in need of immediate repair should be the current focus. Evaluations of spending for each department of the city would need to occur with recommendations for cuts to items like travel expenses would be another starting point. Reviewing staffing to determine redundancies or exorbitant expenses in areas like overtime pay would also have a significant impact on the current state of the budget. Like managing your personal budget, when you have a shortfall you cut back on goods and services that are not priority needs until you are able to recover. To resolve this issue, we would need to implement creative solutions such as increasing the cost of rental licenses or expediting the sale of city owned lots and residential properties.

Morgan Davenport

Please describe your background and life experience and how it will inform your service if elected.

I grew up in Rowan County, Kentucky, and came to live in Covington to attend NKU. I’ve been passionate about government & leadership since our grade school library had us vote in our own booth. This sparked years of mock state and global legislation, which thankfully opened the door to campus positions where I was able to collaborate with our university president and their team to work towards equalizing and improving infrastructure. Since then, I have worked in government and have served the public.

What specific issues will your campaign focus on, and what issues would you like the city to give more attention to?

I am particularly concerned with infrastructure access for all Covingtonians. What policies are we choosing not only for Covington 100 years from now, but for ourselves over the course of that same time? For example, are our policy decisions satisfying the spectrum of everything from creating safety for pedestrian students while also preserving everyone’s ability to age happily in place and easily make use of shared mobility like our buses?

As a government employee, I learned quickly that there are many agencies and roles to accomplish a goal. We are truly lucky in Kentucky to be palpably on the same team across our civil services.

What’s your assessment of Covington’s general fund shortfall, and how would you mitigate the problem if elected?

There are members of our greater community disappointed to be made aware of the shortfall after receiving press releases from the city stating our finances were under no pandemic threat as other cities were struggling at the time. Our administration will have accountability to protect our city’s services.

Tim Downing

Please describe your background and life experience and how it will inform your service if elected.

I have lived in Covington most of my life, nearly 30 years. As a child growing up across from Holmes High School, attending church in Latonia, living in Monte Casino during college and now, South Covington has been my home for over a decade. I have a successful career in the private sector that combined with my prior experience on the commission. I have learned creative problem-solving solutions to address complex problems. I am one of the few commission candidates with experience in budgeting, finance and employee management, and I want to continue to bring my business expertise to the Covington Commission and ensure our government runs effectively and efficiently. I believe that at its core Covington’s biggest opportunities are centered around improving our economy. We need to create a business climate that will encourage both small and large companies alike to put down roots in our community and provide our citizens a place to work. This will revitalize our community and lower taxes for our residents. But, in order to do this, we must maintain our focus and not allow temporary obstacles to distract us from our vision. Covington needs to focus on the fundamentals throughout our great city. Show our residents and the business community at large that we can get the basics right, the services every city should provide: safe streets, fire protection and infrastructure.

What specific issues will your campaign focus on, and what issues would you like the city to give more attention to?

First, the economic development opportunities in the city. The old IRS site is generating national attention as an incredible opportunity for our city, but it isn’t the only one. We are attracting businesses to Latonia, and the recent Hands Pike development and zoning changes have opened up new opportunities in South Covington. The commission should be working to entice businesses that provide jobs for our residents and fit within the fabric of the communities we’ve built throughout the city. The business retention programs we have introduced have brought dozens of local businesses to our communities that reinvest in our neighborhoods.

Next, infrastructure, specifically improving pothole response and repair time. Our city has invested in the staffing and technology to reduce response times for pothole replacement and repair. During my tenure we’ve begun publishing the road repaving schedules in advance to help set expectations with our residents. We’ve invested in software so that any resident can easily submit requests and get updates on timing for work being done in the city.

Third, supporting our police and fire departments, ensuring they maintain full staffing. We have the best police and fire departments in the area, and to ensure continued excellence we need to make sure they are supported with the appropriate resources. This is why we have restored staffing in departments closed by previous administrations.

Finally, enhancing communication and outreach within the community. A government that doesn’t interact with its residents can rarely understand what it can do to make residents’ lives better.

I have dealt with budgeting for the better part of 15 years in the corporate sector. My job for the past decade has required that I take massive amounts of data and find the anomalies. I have worked on a multitude of projects where I have to understand and forecast the impact of various investments to understand and explain our financial return. I am the only candidate with this level of corporate business experience and the only candidate with an MBA.

Our city is growing, and there is a lot of hard work ahead. I’ve said this many times as I’ve spoken with residents throughout the city: The next several elections will shape the face of our city for years to come. We will be making decisions on plans for the IRS site, development around Hands Pike, navigating Duveneck construction projects, shaping the economic development in Latonia, identifying how and where we will build a new city hall and countless other projects too numerous to mention.

The state, county and other local elected officials see this and are doing their part to help support our growth. They see that having a dedicated and experienced legislative body can bring about wins for our community and the region because they see that we have a commission that is willing to do the work and listen to all of the residents. Plus, like our residents, they understand that these decisions impact us all, and we need strong leadership to guide us through.

What’s your assessment of Covington’s general fund shortfall, and how would you mitigate the problem if elected?

Working with city staff and other members of the commission, we’ve been actively working to mitigate the issue we saw developing during the half of the pandemic. The increased prevalence of work from home policies at different companies has created a budgetary shortfall that had real potential to impact the momentum the city has been building. We’ve developed creative solutions to bridge the gap in the short term, including the use of federal funds to prevent disruption of services, slowing the hiring for non-essential personnel and delaying capital projects. We’ve increased our efforts in identifying out of state landlords, avoiding business taxes and redoubling efforts for businesses operating within our city to carry the appropriate occupational licensure. The issue is complex, and even with recent announcements regarding return to office policies from local employers, our city will still have a budgetary shortfall. This is why the business attraction efforts we have been conducting are so critical and why the city has moved away from offering incentives to attract those businesses. I have been focusing on fiscally responsible job creation within our city, and because of that vision, the shortfall we’re experiencing now is only temporary in the face of the upcoming developments expected within the city.

Is there anything else you’d like to speak about that isn’t addressed in the above questions?

I have had the pleasure of serving on the commission during these past 4 terms when our city has experienced a flurry of positive change, but there is still work to be done. This is why I am seeking your vote for re-election on the Covington City Commission.

Why do I deserve your vote? I come to the table with ideas, not talking points. In my time on the commission, I have personally spearheaded initiatives to help drive common sense change within our city. These include:

– Multi-year budgets for better forecasting. If the commission and the residents are aware of larger expenditures down the road, we can better plan for them. This was the first request I made as an incoming commissioner.

– Neighborhood Improvement Initiative. Each neighborhood has its own unique needs, and at times larger city issues can overlook these needs. That does not make them any less important. This fund allows individual neighborhoods to use a portion of the tax dollars collected to directly impact their community in the way that they see fit.

– Development of the Vacant Property program. When I was first elected, the city had no formal list of vacant properties it owned and no written procedure to follow for disposal. There were 150+ properties, some had been on our books for more than a decade requiring city maintenance and care.

– Increased Staffing for Police, Fire and Code Enforcement. EMT Service in South Covington, reducing run times for emergency calls by 4 minutes.

Maria “Cari” C. Garriga

Please describe your background and life experience and how it will inform your service if elected.

My life experiences make me well-versed in multicultural and multilingual issues, provide experience as an administrator of a large institution, and include a holistic approach to health and wellness for individuals and communities.

Born and raised in Puerto Rico, I lived there through college. I continued my studies at the Sorbonne in France, UC, and OSU. I hold a Ph.D. in foreign and second language education. I am a yoga and meditation teacher as well as a National Board-Certified Health and Wellness Coach. I teach Spanish at Thomas More University and am the director of the honors program. I have held several administrative positions there, including acting provost.

As chief academic officer, I oversaw the departments of Academic Affairs, the Office of the Registrar, the Library and Student Life. I have ample experience supervising and administering budgets, conducting employee evaluations and review, charting new initiatives and providing leadership in defining the vision and mission of academics at the university. Most importantly, I know how to use resources carefully and strategically as I thoughtfully make hard decisions while ensuring transparent communication.

My background seems atypical from that of current commissioners, and that is exactly why you should support me. I bring a fresh approach to problem solving, focusing on relating to people and establishing consensus.

What specific issues will your campaign focus on, and what issues would you like the city to give more attention to?

My campaign stands for transparency and open dialogue in tackling all issues. Covington needs to work through budget difficulties while ensuring that we have top-notch services like our police and fire departments.

The city faces several world-class opportunities to increase revenue: The Covington Central Riverfront Development, the Fourth Street bridge, and the Brent Spence Bridge project. These projects need to be nurtured by individuals who bring fresh approaches and new ideas to the table. Economic development balanced with sustainability is the key to Covington’s future.

The city needs to focus on issues that keep us safe and prosperous. We should be looking to develop small businesses while ensuring that citizens feel safe as they walk or bike from their neighborhoods to Main Street. Covington needs to walk united into its bright future, a future that will benefit all of its citizens.

Individually, in bringing people together, I look to ideas that unite us and focus on points of common interest for strength in overcoming obstacles that may, seemingly, divide us. In my experience, people want to be heard and typically support ideas for the common good. In higher education, I have experience working across groups of students, staff and faculty in staying united working to advance the mission of the university.

Practicing active listening and maintaining an even temperament are character traits that have brought me success. Being well informed and being open to asking for and receiving help have also helped me; so, I would do as much. My experience as a yoga and meditation teacher prepares me to maintain a steady mind in turbulent situations.

I enjoy all my roles because they intersect to make me who I am: a capable administrator, a smart and kind individual who will work hard for the city of Covington.

I hope and work to build relationships with other city leaders and our local legislators to ensure that Covington’s interests are upheld at both the state and county level. Through meaningful dialogue, I will be able to help advance Covington’s interests.

What’s your assessment of Covington’s general fund shortfall, and how would you mitigate the problem if elected?

It should be Covington’s priority to work through the shortfall. Like each individual family, the city needs to live and aim to thrive within its means. Unfortunately, the choices are few–to trim and to diversify sources of revenue. Covington may be able to look to grants or foundations to balance some of the shortfall, but hard decisions may need to be made.

As a former higher education administrator, I have experience surgically and carefully examining budgets to realize cost savings. The present time brings interesting, once-in-a-lifetime opportunities for North Covington: The Central Riverfront Development, the 4^th Street bridge and the Brent Spence Project, among others. These will support small businesses throughout the entire city. My point is that we must make decisions that safeguard Covington’s economic future. Any future tax abatements and incentives to economic development should be carefully vetted to guard the city’s financial interests. It is imperative to balance economic development with contextual decisions for a high quality-of-life for all residents.

The commission should work with city officials to carefully look at all possibilities to rectify the budget shortfall. I have experience working constructively (supervising and managing) many people. I appreciate diverse points of view as I aim for consensus to advance the goal. In working to remedy a budget shortfall, I will do the same.

Is there anything else you’d like to speak about that isn’t addressed in the above questions?

The issue of safety has not been addressed directly. As the campaign progresses and I converse with constituents, it is apparent that everyone is concerned with safety in the city. Recent developments have marred the city’s reputation. Everyone should feel/be safe in their community. The commission needs to work with city officials to keep Covington safe and to further reduce and eliminate tragedies and loss of life. Citizens and law enforcement should look for ways to constantly communicate and get to know each other. Law enforcement needs our support to provide an active presence in all neighborhoods.

Safety also involves bikes and pedestrians. Bikers and walkers should feel safe when exercising or going to and from work. The Commission needs to prioritize infrastructure that guarantees the safety of all citizens. Safety is also in the quality of the air and water and green spaces in our environment. New development needs to respect our right to a clean outdoors.

Finally, why me? If you look at current commissioners, you will see no one like me. You need to support me in May–and in November–so that Covington’s City Commission can diversify, and new ideas can come into play. My life experiences and personal background make me an ideal candidate to work for the future of Covington.

Devin Kroner

Please describe your background and life experience and how it will inform your service if elected.

I have over 15 years of experience working as a pastor in churches with memberships from 30 to 5000, building teams, managing budgets(and making cuts at times), dealing with various factions’ expectations and keeping focused on goals in both lean and plentiful times. That profession taught me how to listen, find common ground and handle crisis situations. My work as a realtor has, of course, taught me a lot about working with contracts, staying on budget and on schedule and managing expectations from various parties. It has also made me aware of a lot of things that everyday people are dealing with around the city.

What specific issues will your campaign focus on, and what issues would you like the city to give more attention to?

As I outline on my website (kronerforcovington.com), there are three primary issues I am focused on:

Fair Housing: Housing and affordability are issues all over, but that doesn’t mean we can’t do more to make sure that we are doing what we can right here. These measures would include using the HOME Consortium program, working with private landlords to take vouchers (it’s not that hard, and they get a guaranteed rent check) and creating more affordable housing as we continue to develop areas.
Fiscal Responsibility and Accountability: We need more transparency with spending, more accountability from the city manager and well-thought-out decisions before we do things like, say, cut fire services.
Strategic Community Partnerships: Addressing things like drugs, homelessness, trash, city beautification, hunger and even the need for resources like equipment can often (but I know not always) be done through partnerships. However, we need leaders who pursue partners and bring them to the table to help solve problems, not trying to do it through taxes or cuts alone.

I’ve spent my life in ministry and in real-estate working for compromise. I’ve had to work with other agents for win-win deals, even when that means neither side gets everything they want. I’ve worked with other ministry leaders, including staff, boards and donors, to get things done to advance departments and reach objectives. This cross-aisle collaboration is literally what I’ve been doing my entire adult life.

This is, granted, a different level with new rules, but building relationships, telling the truth and keeping your word are things that never cease working. And in a government setting, remembering that usually the desire is to help, you just have to follow the rules. It’s a matter of finding the path that moves forward rather than bickering or complaining about things. I have done this and will continue doing it in the role of commissioner.

What’s your assessment of Covington’s general fund shortfall, and how would you mitigate the problem if elected?

Having prepared many budgets based on what you expect and then having to adjust for what reality gives you, I understand the balance and how difficult it can be. I also understand that career politicians, who have been repeatedly elected, often get complacent and stop caring about details or creative solutions. I’m ready to come in, put everything on the table and take the perspective of this can be done and find solutions, even if they don’t please everyone. That’s why I also will not run for re-election more than once for the same office. If I can’t get the job done in 2 terms, then I don’t need to be there, which is how I feel about current members as well.

Is there anything else you’d like to speak about that isn’t addressed in the above questions?

I’m not a politician, and I don’t want to be. I’m a problem solver. I’ve used my skills to build churches and build a successful real estate business, and now I want to bring those skills to solve problems I’ve seen or that have been brought to my attention through people I’ve served. I don’t think for a second that I can do it all, so to speak, but I know that what we’ve been seeing with current leaders isn’t the path forward because things aren’t getting better for people. So, I want to bring new ideas, add new partnerships and look for creative solutions just as I have to win deals for clients or to reach people and build churches. Repeatedly elected politicians aren’t the answer when change needs to be made, and that’s why I’m running now.

Shannon Smith

Please describe your background and life experience and how it will inform your service if elected.

My experience as a public servant, business owner and team member are necessary, foundational experiences for a commissioner. I am a third term city representative seeking a fourth, a local entrepreneur and a lifetime athlete. Serving as a commissioner for nearly six years, establishing thriving businesses in the city and demonstrating a history of being a team member affords me the critical skills needed of a public servant.

My experience as a public servant brings institutional knowledge and established, positive working relationships with city, county and state leaders and employees. I will not simply hit the ground running but continue forging ahead. I have no learning curve.

My experience as a successful business owner navigating personnel, policy and finances directly correlate with the capability to efficiently run Covington, in part, as a business. I understand faucets of business ownership as an actual Covington business owner.

My experience as a team member often landed me in leadership roles that resulted from my work ethic, my knowledge and capability, my willingness to learn and my ability to effectively communicate. Moreover, I knew when it was best to follow in the interest of those we serve.

Candidates have come and gone with personal agendas, an unwillingness to compromise or collaborate and an overeagerness to point the finger of blame. We need a board that sees the big picture, that works together, that communicates, that puts personal agendas aside and decides based upon what’s best for the city. I have been and am that teammate.

What specific issues will your campaign focus on, and what issues would you like the city to give more attention to?

My campaign and my service will continue to center on the needs of our city and citizens, which are ever evolving. As of now, the needs revolve around addressing the budget shortfall, which many cities are facing due to unprecedented circumstances deriving from the pandemic. To do this we must plan for activities and development of our youth as well as our seniors, ensure the Covington Central Riverfront project at the former IRS site continues to be developed in the best interest of all our city, work on improving communication and inclusion across all neighborhoods both north and south of 12th Street, and address concerns about infrastructure and affordable housing.

I am fortunate to have great relationships and open lines of communication with many dedicated entities and incredible individuals. Even in a budget shortfall, we can collaborate to address the issues above and ultimately the shortfall itself.

I am fortunate to have great working relationships with various leaders across counties, states and parties. My ability to reach across the aisle, effectively communicate and work for the greater good is what landed me the privilege to sit on the regional tourism board at MeetNKY, the Northern Kentucky Convention and Visitors Bureau, which collaborates with Cincinnati’s. I was appointed by the Kenton County Fiscal Court. As a result of the work of the incredible staff and board at MeetNKY, our region landed on Conde Nast’s “Best Places to Travel” in 2023 with several Covington businesses being highlighted.

Aside from my time on the regional tourism board, a couple of my personal highlights were working with leaders in both Kentucky and Ohio to bring a free minipitch sponsored by FC Cincinnati to Austinburg Park and free Wi-Fi to many households in Covington.

I believe in working for what’s best for the people of Covington over what’s best for a particular party. I worked in the United States Senate, the Canadian Parliament and the Covington Commission with all walks of life and all parties, and I always found common ground and excellent results. We need leaders that see the similarities before the differences and always work toward what is best for the greater good.

My existing relationships will allow me to facilitate continued conversations toward improving our city. The primary challenge I foresee would be if I’m no longer able to continue advocating as a representative and woman of the city I love.

What’s your assessment of Covington’s general fund shortfall, and how would you mitigate the problem if elected?

As shared, the shortfall comes from the results of an unprecedented pandemic. Many cities like ours are facing the same issues. For those unfamiliar, our city primarily relies upon payroll taxes for revenue. The pandemic caused businesses generating those payroll taxes to have their employees work from home. As a result, we suffered a substantial payroll tax loss because they no longer worked in Covington. The first step we took is to learn from what happened and grow from it. Presently, our economic development department is prioritizing businesses with on-site employees into any incentive agreements with employers. The good news is that a major employer is now requiring more employees to come back onsite in Covington.

In addition, the CCR (Covington Central Riverfront) will play a role in our rebound. Our recent announcement of Chase Law and UK’s medical center that will occupy the site will net our city significant payroll tax, monies from the sale of the parcel as well as resulting property tax. Alongside the CCR development, our economic development team continues to work to bring more businesses to the city so we can increase our tax base.

Lastly, in Kentucky it’s difficult for a city to diversify its revenue streams due to state law. Members of our board have broached conversations on changing that law to allow us to diversify our streams and provide us a more sustainable and predictable financial foundation. I plan to continue those conversations.

Is there anything else you’d like to speak about that isn’t addressed in the above questions?

The decision to run for office is one I have never taken lightly and never will. I have had moments recently to observe those benefiting from my efforts and, although I am proud of them, I recognize I can and could do more. Even members of our city staff agree. I was both flattered and floored when many encouraged me to continue. They know there is still work left to be done, and there is no one better suited to occupy a seat on our board of commissioners.

I am incredibly fortunate to have helped lead our city to various successes, and I am driven to help lead us to more.

I humbly ask for your vote and to serve another term.

James Toebbe

Please describe your background and life experience and how it will inform your service if elected.

I am a lifelong resident of Covington, growing up in Latonia in a single-parent household. I attended Latonia Elementary and Holmes High School as a child and eventually enlisted in the U.S. Navy two months after Sept. 11, 2001, as a cryptologic technician. I did not really know what I was signing up for, but I felt that the military would be a good fit. I spent four years on active duty, and once I returned home, I still had a desire to serve. I enlisted in the Kentucky National Guard and then the Navy Reserve after that contract ended and spent a total of 15 years in the service. During my time in the military, I deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom as well as to Afghanistan, where I spent a year working at a detention facility. While in the military, I saw both sides of humanity and am grateful for the opportunity to experience some great things as well as many horrible things. It really makes me appreciate all that we have living in the United States and the freedoms that we are afforded. Since leaving the military, I have been an advocate for veterans while serving in the VFW at post, district and state positions. I travel to Washington D.C. annually at my own expense to speak with our senators and representatives on bills that will benefit veterans as well as active duty and reserve members.

What specific issues will your campaign focus on, and what issues would you like the city to give more attention to?

I want to be able to represent the average Covington resident because that is what I am. I am not a business owner, and I don’t come from wealth. I just work a normal 9-to-5 job every day.

Many residents sometimes feel forgotten south of downtown, and I want to ensure that every neighborhood knows that they have a voice within our city. I hear a lot of the concerns that many residents have within our city around public safety, activities for our youth and economic development outside of the riverfront area. I feel that our city leaders need to be out in the community more to understand the day-to-day issues that residents are facing and collaboratively work on ways to address those concerns.

With having four commissioners, I think that it would be easy to divide up among ourselves to be present in the neighborhood meetings like Latonia Uptown, Residents of Westside and other groups, at least a few times a year to hear first-hand from residents what is going on and what we can do as elected leaders to assist.

Advocating on behalf of Covington across jurisdictions will require strategic collaboration and effective communication. If elected, I will leverage already established connections at the city, state and federal levels from my time advocating for veterans and prioritize building new ones at all levels. I will ensure that Covington’s interests are consistently represented in my discussions as well as decision-making processes.

The challenges that I expect will mostly be with conflicting priorities, but I am confident in our ability as a commission to navigate those. By emphasizing the positive impact of Covington’s initiatives, we can find common ground and gain support from leaders at all levels of government.

What’s your assessment of Covington’s general fund shortfall, and how would you mitigate the problem if elected?

I do not think that anyone expected COVID to happen and work from home to become sort of the norm for multiple years. I am an employee that historically worked in Covington, and since 2020, I have worked remotely from home. The good news is that in September, the major employer who has caused the shortfall will increase their time in the office from 1 week a month to 50% in-office. I am hopeful that it will relieve some of the burden our city has faced.

If elected, I would support halting all projects coming from the city’s general fund that are not absolutely needed and are not revenue-generating. Like many residents have to cut their spending when faced with budget constraints, the city government should operate the same way.

I would expect by the end of this year during the budget process, we will also see the recommendations from the city’s finance director and see waste and recycling increases at an additional $36 per year. I was shocked to learn that every resident also can receive 1 debris voucher from City Hall per month for bulk dumping at the transfer station. I would support updating that to quarterly or bi-annually because a good majority of residents do not accumulate large amounts of trash to dump, and I would suspect some of that is being abused. Finally, I would support that any changes made that impact residents are immediately reversed once the city is financially stable.

Is there anything else you’d like to speak about that isn’t addressed in the above questions?

I just want to say that I am extremely grateful for this opportunity to possibly represent the city that I love so much. Through my terms as an elected representative within veterans’ organizations, I always remembered that my job was to represent the members who put me in that position. I understand that if elected as a commissioner, my job is to look out for the best interests of the residents and business owners and listen to their feedback, whether good or bad. I plan to be completely transparent and will never be afraid to admit if I make a mistake. I look forward to the opportunity to meet more residents throughout this campaign season.

Bill Wells

Please describe your background and life experience and how it will inform your service if elected.

As a lifelong resident of Northern Kentucky and Holy Cross graduate, community service has been my lifelong commitment. I’ve served as an EMT/firefighter in Taylor Mill, worked as a mechanic and held the position of Covington City Commissioner from 2015 to 2019. With 45 years of marriage to Judy, and as father to Aaron and grandfather to Nathaniel, family values underpin my endeavors.

For over 20 years, I’ve been deeply involved in neighborhood initiatives, including 18 years in leadership in South Covington and 16 years with the Covington Neighborhood Collaborative, nine of which were in leadership roles. I’m actively engaged in Latonia UpTown, emphasizing my dedication to community development.

During my tenure as city commissioner, we achieved significant financial milestones, eliminating 20 years of borrowing for payroll and implementing a sustainable fleet plan. With 45 years of fleet maintenance experience, I discern between essential needs and unnecessary expenses.

In my first two years, we invested in public safety infrastructure, acquiring 41 police vehicles, updating snow removal equipment, and acquiring three fire trucks and four ambulances. Additionally, I represented Covington on the PDS council and served on the budget review committee.

With my time, skills, connections, and experience, I am fully equipped to serve as your full-time commissioner, dedicated to our community’s interests and well-being.

What specific issues will your campaign focus on, and what issues would you like the city to give more attention to?

I advocate for the reintroduction of OpenGov in our city to provide transparency in how tax dollars are utilized, benefiting citizens, developers and city leaders. OpenGov allows for unbiased insights, fostering a multidimensional understanding of expenditures.

Further, I propose increased city engagement in neighborhoods beyond grant allocation. Attending neighborhood meetings demonstrates genuine support. Collaborating with the Covington Neighborhood Collaborative to establish a neighborhood summit would further strengthen community bonds.

As a former commissioner, I recognize the vital role of budget approval. Access to departmental expenditure data, as facilitated by OpenGov, streamlines decision-making. This essential information should be readily available to inform our decisions effectively.

I commend initiatives like Read Ready Covington, where officials engage with youth by reading at elementary schools. Extending this program citywide, involving all elected officials and schools, would enrich educational outreach.

Through my tenure, I’ve forged strong relationships with county and state leaders. Recognizing the pressing need for the Hands Pike “hill” replacement and realignment in South Covington, I spearheaded efforts to advance this critical project. As a member of Covington’s transportation task force, I prioritized action, resulting in the project’s inclusion in the state’s six-year plan within months. Through consistent engagement, including trips to Frankfort, attendance at Transportation Cabinet meetings and numerous emails to state leaders, I advocated tirelessly for this initiative.

In 2015, the city commission unanimously supported this project as Covington’s top state priority, a testament to its significance. Credit is due to Sen. Chris McDaniel and Rep. Kim Moser for their responsiveness and efforts in moving the project forward.

Having retired recently, I now have the capacity to serve as a full-time commissioner. Regular attendance at neighborhood, fiscal court and SD1 meetings reflects my commitment to remaining actively engaged. As a wise individual once noted, “You’re either at the table, or you’re on the table.” With the time and connections at my disposal, I am positioned to represent the interests of Covington’s residents and businesses effectively at the decision-making table.

What’s your assessment of Covington’s general fund shortfall, and how would you mitigate the problem if elected?

The pandemic presented unprecedented challenges beyond the city’s control, underscoring the importance of having a rainy day fund for such unforeseen circumstances.

With 45 years of fleet maintenance experience, I advocate for aligning city expenses with income, mirroring standard business practices.

Addressing staffing shortages requires pragmatic solutions, such as adjusting expectations or implementing overtime. We’re all working towards the city’s advancement collectively.

Regarding employee benefits, incentivizing unused sick days upon retirement could benefit both employees and reduce overtime costs, offering a mutually beneficial solution.

During a neighborhood meeting, I discovered a potential revenue loss. A resident working remotely for a corporation with offices in various cities might not be paying city taxes. This oversight highlights the need for thorough tax collection practices to ensure fairness for all residents.

Is there anything else you’d like to speak about that isn’t addressed in the above questions?

Covington has experienced remarkable progress in recent years, largely thanks to the dedication of our full-time mayor and vice-mayor. Now retired, I possess the time, experience and skill set necessary to serve as your next full-time Covington commissioner.

The development of Covington’s Central Riverfront stands as one of the city’s most significant projects in the coming years, demanding committed leadership for successful realization.

During my tenure as commissioner, I embraced the philosophy of seizing opportunities, exemplified by a basketball sitting still on the court, with the inscription, ‘You miss every shot you don’t take,’ displayed in my office. I firmly believe that as a city, we must actively pursue opportunities that arise daily. Providing our staff with the necessary resources and guidance empowers them to drive Covington’s progress forward effectively.

Aaron Wolpert

Please describe your background and life experience and how it will inform your service if elected.

I moved to Westside Covington in 2014 with my wife Jessica, and we jumped into community initiatives from the start. We launched the first community-supported agriculture farm share in Covington by reclaiming vacant lots on MLK for an urban garden. We moved on to found Sage Yoga and provided free community sessions all over the city for everyone from elementary school students to social service agency staff to senior citizens. Through the non-profit Calm Mind Foundation, we’ve designed and delivered meditation and mindfulness diversion for at-risk youth in the juvenile justice system, provided summer camp programming for Covington kids and designed and installed a school garden at 9th District Elementary.

And the city has encouraged every initiative. Sustaining and building on this cooperation is where I’d start as commissioner. This city is packed with citizens and business owners who are passionate about Covington, and our city government is at its best when it listens to residents’ ideas and figures out how to facilitate the work we can get done together. If citizens have the sense that we all can pitch in on solutions – and not just flag problems – Covington can maintain the momentum we’ve built.

I now serve on the Devou Park Advisory Committee and the Linden Grove Cemetery Board of Overseers. Volunteers stepping up to supplement what city staff can accomplish – this is what makes Covington stand out.

What specific issues will your campaign focus on, and what issues would you like the city to give more attention to?

I’m listening to what matters to Covington residents – they set the agenda for this campaign. So far I’ve heard a lot about affordable housing and friendly, walkable neighborhoods.

Covington housing is in high demand, and overheated real estate drives up costs. There’s no ready mechanism to depress rents, so we need more quality housing. As commissioner I’ll work with the tools we have to open up more affordable housing, like incentives for developers to build infill homes on vacant lots and targeted code enforcement to push non-occupant owners to renovate dilapidated homes and sell abandoned properties. More housing lowers rents and yields property tax revenue that the city can push back into subsidies.

On transportation, we can’t separate pedestrian safety from speed bumps, parking from bike lanes, or cracked sidewalks from code enforcement. I propose that the city form a transportation commission to absorb the Parking Authority and develop a comprehensive approach to all modes of transport. We can have better pedestrian and bicycle connections to South Covington, safer sidewalks in Mainstrasse, better bus stop streetscapes, improved balance between residential and commercial parking, and safer traffic everywhere in between. But this demands a coordinated approach.

I’ll also promote initiatives a) to monitor the bridge and riverfront projects and safeguard residents’ interests and b) to investigate ways the city can facilitate better coordination between social service agencies, protecting the most vulnerable while also ensuring that first responders aren’t called to solve crises that social workers have more time and training to manage.

Covington shoulders the load for Northern Kentucky in some respects, offering the social services and affordable housing assistance that neighboring cities don’t provide, for example. State and federal funds are crucial to sustaining these programs and other major projects, but the reality is that there are limits to the influence we have in securing and managing this support. For example, 2022 redistricting left Covington split among three representatives and two senators in the Kentucky Statehouse, which complicates efforts to promote the city’s agenda.

As commissioner, I’ll fight for Covington residents wherever I can, understanding that we have to take strategic action. We can’t expend political capital arguing the details of state-route roadwork, for example, when on balance it’s more important to monitor the Brent Spence companion bridge project. We’re not going to secure all the concessions we want, so we have to prioritize realistic requests. In 2025, we’ll have another mayor who can sustain a long run of successful advocacy in Frankfort, and we can amplify our voice by continuing to work cooperatively with the other Northern Kentucky river cities.

It’s important to remind our commonwealth representatives that Covington is the economic engine of Northern Kentucky – the success we’ve shown in job creation and property values benefits the whole region. Continued state support for the Central Covington Riverfront, to name just one project, can only contribute to the region’s economic growth, as long as it’s clear that we control zoning and historical preservation standards for the city.

What’s your assessment of Covington’s general fund shortfall, and how would you mitigate the problem if elected?

With Cincinnati just across the river, Covington faces big-city pressures with a small-city budget. Despite that challenge, the city has managed to invest in impressive growth and expand programs for lower income families, anyway. But the unanticipated drop in payroll tax revenue is a problem we can’t dodge, even as continued economic development claws back some of those funds in added jobs and taxes on company profits. The first priority is to sustain that growth throughout the city.

As commissioner, I’ll put people first, minimizing interruption to resident services and retaining city staff who drive revenue collection – economic development and finance, for example. Beyond those sectors, I’ll hold all other budget items up to scrutiny. We can delay equipment purchases and non-essential infrastructure improvements while we accelerate administrative efficiencies and shore up revenue collection.

A majority of the budget funds the fire and police departments, so it’s crucial that we match staffing with demonstrated need. I’d recommend calibrating personnel to the actual emergency runs first responders make. And when we identify understaffed units, for the long term I’ll propose we design compensation packages geared toward personnel retention, saving money overtime and the constant new-hire training associated with high turnover.

Finally, let’s embrace that Covington is the place to live in northern Kentucky. I believe that revenue collection strategies should capitalize on the influx of new residents without burdening longer-term Covingtonians. Socioeconomic diversity is an asset – I want to make sure city revenues keep pace with changing incomes and property values.

Is there anything else you’d like to speak about that isn’t addressed in the above questions?

Last year I filled in as a long-term substitute teacher for a civics class at Holmes High. In a unit on local government, I asked students what problems they thought city governments should address. They gave a range of thoughtful answers — gun violence, food insecurity, affordable housing — but what they mentioned most often was litter. They knew that taking a little pride in how the neighborhood looks goes a long way toward building community, and that a quirky and diverse Covington can have clean, friendly streets, too.

I’m not suggesting that the city step up litter enforcement – this is something we work on together. But the city can always do more to facilitate community engagement, to harness the passion we all have for Covington. As commissioner, you’ll see me out in the community every week, just as you’ll see me out there in the coming months. For this campaign I’m running miles through every neighborhood and meeting folks every week to listen to your vision for Covington. I want to hear how you think we can collaborate; city government works best when it’s not just left up to staff to ‘fix it.’

I’ll advocate practical policies for the real world – we don’t have time to chase unworkable dreams. But I’ll never answer with a flat ‘no, we can’t do that.’ Consulting with city staff, I’ll find somewhere to start. And I promise that I’ll give every reasonable idea a fair hearing, no matter how controversial.