Construction on the former Two Rivers Middle School building in downtown Covington has been completed, transforming the site into a mixed-use development that features 68,000 square feet worth of office space, a café, school, weight room and basketball court.
vR Hospitality, the property developer behind Hotel Covington, officially opened the First District Café and Gourmet Market inside the revamped building Tuesday. Covington-based marketing firm DeanHouston+ also unveiled its new global headquarters on the second floor. The building was already home to Covington Classical Academy.
On Tuesday morning, Covington city officials were joined by representatives of DeanHouston+ and The Salyers Group at a ribbon-cutting where they celebrated the opening of the new café, as well as the completed renovations to the building.
“These are both extraordinary, extraordinary additions to the Covington landscape,” Covington Mayor Joe Meyer said. “For those of us who have been around for a while, the transformation of this building has been most, most remarkable. From the foreboding solid brick wall along with Scott Street to glass windows and airy, open balconies on the west side of the building, I mean, it’s just a phenomenal change.”
Finished in 1939, the building had various uses throughout its lifetime. It was built as First District Elementary School, part of the Covington Independent School District. After First District closed, it became Two Rivers Middle School. That, too, eventually closed in 2009.
Gateway Community & Technical College purchased the building in 2010 and integrated it into their large-scale urban metro project in downtown Covington. After failing to gain significant traction, Gateway scaled back the scope of the project, eventually moving out of the building and opting to sell it in 2021. The property was purchased by Covington Kentucky Development LLC, headed by The Salyers Group CEO Guy van Rooyen.
In Jan. 2022, the Covington City Commission approved an order that issued over $12.5 million worth of Industrial Revenue Bonds for the site’s redevelopment. The bond terms are 30 years long. The building hasn’t been on the City’s tax roll since 1939, LINK nky reported last January.
“To the City of Covington, the county, the school — this is an IRB (Industrial Revenue Bonds) project and these difficult projects require incentives, they require support, they require partnerships. So without the support of the city and the other partners we wouldn’t be able to do it,” van Rooyen said.
Now open to the public, First District Cafe’s name pays homage to the shuttered elementary school. It’s only a short walk from Hotel Covington, which is The Salyers Group’s marquee development in the city.
Customers can purchase food and drinks like baked goods, sandwiches, coffee, parfaits and various packaged snacks. Its operating hours are Tuesday to Thursday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
In Sept. 2021, marketing agency DeanHouston+ announced the intention to move their headquarters from Cincinnati into a revamped space at 525 Scott St. DeanHouston+ officially moved into the property on Jan. 1, 2022. Their office features around 12,000 square feet of operating space. Covington-based WORK Architecture + Design collaborated with DeanHouston+ to design the layout of the office space.
“We selected this location specifically to accommodate our growing workforce, and for the accessibility of this beautiful Covington area,” DeanHouston+ CEO Dale Dean said.
JCL Contracting LLC and Manning Construction also worked on the building’s construction. There is remaining office space still available to be leased in the building, Covington Business Attraction Manager Susan Smith told LINK nky.
