Kenton County approved an agreement with the Northern Kentucky Port Authority on financing parameters for sewer line upgrades at the former Drawbridge Inn site in Fort Mitchell.
On Tuesday, Kenton County Fiscal Court approved a memorandum of understanding with the Northern Kentucky Port Authority regarding cooperative financing terms for a portion of required stormwater sewer system upgrades at the former Drawbridge Inn site.
The Drawbridge Inn site, also referred to as the Kentucky Gateway Project, is ground zero for a $44 million mixed-use redevelopment project that includes the construction of a nine-story retirement center, office building, hotel, and spaces for drive-thru restaurants.
During a Fort Mitchell city council meeting in April, developer Greg Berling referred to the site’s current stormwater system as “patched together.” The proposed redevelopment plans require implementing a stormwater system that would be designed to handle runoff of the development, as well as runoff upstream of the site.
Details outlined in the memorandum shared that the sewer will be upgraded from the current 35 – 54 inch diameter line to 60-inch line. The developers anticipate that the cost of the project will be approximately $2.6 million.
Construction on the new sewer line is slated to commence on or before May 1, with a targeted completion date of August 1.
In October, Kenton County approved $2 million worth of site development funds for the project. Kenton County’s site development fund is a $13 million pool of money administered by the Port Authority.
“With this project alone, we’re leveraging $2 million to generate many times that amount in private-sector funding for a site that’s been vacant for more than a decade,” Kenton County Judge/Executive Kris Knochelmann said during the Oct. 24 meeting where the funding was approved.
The new memorandum outlines that the Port Authority must only use the money for eligible project expenses and must spend the funds in accordance with requisite procurement codes.
Kenton County was originally granted the site development funds from the Kentucky Cabinet For Economic Development.
St. Elizabeth Healthcare, Greenbriar Development — a Dallas-based senior housing developer — and Bellevue-based real estate developer Brandicorp LLC are collaborating on the project. Architecture firm Perkins Eastman heading the projects building design.
