Fort Thomas is considering selling a portion of the Carlisle Park property to a “large grocery store” chain.
At the city’s council meeting on Monday, city administrator Matt Kremer announced the deal, a sale of a 6.8-acre parcel of the park for $650,000.
Although the city declined to name the business, the project is being handled by Cincinnati-based developer STNL Development, which is currently developing a property in Owensboro for a Publix grocery store.
The 24-acre property along Memorial Parkway, donated by philanthropist Wayne Carlisle in 2021, was named in his honor shortly after the donation.
Since then, the city has grappled with drainage, grading and access concerns on the property. Plans for park amenities had been set aside while research was conducted to determine the site’s stability.
The city has been meeting with Sanitation District 1, the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet and the city of Newport (a small portion of the site is within the city) to review the drainage and other concerns.
In the meantime, the city met behind closed doors with representatives of the grocery chain over the past few months but had not disclosed any information until the June council meeting.
The proposal for the site
The proposed development would include a 47,000-square-foot two-story building with a parking lot.
The grocery store would be on the second floor with a parking garage on the first floor. Also on the first floor would be a 3,200-square-foot liquor store.
He said the first floor would be designed to blend in with the parking garage, and the company would collaborate with the city on the exterior design to ensure it fits the city’s aesthetic.
Total parking spaces would be 215, with 75 parking spots inside the garage and 140 spots outside. Docks for deliveries would be at the back of the building.
Kremer showed some images from the proposal, noting it would be subject to approval by the planning commission as well as the city’s design review board and board of adjustment. Likely, it would require a zone change or a new zone, he said.
“The expectation of this company is to have 2,000 visitors a day at the retail store,” Kremer said. “They expect to have 15 to 20 deliveries per week with a tractor-trailer, 50 additional weekly deliveries from smaller vehicles like vans and full-size pickup trucks. All deliveries will be made at the rear loading dock.”
He noted that the store would employ between 120 and 200 people, including both part-time and full-time staff. A traffic study would be conducted to determine traffic flow and turn lanes into the property.
Kremer highlighted the benefits to the city, including payroll and property taxes, insurance premiums, and franchise fees.
“In total, conservative estimates are over $180,000 the first year,” he said. “And to put that into perspective for Fort Thomas, this is about the number two, three or fourth highest revenue business in the city.”
A review of city services did not indicate the project would be a strain on police, fire or public services, he said.
Results of testing and drainage concerns
Kremer noted that the original intent was to develop a park on the site, but concerns about the drainage were daunting. Now that the results of the testing are in, he said, it appears addressing the issues would be a financial burden on the city. The new owners would take on the cost of shoring up the property and have not asked for any financial incentives.
In coordination with KYTC, Kremer said the city conducted a drainage and geotechnical analysis in 2024.
The plan, he said, was to “create a solution for the drainage issues that are on the property and determine how the property could be best used with park features.”
Three inclinometers, instruments used for measuring angles of slope, elevation, or depression, were added by the city to track land movement and assess whether it was shifting. The data, Kremer said, showed a shift of around a half-inch every six months.
To avoid settling, if a parking lot were to be installed, engineers recommended that the city remove six feet of soil, set it aside, and install eight-inch lifts with compaction, then return the soil. Kremer noted this was only for a parking lot, not any buildings.
Kremer said the project would be expensive. It would also be hard to find a place to store the six feet of dirt from six acres. He went on to outline other issues with drainage, including a pipe that runs under Memorial Parkway. Fill had been placed above the extension of the pipe, creating a pond area that allowed water to infiltrate into the unstable fill.
To address the issues and stabilize the area, it is estimated that the city will incur costs between $415,000 and $845,000 to resolve the stormwater blockage, he said.
Residents react
Three people who came to speak on the city’s budget also weighed in on the Carlisle sale.
Resident Sharon McKnight said, “Fort Thomas is only 5.2 square miles. That makes preserving our green space incredibly important. Most residents, myself included, support the vision and the comprehensive plan to remain a city in a park and the preservation of green space. Selling off land that was donated in 2021 to be used as a park goes directly against that vision, in my opinion.”
She then read from a LINK nky article about the Carlisle donation from 2021, noting the excitement over receiving the donation and the intent to create a city park with the Carlisle property.
“So how did we go from celebrating this property to now looking into selling it for profit to a regional grocery store?” asked McKnight. “If that property had real development potential, it likely would have been built on long before it was donated to the city as a public park.”
She added that residents should be more involved in these decisions and urged council to include residents in discussions like this earlier in the process.
“Reach out to your community,” said McKnight. “Look at the comp plan, send out a new survey, see if the community wants this. But I tell you, I’m pretty sure we enjoy our green space and our little small plain town.”
Other residents who spoke echoed her concerns to protect green space within the city.
Timeline and next steps
If council approves the deal, a municipal order allowing the mayor to enter into an agreement with the company would be next. It would likely show up on the agenda for the council meeting scheduled later this month (June 16). After that, there would be geological, soil testing, and surveying of the property.
If all goes well, the developer would request a zone change and submit a development plan. The planning commission would need to approve and adjust as needed. Kremer said this could take as little as four months, but more likely six months.
There would also be drainage, lighting, signage, landscaping and other planning commission concerns. Tree board and design review board approvals would be necessary as well.
The property is currently zoned residential, so a new zone would need to be approved. The city would issue initial grading permits, but other permitting would be handled by Campbell County. Once all the approvals have been obtained, the city would then sell the property, and construction could start.
If all goes well, the store will be open to the public within the next two to three years, Kremer said.