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Kenton County selects Turner Construction team for administration building and 303 Court Street project


NKyTribune staff

The Kenton County Fiscal Court Wednesday chose the proposal of a team led by Turner Construction Company to design and execute construction of the new county administration building and the 303 Court Street project, contingent upon successful negotiations.

The Bavarian Brewing Company building alongside a rendering of the proposed Kenton County Administration Building to be built on the site (provided images). Click to enlarge.

The Fiscal Court followed the recommendation of a selection committee in choosing the Turner Construction team.

The team selected to execute the $24.99 million project includes Turner Construction Company, Brandstetter Carroll Inc., SFA Architects Inc., THP Limited Inc., Al. Neyer and Urban Sites.

“The new County Administration Building will have much improved accessibility and free surface parking continuing our efforts to improve basic services.” said Judge/Executive Kris Knochelmann. “As we move forward in the design and construction process, we want to think through all possible scenarios to make this the best project possible for our residents.”

In February, Kenton County identified three teams to move forward in the Request for Proposals (RFP process). The team led by HGC Construction withdrew itself from consideration and the Turner team was ultimately chosen over Megen Construction Company.

A rendering of the interior connector at the new Kenton County Administration Building.

Renderings of the new county administration building are a stark contrast to the old Bavarian Brewery structure located at the site now.

The Bavarian Brewing Company operated at the site from the 1870s until the 1960s. The building remained primarily vacant until Ken Lewis bought the property in 1996 and opened Brew Works. Millions of dollars was invested in the property, which was later sold and became the popular Jillian’s nightclub.

Jillian’s closed in 2006 and the property, which is located just off of Interstate 75 at the entrance to the city’s Twelfth Street corridor, was sold to Columbia Sussex in 2008, but has remained largely vacant.

The decision to purchase the Bavarian property for $4.5 million earlier this year was made after the County determined it would be too costly to renovate the current administration building, which is no longer efficiently serving its residents.

When Columbia Sussex owned the property, there were attempts to raze the buildings and redevelop the land, but Knochelmann has said he could not imagine that happening.

“That’s not just a Kenton County landmark, it’s a Northern Kentucky landmark and we have an opportunity to redevelop it and we will do it right,” Knochelmann said. “We’re going to make sure that in two-to-three years, when you enter Northern Kentucky, you can say, ‘Yeah, that’s who we are.’”

Designed considerations identified for the property include:

*Create a community anchor

*Balance the facades of old and new

*Create an attractive and inviting atmosphere

*Soft landscape to balance strong architecture

*Intuitive public entry point

*Incorporate plaza gathering areas

Construction expected to start later in 2017 and continue through next year. The projected move-in date is late spring 2019.

A rendering of the mixed-use project envisioned for 303 Court Street alongside a photo of the Kenton County Building that now occupies the site. Click to enlarge.

Similarly, the images of the 303 Court Street project bear little resemblance to the County building currently located at that site. The proposed structure has been identified as a mixed-use, mid-rise building, with residential units and ground-floor retail.

It is envisioned to include:

*More than 100 residential units

*5,000 square feet of restaurant/retail

*70 parking spaces within the structure

*Adjacent street parking

Citizens are encouraged to visit the “New Kenton County Administration Building Project” section on the County’s website  to learn more about the project and submit comments.

For questions about the website, contact Kenton County’s Digital Communications Coordinator at Sara.Sgantas@KentonCounty.org .


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One Comment

  1. Michael Thornton says:

    Who thinks creating such an eyesore by trying to “balance the facades of old and new” is a good idea?

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