THE RIVER CITY NEWS MORE COVINGTON NEWS THAN ANY OTHER SOURCE
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by Michael Monks
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In 1834, Covington's first mayor, Mortimer Benton, may have lived in the building that will soon become a parking lot for Legacy Financial. The Covington urban design review board (UDRB) decided against taking action to stop the plans and also against taking action to approve them. Instead, the board allowed Legacy's plans for the building at 119-121 East Fourth Street between Scott & Greenup to move forward by default. In mid-March, the plans were soundly rejected by preservationists and not supported by members of the UDRB, though a ninety day window was opened in order to find a suitable alternative plan to save the building which is between 150 and 175 years old. |
At that meeting in March, representatives from Legacy spoke of the deplorable, unsalvageable condition of the building, currently used as law offices, while the City's historic preservation officer, Beth Johnson, argued that Legacy had plenty of available parking and that the building was worth saving. (Read comments from both sides of that lengthy debate by clicking here: Possible Home of Covington's First Mayor Won't Be Parking Lot Yet)
At that meeting in March, representatives from Legacy spoke of the deplorable, unsalvageable condition of the building, currently used as law offices, while the City's historic preservation officer, Beth Johnson, argued that Legacy had plenty of available parking and that the building was worth saving. (Read comments from both sides of that lengthy debate by clicking here: Possible Home of Covington's First Mayor Won't Be Parking Lot Yet)
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It was a different story Monday afternoon at City Hall. Johnson had since toured the building with city staff and preservation/rehabilitation experts to determine its economic viability. Her estimated construction cost to resurrect the building was $154,200, far lower than Legacy's $246,200, but added to the $177,000 listing price of the building and a $34,000 management fee, the total project cost would be more than $365,000. Johnson then factored in historic rehabilitation tax credits which could have brought the project cost down to $256,000. |
Finally, Johnson asked for assistance with an economic analysis from Jeanne Schroer, executive director of the Catalytic Development Fund of Northern Kentucky. Schroer wrote, "Generally, though based on the assumptions I used, a developer would probably not consider this to be financially feasible even with the historic tax credits. Total costs with acquisition are close to $460,000. The cash flow from the leases only supports a loan of $189,000 so developer cash required is $227,000. This can be offset with about $64,260 of historic tax credits... Even with this, the developer's return on cost is only about 5.4% and his return on equity is 3.5% (not good -- negative leverage)."
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Schroer continued, "Basically, the developer is not able to borrow enough money to make it worthwhile from a return standpoint."
Schroer continued, "Basically, the developer is not able to borrow enough money to make it worthwhile from a return standpoint."
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Johnson's official recommendation then was for the board to approve the demolition on the basis that the building could not be reused or earn an economic return upon its value. Members of the UDRB seemed unanimously uncomfortable with the task then before them. The widow of the building's longtime owner spoke up. "I invited the urban design review board to tour the building, I thought you should all the inside, not just the cute little bricks on the outside," said Catherine Hawes before weaving a tale about a sewage flood in the structure's basement. "The building is not in good shape."
Johnson's official recommendation then was for the board to approve the demolition on the basis that the building could not be reused or earn an economic return upon its value. Members of the UDRB seemed unanimously uncomfortable with the task then before them. The widow of the building's longtime owner spoke up. "I invited the urban design review board to tour the building, I thought you should all the inside, not just the cute little bricks on the outside," said Catherine Hawes before weaving a tale about a sewage flood in the structure's basement. "The building is not in good shape."
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The board took particular caution with what it viewed as possibly setting a precedent that would allow for buildings to be torn down simply because they are no longer viewed to be economically viable and then replaced with parking lots. By not voting on the issue and allowing the plans to move forward by default, no such precedent was set.
The board took particular caution with what it viewed as possibly setting a precedent that would allow for buildings to be torn down simply because they are no longer viewed to be economically viable and then replaced with parking lots. By not voting on the issue and allowing the plans to move forward by default, no such precedent was set.
| Now that the parking lot plans are moving forward, a representative from Legacy promised that the final product will be an attractive addition next to the company's offices inside a beautifully restored mid-19th century church. "We're proud residents of Covington," said Trent Lucas. "We have sixteen employees and we just don't have enough space as it is. We're going to try to make as much green space as possible."
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