By Mark Hansel
NKyTribune managing editor
The Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce (NKY Chamber), Northern Kentucky Tri-ED, and Zalla Companies hosted an open house and ribbon cutting Dec. 12, to celebrate the completion of the newly renovated third floor of the Chamber Center building.
The Chamber Center is located at 300 Buttermilk Pike in Ft. Mitchell.
The reveal included elected officials, Chamber staff and board members, and business leaders from throughout Northern Kentucky.
Attendees viewed the NKY Chamber’s space which includes a new podcast studio, new front lobby, and redesigned meeting spaces.
When completed, the new studio will be home for Chamber Spotlight, the weekly podcast focused on businesses and important issues throughout the region.
Gene Kirchner, Senior Vice President & COO of the NKY Chamber led the renovation effort.
“Our redesigned space will be more appealing and welcoming to members, while supporting the great work that our staff is engaged in each day on behalf of the business community and region,” said Kirchner, “The new design includes features that will bring membership to the forefront, while greatly enhancing our marketing and communications efforts. We believe the renovation is an important next step in building NKY Chamber 2.0.”
Attendees also toured the Northern Kentucky Tri-County Economic Development Corporation (Tri-ED)’s new space. It features updated meeting and collaboration spaces, green grow walls and artwork celebrating Northern Kentucky by James Billiter.
“The renovation turned out better than I expected and reflects the modern and proactive company that Tri-ED is,” said Lee Crume, President and CEO of Northern Kentucky Tri-ED. “We’ve received many compliments from visitors, and are excited to show off our office to the community.”
Crume, who was headed to Atlanta to speak with a prospective client, said the renovation is a visible symbol of the many changes Tri-ED has undergone in the last 12 months.
“A year ago, we had two full-time employees and an interim president in Karen Finan,” Crume said. “Now, a year later, we are one position away from a full staff and we’ve completely renovated the offices.”
The renovation puts a cap on a process that the Tri-ED board started a couple of years ago. The vision then was to reinvent Tri-ED into the region’s economic development company for the next generation. The renovated offices are an expression of that mindset.
“We wanted to build a space that was open and collaborative and vibrant and that would serve this community and it would serve the people in this company” Crume said. “I really think we’ve done that.”
As the renovation neared completion the space has welcomed a wide range of organizations, which Crume said was another goal of the project.
“I’m really proud that when I look over the last couple of weeks that we’ve been back and I see CVG meeting here, the Cabinet for Economic Development having meetings here, or Leadership Northern Kentucky having meetings here,” Crume said. “Our space is your space and we want to drive economic success for you through it and we want to make sure you know that you are welcome here to work with us and use this space.”
The upgrades to the space are about 80 percent complete and Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce President Brent Cooper said the community has been very supportive. He gave a special shout out to Tom Prewitt and UpTech, the region’s accelerator for data-driven startups, which provided temporary space during the renovation.
Cooper said the renovation reveal also signaled another step in the evolution of the Northern Kentucky Chamber.
“We’re trying to reflect the vision of Northern Kentucky, we want to be a welcoming place a place that’s fun and open and transparent,” Cooper said. “When you look at these glass walls and glass doors that match Tri-ED, that match our GROW (NKY) space, we want people to walking and say, this is a place I want to be, and be a part of.”
Business After Hours is sponsored by Frost Brown Todd. Additional sponsors include Northern Kentucky Tri-ED, Zalla Companies, and Kroger. For additional information on this, and other NKY Chamber events, click here.
Contact Mark Hansel at mark.hansel@nkytrib.com