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Gateway 1: ‘Urban Campus’ seen as transformational for Covington, boon for all river cities and potential students
By Greg Paeth
NKyTribune Senior Reporter
As happened in hundreds of other cities across the country, Covington’s downtown business district took a hard punch to the jaw in the mid-1970s when shoppers decided that enclosed malls with plenty of free parking were irresistible places to spend their time and their money.
Within a few years of the 1976 opening of the Florence Mall, the core of Northern Kentucky retailing had moved 10 miles south to what had been Boone County farmland. Many Covington merchants either moved out or closed up shop. The downtown casualty list included national retailers Sears, J.C. Penney and Woolworth’s as well as family-owned businesses such as Coppin’s department store and Parisian, whose roots were generations deep.
Reversing that suburbs-or-bust trend has proven to be a monumental challenge.
Rebuilding Covington’s downtown has been a priority for every city administration and every downtown development organization since the exodus began some 40 years ago. But no matter what the strategy or how big the investment, the result looked the same: a surplus of empty storefronts, a dearth of customers.
Now there’s some fresh optimism that doesn’t depend on retailing.
This latest wave of great expectations is linked to the fortunes of Gateway Community and Technical College and what it calls its “Urban Campus,” a plan to spend more than $80 million buying and renovating property in the downtown business district to replace the campus off of Amsterdam Road that bridges the Covington-Park Hills boundary.
City officials and others who have tried to breathe some new life into the downtown are extremely enthusiastic about a project that hinges on Gateway’s investments in real estate and a heavy influx of students and faculty members who are – at least in theory – going to create some vitality downtown, fueling the market for housing, food and drink, and presenting new opportunities for retailers.
Whether Gateway can deliver on its promise is yet to be determined.
Gateway ranks among best
of peers on graduation rates
Compared to its peer group of community colleges in Kentucky, Gateway Community and Technical College in Northern Kentucky ranks among the best in the state in its graduation rate and its retention of students who launched their college careers at the school.
The statewide average for the 16 community colleges in the Kentucky Community and Technical College System was 12.8 percent for 2012-13, the most recent school year for which numbers are available.
Gateway ranked third in the state by graduating 16.5 percent of the students who were seeking two-year associate degrees. The school awarded 332 associate degrees for that academic year.
Graduation rates in the system ranged from a high of 22.2 percent at West Kentucky Community and Technical College in Paducah to a low of 5.2 percent at Jefferson Community and Technical College in Louisville, according to the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education.
Kentucky’s 12.8 percent graduation rate for 2012-13 was well below the national average of 20 percent, according to data provided by the U.S. Department of Education.
Gateway’s third-place ranking improved from sixth place for the previous academic year, 2011-12, when 13.8 percent of its students completed work on their two-year degrees in three years or less. The Northern Kentucky school had ranked eighth in the state in 2010-11, when 13.6 percent of its students completed their associate degree studies within what is considered “normal time.”
The graduation rate information provided by the council looked at the performance of what are described as “first-time, full-time” students who enrolled at Gateway in a program that would lead to an associate degree. Students who complete the two-year degree in three years or less were counted in the graduation rate.
In general, students who complete a two-year program in three years or a four-year degree in six years have made satisfactory progress toward earning their degree, according to both state and federal agencies that track the progress of students.
Gateway’s graduation rate is far higher – 34 percent – when another metric is used.
That graduation rate reflects the number of first-time, full-time students who were seeking either an associate degree or a certificate.
Unlike an associate degree, which will typically require at least 60 hours of college credit, Gateway offers certificates that can require as few as three hours of credit for a “Kentucky Childcare Provider” certificate. Other certificates require as many as 30 hours of college coursework.
Of the 1,340 students who received credentials for the 2012-13 academic year from Gateway, 332 (24 percent) received associate degrees while 921 received certificates. Another 87 received diplomas, which are designed primarily for students who are studying in a technical field. Those diplomas require 36-60 hours of college credit, a spokesperson for Gateway said.
The 34 percent rate was reported to the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Educational Statistics. The rate also is known as the “Student Right To Know” graduation rate, which was created so students have enough information to determine their likelihood of completing a program, the length of time it might take and what that credential would cost.
By comparison, Gateway’s 34 percent graduation rate ranked second to West Kentucky, which reported a 38 percent rate to the U.S. Department of Education. Once again, Louisville’s Jefferson Community and Technical College had the lowest graduation rate in the state at 11 percent.
Gateway also ranked as one of the top schools in the state in the category of retention, which measures whether students return to school for a second year.
Gateway reported to both the state and the federal education agencies that 65 percent of its full-time students who started taking classes in the fall of 2012 returned for classes in the fall of 2013. For part-time students, that figure was 55 percent.
For full-time students, Gateway trailed West Kentucky by a single percentage point. Gateway had the best retention rate for part-time students, well out in front of West Kentucky’s 44 percent rate.
Challenge: Meeting student goals
The Gateway master plan from November 2012 projected that some 2,500 students would be attending classes downtown by 2014. The master plan projects that downtown enrollment would double to 5,000 students by 2020.
But the school fell far short of its 2,500-student goal last year.
For the 2014 fall semester, 1,302 students enrolled to take at least one class on the Urban Campus, where 186 different courses were offered, according to Dr. G. Edward Hughes, president and CEO of Gateway since it was created in 2002. He said the 2,500-student estimate was based, in part, on a plan to close the Amsterdam Road campus last year.
But even if those students – a total of 219 – had moved to downtown, Gateway would have missed the target by about 1,000 students.
Another factor is declining enrollment for Gateway, which reflected trends throughout the country, Hughes said. Gateway’s enrollment for fall was 4,594, down about one percent from enrollments of 4,648 for both fall 2013 and 2012.
“Across the system (the 16 state community colleges), four colleges had head counts that were up and all the rest were down,” Hughes said.
One number that increased modestly last year to 2,517 is known as “full- time equivalent” enrollment. That number is derived by taking the total number of credit hours that students have enrolled for and then dividing by 15 credit hours, which is considered a full-time college work load. The theoretical number shows how many students Gateway would have served if those students had chosen full-time status. Gateway’s full-time equivalent number was 2,492 in 2013 (tied for ninth out of 16 state community colleges) and 2,481 in 2012 (eighth).
“With the low unemployment rate we have in Northern Kentucky, more students are going back to work,” Hughes said. “We’re seeing that, so there are fewer students. All community colleges across the country are seeing that kind of enrollment trend…. We’ve been seeing 2.7-3 point declines over the last two or three years across the country. During times of low unemployment, they (students) decrease in number as well as the number of credit hours the students are taking,” he said.
Hughes and Margaret Thomson, Gateway’s director of marketing and public relations, who recently retired, pointed out that another 413 students are attending adult education classes in Gateway’s Two Rivers building. The students are not, however, Gateway students.
Hughes did not sound overly concerned about missing the 2,500-student goal. “We’re not disappointed whatsoever,” he said. “We think we’re doing quite well.”
Gateway Foundation playing major role
“The whole driving force behind this (the Urban Campus) has been getting off of the hill (in Park Hills and Covington), which was isolated and not easily accessible and get it more centrally located so you attract more students from the five river cities,” said Lee Flischel, who stepped down earlier this month as chairman of the non-profit Gateway Foundation board.
Flischel, who had chaired the board since the foundation was created some 12 years ago, said downtown Covington is more centrally located and has better bus transportation for students from older cities that hug the Ohio River in Kenton and Campbell counties.
The Gateway Foundation is deeply immersed in a fundraising campaign that has secured $2 million of its $5 million goal for Gateway projects. The foundation has played a key role in acquiring downtown property for Gateway.
Since it opened, the Covington-Park Hills campus has been referred to as “the hill,” which is apt. The Covington site provides a spectacular panoramic view of much of the city, the Cincinnati skyline and a wide ribbon of I-71/75 that’s far below the Gateway buildings. But the view comes with a price. The only easy access is by car up a steep winding driveway off of Amsterdam Road.
What had been the Park Hills Elementary School building is no longer being used by Gateway. The adjacent building just over the Covington/Park Hills boundary houses the school’s cosmetology program and the diesel technology, automotive technology and collision repair programs.
Gateway hopes to shut down that building later this year, Hughes said. The cosmetology program will move into the former Abode Furniture building at Fifth and Scott streets. No decision has been made about where the three “transportation technologies” programs will wind up. “That’s the last piece of the puzzle,” he said.
Positive impact on the city
Covington Mayor Sherry Carran is one of the most enthusiastic supporters of the Urban Campus plan. “It’s all good,” said Carran, who recalled that Hughes was deeply involved in the development of the Center City Action Plan, the 2012 instruction manual on how Covington could revitalize its downtown.
“I remember meetings on the plan and Ed Hughes played a major role and Gateway is a major focus for the city. What they have been able to do with some of the buildings is excellent,” said Carran, adding that the recently renovated Marx Building on Madison Avenue is a good example of how a Gateway project can improve the aesthetics downtown.
She said Gateway and related development also may prove to be a magnet for younger folks other than those who are enrolled at the school. “The younger people like being where there is a hub of energy and there is a hub of energy downtown,” Carran said. “And I think the Urban Campus has brought attention to a city that a lot of people didn’t give a thought to before.”
Gateway kept construction workers and at least one demolition crew busy during 2014 and into the new year. These buildings are part of the Urban Campus:
- What had been the Two Rivers Middle School and before that First District School, which was purchased from the Covington Board of Education in 2009 for $900,000.
- The former Marx Furniture building, 516-522 Madison Ave., purchased for $1.4 million. A $3 million renovation was completed in August for what is now the Center for Technology, Innovation and Enterprise. The Gateway Foundation acquired the building and leases it back to the college.
- The former Literacy In Northern Kentucky building, 614 Madison Ave., which was purchased for $148,458. Renovation is under way for a college bookstore that will be operated by Barnes & Noble. The project is expected to be completed in May. The rehab contract, which includes extensive work on the former Abode building, totals $3.9 million.
- The former Abode building, 440 Scott St., which was acquired for $525,000 and will house the Center for Professional Services for cosmetology and massage therapy programs. The building is scheduled for completion in May.
- The former YMCA building at 19 E. Pike St., purchased for a little more than $2.8 million, will be transformed into the Workforce Development/Student Services/Child Development Center. The building is still occupied by state offices. There is no cost estimate on renovation.
- Property that had been owned by The Point at 620-22 and 630-34 Scott St. was partially cleared during the summer as the site for a longer-range project, the Science/Allied Health Center. Early in its history, the building that was demolished had been a Buick-Pontiac showroom. The tract, purchased for $1 million by the foundation, includes the still standing Emergency Cold Shelter of Northern Kentucky near the northeast corner of Seventh and Scott streets. The dental center at that corner was not acquired. Gateway estimates the new building will cost between $22 million and $25 million. Funding will be sought in the 2018-20 budget cycle, according to Gateway’s master plan.
- Immanuel United Methodist Church and parish house, 501-11 Greenup St., which was acquired for $225,000 by the foundation and is slated to become the Kaleidoscope Center for Urban Outreach. Gateway says private funds are being sought for a $2 million renovation.
- The former Senior Citizens Center, 34 W. Fifth St., which was acquired from the state, which would become the Veterans Resource Center for students who served in the military. Private funding of $2.5 million is being sought for the renovation.
Over the past four-plus years, the Gateway Foundation, the state and the Kentucky Community and Technical College System have spent about $7 million to purchase eight properties that include 10 buildings that are primarily located within a rectangle where there is, on average, a brisk five-minute walk between buildings.
Approximate boundaries for the project are Fourth Street on the north, Seventh Street on the south, Madison Avenue on the west and Scott Street on the east with an innovative plan to create a pedestrian- and bike-friendly “Electric Alley” between Madison Avenue and Scott Street. The “Electric Alley” is envisioned as a pedestrian plaza lined with businesses that would be located at the rear of existing buildings that front on Madison and Scott.
Like Carran, Covington City Manager Larry Klein is optimistic about the Urban Campus.
“I think it’s the biggest and most impactful thing to happen in the city since the RiverCentre Towers were built some 20 years ago,” said Klein, referring to the office, condominium and hotel projects that created a highrise profile along the city’s riverfront and includes the headquarters for Ashland, Inc., a Fortune 500 company.
“Most importantly, it provides an opportunity to Covington residents and other residents of the river cities for educational advancement and to get the kind of training they need to get good jobs. What they’re also doing is taking some of our greatest assets – our older buildings downtown – and pumping new life into them.
“They’re also bringing people into the urban core, people who are going to be spending money and creating foot traffic, which is something developers are always looking for,” Klein said.
“It’s a win-win for Gateway and for the City of Covington,” said Trey Grayson, president and CEO of the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce. He said the more central location and easier access to public transportation should help students who want to acquire the knowledge and skills they need to get better jobs. “It’s going to help Gateway do its job better,” said Grayson, who became a member of the Gateway Foundation board last fall.
The Urban Campus with its higher visibility in Covington should help attract students and make parents aware that it could provide a good alternative to four-year colleges and universities, Grayson said. Because Gateway is relatively new, “it might not be top of the mind to a lot of people. This will raise its prominence,” he said.
City Commissioner Steve Frank, a member of the Gateway Foundation board, is deeply committed to the Urban Campus plan.
“It’s absolutely the most important thing that could happen for Covington if you get 5,000 young people and adults repopulating the urban core,” said Frank, whose family established Frank’s Men’s Shop in 1918. The clothing store is one of the few downtown businesses that successfully fought off the suburban mall challenge. “It provides access to education and a path to the middle class by developing a skill or a trade,” Frank said. “It’s the single most catalytic factor that Covington and the other river cities have to regenerate themselves.”
“The Gateway Urban Campus will have a very positive impact on downtown Covington. The purchase of these buildings by Gateway transforms empty, unused storefronts into creative, activated space,” said Pat Frew, executive director of the Covington Business Council and the Urban Partnership, sister organizations that are trying to improve the downtown business climate. “The need for hiring instructors with more students provides more city resources in the form of taxes. Gateway’s overall presence lends additional vitality to the urban core,” Frew said.
Editor: Mike Farrell, NKyTribune Special Projects Editor
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