LINK Kenton Reader - Volume 2, Issue 9 - January 26, 2024

KENTON

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 9 — JANUARY 26, 2024

THE VOICE OF NKY

linknky.com

Envisioning a ‘Corridor of Commerce,’ with NKY at its heart

By Kenton Hornbeck

T

here have been many ideas for the future of Northern Kentucky.

They’ve had names like Vision 2015 and Quest: A Vision for Northern Kentucky.

They come in the form of growth organizations like BE NKY, meetNKY and the One NKY Alliance.

And they come in the form of people with an idea.

People like Chad Summe.

Summe, Covington-based eGateway Capital’s co-founder and managing partner, sees it as a multi-state economic corridor centered around existing transportation, manufacturing and finance infrastructure.

Envision a collection of states, interstates, airports, companies and population centers — all with similar attributes — that can help leverage each other.

Continues on page 3

eGateway Capital managing partner Chad Summe (L) and BE NKY Growth Partnership CEO Lee Crume discuss the Corridor of Commerce during the October 2023 OneNKY Alliance Summit Series. Photo provided | OneNKY Alliance

Boone County School Board votes unanimously to keep popular interactive book on shelves

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he Boone County School Board voted unanimously on Jan. 11 to keep a book on the shelves at a Union elementary school after a parent said it was harmful to minors and requested that it be removed from the library.

The book, called “Endlessly Ever After,” allows readers to choose their own adventure.

Longbranch Elementary School parent Amy Yates, who filed the complaint, said the book promotes sexual contact for a small child to kiss an adult, “which is pedophilia.”

Amy Yates addresses the Boone County Board of Education meeting on Jan 11. Photo by Haley Parnell | LINK nky

Amid a packed house, roughly 16 people who spoke during the public comment

section favored keeping the book on the shelves.

In the end, board members said they did not consider the book to be harmful to minors according to the Kentucky Revised Statute, which Yates cited in the initial complaint.

Longbranch Elementary School librarian Chantel March spoke at the meeting in support of the book. March has been a school librarian for 18 years, three of which have been at Boone County Schools.

March said she ordered the book because it was nominated for a Kentucky Bluegrass Award for grades three through five. She Continues on page 6

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Continued from page 1

Northern Kentucky would sit right at the center of, and serve as a catalyst for, the socalled Corridor of Commerce.

Venture capital firm eGateway – which funds technology companies that are past the startup stage — coined the term.

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Long referred to as flyover country, the Midwest was the heart of the American manufacturing industry. Due to economic changes in the late 20th century, the region declined into the Rust Belt, a nickname detailing the de-industrialization of the region resulting in pervasive job loss and urban decay.

But where some see rust, others, like Summe, see opportunity.

“We view the next 20 years to be as attractive as ever from the middle of the country,” Summe told LINK nky.

So how can Northern Kentucky cement itself at the center of the Corridor of Commerce?

“The Corridor of Commerce is just simply telling the story of the region,” Summe told LINK nky. “At its core, it’s playing to your strengths.”

There are hurdles to clear, including differing opinions on how to achieve the goal — socially, economically and politically.

Regional challenges, like housing affordability and demographic decline, loom as well. Competition for workers is becoming increasingly fierce.

“There’s competition for people, there’s competition for business, and being known and marketing yourself in both spaces is becoming critically important,” said Lee Crume, CEO of BE NKY Growth Partnership.

So, Crume said, a cohesive economic narrative and branding are essential when advertising the region as an economic destination.

“If you go back 50 years ago, 60 years ago – it’s not like Northern California started calling itself Silicon Valley,” Crume said.

“There wasn’t an organized group who said, ‘We’re going to become Silicon Valley.’ They became Silicon Valley.”

Where is it?

The Corridor of Commerce isn’t strictly limited to Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky. To the northwest of Greater Cincinnati is Indianapolis – with 11 counties and a population of nearly 2.1 million.

The Indianapolis International Airport is the eighth-largest cargo airport in the U.S. and is home to the world’s second-largest FedEx air hub.

To the north, Columbus – a metropolitan area of approximately 2.1 million people – serves as a key retail, educational and technological manufacturing hub within the Corridor of Commerce.

To the south of Greater Cincinnati sits Louisville, the largest city in Kentucky with a metropolitan population of 1.4 million located within a 15-county region in both

the bluegrass and Indiana. Like Greater Cincinnati, it is also located directly on the Ohio River.

Louisville’s Muhammad Ali International Airport is home to the UPS Worldport, the largest UPS air hub in the world.

Why now?

One thing that propelled Northern Kentucky forward in the digital commerce field was the skyrocketing of online ordering during shutdowns amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

From Summe’s perspective, the pandemic served as a paradigm-shifting economic event. Everyone from local, state and federal political leaders; Fortune 500 CEOs; to everyday citizens were forced to think about the systems that impacted their everyday lives. COVID-19 exposed the vulnerabilities in many critical industries’ supply chains. Companies and consumers were forced to adapt, further accelerating the American economy’s integration into the digital age.

“I would say over the next 10 or so years, you’ll see a lot more change through technology and geography around supply chains,” Summe said. “COVID simply exposed that weakness.”

Global business-to-consumer e-commerce revenue is expected to grow to $5.5 trillion by 2027, according to an analysis published by the International Trade Administration.

The markets projected to aid that growth include consumer electronics, fashion and Continues on page 4

No part of this publication may be used without permission of the publisher. Every effort is made to avoid errors, misspellings, and omissions.

If, however, an error comes to your attention, please let us know and accept our sincere apologies in advance.

Downtown Cincinnati is home to four Fortune 500 companies – Procter & Gamble, Fifth Third Bank, Kroger and Western & Southern Financial Group. Just 20 miles up Interstate 71 in Mason is Cincinnati’s fifth Fortune 500 company, Cintas. Photo by Kenton Hornbeck | LINK nky

JANUARY 26, 2024 3

Continued from page 3

pharmaceuticals, among others.

Summe argues that no region stands to benefit more from this growth than those within the Corridor of Commerce. As supply chains digitize, the Greater Cincinnati region specifically can position itself as the central hub along the Corridor of Commerce because of its geography, infrastructure and manufacturing prowess.

Why here?

When considering the viability of a future Corridor of Commerce, one must first consider the existing conditions that provide the foundation for such an undertaking.

The Greater Cincinnati region’s most obvious asset is the Ohio River — the 10th-longest river in the U.S. Over 184 million tons of cargo are transported on the Ohio River annually, according to the Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission.

In the financial sector, despite being considered a midsize city with an urban basin population of approximately 6,000 residents, downtown Cincinnati features four Fortune 500 companies including Procter & Gamble, Kroger, Fifth Third Bank, and the Western & Southern Financial Group.

Another Fortune 500 company, Cintas, is located just 20 miles up Interstate 71 in Mason.

“This is simply raising all of these assets into an understandable narrative of why it matters,” Summe said.

These legacy companies give the region an important economic cachet when it comes to fundraising. Their presence, at least from a capital fundraising perspective, is a benefit because it shows the region has a track record of fostering the growth of multiple Fortune 500 companies.

Now what?

“Our strengths as a region have been the big companies and the wealth accumulation that has occurred here in Cincinnati,” Summe said.

“We have to be able to connect the dots to what industries matter most to be around this corridor,” Summe said. “Who should we be talking to? What are these other variables? What companies? What workforce do we need to seize this opportunity? I think we’re in the very early stages of building awareness.”

While Northern Kentucky is not home to any Fortune 500 headquarters, it does have CVG. Sitting on 7,700 acres of land in Boone County, CVG has attracted German shipping giant DHL Express and Amazon — the world’s largest e-commerce company.

“We don’t call it supply chain; it’s bigger than that,” Summe said. “The future economy is what we’re interested in. Commerce is changing.”

As Amazon grows, so, too, Summe sees opportunities for suppliers, vendors and other businesses associated with advanced logistics growing with it.

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Chad Summe (L) speaks with meetNKY CEO Julie Kirkpatrick at the OneNKY Alliance 12:37 Summit Photo provided | OneNKY Alliance

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For proponents of the Corridor of Commerce such as Summe, the time to act is now. The digital commerce market is expected to grow to $5.4 trillion by 2026, according to Morgan Stanley research.

eGateway’s plan, as outlined in a recent white paper, lays out specific actionable steps for regional leaders.

The first step is to attract more capital into the region. To accomplish this, Summe outlines the need for Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky to formulate a capital strategy.

Summe argues that access to capital is essential to scale businesses and foster growth. By creating a cohesive narrative

about the potential of the Midwestern economy — specifically the Corridor of Commerce — Summe said he believes the pitch will help captivate lukewarm investors on the coasts who may be unaware of the region’s investment potential.

“There’s a ton of industries sitting here, but none of the capital,” Summe said. “We believe these two worlds can collide a lot more effectively because we think there’s a ton of opportunity to invest in the Midwest, and there’s just not as much competition.”

But it won’t just be coastal venture capitalists who need to be sold on a narrative to invest. Summe said local investors will also play a crucial role in making the Corridor of Commerce a reality. Like the legacy Fortune 500 companies that call the Greater Cincinnati region home, there is also legacy capital. In the past, Summe said those who control the region’s legacy money, whether from generationally wealthy families or financial firms, have been more conservative when investing their dollars back into the region.

“Capital is either oriented toward preservation, or it’s oriented toward growth,” Summe said.

His personal goal, and the goal of the re-

Multiple Amazon Prime Air jets wait to be filled with cargo at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. Photo by Kenton Hornbeck | LINK nky

port, is to help persuade regional investors to adopt a growth mindset when it comes to investing back into the Greater Cincinnati economy. The promise of a multibillion-dollar Corridor of Commerce stretching across three states could make the pitch more enticing, because there is an outlined vision behind it.

similar areas. Automation is only a partial solution. Last September, Ernst & Young Economic Development Advisory Services Leader Amy Holloway told a group of Northern Kentucky leaders that the region must continue investing in health, education, transportation and community vibrancy to attract more workers.

Private investments aren’t the only money that will need to be courted to make the Corridor of Commerce happen. Public money is the second step and is also a key part of the equation.

“What do we do with fewer people in our communities, and how important it is now to be investing in those quality-of-life assets, in those programs that make us an attractive place for people — (enable us) to retain the population that we have, and even attract more people?” Holloway asked.

Locally, this can be seen through the federal funding going to the Brent Spence Bridge Corridor project. With the passing of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Deal in late 2021, Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky secured $1.6 billion in funding for the critical project.

The third step is to recruit more vendors and suppliers associated with the largest companies in the region — like Amazon, DHL, Kroger and Procter & Gamble — so that they could enjoy proximity to their suppliers, giving them a clear advantage as supply chains evolve.

This is an area where Crume and BE NKY play a key role, as the organization is one of the drivers of recruiting company relocations into Northern Kentucky. The types of industries being recruited to relocate or expand in Northern Kentucky include supply chain management and support services, advanced manufacturing, life sciences and information technology.

Fourth is to redouble efforts to attract talent into the region. This strategy is something Northern Kentucky leaders continue to focus on. However, like other metropolitan areas across the country, Northern Kentucky’s workforce is facing a demographic drought.

Northern Kentucky already has a skilled manufacturing trade gap. As the population ages, expect this gap to widen. To become the Corridor of Commerce, every region included in the plans must have the proper workforce to support the growth – especially in the manufacturing industry.

To combat that, regional leaders are formulating strategies to help Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky stand out above other

The last recommendation is for the different metropolitan areas along the Corridor of Commerce — Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, Columbus, Indianapolis and Louisville — to begin to think and act regionally, or even mega-regionally for growth and investment purposes, instead of as separate political and governmental jurisdictions.

The report says leaders in all of these areas should build upon prior regionalism efforts, including working together on regional tax policies.

“Politics and business play very differently in both arenas,” Summe said. “My argument is, you’re going to need both to win.

Sometimes politics will lead; sometimes business will lead. They need to get comfortable pushing each other.”

eGateway Capital envisions a Corridor of Commerce in the Heartland. Photo provided | eGateway Capital

However, other regions have their own best interests in mind, coupled with different strategies on how to achieve their goals.

Down the road, coordination among these regions will be a key factor in the realization of the Corridor of Commerce.

Right now, Summe said eGateway Capital is in the “building awareness” phase, or marketing the Corridor of Commerce as a viable economic future to work toward.

‘The next stages will be a coordinated effort to drive action at every level — local, state, multistate,” Summe said.

With the vision in place, execution is the next key step. To Summe, the Corridor of Commerce is a commitment to reshaping the economic future of the Greater Cincinnati region, and the broader Midwest.

The Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport’s annual cargo volume has steadily increased since 2013. Photo provided | eGateway Capital

JANUARY 26, 2024 5

Continued from page 1

said students were instantly engaged and intrigued by the idea that they could interact with the story to determine how it ended.

“The pages in question are being made into something they’re not,” March said. “The definition of being harmful to minors is not met in any way within these pages.”

Yates also spoke at the meeting.

“While I was given the opportunity to put this book on a ‘do not check out’ list for my daughter, other parents are not aware that their children are reading this book,” Yates said. “Most library books that are checked out at the school library are read at school without a parent knowing its contents.”

where the reader comes across “a gentle maiden” whose “lips are waiting for a kiss.”

The page continues, “Now what, Rosie? Are you really going to kiss some strange sleeping woman in a frozen castle covered with roses? Seriously?”

The reader then must decide what to do.

The options in the book are, “Yes, life’s an adventure!” or “No, ew! Of course not. Kissing’s for teenagers.”

In the initial complaint Yates submitted to the principal of Longbranch Elementary School on Dec. 1, 2023, Yates said the principal concluded that the book was not harmful to minors as defined in the Kentucky Revised Statute because “the act of kissing is not inherently sexual” and, therefore, she did not believe it falls under the definition.

The complaint was escalated to the school board, which, in the end, agreed with the school principal.

on the matter, but Boone County Schools Superintendent Matthew Turner did.

North Pointe Elementary School fifthgrade student Mandy Wolfe spoke as an elected student council member to represent the voice of the school. She questioned why the school board would consider banning the book.

“I just want to reassure our district parents that we take the selection of books that are included in our school libraries very, very seriously,” Turner said. “We select books of the highest literary and artistic quality that enrich what has been taught in the school curriculum and support the personal and varied interests of our students.

“Why would you ever consider banning this book?” Wolfe said. “Is it because Little Red Riding Hood kisses a princess? Is it because of the ages? Is it because the audience is elementary school? We are living in 2024.

This is a time when the era of book banning has long since passed. The embracing of diversity and inclusion are at the core of our value system.”

“Parents, if at any time you have questions or concerns about what your child is reading in school, please reach out to your child’s teacher or your school principal to start a conversation so that we may reach a common understanding of our students’ and families’ needs.”

Her issue with the book came from a page

None of the board members commented

North Pointe Elementary School fifth-grade student Mandy Wolfe speaks at the Boone County Board of Education meeting on Jan 11. Photo by Haley Parnell | LINK nky

Longbranch Elementary School librarian Chantel March speaking at the Boone County Board of Education meeting on Jan 11. Photo by Haley Parnell | LINK nky

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6 JANUARY 26, 2024

Covington School Board seeks more clarity, better communication on building projects, costs

By Nathan Granger

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iscussions on the scope and cost of district building projects continued at the Jan. 11 meeting of the Covington Independent Public Schools Board of Education and served as a jumping-off point for broader discussions about communications and disagreements between district staff and the board.

The conversations picked up from a discussion in November about a construction project related to the ventilation system at the Holmes High School campus. At that meeting, board member Stephen Gastright, who works professionally as an architect, expressed dismay that the ventilation project’s cost had climbed from about $4 million to just over $7 million and said that he was unwilling to approve any more building projects until he had updated estimates.

The discussion served as the follow-up to Gastright’s comments. The district’s Director of Human Resources and Operations, Ken Kippenbrock, presented updated cost estimates for a large, multivariate plan of improvements for the Holmes Middle and High School campuses. Projects on the docket include improvements to the auditorium, various infrastructure improvements, classroom improvements, and a new field for the softball team at the high school, among other projects.

Joining Kippenbrock were Ralph Cooper and Mark Perry of Emboss Design, a Newport-based architecture firm contracted to produce plans for the construction. The projects, first approved in 2022, had initial cost estimates of about $9.5 million for the construction and just over $11 million for construction plus other fees and administration expenses, usually referred to as soft costs.

Kippenbrock, Cooper and Perry presented the new numbers and recommended the board postpone several of the proposed projects to stay within budget. The projects they proposed to delay were renovations to

the middle and high school classrooms, as well as improvements to the exterior of the administrative plaza.

Kippenbrock asked the board to examine the numbers and consider voting on the updated scope and cost of the projects at the next meeting later in January. If approved, the board would vote on bidding out the projects to builders at a later meeting.

Notably, the proposed softball field, which had an estimated price tag of about $3.2 million, was not on the chopping block, but the timing of November’s conversation about ballooning costs was uneasy.

At the end of last year, the district had been subject to a visit from the Kentucky High School Athletic Association to see how well the district complied with Title IX, a federal program aimed at reducing gender discrimination in education.

The athletic association’s report concluded that the district was deficient in providing equal facilities for girls sports, specifically softball, whose field was housed at Glenn O. Swing Elementary School, which paled in comparison to Meinken Field, the field for the boys baseball team. The report suggested the district do all it could to build out facilities for the girls to match the ones provided for the boys — right around the same time the discussion about building scope creep came up.

In fact, two members of the Tom Ellis Athletic Memorial, or TEAM, Foundation came out to the meeting to encourage the board to move forward in approving the construction of the field. They referenced the Title IX report and laid out the timeline for the field’s development, the earliest conversations of which can be traced back to 2020. They also stated that the foundation had already raised about $192,000 for the field.

“We’ve been working on this for a long time,” foundation member Diana Siffle, who formerly worked as an athletic train-

Superintendent Alvin Garrison speaks during the board of education meeting.

er with the district, told LINK nky after the meeting.

“They want to see it started,” Siffle added, referencing the Title IX report. “So we are past the point of saying, ‘We’re working on this.’”

The ramifications of the Title IX report are unclear at this time, and there was discussion among the board members as to whether the field ought to be removed from the broader campus improvements and bid out separately. Much of the Holmes campus is old and requires specialized construction knowledge, unlike the field.

If the field were bid separately, it could potentially bring in more interest from builders as the work would be comparatively simple. Yet, it would also entail more administrative costs and extra approvals from the board.

Following some discussion about the nuts and bolts of the cost projections, Gastright reiterated his frustration about what he characterized as a lack of forethought and clarity on district building projects.

“It’s just frustrating because we get presented one thing, and by the time we come around to approve it for construction, it’s a different project,” Gastright said. “We don’t know what it is; it’s been delayed; it cost too much. We’re not getting updated.”

He acknowledged the issues surrounding the Title IX report but still used the field as an example of what he was talking about.

“When the softball field came up, I said the only way I’ll approve it is if you put in money to improve our classrooms,” Gastright said. “So what? So now it’s the thing that’s postponed … the one thing I asked for, to vote for this softball field initially.”

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Senate advances ballot measure to move governor’s race to presidential election years

By Rebecca Hanchett

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proposal to move elections for governor and other statewide offices to presidential election years in 2032 eked out of the Kentucky Senate on Jan. 17,, keeping alive its chances to make the ballot this fall.

The constitutional amendment proposed and sponsored by Sen. Chris McDaniel (R-Ryland Heights) passed the upper chamber by a vote of 26-9, giving it three more than the 23 votes the bill needed to advance to the House, with three members not voting. At least 60 votes will be required for the proposal to clear the 100-member House.

If the amendment makes the November 2024 ballot and passes muster with voters, the last election in an odd-numbered year for the office of governor and lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, treasurer, state auditor and commissioner of agriculture would be in 2027, adding one year to what is now a four-year term for those offices. That would create a one-time five-year transitional term for statewide officers, including the governor.

The ballot measure would read: “Are you in favor of amending Section 95 of the state constitution to hold the election of all statewide constitutional officers in even-numbered years after the November 2027 election?”

“Voter fatigue” and cost savings of about $20 million to counties in odd-numbered years were both cited by senators supporting SB 10 on Jan. 17 as reasons to pass the measure. Senate Majority Floor Leader Damon Thayer (R-Georgetown) said the odd-numbered statewide elections generate low turnout.

“There’s voter fatigue having elections three out of every four years,” Thayer said.

He targeted Gov. Andy Beshear’s 2023 campaign in his comments, saying Beshear’s latest campaign started “berating the Republican nominee for governor about five minutes after the primary took place and

8 JANUARY 26, 2024

Sen. Chris McDaniel of Ryland Heights proposed the constitutional amendment. Photo provided | Legislative Research Commission

didn’t let up.”

proposed constitutional amendments.

Turnout in the last election was down 6% from 2019, according to the Kentucky Lantern. Thayer reminded the Senate that voter turnout is typically higher in presidential election years.

Southworth said she supports some constitutional amendments but is concerned “about adding a whole other page to an already really long ballot.”

Not all members of the Senate Republican caucus agreed with Thayer’s comments.

Sen. Adrienne Southworth (R-Lawrenceburg) rejected the notion of voter fatigue in a government “of, by and for the people.”

“I really take a big issue with” the term voter fatigue, she said. “It’s not interrupting American citizens’ lives to have to go vote.

This is after all a country created of, by and for the people.”

What voters are “fatigued about,” she said, are long ballots that are made longer by

Another one of the nine senators voting against SB 10 was Sen. Robin Webb (D-Grayson), one of only seven Democrats in the Republican-led Senate. Webb’s voice boomed as she talked about what she called a “citizen’s most important responsibility,” referring to voting.

“Participation should be all the time,” Webb told the Senate.

Proposed constitutional amendments in Kentucky require three-fifths approval of members in each chamber to make the statewide ballot. No more than four legis-

lative-referred amendments are permitted to go on the ballot in any one election cycle.

The House — with its 78 Republicans and 20 Democrats — has more than enough votes to pass SB 10 along party lines, although it’s uncertain how close the vote will be or if SB 10 will pass the chamber at all.

McDaniel released the following statement after Senate passage of SB 10 Jan. 17: “I appreciate each of my Senate colleagues for quickly approving this measure and sending it to the House early in the session. I have confidence that the merits behind this constitutional amendment appeal to Kentucky voters who are burned out with politics flooding their televisions, mailboxes and roadways almost yearly. Participation in the democratic process is vital to the continuation of our constitutional republic, and I think Senate Bill 10 will go a long way in preventing voter apathy.”

kenton county briefs U.S. Sen. Rand Paul promotes trade education during visit to Enzweiler Building Institute

like Enzweiler, a handful of whom were in the room observing the senator’s talk, into comfortable lifestyles with high incomes.

“If you excel and you become a business owner, and you have five welders, and you have five carpenters working for you, really, these are significant jobs, and you can really succeed and will do well,” Paul said.

Shortly after beginning his talk, Paul began discussing his political philosophy and platform. He discussed increasing housing prices in the region as well as other forms of inflation, putting the responsibility for these economic phenomena squarely on the back of government spending.

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul speaks at the Enzweiler Building Institute on Jan. 16. Photo by Nathan Granger | LINK nky

U.S. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) visited the Enzweiler Building Institute in Latonia on Jan. 16 to learn about the institute’s programming, extol the virtues of trade education and discuss his political platform.

“These are good jobs,” Paul said. “A welder, a plumber, a carpenter, HVAC: All these are great jobs, leaving you solidly in the middle class of our country.”

He said that gaining a skill and starting a business could land students of places

“The price of houses goes up because the value of the dollar goes down,” Paul said.

“So your dollar doesn’t buy as much of the grocery store, either. Why? Why is the dollar losing its value? Because people in government — not me, but some in government — are spending money we don’t have.

We run a deficit.”

Brian Miller, the executive vice president for the Building Industry Association of Northern Kentucky, discussed legislative efforts that professional organizations like his had lobbied for. They would reduce the amount of required hours for trades credentialing and extend federal financial aid, such as Pell grants, to shorter-term trade education.

Kenton County doles out payroll tax credits as part of incentive package Kenton County is in the process of updating two ordinances that doled out payroll tax credits for two local companies upgrading their facilities.

On Jan. 9, the Kenton County Fiscal Court conducted a first reading on two ordinances regarding occupational license fee credits, or payroll tax credits, given to Atlas Air and R.A. Jones & Co. as part of an incentive package approved through the Kentucky Business Investment program.

In late November, Kenton County passed an ordinance that reduced payroll tax rates to 0.6997% on all wages below 100% of the federal Social Security cap, which is $168,600 in 2024. All wages above the cap would not be subject to occupational taxes.

The new rates took place starting this year.

Due to the reduction of payroll tax rates, the state of Kentucky asked Kenton County to amend language for both ordinances so they would correspond with the county’s current rates.

“The state was aware that we had made changes to our payroll tax and so they asked us, because these things had gone to the state for approval for their state incentives, they asked us to clean up the language so

it’s very clear,” Kenton County Administrator Joe Shriver said during the meeting.

Northern Kentucky Health welcomes first deputy director to oversee operations, finance

Elise Sebastian is joining NKY Health as its deputy director. Photo provided | NKY Health

The Northern Kentucky Health Department recently welcomed its first Deputy Director, Elise Sebastian.

“Having a deputy director will allow us to expand and intensify our efforts in a number of areas,” said NKY Health Department District Director Dr. Jennifer Mooney in a press release. “It is our responsibility as a public entity to bring in talent that will help us succeed. We are fortunate to have someone with as much experience and leadership as Elise to fill this role.”

Sebastian will oversee the department’s operations, finances and general systems in her role as deputy director. She formerContinues on page 10

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Continued from page 11

ly worked as the program manager for the Alzheimer’s Association of Greater Cincinnati and the executive director of two assisted-living facilities in Northern Kentucky. She has a bachelor’s degree in social work from NKU and a master’s degree in social work from the University of Kentucky.

Man, 35, struck, killed by tractor-trailer while walking along I-75 in Independence A 35-year-old man is dead after he was struck and killed by a tractor-trailer early on the morning of Jan. 14 while walking along Interstate 75 south in Independence, Kenton County police said.

Police were dispatched to the 167.5-mile marker of I-75 around 5:30 a.m. for a report of a person struck by a tractor-trailer.

They found that a 57-year-old man who was driving the tractor-trailer entered the southbound lanes of I-75 from a weigh station.

Police said Ronreaco Williams was walking along the right lane fog line when the tractor-trailer entered I-75, striking Williams, who was fatally injured and died at the scene, police said.

The driver of the tractor-trailer continued driving to the next exit on the interstate and contacted police.

Police said Williams was wearing dark clothing at the time of the collision.

Kenton County police’s STAR unit is investigating the collision. Any witnesses are asked to contact Sgt. Charles Duncan at 859-392-1955.

$2.6 million stormwater system upgrade approved for Drawbridge Inn site Kenton County approved an agreement with the Northern Kentucky Port Authority on financing parameters for sewer line upgrades at the former Drawbridge Inn site in Fort Mitchell.

On Jan. 9, Kenton County Fiscal Court approved a memorandum of understanding

The Ormsby, a continuous retirement community, will anchor the development. Photo provided | City of Fort Mitchell

with the Northern Kentucky Port Authority regarding cooperative financing terms for a portion of required stormwater sewer system upgrades at the site.

The Drawbridge Inn site, also referred to as the Kentucky Gateway Project, is ground zero for a $44 million mixed-use redevelopment project that includes the construction of a nine-story retirement center, office building, hotel and spaces for drive-thru restaurants.

During a Fort Mitchell City Council meeting in April, developer Greg Berling referred to the site’s current stormwater system as “patched together.” The proposed redevelopment plans require implementing a stormwater system that would be designed to handle runoff of the development, as well as runoff upstream of the site.

Details outlined in the memorandum shared that the sewer will be upgraded from the current 35-54 inch-diameter line to 60-inch line. The developers anticipate that the cost of the project will be approximately $2.6 million.

Construction on the new sewer line is slated to commence on or before May 1, with a targeted completion date of Aug. 1.

In October, Kenton County approved $2 million worth of site development funds for the project. Kenton County’s site development fund is a $13 million pool of money administered by the Port Authority.

“With this project alone, we’re leveraging $2 million to generate many times that amount in private-sector funding for a site that’s been vacant for more than a decade,” Kenton County Judge/Executive Kris Knochelmann said during the Oct. 24 meeting where the funding was approved.

Ballot positions set for commissioners in Covington primary

Villa Madonna Academy Students propose race in honor of Fischer brothers

Kenton County Board of Elections Chair Gabe Summe set the ballot positions on Jan. 11 for the 2024 Covington commissioner primary election in May.

Three Villa Madonna Academy students asked Villa Hills City Council for their support in organizing a 5K walk and run to honor its two friends, Cole and Chase Fischer, who died in a jet ski accident on Lake Cumberland in July.

Ballot positions are determined by drawing numbered lots. Positions are drawn based on the order in which candidates filed for the race. So the candidate who filed first, in this case, Morgan Davenport, had their position chosen first. The candidate who filed second was then chosen, then the third, and so on.

There are 10 candidates for the Covington Board of Commissioners, and it is the only race in Kenton County that will have a primary on May 21. The race is nonpartisan, so candidates do not necessarily need to declare a party, even though there’s a primary.

The primary will winnow away two candidates, leveling the field to eight candidates for the general election in November. The county will draw new ballot positions before the general election.

The order of the candidate ballot positions for the May primary is below. All candidates are nonpartisan.

1. Tim Acri 2. Shannon C. Smith 3. Bill Wells 4. Cari McMurtry Garriga 5. Bradie Bowen 6. Morgan Davenport 7. Aaron Wolpert 8. James Toebbe 9. Tim Downing 10. Devin Kroner

Chase Fischer, 18, was a recent graduate from Villa Madonna Academy. Cole Fischer, 14, had just finished eighth grade at the school and was preparing to go to Elder High School.

Students Tommy Wenning, Adam Kolar and Sydney Short presented the idea to the council at its monthly meeting Jan. 17, saying it would honor the brothers’ legacy in the community.

“They were both passionate runners who passed away, and we would like this race to be in memory of them,” Wenning said.

The presenters said they are seeking help from Villa Hills with fundraising, planning the route and setting a date.

“While we’re very inexperienced with these things, we are very, very passionate,” Kolar said.

The council pointed the students to Police Chief Matthew Hall, who welcomed the idea of organizing the race and said he was willing to help them collaborate with the police on shutting down roads and applying for permits.

“I’m more than willing to sit down, talk to you guys and try to get a game plan on time frame and everything like that,” Hall told the students.

The students also said they have the support from the Villa Madonna cross-country coach to coordinate timing contestants.

While a date for the race still needs to be decided, the students said they aim to hold it in the spring. As far as the route, they said they envision it starting and ending at Villa Madonna Academy.

Proceeds from the race would be donated to the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Cincinnati, they added.

These are the lots used to determine the commissioners’ ballot positions for the primary in May. Photo by Nathan Granger | LINK nky

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news from other places Kentucky all-time No. 1 team through 75 storied years of AP Top 25 college basketball polls

the most deserving teams on their weekly ballots.

Kentucky has appeared in more than 75% of AP polls, while Duke has been No. 1 more than any other program.

“I think the poll got it right,” said ESPN analyst Dick Vitale, a longtime AP voter. “The voters take it seriously and make sure the most deserving teams are ranked. There’s a reason those teams are called the bluebloods, and this lends credence to that.”

Adolph Rupp, pictured on the sidelines in 1954, built the Wildcats into a perennial power over 42 seasons starting in 1930. File photo | Associated Press

Kentucky has been crowned the all-time No. 1 team after a review of 75 years of AP Top 25 polls for men’s college basketball.

To celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Top 25, the AP reviewed every poll to determine the all-time No. 1 and the Wildcats — the winningest program in college basketball — narrowly edged North Carolina for the top of the heap.

The Associated Press began ranking teams in January 1949 with Saint Louis at No. 1, though the Wildcats would soon take over the top spot. Teams were awarded points based on where they landed on each ballot.

Kentucky had 17,852 points, and North Carolina had 17,268. Duke, Kansas and UCLA rounded out the Top 5. Louisville was sixth, Arizona seventh and Indiana, Syracuse and Michigan State made up the top 10.

“When I got here,” current Kentucky coach John Calipari recalled, “it was just knowing that it matters in this state. The fans are incredibly engaged. There were people who knew more about our recruiting than I did.

That’s when you realize this is different.”

Ky. school bus driver, 20 children sent to hospital after crash with coal truck; no one seriously hurt WHITESBURG, Ky. (AP) — A crash between a school bus and a coal truck on an eastern Kentucky highway on Feb. 12 sent 20 children and the bus driver to the hospital, but none were seriously injured, police said.

The crash happened shortly before 1:30 p.m. on Highway 932 in Letcher County, Kentucky State Police Trooper Matt Gayheart said. The collision sent the bus over an embankment and into a creek bed, he said. The cause of the crash was under investigation.

The bus was transporting students from Arlie Boggs Elementary in Eolia. Letcher County Public Schools had released students early because of high winds and power outages, the district posted on social media.

The truck driver had minor injuries but did not go to the hospital, news outlets reported.

Survey: More than half of clergy in U.S. say they have thought seriously of leaving the ministry

It’s been that way ever since Adolph Rupp, the Kansas-born farm boy who became the Baron of the Bluegrass, built the Wildcats into a perennial power over 42 seasons starting in 1930.

Post-pandemic burnout is at worrying levels among Christian clergy in the U.S., prompting many to think about abandoning their jobs, according to a new nationwide survey.

The list is not intended to crown the greatest college basketball program, because greatness can be measured in different ways. Rather, the AP Top 25 is a measure of sustained excellence as reflected by generations of voters, men and women who have covered the sport and attempted to order

More than 4 in 10 of clergy surveyed in fall 2023 had seriously considered leaving their congregations at least once since 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic began, and more than half had thought seriously of leaving the ministry, according to the survey released Jan. 11 by the Hartford In-

stitute for Religion Research.

About a tenth of clergy report having had these thoughts often, according to the survey, conducted as part of the institute’s research project, Exploring the Pandemic Impact on Congregations.

The high rates of ministers considering quitting reflects the “collective trauma” that both clergy and congregants have experienced since 2020, said institute director Scott Thumma, principal investigator for the project.

Many clergy members, in open-ended responses to their survey, cited dwindling attendance, declining rates of volunteering and members’ resistance to further change. “I am exhausted,” said one pastor.

and is based in Cincinnati, is seeking to acquire Albertsons, which owns Safeway and Haggen and is based in Boise, Idaho.

In a statement, Kroger said it was pushing back its timeline for closing the deal due to ongoing dialogue with regulators, including state attorneys general and the Federal Trade Commission. It now anticipates the closure may occur in the first half of its fiscal year, which ends in mid-August.

“While this is longer than we originally thought, we knew it was a possibility and ... accounted for such potential timing,” the statement said.

It’s no joke: Beginning in 2026, states can no longer use funny, quirky messages on highway signs

The results are based on a survey in fall 2023 of about 1,700 Christian clergy members from more than 40 denominations, including Protestant, Catholic and Orthodox bodies.

PHOENIX (AP) — Humorous and quirky messages on electronic signs will soon disappear from highways and freeways across the country.

The survey echoes similar post-pandemic research. A 2023 Pew Research Center survey found a decrease in those who reported at least monthly in-person worship attendance, with Black Protestant churches affected the most.

The U.S. Federal Highway Administration has given states two years to implement all the changes outlined in its new 1,100-page manual last month, including rules that spell out how signs and other traffic control devices are regulated.

Washington state sues to block proposed $25 billion merger of Albertsons, Kroger grocery chains

Administration officials said overhead electronic signs with obscure meanings, references to pop culture or those intended to be funny will be banned in 2026 because they can be misunderstood or distracting to drivers.

SEATTLE (AP) — Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson sued on Jan. 15 to block the proposed merger of Kroger and Albertsons, two of the nation’s largest grocery chains.

In the suit filed in King County Superior Court, Ferguson argued that the $25 billion deal would harm consumers and raise prices, The Seattle Times reported. Kroger and Albertsons have more than 300 locations in the state and account for more than half of its grocery sales, according to the suit.

“This merger is bad for Washington shoppers and workers,” Ferguson said in a news release. “Shoppers will have fewer choices and less competition, and, without a competitive marketplace, they will pay higher prices at the grocery store.”

The agency, which is part of the U.S. Department of Transportation, said signs should be “simple, direct, brief, legible and clear” and only be used for important information such as warning drivers of crashes ahead, adverse weather conditions and traffic delays. Seatbelt reminders and warnings about the dangers of speeding or driving impaired are also allowed.

Among those that will be disappearing are messages such as “Use Yah Blinkah” in Massachusetts; “Visiting in-laws? Slow down, get there late,” from Ohio; “Don’t drive Star Spangled Hammered,” from Pennsylvania; “Hocus pocus, drive with focus” from New Jersey; and “Hands on the wheel, not your meal” from Arizona.

Kroger, which owns QFC and Fred Meyer

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calendar

January

Friday

Saturday 26

Comedy @ Commonwealth presents: Sasha Von Didkovsky, 7-9 p.m., Commonwealth Sanctuary, 522 Fifth Ave., Dayton, Kentucky. $15.

Doors open at 6 p.m.

Sunday 27

Monday 28

Comedy @ Commonwealth presents: Cy Amundson, 7-9 p.m., Commonwealth Sanctuary, 522 Fifth Ave., Dayton, Kentucky. $10.

Doors open at 6 p.m.

Independence Fire District CPR and AED basic training, 9 a.m.-noon., Independence Senior Center, 2001 Jackwoods Parkway, Independence.

Presented with Take 10.

Hands-on. No certification earned. No registration needed. Free.

Tuesday 29

House of Flame and Shadow midnight release party, 9 p.m.-1 a.m., Barnes & Noble, 7663 Mall Road, Florence. Be the first to buy “House of Flame and Shadow,” by Sarah J. Maas. Games, giveaways and more. Very limited copies of the book; reserve by calling 859647-6400 or visiting in person. Costumes encouraged. For questions, call or visit @bnflorence on Instagram. Event is free.

February

Wednesday 30

Thursday

31

01

Women’s Initiative 15th annual breakfast, 7:30-10 a.m., Turfway Park Racing & Gaming, 7500 Turfway Road, Florence. Theme is “Unbridled Strength: Women in Motion,” with keynote speaker Donna Barton Brothers. Hosted

by NKY Chamber of Commerce and sponsored by PNC. Visit NKYChamber. com/WIBreakfast for more information.

Dr. Mitchell Thomashow keynote lecture and reception, 6-8:30 p.m., University of Cincinnati’s Probasco Auditorium, 2839 Clifton Ave., Cincinnati. Presented by the UC Center for Public Engagement with Science (PEWS), lecture titled “The Future of Environmental Learning” will focus on the skills, interpretive frameworks and insights to implement and improve sustainability-related education and action. Open to the public. Email EngagingScience@uc.edu for more information. Free.

Independence Fire District CPR and AED in-depth training, noon-2 p.m., Independence Senior Center, 2001 Jackwoods Parkway, Independence. Indepth training in adult, child and life-saving CPR and AED operation.

Two-year certification earned. Register at independencekyfire. org. $60.

Alexandria City Council meeting, 7-8 p.m., City Hall, 8236 W. Main St., Alexandria.

For more events, scan the QR code or visit: https://linknky.com/events/

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Covington home in Manor Hill blends elegance, comfort Address: 3159 Windermere Hill, Latonia Price: $450,000 Bedrooms: Four Bathrooms: Two (plus two half-baths) Square feet: 2,332 School district: Covington Independent County: Kenton Special features: This Manor Hill subdivision home is currently on the market for $450,000. There is plenty of room for the whole family in the two-story home with four bedrooms plus two full and two halfbaths. The back deck looks out onto an inground pool. This home also boasts a finished walk-out basement with bonus living space, plus a two-car garage.

An exterior view of this Manor Hill property featuring its brick facade and two-car garage. Photo provided | Stephanie Walz, Amy Zimmerman with eXp Realty, LLC

This home features an open-concept kitchen, dining and living space on its main floor. Photo provided | Stephanie Walz, Amy Zimmerman with eXp Realty, LLC

A view of the backyard of this Windermere Hill home featuring an in-ground pool. Photo provided | Stephanie Walz, Amy Zimmerman with eXp Realty, LLC

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Kim Hermann Executive Sales Vice President HUFF REALTY 859.468.6429 KHermann@huff.com

Recent NKY Home Sale Data

Address

City

Price

Sale Date

Address

City

10819 Saint Leger Circle 1223 Hickory Grove Road 2471 Lillywood Way 3817 Circollo Drive 6657 Gordon Boulevard 7956 Trillium Court 1518 E Henry Clay Avenue 1365 Meadow Breeze Lane 402 Kyles Lane 1370 Cairns Court 1859 Riverpointe Court 1 722 St. Matthews Circle 6404 River Road 258 Edwards Avenue 33 E Lakeside Avenue 2132 Linden Road 2175 Rolling Hills Drive 325 Old Corinth Owenton Rd 4374 KY-10 50 Woodland Hills Drive 12

Union Foster Villa Hills Covington Union Alexandria Fort Wright Independence Fort Wright Independence Dayton Taylor Mill Hebron Walton Lakeside Park Newport Covington Corinth Germantown Southgate

$685,000 $600,000 $560,247 $435,000 $400,000 $399,900 $370,000 $370,000 $310,000 $300,000 $257,000 $257,000 $230,000 $225,000 $212,500 $185,000 $175,000 $143,000 $142,500 $135,000

1/16/24 1/12/24 1/15/24 1/11/24 1/9/24 1/11/24 1/15/24 1/12/24 1/12/24 1/3/24 1/11/24 1/15/24 1/16/24 1/12/24 1/12/24 1/12/24 1/16/24 1/10/24 1/9/24 1/10/24

11024 Dairybarn Lane Alexandria 10172 Persimmon Grove Pike Alexandria 6 Driftwood Court Alexandria 10978 Dairybarn Lane Alexandria 7956 Trillium Court Alexandria 7671 Devonshire Drive 30-202 Alexandria 7799 W Timber Creek Drive Alexandria 736 Streamside Drive Alexandria 9577 Echo Hills Alexandria 10973 Dairybarn Lane Alexandria 866 Hillview Drive Alexandria 7663 Devonshire Drive Alexandria 3507 Mary Street Erlanger 426 Hallam Avenue Erlanger 3129 Elmwood Road Erlanger 3372 Pine Tree Lane Erlanger 4102 Amberry Court Erlanger 4020 Amberry Court Erlanger 2098 Verona Mudlick Road Verona 13665 Poole Road Verona

Price

Sale Date

$437,500 $500,000 $255,000 $426,013 $399,900 $383,000 $389,900 $327,000 $255,000 $432,043 $301,500 $413,317 $240,000 $219,900 $379,000 $230,000 $579,208 $524,900 $250,000 $550,000

12/18/23 12/18/23 1/10/24 1/10/24 1/11/24 12/21/23 12/28/23 12/31/23 1/3/24 1/3/24 1/5/24 1/12/24 12/19/23 12/27/23 12/29/23 1/3/24 1/8/24 1/11/24 12/31/23 1/5/24

JANUARY 26, 2024 13

features

Streetscapes samples a variety of fares in Newport Pavilion area

By Maria Hehman

F

or this Streetscapes, we head to Newport and check out eateries around the Newport Pavilion area.

We’ll sample a variety of cuisines including Indian, Japanese and even some healthy fare.

Jot India Jot India has been a staple of the Newport area for many years — a haven for hungry guests post-shopping or a reliable spot to grab carryout. It’s garnered so much success recently that the owners have even opened a second location in Florence. This week we explored the original location and the amazing food that won patrons over.

The food is authentic Indian — samosas and naan are great additions to the curries and specialties. The specialities are all served with rice and come in a variety of bases, including vegetarian, chicken, lamb and seafood. They come in favorite flavors — including saag, a spinach-based dish, and masala, a tomato, onion and butter sauce — along with countless options.

The best part about Indian food is the variety in flavors and offerings. Jot’s portions are very generous. Ordering multiple dishes with a group is a fun way to sample the cuisine and typically still have plenty of leftovers to take home.

Nasu Japanese Steakhouse There are few things as thrilling in life as watching a sushi chef light an onion tower on fire for the first time — or heck, even the 1,000th time. It’s a small show that brings out the inner child in every guest.

There’s no atmosphere quite like a hibachi grill. Nasu Japanese Steakhouse is one of the newest additions to the Newport area.

Half-hibachi, half-traditional sushi restaurant, Nasu proves that sometimes it is okay to play with your food.

On the hibachi side, guests watch as chefs custom-prepare their meals, while creating a fun and festive atmosphere. From lighting food on fire to squirting saki across the table into guests’ mouths, the chefs entertain the entire table.

Hibachi meals typically consist of a protein, rice and veggies all sauteed on a hibachi grill. Nasu’s hibachi also comes with a salad tossed in ginger dressing and a light miso soup that guests can enjoy while watching their meals be made.

This is one of the best places for a celebration and keeps guests of any age engaged and entertained. Want a more intimate and relaxed environment? Guests can still order the mouthwatering hibachi on the restaurant side or opt for one of the many sushi options. The restaurant side is quiet and better for conversation, while their hibachi side is lively and loud, making Nasu an ideal spot for any celebration.

Clean Eatz

Chicken hibachi with fried rice is a popular order at Nasu Japanese Steakhouse. Photo by Maria Hehman | LINK nky contributor

The beginning of the year often inspires new health habits. Whether it’s working out, changing your diet or focusing on mental health, many people have a hard time sticking to these commitments long-

Nasu Japanese Steakhouse in the Newport Pavilion area combines great food and great entertainment.

Photo by Maria Hehman | LINK nky contributor

term. Time, or lack thereof, often seems to be the No. 1 reason for opting for easier and less healthy options. Clean Eatz has eliminated that excuse.

Clean Eatz doubles as a cafe and meal plan prep. It’s an easy on-the-go option that doesn’t compromise for those counting calories. The cafe menu includes createyour-own bowls, flatbreads, wraps and even burgers. Burgers come with options of a bison burger, black bean, turkey or salmon — and all still give guests the satisfying taste of a burger.

The menu covers options for those wanting high-protein meals, like the Big Boy wrap with chicken, brown rice, lettuce, corn, black beans, mozzarella cheese and Clean Eatz’s sweet chili sauce in a whole-wheat wrap. Vegetarians can opt for the vegetarian wrap, with a superfood blend, pineapple salsa, green chickpeas and zucchini in a tomato-basil wrap.

Meal plan options change weekly, and guests can choose the number of meals to best suit their needs. Whether it’s the convenient cafe or the meal plan with preprepped microwavable meals, Clean Eatz gives guests plenty of healthy options to stick to their resolutions.

Have a street, city or business you want to see covered next? Email Maria Hehman at mchehman@gmail.com and it could be featured on the next installment of LINK Streetscapes.

What to Know If You Go: Jot India Location: 1709 Monmouth St., Newport Hours: Monday, closed; Tuesday-Friday, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., 4:30-9 p.m.; Saturday, 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m., 4:30-9 p.m.; Sunday, 11:30 a.m.-3 p.m., 4:30-8:45 p.m.

Website: jotindiatogo.com Phone: 859-415-2000

Nasu Japanese Steakhouse Location: 165 Pavilion Parkway, Newport Hours: Monday-Thursday, 11 a.m.-2:30 p.m., 4-10 p.m.; Friday and Saturday, 11 a.m.-10:30 p.m.; Sunday, noon-9:30 p.m.

Website: nasunewport.com Phone: 859-360- 3500

Clean Eatz Location: 1759 Monmouth St., Newport Hours: Sunday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m.

Website: cleaneatz.com Phone: 859-291-3289

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He fell in love with Covington Catholic; now the Colonels are crazy about him

By Marc Hardin

C

aden Miller’s initial visit to Covington Catholic High School came last spring. He traveled from his home in Arkansas to get a first-hand look at the school near his father’s old stomping ground in Cincinnati.

The 6-foot-9, 215-pound Miller, son of former Bengals linebacker Caleb Miller, was taller than everybody else in the building, and his spirits were just as high.

“When I toured the school, I could tell they took brotherhood very seriously,” said Miller, an Arkansas Class 6A all-state player as a junior.

Surrounded by academia and more than two dozen state championship trophies, it was also clear to Miller that CovCath took learning and athletics seriously. This was appealing to Miller, who at the time was attending classes at Bentonville High School, nearly 700 miles from CovCath.

Ten months later, he’s grown fond of his new landing spot.

“I look forward to school,” Miller said. “I love the culture. You don’t really find that everywhere.”

Being the son of a former professional athlete and having played sports most of his life, Miller is in tune with nuanced aspects of competitive athletics. Possessing this knowledge along with an impressive skill set and a solid work ethic, Miller knows a lot about how a team and its players can be the best versions of themselves. But he had no idea how good CovCath is at bringing this about until he arrived.

“When he got here, the players were quick to accept him,” Colonels coach Scott Ruthsatz said of the left-hander. “It allowed him to get comfortable with us much quicker, and that enabled him to step up as a leader.”

This was a crucial development. Graduation departures left CovCath with just three seniors and one experienced leader. Miller’s arrival gave the Colonels one more senior, and so much more.

“Before school, he gets some shots in, and others have joined,” Ruthsatz said. “He’s super athletic. He gives us a big presence in the interior. He can really jump (36-inch vertical leap). He gets off the floor quickly.

He’s taken to the coaching. It’s been such an easy fit with his personality. The players love him.”

The feeling is mutual.

“A school like this is new to me. I love it. I love to play for the Crazies,” said Miller, whose mother played college basketball at Arkansas. Miller’s stepmother’s father is local restaurateur Jeff Ruby.

With some well-known people in his life, Miller has seen a lot, but he had never seen anything like the Colonel Crazies, CovCath’s clever student section. He was so intrigued he decided to join them and started cheering for the football team. He showed up for the traditional Braveheart-themed walk to neighboring Beechwood High School wearing white-and-blue paint.

Caden Miller recently scored his 1,000th career point. Photo provided | Charles Bolton

Playing basketball in front of the Colonel

Covington Catholic’s Caden Miller puts down one of his many dunks in a recent Colonels contest against Walton-Verona. Photo provided | Charles Bolton

Crazies was entirely different.

“It’s incredible,” said Miller, who has several NCAA Division I offers, including from Missouri, Mississippi State, DePaul and Eastern Kentucky. “The Crazies made an impression on me right away.”

Speaking of first impressions, Miller made his home debut in a win against Simon Kenton and had team highs of 19 points and 17 rebounds. The Colonel Crazies went bonkers at the sheer spectacle of a near-7foot fellow student manhandling an entire team.

“He’s made a big difference,” said Ruthsatz, who doesn’t like to think about the alternative. His Colonels would be vastly different without Miller.

Near the regular season’s halfway point, Miller was leading CovCath with 14.5 points and 9.8 rebounds. The rebounding average ranked fourth in Northern Kentucky. Miller had more rebounds than the next three Colonels combined. He was averaging about 3.0 blocks, a team high. He ranked 10th in Kentucky with 67.9% field goal shooting accuracy, many of those shots coming on putbacks, dunks and drives with

a variety of post moves involving pivots and ball fakes.

“On offense, he gives you a great option,” Ruthsatz said. “You can throw it up to him.

He’s a good passer and a willing passer, especially when he’s double-teamed. He gives us an offensive rebounding presence. On defense, he just makes them think twice.”

Miller set a program single-game record Jan. 14 with nine blocks against Lakota East, breaking a 19-year-old mark.

“He alters more shots than he blocks,” Ruthsatz said. “He can block with either hand, which is rare. Against a scoring five (center), we like him to be more aggressive and deny the ball. Against a screening five, we tell him to play off the ball and help our guards.”

Miller revels in the responsibility. After such a warm welcome to CovCath, he wants to play with a spirit that will not die.

“I obviously want to succeed, but I don’t want to let them down,” Miller said. “I fell in love with this team and the fans. The culture is incredible, and it’s been a very big part of my success.”

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JANUARY 26, 2024 15

sports Basketball standouts Warrick, Jolly climbing up list of all-time scorers at NKU, Thomas More

Newport takes home 9th Region All ‘A’ Classic tournament, heads to state

Hunt is a standout basketball and volleyball player at Holy Cross and helped lead the Indians to the All “A” state title last season. She earned MVP honors in the championship game with 21 points, 19 rebounds and eight blocked shots. She recently won Miss Kentucky Volleyball and the Kentucky Volleyball Gatorade Player of the Year.

Newport is representing the 9th Region at the boys All “A” state tournament at Corbin Arena from Jan. 25-28 after taking home the 9th Region All “A” Classic tournament on Jan. 13.

Thomas More University’s Reid Jolly (left) climbed up to No. 2 in the program’s all-time scoring list.

Photo provided | Thomas More Athletics

Two college players are making their way up their respective basketball programs’ all-time scoring lists.

Thomas More University senior Reid Jolly recently jumped up to No. 2 in the program’s all-time scoring list in a Jan. 11 contest against University of Findlay. Jolly has scored 2,088 points as of the Saints’ Jan. 13 game with Hillsdale College.

Rick Hughes owns the top spot with 2,605 points in his playing days from 1992-96.

Jolly passed up Brian O’Connor, who finished his career with 2,078 points from 1977-81. The Saints had 11 regular season games left as of Jan. 17 and postseason play in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.

Jolly averages 14.9 points per game, so getting to No. 1 would be tough to reach.

Northern Kentucky University senior Marques Warrick recently climbed up to No. 4 on the Norse all-time scoring list.

In NKU’s Jan. 13 contest with University of Detroit, Warrick moved ahead of Richard Derkson (1,927 career points) and Dan Doellman (1,920 points) with 16 points and sitting at 1,930 career points. He needs just 51 points to move into third, 78 for second and 137 to overtake Drew McDonald for the most all-time in program history.

As of Jan. 17, the Norse had 13 regular season games left. With Warrick’s 18.9 point per game average, he’s likely to break the record by the end of the regular season.

16 JANUARY 26, 2024

The Wildcats defeated Holy Cross in a rematch of the 2023 championship game, Newport getting revenge with a 62-43 victory. Jabari Covington was named tournament MVP, while Griffin Starks and DeShaun Jackson were named to the All-Tournament team. Starks led the Wildcats in scoring with 18 points in the victory, Covington with 16 and Jackson chipping in 13.

The victory came with a bit of a scare as sophomore Taylen Kinney left the game with an injury and did not return. Kinney apparently avoided anything serious, with a potential for return by the All “A” state tournament.

On top of the three Wildcats that made the All-Tournament team, others were Holy Cross’ Nate Rominger and William McElheney, Beechwood’s Carson Blackburn, Newport Central Catholic’s Caleb Eaglin, Bellevue’s Zach Mertens and Jase Iles, St. Henry’s Andrew Reis, Ludlow’s Spencer Brandenburg and Dayton’s Landon Graham.

Newport won the 9th Region All “A” championship with a 62-43 victory over Holy Cross in the title game. Photo provided | Charles Bolton

Nine from NKY land on Sports Figure of the Year ballot; winner named Jan. 30 The Lexington Herald-Leader Kentucky Sports Figure of the Year nominees are out, and nine from Northern Kentucky are on

Notre Dame grad Lainy Kruger completed her high school career with five state titles. Ray Schaefer | LINK nky

the list.

The Sports Figure of the Year Award recognizes athletes, coaches or sports administrators at any level if he or she plays for a team in Kentucky, is from Kentucky or played for a college in Kentucky. Voters are asked to send in a Top 10 of the list of nominees, with a Top 10 announced prior to the top selection.

The 43rd Kentucky Sports Figure of the Year will be announced Jan. 30. The honor will be based on votes of media members from across the state. The 2022 winner was University of Kentucky men’s basketball star Oscar Tshiebwe.

The nine nominees from Northern Kentucky are Steve Flesch, Jeff Hans, Darrin Horn, Julia Hunt, Lainy Kruger, Jacob Meyer, Jackson Smith, Jeff Walz and Marques Warrick.

Flesch, a former Covington Catholic and UK star on the golf course, won the Champions Tour Ascension Charity Classic by three strokes. He finished 30th on the money list of the tour last season.

Hans coached Thomas More to a 31-4 record last season and guided the Saints to the NAIA national championship, finishing runner-up.

Horn coached NKU to a second Horizon League title in the last four seasons, earning a berth into the NCAA tournament with a 22-13 record.

Kruger is a Notre Dame Academy grad that repeated as state champion in the 200 freestyle and 100 breaststroke, leading the Pandas to a third-place team finish.

She ended her high school career with five state championships and now swims for the University of Florida.

Meyer led the state in scoring for the second straight year with Holy Cross, averaging 36.8 points per game while also pulling down 8.4 rebounds per game. Meyer was named the All “A” Classic MVP, the Indians finishing runner-up as he scored 49 points.

He set an All “A” record with 157 points in four games at the tournament and finished his career with 3,233 points.

Smith led Walton-Verona to a Class A state track and field title, the first team title for any sport at the school. He won the 100and 200-meter dash and ran relay legs for the state champ 4x200 team and runner-up 4x100 team.

Walz, a Highlands grad, coached the University of Louisville women’s basketball team to a 26-12 record and led them to the Elite 8 for the fifth straight season.

Warrick was the Horizon League Tournament MVP and led NKU in scoring.

JANUARY 26, 2024 17

frankfort

Meet Union’s Rep. Marianne Proctor

By Rebecca Hanchett Each week, LINK nky is publishing a profile of one of our local legislators so that Northern Kentuckians can get to know the people representing them at the state level.

R

ep. Marianne Proctor has followed politics for quite a while. But it was the government response to COVID-19 that she said showed her just how much politics can impact individual lives.

Concern with state mask mandates and closures specifically drove the speech language pathologist to step up her involvement in Northern Kentucky. (“There’s a loss of learning and social skills lost” with those mandates, Proctor told LINK nky).

Already active in the Boone County Republican Party, the Texan-turned-Kentuckian ran in 2022 against incumbent Sal Santoro for Kentucky House District 60 (running through central Boone County) and won.

Proctor took office in January of this year after running unopposed last fall.

Marianne Proctor. Photo provided | Legislative Research Commission

The freshman lawmaker told LINK it’s her job to put her constituents first. She said none of her bills is driven by a personal agenda. That includes House Bill 312, one of Proctor’s bills filed in her first legislative session that would have exempted Boone, Kenton and Campbell counties from the state’s certificate of need law. The bill never came to a vote, but the issue is still alive for now.

A state legislative Certificate of Need Task

Force in December recommended further study in 2024 ahead of any potential reforms to the law. Proctor is a member of the group.

“I think that’s where it belongs,” she said. “It belongs with the people, letting them make that decision. I would rather they make the decision rather than a bunch of politicians.”

Kentucky’s certificate of need law is one of 35 such laws nationally, according to a January 2023 brief from the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL). Proponents say the laws are designed to help regulate health care access and costs. Opponents say the laws are anti-competitive.

Proctor said Kentucky’s law is overly broad when compared to other states.

What the people she represents want for their government is what, she said, should happen.

Kentucky’s law regulates at least 18 types of health care facilities, according to NCSL. That’s compared with only one type of facility (long-term care) regulated under certificate of need laws in, for example, both Ohio and Indiana.

“When I was out knocking on doors (in 2022), this was a top concern that I heard from my constituents. And I continue to hear from the people,” Proctor told LINK. “So I think it’s time for reform, certainly I think, to be aligned with what Ohio does, what Indiana does. Why we hang on to 32 different services and technologies that are regulated by certificate of need is a little bit puzzling when neighbors all around us have very limited if any (of those restrictions).”

School choice is another issue that Proctor said her constituents care about. But it looks like any new proposals to allow public funds for private education or non-common schools could potentially be left to a vote at the polls instead of a final vote in the Senate and House. That’s because of a 2022 Kentucky Supreme Court ruling that found a 2021 private school voucher law unconstitutional. A 2023 lower court ruling that found a public charter school funding statute unconstitutional adds another layer of intrigue.

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Proctor said she is in full support of a referendum on the issue.

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“That’s what really got me to run is the frustration of people not being responded to,” she said.

According to Proctor, “I’m not coming in with an agenda. My constituents come to me and bring a concern.”

Those concerns often make it into bill form.

But not every bill is assigned to a committee for review and possible approval. That legislation instead never leaves the House (or Senate) floor. Proctor would like to see that changed.

“I would like to see that every bill gets an opportunity to go to a committee and let the committees decide that. That may be an unrealistic expectation given that there are so many of us, and many of us feel the need to bring lots of bills,” she said. “But I would like to see that because I believe, at least for myself, my legislation is constituent-driven.”

Rep. Marianne Proctor (R-Union) represents District 60, which covers mid-portions of Boone County. She is a member of the House Veterans, Military Affairs and Public Protection Committee; House Local Government Committee; House Families and Children Committee; and the Certificate of Need Task Force. Additionally, she is a member of the Interim Joint Committees on Families and Children, Local Government, and Veterans, Military Affairs, and Public Protection. She is also a member of several legislative caucuses.

obit

M

ary Sue Rudicill (nee Rogers), 80, of Burlington, Kentucky, passed away peacefully on Saturday, Jan. 13 at University of Cincinnati Medical Center.

Mary Sue was born in Belleview Bottoms, Kentucky. She lived there all of her life.

She deeply loved her community and its members. She never tired of doing things for the betterment of her town, especially Belleview Baptist Church. She was a faithful member of the choir, and her beautiful voice will be remembered by everyone who heard her sing.

Mary Sue had an excellent work ethic. She was successful and worked her way up through the positions in the banking industry. She served as a founding member of both Boone State Bank and Bank of Kentucky and was highly respected as a bank director by her peers. In addition to banking, she and her husband, Bill, founded Belleview Sand and Gravel.

Mary Sue embraced all that life had to offer. She loved to travel and enjoyed not only seeing new places but also using her talents to spread love wherever she went. She sang with locals in Ireland, bungee-jumped in New Zealand, sang in the Sydney Opera House and served on a mission trip in Venezuela.

Mary Sue Rudicill Mary Sue was known for being a classy woman. She was diligent about making sure that everything she did was done right.

A resilient woman, she enjoyed working on the farm with her husband. She raised a garden every year, canned the produce and loved to cook. People especially loved her chocolate pie and sweet pickles. She enjoyed being a little silly. She won many costume and Derby Day contests and was always impressed by an old-fashioned tea party with all the girls.

Mary Sue leaves behind a legacy of love.

Her devotion to her family and church family was unceasing. She was lovingly called “Grammy” by not only her grandchildren but all those who embraced her as a matriarch. She will be truly missed.

Myra (Rives) Rash, Christina (Josh) Powell, Cassidy Cupps (Jeremiah Armstrong), Jeremiah Cupps (Anna Doll), Blair Cupps, Luke (Macee) Vaske, Levi (Tris) Vaske, Pollyanna Vaske, Gianna Vaske, Silas Vaske, and Isaac Vaske; and her great-grandchildren, Grace, Will, Harper, T.R., Tyrus, Mason, Caroline and Hudson.

She will be laid to rest at Belleview Cemetery.

Memorial contributions can be made to Belleview Baptist Church.

Online condolences may be sent to linnemannfuneralhomes.com.

Mary Sue was preceded in death by her parents, Harold “Bucky” and Hilda Rogers; her daughter, Deborah Jo Rudicill; and her brother, Vaughn Rogers.

She is survived by her devoted husband of 62 years, Bill Rudicill; her daughters, Susan (Bill) Shuffett, Sandra (Danny) Cupps, and Paula (BJ) Vaske; her siblings, Paul Ethan Rogers, Charlotte Taylor, and Marty (Deane) Blazie; sister-in-law Evalene Rogers; and brother-in-law, Jim (Carol) Rudicill.

Mary Sue Rudicill. Photo provided | Linnemann Funeral Homes

Her grandchildren, Katie (Jamie) Noonan,

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