Gateway Community and Technical College has unveiled its master plan for its Urban Campus in downtown Covington. Along with new construction, it calls for adapting nine existing properties that will form the nucleus of the new campus. It'll cover a six-block area from 4th to 7th Streets and from Greenup to Madison.
"We expect that there will be education outcomes," Gateway President and CEO told an audience gathered at the college's Urban Center to hear the details of the plan. "These are some of the education outcomes we anticipate: 2,500 new students by 2014; 5,000 new students by 2020."
Hughes said the Urban Campus will not only change the lives of students, it will create economic development potential for the river cities and the whole region.
Coupled with the college's existing facilities on Scott Boulevard, the buildings will provide about 300,000 square feet for instruction, student services and related academic purposes.
Among the buildings that will be converted is the former Marx furniture store. It'll become Gateway's Technology and Design Center. The former YMCA building on East Pike will be turned into a student services and workforce development hub. Hughes says the master plan complements what's in the community and doesn't duplicate what's already there.
The goal is to replace Gateway's aging campus on the western edge of Covington with one that will provide easier access for urban residents.
The plan is estimated to cost $80 million over the next decade. Proceeds from the sale of the college's Amsterdam Road campus and nearby Park Hills School, which the Gateway Foundation purchased in 2003, will be used to develop the downtown site. The Foundation has agreed to raise up to $5 million initially. The Kentucky Community and Technical College System has committed more than $12 million. Gateway will seek the rest of the funding from the General Assembly in 2014.