The West Newport neighborhood in Newport, KY is a historically significant, diverse, and close-knit community with affordable housing, walkable streets, and a strong sense of local pride rooted in its architectural heritage and cultural identity. It is strategically located near major assets—such as the KY 9 corridor, the Licking River, the new Ovation Music Venue, Monmouth Street’s Central Business District, and downtown Covington, making it an attractive place to live, work, and invest. However, this proximity also brings challenges, including increased cut-through traffic, limited access to green spaces, and the risk of displacement due to rising development pressure. The area suffers from a lack of tree canopy and recreational space, contributing to a heat island effect and reduced quality of life for some residents.
While the neighborhood’s demographic diversity is a strength, it also presents challenges in ensuring that redevelopment efforts are inclusive, equitable, and responsive to the varied needs of residents across income levels, ages, and cultural backgrounds. Differences in access to transportation, housing stability, and economic opportunity can create disparities in how residents experience growth and change in the neighborhood.
This community development project brought together residents, local businesses, city leaders, and regional partners to address these challenges in a way that strengthens and sustains the neighborhood. By improving multi-modal transportation options, enhancing public spaces, protecting affordable housing, and leveraging historic preservation tools, the project will support inclusive growth that benefits both current and future residents. West Newport is poised to become a model of equitable, resilient, and community-driven redevelopment—one that honors its past while building a vibrant future for all who live and work there.
Current West Newport Site Plan
Current West Newport Aerial View
Our Role in the Project
Hub+Weber was engaged early on to provide architectural and conceptual urban planning insight that could showcase the development potential of the west side of Newport. Services included many brainstorming and engagement meetings with the local community, staff, and administration to expand upon the wants and needs of the area and residents. We then developed marketing materials, such as illustrative plans and renderings, that have been and will continue to be used to generate understanding of and enthusiasm for the west side community’s goals.
Our process involved evaluating the community's goals and then developing a design approach with the community in small committees. We encouraged all those involved to dream big and take advantage of the possibilities afforded by a comprehensive study. This brought about great aspirations for our team to dive into. We weren't setting out to raze and redevelop the entire neighborhood, but instead to think conceptually and creatively about how to improve quality of life while still maintaining the diverse and rich character of the area. Ultimately, our objective was to create a set of guidelines for development to follow that reflects the community history and aspirations in a positive and fruitful way.
Community Charrette Goals and Rules
Our goals for the project were to identify the needs and desires of Newport's west side community. We wanted to move the needle of future design towards a more community-centric development.
Our rules for community engagement:
1.There are no wrong answers.
2. Respect everyone, as each person comes from a different background and life experience and will therefore have a different perspective. All perspectives are important.
3. Don't let "perfect" get in the way of "great". There will be compromises both now and, in the future, but that doesn't mean great things have to be set aside at either point.
4. "Gentrification" is a byproduct of improving the quality of life, but it is possible to guard against displacement and ensure equity with policy and intentional development strategies. Don't let the idea of gentrification dissuade you from asking more of your city.
5. This is not a final plan. Our intention is just to start a conversation based on the vision of the community.
Below is a sneak peek of some results we gathered from the community charrettes. Enjoy!
Creating better spaces and thriving communities is something we're passionate about, and we were thrilled to be involved. The folks that call West Newport home have a voice, and we want to make sure they are heard. Stay tuned for the next two weeks, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, as this blog series dives into the community’s aspirations and the concepts Hub+Weber developed in response.
Til Tuesday fam!