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Covington board denies variance to convert Rutland warehouse to event center
Summary
The City of Covington Board of Adjustments denied a variance request to allow an event center at 621 East Rutland Street, concluding the applicant did not demonstrate the required hardship and the proposed use conflicted with CO zoning limits on building size and permitted uses.
The City of Covington Board of Adjustments voted unanimously to deny a variance request for an event center at 621 East Rutland Street, saying the application resembled a zoning change rather than the narrow hardship relief the board handles.
The matter, filed as case number 250101, sought permission to use an existing warehouse in a CO (commerce/office professional) zoning district as an event center and to exceed the 4,000-square-foot limit the ordinance allows for nonresidential buildings in that zone. The board’s motion to deny carried on a 5-0 roll call.
Why it matters: Neighbors said the proposed assembly use and the scale of the building — the applicant described using roughly 12,000 square feet of the warehouse — would be incompatible with the CO transition zone between downtown and residential areas. City counsel and multiple residents told the board that an event center is not the same as a warehouse and that long‑standing zoning limits and building‑size caps apply.
Neighbors and presenters differed about current and past uses of the property. Todd Rishardt, who identified himself as living at 150 North New Hampshire Street and said he is “the house that's immediately adjacent to this property,” urged rejection: “I'm asking that this body, reject the appeal and support the city's position.”
Applicant and proponents said the building has been used historically as a warehouse and that rehabilitating it for community events would reduce blight. Enid Poole, who identified her family connection to the property and described the proposal, said the venue would host “fundraisers, art shows, [and] overflow stuff” and that the project team planned to use shuttle and satellite parking and to “work on getting a plan together for sound mitigation.” Presenters also described plans to use nearby Justice Center parking for events and said large gatherings would be occasional.
City counsel summarized the legal issue for the board: “The property is unequivocally zoned CO. ... Warehouses are not a permitted use in CO, warehouses are a prohibited use in CO,” and, he said, the applicant would need to show a hardship for relief; otherwise the request appears to be a use change better addressed through rezoning.
The board moved that, because the applicant had not shown the required hardship and the request effectively sought a zoning change, the matter be denied. The roll call vote was recorded as Butler — yes; Gilley — yes; Williams — yes; Lucas — yes; Romage — yes.
The denial leaves the owner the option of pursuing a formal rezoning or other permitted uses consistent with the CO district; no follow-up direction to staff was recorded in the transcript.
Votes at a glance: Case 250101 — variance to permit event center at 621 East Rutland Street. Motion: deny for lack of proven hardship and because the request is effectively a zoning change. Outcome: denied (5–0).
