Plans show Sims Furniture in Covington to get new life as offices

Dec 25, 2023

A plan is currently underway to redevelop the former Sims Furniture store in Covington into office space, public records show.

On Tuesday, the Kenton County Fiscal Court unanimously approved a resolution supporting the use of up to $3 million in site development funds by the Northern Kentucky Port Authority to partially finance the project at 727 Madison Ave.

"It is a historically and architecturally significant building and a key property in Covington's historic downtown business district," an outline of the redevelopment plan reads.

Records show the building is comprised of roughly 47,000 square feet, with 39,000 square feet able to accomodate office-using tenants.

Plans include a full renovation of the building's exterior and conversion of the space into offices offering "flexible lease terms to accommodate rapid growth companies," the outline reads. "There is no office space in downtown Covington that can provide that flexibility and the Sims building is the perfect location for establishing this center."

The building's "open configuration" makes it uniquely suitable for office space, according to the outline.

The thought process behind leasing the space to such companies is that once they outgrow their office at the Sims building, they'll relocate elsewhere in Kenton County, records show.

One company that already has a Covington presence, eGateway Capital, plans to move its operations and some of its portfolio companies to the Sims building, records show. The nonprofit Blue North will also have a presence there.

The total redevelopment cost is $9 million to $10 million, according to the public records, with funding sources including county funding of the building's acquisition cost, financing from the Catalytic Fund and up to $2.5 million in state and federal historic tax credits.

The building has stood vacant since Sims Furniture moved out last year. The Covington storefront opened in the mid-1970s and was known for its Christmas display.

It's currently owned by Milburn Realty 2 LLC, an Erlanger-based company organized by Joseph Anthony Milburn and John Milburn III, according to Kenton County Property Valuation Administrator records and state business filings.

The building is in need of extensive exterior repairs including new windows and removal of "architecturally detracting updates," according to the outline, such as a modification made to one of the storefronts in the 1960s.

The renovated building could accommodate more than 100 jobs, the outline states.