BY ANDREA TORTORA
The Cincinnati Enquirer
With the resignations of the top political leaders in Boone and Kenton counties and a re-election bid for Campbell County's judge-executive, Northern Kentucky could have a new set of leaders next year.
The coming change is not worrying economic and political leaders, who say the three judge-executives did their jobs well, taking Northern Kentucky from a three-county area to a strong, unified region.
Those leaders -- Ken Lucas, Clyde Middleton and Ken Paul -- created partnerships
like the Tri County Economic Development Corp. (Tri-ED), the Northern Kentucky Drug Strike Force and a regional sanitation district. Those efforts, many say, have given Northern Kentucky a new identity and a lasting legacy.
"This change is certainly something a lot of us have been thinking about," said Frank Sommerkamp, the chairman of Forward Quest, a group working to strengthen the region's future. "I look for little if any change. The momentum is there."
Mr. Middleton resigned as Kenton County judge-executive in February, citing health reasons and a growing controversy over the bidding of the county's courthouse project. Mr. Lucas, of Boone County, resigned this week to devote more time to his Congressional campaign against state Senator Gex "Jay" Williams.
And Mr. Paul, once the junior judge-executive, now finds himself the veteran at 51. He faces Fort Thomas Mayor Steve Pendery in his Campbell County re-election bid.
The momentum the trio created can be felt in the attitudes of Northern Kentucky residents and cooperative projects now under way, said Rodney "Biz" Cain, appointed by Gov. Paul Patton to fill Mr. Middleton's seat until a new judge-executive is elected.
"A lot of new people have moved into this community who do not know where the county lines are, or care," Mr. Cain said. "They live in the Northern Kentucky community. Candidates will deal with a constituency without the political boundaries that used to exist."
These days, the power and decision-making no longer revolves around the county courthouse. That trend started in the mid-1980s, when Bruce Ferguson headed Boone County; Ken Paul led Campbell County and Robert Aldemeyer was judge-executive of Kenton County.
"That cooperation just grew to unprecedented heights with Middleton and Lucas," Mr. Sommerkamp said. "Now I don't think there's any one person, whether elected or appointed or plain John Q. Citizen, who would think they were big enough to derail the synergies that are making Northern Kentucky the envy of others."
Some of the credit for that meshing of county lines goes to Tri-ED, the economic development corporation charged with marketing the region's potential as a job site to national and international companies.
In addition to helping attract 159 new companies, 18,661 jobs and $1.63 billion in new investment, Tri-ED's greatest legacy was that it helped bring the region together to work for a common vision. That was for a strong economy and a vibrant community, which Gov. Paul Patton has called "the economic engine driving Kentucky." Daniel E. Tobergte, Tri-Ed's senior vice president, said the changes in leadership were inevitable and anticipated.
"Tri-Ed certainly hopes that the ground work has been laid for continued cooperation among the highest elected officials in the region," Mr. Tobergte said. "We expect nothing less."
Mr. Paul said he believes the strong ties between the three communities will continue. Historically, the three counties could be greedy, thinking of their own interests. But about 12 years ago things started to change. Fewer tax revenues spelled the need for cooperation, to become more efficient by working together.
Despite his optimism, Mr. Paul said will miss working with his two long-time colleagues.
"We've just been very fortunate and lucky to be the captains of the ships during this time," Mr. Paul said. "The coach can change but there's a whole bench of players."
